Veggie bean tacos

I got this recipe from my friend Pam's blog and it is really delicious and super healthy.  It is also easy to customize to whatever veggies you have in your fridge.  This recipe makes a lot probably around 20 tortillas or maybe even more.  I froze some of the mixture.

Ingredients:
1 onion - chopped
1/2 bell pepper (whichever color you like best) - chopped
2 cloves garlic - minced
1/2 green squash
1/2 yellow squash
1 1/2 c shredded cabbage
1/2 c spinach - chopped
4-5 mushrooms - sliced
1 can black beans - drained and rinsed
1 can refried beans
1/2 TBS cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 c cooked rice
corn tortillas

Methods:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Saute onions, garlic, and colored pepper till slightly soft.
2. Add all of the rest of veggies, salt, and pepper,  and cook until al dente.
3. Add both kinds of beans and stir until well incorporated, add cumin to taste.  I like cumin alot so I probably added even more than 1/2 TBS.  The recipe called to also add the rice, but I didn't do this because I knew I was going to freeze some of the mixture and rice freezes weird.
4.  Place tortillas in microwave with a wet paper towel to soften them.  If they aren't softened enough they will split when you try to roll them.
5.  Place scoop a bean mixture and scoop of rice inside each tortilla and roll, place seam side down in baking dish.  Spray lightly with cooking spray and bake for 10-15 minutes until everything is heated through. I broiled them for the last few minutes to get the tortillas nice and crispy.
6.  Top with salsa, a little queso fresco, and cilantro.

Barbacoa Beef

• 3 lbs beef eye of round or bottom round roast, all fat trimmed - i used a chuck roast
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1/2 medium onion
• 1/2 lime, juice
• 2-4 chiptoles in adobo sauce (to taste) - be careful as these are spicy, 2 would be good for those not really into spicy food - you get these in the hispanic aisle at the grocery store.
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp ground oregano
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• salt and pepper
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 cup water

Directions:

1. Place garlic, onion, lime juice, cumin, oregano, chiptoles, cloves in a food processor.
2. Trim all fat off meat, cut into 4 inch chunks. Season with salt and pepper and brownon high heat in 1 tsp oil.

3. Place browned meat in crock pot, cover with food processed spices, water, and 3 bay leafs.  Cook on low for 8 hours or longer (mine cooked for like 12)

You can eat this over rice, over a salad, or in a taco.  All are good.

Fresh tomato salsa

This is a really simple and delicious salsa, well I guess it is closer to pico de gallo.  If you want to make it more salsa like you can add a bit of tomato paste to it.  This recipe makes a pretty large batch

Ingredients:
3 tomatoes, chopped - I just used whatever tomatoes were on sale.  mine were pretty big if yours are small add a few extra tomatoes.
1/2 c finely diced onion
1 jalapeno pepper - I used a small one from my plant seeds and all and my salsa came out very spicy.  You could also use 2 Serrano chilies if you like
1/2 cup fresh cilantro - chopped
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons lime juice - about a lime

Directions:
1. In a bowl mix together all the ingredients and chill for about an hour in the fridge before serving.

Amy Moody's Homemade Tortillas Recipe

These are super easy and super delicious. Also, they don't require many ingredients and all of them are things you always have around. These were a huge hit during snow pandemonium.

Ingredients:

2 c. white flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. olive oil
about 3/4 c. warm water..you might not use it all.

1. Mix all dry ingredients together well.
2. Add olive oil and then some of the warm water.
3. Add more water slowly until it is sticky but dough-like.
4. Knead it for about 1 minute on floured surface.
5. Divide into balls. 18-20 for small tortillas / 10-12 for larger ones.
6. Thinly roll out the dough balls on floured surface as circular as possible.
7. Cook in pan (I did it on my griddle at 375 degrees) on medium heat. Be sure to spray with spray so they do not stick.
8. They cook approx. 30 seconds to a minute per side.
9. Flip with kabob stick or appetizer stick.
10. Put in a warm bowl with lid as you cook. When done cooking you can microwave the bowl with stack of tortillas for 40 sec. just before serving.

Snow Pandamonium Margaritas

For some reason when it snows all I want is margaritas so Silvano and I created our own. This is how the DKM was born and it is absolutely delicious, do not doubt it.

Regular margarita Ingredients:
limes - 7 will yield about a cup of juice
simple syrup - it is very easy to create your own, it is just sugar (preferably sugar in the raw) and water boiled and then cooled
tequila - it is probably best to use a quality margarita but we chose Juarez and it was still delicious
triple sec

Extra ingredients needed if you want a DKM (Diana Klein Margarita)
fresh or frozen strawberries
blue raspberry lemonade kool-aid

1. Juice the limes
2. In a shaker mix ice, 1 oz lime juice, 1 oz triple sec, 2 oz tequila, and 1 oz simple syrup
3. Pour into a glass and enjoy

For a DKM
1. Mix 3 strawberries and 2 oz. raspberry lemonade in a magic bullet (or blender) until smooth
2. In shaker mix ice, 1 oz lime juice, 1 oz triple sec, 2 oz tequila, 1 oz simple syrup, and strawberry kool-aid mix.
3. Enjoy the deliciousness

Mexican Chicken Soup

This is a super simple and tasty soup courtesy of one of my Bealeton co-workers. It is very easy to add a lot of variety to it.

1 TBS oil
1 small onion - chopped
1 jalapeno - diced
2 garlic cloves - minced
2 tsp cumin
5 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 lbs chicken - I usually use about 4 chicken thighs.
2 cups store bought salsa
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and jalapeno and cook until tender. Stir in garlic and cumin and cook 30 seconds more.

Add broth and bring to a rapid simmer. Add chicken and cook until no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Stir in salsa and bring back to a simmer, season with salt and pepper to taste and serve hot with a dollop of sour cream.

For more variety you can substitute shrimp for the chicken. I also like to add corn, black beans, and sometimes rice to this soup.


This soup is also great to make in a crock pot.  Just put the onion, jalapeno, garlic, cumin, broth, and chicken thighs in the crock pot on low all day.  After about 6-8 hours pull the chicken out to remove the bones and gristle and then add the salsa, corn, black beans, and any veggies you like and let it cook for like 20 more minutes.