Vegan Black Bean Burgers Two Ways

Somehow I always end up with several cans of  black beans in the pantry. I haven't been buying food we weren't using each week so I'm not sure if these had been hiding for a while or if I unconsciously put them in the cart one day.

Either way, I decided it was time to use them and I wanted to be more creative than tacos or burritos.

Therefore, I decided to tackle black bean burgers. I'd never made them before so I looked through several recipes. I can't point to one that I followed, I kind of created a smash up of all of them. However, I can say after all that research I had no idea there were so many variations of black bean burgers.

My Ingredients
2 cans of black beans

2 cups of uncooked quinoa
1/2 red onion sauteed
1 tablespoon each of
           -chipotle powder
           -cayenne power
1/2 tbs cumin
salt and pepper to taste

These burgers were very easy to make but next time I'll add some panko or maybe walnuts to give them more texture and to bind them more. They fell apart very easily.

To make these I sauteed the onion and cooked the quinoa. Then added half the black beans, all the onion, and 3/4 of the quinoa to the food processor.

After blending the ingredients I mixed them in the with reserves black beans and quiona and added the spices. 

Finally, I formed them in to patties. I kept for out for the next two days and wrapped the rest in plastic wrap and put them in the freezer for later in the week.

The first set I back in the oven at 350 for about 20 minutes, turning once.

Later in the week I tried grilling the burgers to try a get a crunch on them. 

And, even later in the week I cooked them in a pan on medium for about 10 minutes with some olive oil.

I like the pan cooked burgers best because they got a little crunchy. 

Over the course of the week I served the burgers two ways.

First, I served them with a serrano vegan sour cream and salsa on a bread thin. The sides were carrots with vegan Godess dressing and homemade sweet potato chips. (more on the chips later!0

homemade mango salsa

Second, I made burger towers layered with avocado, and a homemade mango salsa. The side is a grilled pineapple and watermelon salad.

I'm sure I'll make these burgers again because they are versatile and fairly cheap to make. I'm going to keep playing with the recipe until I get a sturdier patty.

avocado slices are the middle layer

 The Carnivore like the 2nd version of the black bean burgers best. I agree the avocado really helped bring out the flavor. His only complaint was that I gave him too much fruit that day.



As we were eating I realized I do go a bit fruit crazy that day! I'm just so happy to have so many fresh fruits and vegetables this summer.

Vegan Green Curry

After making tacos this weekend and being disappointed with the heat level in the serrano sauce, I decided to give spicy another try and make a vegan green curry.

The ingredients in the dish are simple and it is an excellent dish to us up whatever veggies you might have in the fridge.

I know curry is traditionally served with rice but we've been eating a lot of rice lately. So, instead I used a vegan udon noodle that I found on my grocery store shelf. It did come with a sauce pack that I threw out.

Ingredients
green curry paste (next time I'm going to make my own)
1 can lite coconut milk
2 serrano peppers to add heat
salt to taste
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
1 can of corn
fresh spinach
1 can of diced green chilies
1 red or orange pepper
2 handfuls of frozen peas
green onions and crunchy rice noodles for garnish

In a sauce pan I simmered the coconut milk and 2 tablespoons of the green curry paste for 5 minutes.

Then I added all of the vegetables except the spinach. I cooked them on medium for another 5 minutes.

Since this dish was meant for two days of lunch I filled a 2 cup container with the curry mixture.

Finally, I added the udon noodles and spinach to the remaining curry mixture and cooked the dish for a final 3 minutes.

Before putting the dish in bowls I quickly diced 3/4 of one serrano pepper and tossed in the pan. I gave it a quick stir and let it sit for one minute.

Then I split the curry in to two bowls and topped with green onion.

This dish took about 30 minutes to make and tasted pretty close to green curries that I've had at Thai restaurants in the past. I loved the udon noodles. I know I've had a whole wheat version somewhere before that I want to try to find.

I'd certainly make this dish again. However, it has given me some confidence to try to make my own curries from scratch. Up next, I think I'm going to try to recreate a vegetable korma that is by far my favorite Indian dish.

Vegan Tacos-Fried Avocado and Mango Black Bean

And then The Carnivore said "Let's try vegan tacos this weekend."

Wait. What? Did The Carnivore actually request a vegan meal?

Yes. Yes, he did.

Fried Avocado Crunchy Taco

food nirvana

Did you know you can fry avocado? I didn't until a few days ago. Fried avocado is something I didn't need to discover!

Ingredients
1 large avocado
panko bread crumbs
chipotle powder
salt
olive oil
1 can of corn
1 red pepper
1 fresh jalapeno
cilantro
1 box of crunchy taco shells

I based my creation off of this recipe I found on foodiecrush.com

The original recipe used a wash to make the panko stick to the avocado.

I left that step out because I didn't feel it was necessary. I simply sprinkled the avocado with salt and chipotle before pressing it in the bread crumbs. Then, I transferred it right in to the pan of hot olive oil. Once browned, the avocado was flipped once and then moved to a paper lined plate.

a little bit of all the things

In a bowl, I then mixed the corn, sliced jalapeno, cilantro, and a dash of salt. I also sliced and added the red pepper to the corn.

These tacos were so good I didn't manage to get a picture of them assembled. We ate them too fast.

Fried avocado is amazing!!!


Mango Black Bean Soft Taco with Serrano Sauce

Tacos
1 can of black beans
1 red onion
1 ripe mango
handful of vegan mozzarella shreds
1 pack of soft tacos (I used chia tortillas from Trader Joe's because I know they are vegan)

Sauce**
10 oz vegan sour cream
2 serrano peppers
2 raw jalapenos
handful of cilantro
3 green onion

Super easy directions: mix the taco ingredients together and wrap them in taco wrapper. bake in oven at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

Sauce-put all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend until everything is mixed.

**I like things super spicy. Like my lips are on fire and numb at the same time spicy. I'd add at least 2 more serrano peppers next time. I'd suggest adding the peppers in slowly to make sure its not too spicy for you**

These tacos were delish. The red onion mellows out in the oven. The mango got a little lost so I'd use two next time. Also, our mango wasn't quite as ripe as it could have been.

Vegan-Tofu with Spicy Peanut Sauce

The Carnivore loves Thai food. In particular, he found a dish called Chicken Popeye at a local thai restaurant that he loves.

In the past I haven't been crazy about peanut sauces but I wanted to try to make a vegan dish this week that appealed to The Carnivore's palate since he's been so great about all the vegan dishes.

At this point he's eating 50% to 60% vegan based on the day of the week. He even went completely vegan for two days in a row!

After searching for spicy peanut sauce recipes I stumbled on a recipe from Kayln's Kitchen.

Please reference her recipe for ingredients and measurements.

I played with the sauce recipe a bit. I used peanut butter made with coconut oil, doubled the sriracha, peanut butter, and water, and I added some whole peanuts on top for crunch. I also added some spinach.


I was happy to eat this meal two days in a row. However, next time I would store the sauce separate from the tofu overnight because it could have used a good stir the next day.

The Carnivore said the sauce was very close to the sauce in his beloved Chicken Popeye. However, he did declare that he needed meat once in a while after finding the texture of the tofu less than satisfying.

This dish was the first time I'd tried to fry tofu and I pulled it out of the pan before it could get crispy since I was worried about overcooking it or drying it out. Next time I'll leave it in longer.

And, as much as we both love spicy I don't feel like sriracha is the right element to lend heat to this dish. I think I'll try to use some raw thai chilies next time to see if it turns out more to our tastes.

Overall, this recipe was a great place to start. I think I'll be coming back to it over the next few months to perfect it.

Pantry Panic Inspired Shrimp Bowl

As a treat this week I suggested The Carnivore get Thai takeout from a great Thai place we found in Omaha.

They have this Chicken Popeye dish with a peanut sauce that he loves.

I suggested this for last Sunday since I was working on breaking my juice cleanse and only eating a small amount of raw veggies. But, of course, we both forgot that they are closed on Sunday.

This is the 2nd time we've forgotten and I found myself wondering what in the world I was going to fix because other than what I purchase for our meals each week there is literally no other food in the house.

I did find 1 can of corn and 1 can of black beans hidden in the back of the pantry that I overlooked. Thank goodness!

Using the canned goods and what I had on hand I was inspired to make a Shrimp Burrito Bowl of sorts.

Ingredients: steam shrimp, white rice, corn, cilantro, roma tomatoes, jalapenos, avocado.

I had some of the corn and tomato mixture but I wasn't up to rice and beans yet. And I'm going vegan for the summer so no shrimp.

Easy. Simple. Delicious.

Black Beans and Rice on the bottom

Improved Fried Rice with Shrimp

For a first go at Chinese food, or American Chinese food at any rate, I think the Pork Fried rice turned out okay.

However, I wasn't happy with the way I added the egg. You couldn't actually see the egg because it was all mashed up with the rice. And, I think it needed a bit more soy sauce and Sriracha.

After we used all the pork I decided to make the fried rice with shrimp.

I bought some raw shrimp that was frozen and cooked them myself in boiling water on the stove.

I shelled them and cooked them in a mixture of soy sauce, rice vinegar, olive oil, Sriracha, and chopped onions for about 2 minutes on med-low heat to add some flavor.






Then I sauteed some broccoli and snow peas.

Next, I added the already cooked white rice to a pan contained heated soy sauce, oil oil, and rice vinegar. Once the rice was coated I added some Sriracha for heat.







After the rice has absorbed the liquid I pushed the rice to one side and added a bit more olive oil and two eggs to the empty side of the pan.

Once the eggs were almost cooked I mixed the rice back in and returned the shrimp and green veggies to the pan.






The Carnivore says this attempt at fried rice was much better. I think it looks better. He did add some more Sriracha though because he does like things spicy!

Gnocchi with White Beans, Tomatoes, Spinach and Mozzarella

Lunch this week was almost a one skillet meal, except for the gnocchi, which we discovered while in Venice last summer. I've heard Gnocchi described as a potato pasta but it reminds me more of a dumpling due to its density.

After attempting my own pasta earlier this week I took the easy way out on the gnocchi and bought them off the shelf at, of all places, Target.

We'd had them once before a few months ago and discovered last week that Target had started carrying several new varieties: mushroom and pumpkin! Yum!

I found the inspiration for this dish here but changed it a bit to suit our tastes.

This dish was very easy and took about 20 minutes to cook. Of course I soaked and cooked the beans the night before but you could always use canned to make it quicker.

The most complicated step here was chopping the onion and garlic. Onions must be out to get me. Every single onion I've chopped in the last two weeks has attacked my eyes without mercy.

Step 1: Boil the gnocchi and then crisp in a pan. They cook in about 2-3 minutes and float when they are ready.

Step 2: Saute the garlic and onions in olive oil. Add the tomatoes. Simmer. Add salt, beans, and can wilt and mix in spinach or serve on the side.

Step 3: Add mozzarella. I also added in a decent amount of pesto both in the sauce and on the mozzarella since I had some left over from the pasta experiment earlier in the week. I love pesto! The basil was nice addition to the dish.

Step 4: Plate and serve! So easy!

I love meals that cook together in one pan. The Carnivore hasn't complained but he doesn't like one skillet meals as much as I do.

I found this dish very filling due to the beans which is good since I'm juicing breakfast and dinner this week.

Each time I've made it this week I've added the ingredients in a different order but I've found it very important to simmer the mix for a good 5-10 minutes since it uses canned tomatoes. And I've also learned to put the beans in as late as possible since they are already cooked to avoid them turning in to a mushy mess.

Pork 2 Ways with Brocolli

After spending half the day making the lasagna I wanted something simple to do for lunch each day.

So, on a trip to Sam's club for veggies to juice we picked up a massive pork loin for lunch this week.

The Carnivore cut the loin in to two inch medallions and we seasoned the loin cuts in freezer bags in 2 day portions.The bags contained 6 pieces of loin each-one portion a day for me and two a day for The Carnivore. Must be nice to have a male metabolism.

To avoid getting bored with pork each day I made two different rubs for the pork.

We both love broccoli so the side for this meal was an easy decision. I seasoned it with some garlic powder and salt. Not fancy but yummy all the same.

I did want to make some collard greens because I think they go well with pork but it takes some convincing to get the Carnivore to agree to collards. Maybe next week. Or the week after. I've thought about them and now I'm on a mission to bring collards to the table.

Savory Rub
1 tablespoon olive oil

I love those grill marks!

2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander

Salt and Pepper to taste

Mustard Rub
 2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
a few squeezes from my honey bear
Salt and pepper

We both liked the savory rub better. I'd never made pork with mustard before but I think we could like it paired with a sweet element like a grilled green apple chutney.

This meal was surprisingly filling and I actually looked forward to eating a piece of pork each day. Probably has something to do with childhood. I have very fond memories of my mom's Shake and Bake pork chops growing up. Man, I loved those things!

Quick Weekend Salad with Arancini Rice Balls

I somehow forgot to plan food for this weekend. Opps!

Since grocery shopping was happening this Sunday I had to come up with a few meals with what I had on hand in the house, which wasn't much.

Luckily, there were a few treasures in the freezer. Last week I bought a package of frozen arancini rice balls from Traders Joe's. It was an impulse purchase that I'm glad I made. I used the rice balls (rice, bread crumbs, basil, fontina) to make the side salad we'd had all week a bit heartier and that served as lunch on Saturday.

On Sunday before heading to the store I made the same salad again and served it with a cup of chili that I made a few weeks ago. Thank goodness for making chili in bulk!

I wish I had taken a picture of it but if you've seen one bowl of chili you've pretty much seen them all. Mine might be a little different because I started using beef stock for my chili base instead of tomato juice. I made chili a lot in the winter and changing the base was a way to switch things up so we didn't get bored.

And, we did try a few different juices this weekend.

Carrot Apple Ginger

The carrot and apple make this a sweet juice but the ginger makes it amazing. The more ginger the better!

Watermelon Kale Mint

I think this juice tastes like Spring. It tastes fresh without any of the individual ingredients overpowering the blend. I did juice the watermelon rind but cut off the outer skin because it wasn't organic. The Carnivore felt the rind taste was overpowering but I didn't notice it after the first sip. He claims I have weird taste buds.

Honey Chipotle Salmon with Grilled Asparagus and Parmesan Rice with Cremini Mushrooms

Lunch #2: Honey Chipotle Salmon with Grilled Asparagus and Parmesan Rice with Cremini Mushrooms

The fish was bought frozen at Sam's Club a few weeks ago and was one of the ingredients I needed to use to get out of the house. We also thought it was a good idea to buy a 25lb bag of rice last year. Needless to say, we're going to be eating rice for a while more.


I made this meal in 35 minutes which was certainly a record for me. Normally when I have more than one dish that requires prep a time vortex somehow appears in my kitchen and in the blink of an eye its been an hour and nothing is done yet.

The Carnivore can attest that one Sunday I spent 3 hours in the kitchen and still ended up serving raw potatoes. Yes, wine was involved. But I still don't know how I managed to under cook a potato after 3 hours. Anyways...

The salmon went on a pan in the oven first because it takes 20 minutes to cook.

Then I chopped and sauteed the onions and garlic. I browned the rice in the same pan and then added a can of chicken stock and half a cup of water.

While that was cooking I cleaned and cut the asparagus. The asparagus was drizzled in olive oil, topped with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper and tossed on our counter top grill for about 3 minutes.

Then the mushrooms were cleaned and chopped and tossed in the nearly cooked rice with a healthy dose of Parmesan cheese. And voila, lunch was done!

Avocado Chicken Salad Sandwiches with Baby Carrots, Honeycrisp Apples, and Grapes

Lunch #1: Avocado Chicken Salad Sandwiches with Baby Carrots, Honeycrisp Apples*, and Grapes

There's nothing better than a creamy avocado and I make mean guacamole. So, to replace mayo in the chicken salad I basically made guac and used it with the chicken. And, to put more whole fruits and veggies I'm trying to replace not so great sides (chips, fries, pasta salad) with crunchy, whole alternatives.

 The first day I made the sandwiches I assembled them as normal:

However, eating was messy since the avocado mix squeezed out when we took a bite of the sandwich. Not fun.

The next day I learned from my error and made more of a deconstructed plate which I found more appetizing because I love food I get to assemble as I eat.

yeah, I don't know how this pic turned out so well either!

*Honeycrisp Apples
In my opinion, honeycrisp apples are the holy grail of apples.  I'd take them over a good chocolate bar any day. And for me, that's saying a lot. I got bags of them at Sam's Club last year for a good price but I haven't seen an abundance of them this year. I read somewhere that honeycrisp would be scarce this season due to freeze damage and other weather related reasons in Michigan but I'm not sure if that's why.