Meal idea…

Chicken with onions and black eyed peas

 

Meal idea…

Shrimp and veggie stir-fry

 

Pinto Beans with Bacon and Jalapenos Recipe

INGREDIENTS
1 Tbsp olive oil, grapeseed oil, or canola oil
2 to 3 whole jalapeño chile peppers
2 to 3 thick-cut slices of bacon
2 cups of chopped onion
2 medium clove of garlic, minced
4 cups of cooked pinto beans (2 15-ounce cans, rinsed and drained)
Salt
1/2 cup, loosely packed, chopped fresh cilantro
METHOD
1 Heat oil in a medium skillet on high heat. Put the jalapeños in the pan and stir to coat with the oil. Let cook, turning occasionally, on all sides, until all sides are nicely browned (about 10-15 minutes, depending on how hot your burner is). Remove from pan. Cut away and discard the stem, core, seeds, and veins. Coarsely chop the remaining jalapeño flesh.
2 While the jalapeños are cooking, cook the bacon slices on medium low heat in a large skillet, until crispy. Remove bacon from the pan to a paper towel-lined plate. Pour off (do not discard down the drain!) all but 2 tablespoons of bacon fat.
3 Add the chopped onion to the pan with the bacon fat. Increase the heat to medium high and cook until translucent and lightly browned. Add the minced garlic and cook a minute more. While the onion is cooking, chop the cooked bacon.
4 Add the cooked beans, chopped bacon, and the chopped jalapeños to the pan and stir to mix. Sprinkle with salt.
Serve with chopped fresh cilantro, and steak and salsa.

Meal Idea…

Chicken fajitas with no tortilla and pinto beans

Slow Cooked Taco Chicken

Slow Cooked Taco Chicken [Makes 6 servings]
From Budget Bytes

1 1/2 lb chicken breasts
16 oz jar salsa
15 oz can black beans, drained
8 oz frozen corn
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tbsp cumin
1/2 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt
Cracked pepper, to taste

Add everything to the slow cooker along with 1/4 cup of water (for good measure). Give everything a good stir and make sure the chicken is covered in the mixture. Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hrs.

After 8 hours of cooking, carefully remove the lid of the slow cooker. Stir with a fork to shred the chicken (it should be super tender and will shred easily).

Wild Mushroom Beef Stew

 

2 lbs. beef stew meat, cut in 1-inch pieces
3 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 c. vegetable broth
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1/2 c. red wine
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 pints wild mushrooms, in large pieces
1 c. fresh parsley, chopped

In a small bowl, combine the flour, pepper, and thyme. Add beef to the crock pot and toss to coat with seasoned flour. Combine the broth, tomato paste, wine, and garlic. Mix well and pour over beef. Add mushrooms on top of beef, but do not mix in.

Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours. Do not lift lid during cooking! (I know you want to. But don’t.) Mix with chopped parsley before serving.

CrockPot Curried Chicken with Cauliflower and Lentils

Serves 6-8

(Adapted from Food Network)

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs (I used breasts)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 bag lentils (1 pound, or 2 1/4 cups), picked over (I used green lentils, but you could also use red)
2 tablespoons oil (I used coconut oil, but the original recipe suggested canola)
6 cloves garlic, minced
2-inch piece fresh ginger, minced
1/3 to 1/2 cup prepared curry paste (I used Patak’s mild, close to 1/2 cup)
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth (I used homemade)
2 cups whole milk plain yogurt (regular yogurt, not Greek yogurt)
1 head cauliflower, broken into large florets
2 (16-ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 bunch fresh cilantro or mint leaves, chopped
1 lemon, cut in wedges

Spray the CrockPot insert with cooking spray (it cleans-up a lot easier later if you do this). I defrosted my fully-frozen chicken breasts in the microwave until they were mostly thawed, but they were still partially frozen when I put them in. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper, then pour the lentils on top.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Heat the oil; add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant. Add the curry paste and cook about 2 minutes more. Whisk the broth into the pan, then whisk in the yogurt until fully incorporated. (I found it was easier to pour the broth mixture into a large bowl and then add the yogurt, but you can keep everything in the skillet if you don’t want to wash multiple dishes.) Pour the liquid into the CrockPot over the chicken and lentils.

Cover and cook on HIGH for 6 hours. Halfway through cooking time, add the cauliflower and chickpeas.

(Note: After the cooking time ended, I lifted out the top layer of cauliflower and fished out the chunks of chicken from the bottom of the pot, shredding them with a knife and fork. Return everything to the CrockPot and stir well.)

Top the curry with freshly torn mint or cilantro

Steak with Syrian Spinach and Lentils

 

I have to thank ABC’s Diane Sawyer for this recipe.  During her travels to the Middle East she had the opportunity to taste the local food and share it with us back in the states.  This recipe visually looks ok, sounds good , but tastes  AMAZING.  I grew up with a lot of lentil soup and generally enjoy the flavor, but this was a great combination and I will be making this often.  It is loaded in magnesium and folic acids–so it is a super yummy way to get a lot of good stuff into your diet.  Not to mention that it is hearty and filling.  So here it is.

Ingredients

1 16 oz frozen leaf spinach

1 medium-size onion, peeled

5 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 cup dried lentils, picked over, washed, and drained

1 1/2 to 1 3/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cumin seeds

1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Cooking Directions

Cut the onion in half lengthwise, and then cut the halves into fine half rings.

Heat the oil in and add the onion and garlic.

Stir and saute for 2 minutes.

Now put in the lentils and 3 cups of water. Bring to a boil.

Cover, lower heat and simmer about 25 minutes or until lentils are just tender.

Add the thawed and drained spinach leaves along with salt and cumin.

Stir to mix and bring to a simmer.

Cover and simmer another 10 to 15 minutes or until spinach is tender and well-mixed into the lentils. Stir gently a few times during this period.

Put in the black pepper and mix again.

This dish may easily be made ahead of time and reheated.

 

Chicken Chili with Black Beans

At only 323 calories per serving and packing over 40 grams of protein, this chili is a healthy, quick dinner that everyone can enjoy.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35-40 minutes

Ingredients:
1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can low sodium black beans, or 1/2 cup dry beans soaked
8 oz tomato puree or crushed tomatoes
2 cups low sodium chicken stock, divided
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 serrano chili peppers, minced
1 habanero pepper, minced
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped or 1 tsp dried

Step by Step Instructions:
1. Sautee garlic, onion and peppers in olive oil 3-5 minutes, until soft

2. Add chicken and brown, 2-3 minutes, flipping once

3. Once chicken is lightly browned, add 1 cup of stock, cumin and cilantro

4. Braise chicken covered for 5-7 minutes

5. Remove chicken and shred or chop

6. Return chicken to pot

7. Add tomatoes and remaining stock and simmer uncovered on med-low heat for 10 minutes

8. Add beans and simmer an additional 10 minutes

9. Serve

Nutrition Info: Makes 4 servings
323 Calories
42.8g Protein
8g Fiber

Lentils with White Beans

Serves: 2 | CarbsPerServing: 8g | Prep time: 10 min | Effort: Very Easy

Ingredients:
1 can (15 oz) of lentils
1 can (15 oz) of white beans
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
mixed peppers (black, white, green) or black pepper (powdered; optional)
salt

How to Prepare:
Lentils salad, as a very healthy low carbs food, could not be easier to prepare: open the lentils can, wash and dry them. Do the same for white beans and put them in a salad bowl. Add salt, pepper (according to taste) & vinegar. Mix, serve and enjoy! Simple, huh?

Caloric value, carbs and other ingredients:
Extremely easy and quick to prepare; pepper is optional. Lentils is one of the healthiest foods. While it does contain 60% of carbs in total, 31% are fiber and only 2% are sugars – or “bad” carbs. Similarly, white beans also contain only about 2% sugars.