Homemade "Re-fried" Beans

Our family loves re-fried beans - especially our toddler! When my husband and I made the transition to a plant-based, whole food diet, I began to closely monitor ingredient labels and I was shocked when I realized that traditional re-fried beans from the can at the grocery store had animal lard in them. Who knew? I began asking around at the different Mexican restaurants that we frequent to find out which ones served refried beans that had lard added to them. You'd be amazed at how many restaurants put animal lard in their re-fried beans. So, I decided it was time to start making my own re-fried beans - free of animal lard and anything else that I don't particularly want to find in my food. This recipe has very few ingredients (always a win!) and is fairly simple to make. Just throw everything into the crock pot, let it cook all day, and then run it through the blender or food processor (you can also mash them with a potato masher).

You Will Need:
2 lb bag of dry pinto beans, cover beans with water and soak overnight
2-3 small to medium onions, chopped
6-8 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbs salt
1 tbs black pepper
1 tbs ground cumin

After soaking pinto beans overnight in water, drain and rinse them well. Place beans and all other ingredients into crock pot. Cover beans with water (you may need to add water as they cook in order for them to remain covered in water). Cook on high for 8 hours. Cooking times may vary, you want the beans to have that nice light brown color and be tender all the way through.
Strain the liquid from the beans and set liquid aside. Place half of the beans into a blender or food processor along with 1-2 cups of the liquid and blend until texture is smooth. Place beans into a large bowl and set aside.
Place the other half of the beans into blender or food processor along with 1-2 cups of the liquid and pulse a few times. Beans should still be slightly chunky. Add this half of the beans to the other half and stir until well combined. Stir in more liquid if necessary to obtain desired consistency.
Serve beans hot as a side dish for your favorite Mexican meal or as the filling for bean burritos. Enjoy!

*note: Beans freeze well in quart sized bags.

Black Bean Salsa

This recipe started out as one that I adapted from a baked potato recipe. And it really is great as a plant-based topping for baked potatoes but I have come across friends who enjoy it as a dip with tortilla chips. So I am posting just the salsa recipe here. If you haven't already noticed how much I love easy to make recipes - this recipe is also very easy and quick to whip up!

You Will Need: 
1 (15 oz) can of black beans, drained and rinsed well
1/2 - 3/4 of a jar of mild or medium salsa
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Sprinkle of sea salt, optional
Sprinkle of nutritional yeast, optional

Combine ingredients and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving. Enjoy!

May God Bless!
Ashley

Easy-To-Make Guacamole

This guac recipe is quick and easy to whip up and I haven't met anyone yet who doesn't enjoy it!

You Will Need:

3 large avocados, peeled, pitted, and mashed

1/4 of a red onion, very finely diced

juice of 1 lime

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sea salt

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving. Hope you enjoy!

May God Bless!

Ashley

Peanut Butter Granola

You aren't really a granola cruncher without a good granola recipe! I love this recipe because it is simple - very few ingredients! - and it is quick and easy to make. It can be made ahead of time and stored in an airtight container - I don't know how long it will stay fresh in an airtight container because it never lasts for more than a couple of days at our house. It's pretty popular with the kids and the husband!

You will need:
4 tbs peanut butter
4 tbs blue agave (you can substitute honey or pure maple syrup if needed)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with olive oil or coconut oil cooking spray.
In a mixing bowl, add peanut butter and agave. Microwave for 20-30 seconds until melted.
Add cinnamon and vanilla, stir until combined. Add oats, stir until oats are completely covered in mixture.
Spread mixture evenly onto cookie sheet and then bake for 7 minutes or until lightly browned.
Let cool so granola becomes crunchy...Mmmm!!

Serve 1/2 cup of granola in a bowl, sprinkle in some raisins, and add some unsweetened vanilla almond milk for a delicious breakfast!

*note: if you do not already buy natural peanut butter, I strongly encourage you to do so! Regular peanut butter has hydrogenated oil in it to help preserve shelf life and prevent separation. Natural peanut butter is much better for you!
*note: I prefer to use blue agave verses honey or maple syrup because it has a lower glycemic index but either of the three will do the trick!


May God Bless!
Ashley

Plant-Based Spaghetti

Plant-Based Spaghetti that the whole family will love...even those picky toddler eaters!
I don't like really complicated recipes. I don't like it if they have ingredients that I've never heard of or ingredients that I have to go to 3 different grocery stores to find. Ain't nobody got time for that! This recipe is easy and convenient and the whole family will like it and your kids (or husband!) won't even know it's healthy for them!

Ingredients:
1-2 tbs olive oil (for oil free, use 2-4 tbs organic vegetable broth)
1 cup cooked green lentils (follow package directions, make sure they are tender all the way through)
1 small package of mushrooms, chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
2-4 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans organic tomato sauce (I like Simple Truth Organic because there is no added sugar or other nonsense)
1 tbs basil
1 tbs parlsey
1 16 ounce package organic spaghetti noodles, cook according to package directions

In large skillet, heat oil or broth on medium heat and add bell pepper, onion, and mushrooms. Saute for 3-4 minutes. Add minced garlic, saute for an additional minute. Add tomato sauce, lentils, and seasonings, reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles and sprinkle with nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan (Vegan Parmesan Minimalist Baker).


Hope you enjoy!
Ashley