Quick and Easy Vegan Black Beans and Rice

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE RICE:

• 1 cup short grain white rice
• 2 cups water
• salt, to taste
• juice of one lime
• 2 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

FOR THE BEANS:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 28-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• plenty of kosher salt
• 1 cup water
• juice of 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

INSTRUCTIONS

1. To make the rice, bring water to a boil, add rice and salt, stir, and simmer until cooked (about 15-20 minutes). When done, stir in the cilantro and lime juice and add more salt if necessary.
2. Meanwhile, to make the beans, sauté the onion in oil over medium-high heat in a medium sized pot until softened and beginning to brown (about 2-3 minutes).
3. Add beans, cumin, salt, and water. Stir, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes.
4. Use a potato masher to mash the beans a few times, thickening the mixture, but leaving most of the beans intact.
5. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro and season with more salt if necessary.
6. Serve the beans on top of the rice as a side or meal.

Spinach Potato Tacos

Trust me, you won't mind the spinach in these. You don't even know it's there!

Ingredients:
2 large sized potatoes
1.3 lb fresh spinach
1/3 cup or half a small white onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt, to taste
Pepper to taste
Cheese for topping

Directions:
1. Rinse the spinach and cut any long stems. Roughly chop the spinach and set aside. Clean the potatoes, peel and chop them into bite-sized pieces. Make them the same size and small enough they won't rip the tortilla.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan and add the potatoes. Fry them for a few minutes, stirring often to prevent burning. Next, add the onion and saute until soft and translucent, then add the minced garlic and a large pinch of salt. Continue to cook until the potatoes are soft and cooked through--if needed  you can add a couple of tbsp of water to the pan to prevent the potatoes from burning. Now add the roughly chopped spinach to the pan and gently stir the ingredients. Sprinkle some pepper over the ingredients and stir. Continue to cook until the spinach has just begun to wilt. Additionally, you may need to add the spinach in a couple of batches as it takes up a large space. Taste, and if needed, add more salt and/or black pepper.
3. Warm the corn tortillas up and scoop a couple of tablespoons into each tortilla, sprinkle with cheese. Add sour cream and salsa as desired.

NOTE: The potatoes always take longer to cook than you think. Let them cook for a bit before adding the onion or make sure they are chopped up really small.

BBQ Chickpea Salad

Ingredients

• 1 19 oz can chickpeas (2 cups), drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup BBQ Sauce
• 6 cups romaine lettuce (two romaine hearts), chopped
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup cucumber, sliced
• 1 cup corn kernel (fresh or frozen and thawed)
• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
• 6 Tablespoons Ranch Dresssing
• Lime wedges for garnish

Instructions

1. Add the chickpeas to a saucepan with the BBQ sauce and put over medium heat. Let the chickpeas simmer in the sauce for about 5 to 10 minutes until the sauce thickens and sticks to the chickpeas. Remove from heat.
2. Divide the lettuce among two large bowls. Then divide all of the vegetable and the BBQ chickpeas on top of the lettuce.Drizzle with creamy vegan ranch dressing and garnish with a wedge of lime.

NOTE: Remember, you can buy chickpeas in cans at the store but they are called Garbanzo beans.

Udon Noodles with Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:
2 (7.22 ounce) packages udon noodles
1/4 cup reduced-fat creamy peanut butter
2 tbsp brown sugar, packed
2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp chili garlic sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup cooked broccoli florets (I usually steam them for 3-4 minutes)
1 cup shredded carrot
1 cup baby spinach

Directions:
In a large pot of boiling water, cook udon noodles according to package directions, about four minutes; drain well.

Heat a saucepan over medium heat. Add 1/4 cups plus 2 tbsp water, peanut butter, brown sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, sesame oil, cornstarch, chili garlic sauce and garlic.

Bring to a boil; cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.

Reduce heat to low; add the Udon noodles, broccoli and carrots and stir to coat, about 1 minute.

Remove from heat; add the spinach and gently toss to combine until the spinach has wilted, about 1 minute.

Serve immediately.

NOTES:

• I don't always add spinach, but it's a good addition when I do.
• The chili garlic sauce doesn't add much taste, but does add spice.
• You can usually find Udon Noodles in the Asian section, but if not, you can use whole wheat spaghetti noodles and this still tastes pretty good.
• I don't always use fresh ginger. I often use the powder.

Black Bean Salad Wraps

Ingredients:
4 8-inch flavored or plain flour tortillas
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chopped green sweet pepper or 1 fresh jalapeno chile pepper, seeded and finely chopped
2 tbsp snipped fresh cilantro
1/3 cup light mayonnaise dressing or salad dressing
1 tbsp lime juice
Leaf lettuc

Directions:
1. Stack tortillas and wrap tightly in foil. Heat in a 350 oven for 10 minutes to soften.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl mash black beans slightly; add sweet pepper and cilantro. Stir in light mayonnaise dressing and lime juice.
3. To serve, spread bean mixture evenly over tortillas. Top with lettuce leaves. Roll up tortillas.

NOTES: 

• I use full fat mayo dressing. You could swap out mayo for miracle whip if you prefer. 
• I don't use cilantro because I don't like cilantro.
• These are good with spinach wraps that you can buy at Aldi.
• I don't warm the tortillas.
• These come together really fast and are better than they sound.

Veggie Meal Ideas That Don't Need a Recipe

I just wanted to throw a few things out here that you probably already know how to do but maybe forgot about.

Here are some of my easy, cheap veggie meals:

• Homemade mac'n'cheese
• Baked Potatoes
• Gnochhi
• Pasta of any kind, with all different sauces
• Pasta salad--lots of variations on this
• Salad--lots of variations on this
• Grilled Cheese sandwiches and some kind of soup
• Bean and cheese burritos--or any kind of burrito that uses re fried beans instead of meat.
• German pancakes
• Pizza--just make it a veggie pizza or splurge for some pepperoni
• Pasta with Roasted Veggies
• Quesadillas--you can spice these up with a lot of things. 
• Potato Soup

I'll add some more recipes soon!

Sage and Browned Butter Ravioli Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 package (20 oz) refrigerated cheese ravioli or 2 packages (9 oz each) mushroom agnolotti
• 1/2 cup butter, cubed
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh sage
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Cook ravioli according to package directions. In a large heavy sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat. Heat 5-7 minutes or until golden brown, stirring constantly. Immediately stir in sage and salt; remove from heat.

2. Drain ravioli, reserving 2 tbsp pasta water. Add ravioli, pasta water and lemon juice to butter mixture; gently toss to coat. Serve with cheese. Yield: 4 servings

Pinto Bean Tostados

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 3/4 tsp. grated lime peel
• 1/4 tsp. cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt, divided
• 2 tbsp. canola oil, divided
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 2 cans (15 oz each) pinto beans rinsed and drained
• 1 to 2 tsp hot pepper sauce
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 6 corn tortillas (I use actual tostada shells from Aldi)
• 2 cups shredded lettuce
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 3/4 cup whatever cheese you want

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix sour cream, lime peel (you can just use a little bit of lime juice), cumin and 1/4 tsp salt. In a large saucepan, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium heat. Add garlic; cook and stir just until fragrant, about 45 seconds. Stir in beans, pepper sauce, chili power and remaining salt; heat through, stirring occasionally. Keep warm.

2. If using corn tortillas, brush both sides with remaining oil. Place a large skillet over medium high heat. Add tortillas in two batches; cook 2-3 minutes on each side or until lightly browned and crisp.

3. To serve, arrange beans and lettuce over tostada shells; top with salsa, sour cream mixture and cheese. Serve with lime wedges.