I love avocados. LOVE might be a better way to express my deep infatuation with this delicious and nutrient rich food. Thank you, God, for creating this fruit!
A few of my favorite ways to enjoy avocado:
1. Spread slices on lightly toasted bread.
2. Garnish on every Mexican dish you can think of!
3. Add to mashed black beans and wrap up in lettuce leaves.
Any way you slice, mash or cube it, enjoy some avocado today!
I love the crock pot! It makes my life a little bit easier when I can put together a yummy dish and have less “standing in the kitchen” time. I originally found this recipe on about.com, but in my typical fashion I’ve added additional things to the recipe.
Serves 4
Prep time 10 minutes
Cook time 5.5-6.5 hours
Ingredients:
Directions:
Serve with warmed tortillas and your favorite Mexican garnishes; such as, chopped cilantro, sour cream, shredded cheese, lime, guacamole and salsa. We eat a lot of salad at our house, so this goes well with salad. You may even want to serve with a Spanish Rice dish too. It is a great dish by itself as well. Either way, I’m sure you’ll enjoy!
I’ll see you at the table!
Seasoned Black Beans… a can of cooked beans kicked up a couple notches! If you’re staying in rental house, or back at home, beans are great way to eat healthy and get enough protein for playing and working. I like beans with a little extra somethin’, so try this recipe:
In a medium size pot on medium high heat, water saute for about 3 minutes 1/2 white onion and 2 clove garlic, both diced
Turn heat to medium low and add to pot:
1-20oz can black beans with water from can
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Simmer for 15 minutes. Enjoy as you would any beans! (I ate mine with fresh tomato and cilantro and chips)
Found this great recipe for Mexican Tortilla Pizza by Ellie Krieger on FoodNetwork.com. We really enjoyed it! Below is the original recipe and how we adjusted.
Serves: 4
INGREDIENTS:
4 corn tortillas, or whole-wheat tortillas (6-inches in diameter)
1/2 cup Black Bean Dip, recipe follows
1 large tomato, seeded and diced
1 cup shredded green cabbage [we used purple cabbage]
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
[We added fresh guacamole on top as well.]
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Place the tortillas onto a baking sheet and spread 2 tablespoons of black bean dip on top of each tortilla. Top with tomato and cabbage and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the pizzas from the oven and sprinkle some cilantro on each one. Allow to cool slightly before cutting into wedges.
BLACK BEAN DIP:
2 teaspoons olive oil [we used water instead]
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced jalapeño pepper
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin [we used coriander]
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat the oil/water in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until they soften, about 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and jalapeño and cook for 1 minute more. Put the beans into a food processor. Add the onion mixture and the rest of the ingredients and purée until smooth. Yield: 1 cup
These bean lettuce wraps from Eat To Live are pretty easy to prepare and are very tasty!
Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 cups cooked or canned no-salt-added or low-sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 large, ripe avocado, peeled, pitted, and mashed [we used whole avocado]
1/2 medium green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
3 green onions, chopped [we used 1 onion]
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1/3 cup mild no-salt-added or low-sodium salsa [we used a spicy homemade mango salsa]
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
8 large romaine lettuce leaves
Directions:
In a bowl, mash the beans and avocado together with a fork until well blended and only slightly chunky. Add all the remaining ingredients except the lettuce and mix.
Place approximately 1/4 cup of mixture in the center of each lettuce leaf and roll up like burrito.
Notes:
We added extra salsa on top before eating, but we LOVE salsa!
