Chipotle Quinoa Black Bean Burgers - Oh My!

My burger had sour cream, Rotel tomatoes, lettuce, sliced onions and melted cheddar cheese on an English muffin along with a salad on the side with pickled vegetables. It was delicious! 

 

1 1/2 C Cooked Quinoa

15 Oz Can Black Beans (drained and rinsed)

1/4 C Breadcrumbs 

1 Egg

1/2 Tsp Onion Powder

1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder

1/2 Tsp Taco Seasoning

1/2 Tsp Ground Cumin

Chipotle Sauce, to taste (I used about 3 Tsp)

Oil for frying (4 Tbs)

Place the cooked quinoa and black beans in a food processor. Process mixture until well combined. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. With lightly oiled hands form into four patties. Pre-heat a large skillet with the oil. Fry patties for five minutes on each side. Serve on a bun with your favorite toppings. This recipe makes 4 large patties. 

Number One Husband had mayo, sliced onions, lettuce and cheddar cheese on his burger.

These healthy burgers were fast and easy to put together and extremely flavorful. With a few tweaks, they can easily be turned into gluten free and or vegan burgers. I have decided to change up the spices and make breakfast sausage next time.

Considering the cost of meat these days, I am very excited about this recipe's potential for replacing some of the meat that we consume not to mention the health benefits. 

Enjoy,

Mrs. Smith

Vegetarian Spaghetti Sauce - Garden Pasta - Meatless Meal Series

I did not take pictures of the cooking process. Sorry. This is a very simple sauce and any pasta can be used. Number One likes pasta shells and I do too. I made two types of pasta out of the same sautéed vegetables. One was made with a red sauce and the other was without the sauce. We really liked the Garden Pasta the best. I used a can of pasta sauce and dolled it up with spices or you can use your favorite homemade sauce. I was in a hurry, so I chose a canned sauce.

Vegetarian Pasta Sauce

1 can or jar pasta sauce

Chopped onions, mushrooms, kale, zucchini, peppers, carrots, garlic (Any vegetables you like can be used. Any amounts can be used. This is just what I had on hand)

1 Tbs Italian seasoning

Olive oil

Cooked pasta 

Salt and pepper to taste

Sauté chopped vegetables in olive oil until just tender with the Italian seasonings. Add pasta sauce and let simmer on low for 10 minutes. Season to taste. Pour over cooked pasta and serve with a salad and bread. 

Garden Pasta

Use the same vegetables and Italian seasonings sautéed in in olive oil. Pour over cooked pasta and sauté together about three minutes longer. Season to taste. Serve with a salad and bread.

Enjoy,

Mrs. Smith

Vegetable Fried Rice - Meatless Meal Series -

I'm doing a "Meatless Meal Series" to help us and others combat the effects of high inflation on groceries. This is my kind of eating. I love to eat vegetables. I enjoy all types of fried rice. In this recipe I use only vegetables. I used the vegetables that I had on hand. You can do the same. No need for special purchases. You can use more or less or omit whatever you do not like. Add other vegetables if you want.  This is not the type of recipe that is set in stone. It is very forgiving. Don't be afraid to be creative.

I used basmati rice for this recipe. You can use whatever type of rice that you have on hand.

Rinse the rice over and over until the water runs clear.

As you can see there is a lot of excess starch on rice.

This makes a big difference when making fried rice. The rice will be less sticky if you use this technique. I don't bother with this step if I am just making regular rice. I don't want to rinse away extra nutrition. 

I'm using my pressure cooker to cook the rice. It is the best way to cook rice for us since we live at 9000 feet. We also make our own electricity, so we get to save on propane too. It's a win win.

Nice!

Fluff with a fork. Let cool completely before refrigerating. This helps the fridge not work so hard. Refrigerate the rice overnight. Cold leftover rice makes the best fried rice.

Choose your ingredients. Wash and prepare to chop.

I chose kale, celery, cabbage, red, white and green onions, mushrooms, frozen peas and carrots.

I gave my green onions growing in the windowsill a haircut.

Choose a large heavy bottom well oiled pan or wok. Fried rice cooks best in a hot pan.

Cook the hardiest vegetables first. They need a head start in the cooking process. The goal is hot, but still crisp veggies. 

Now add spices like garlic, ginger and pepper flakes.

Toasted sesame oil, liquid aminos or soy sauce, ginger root, red pepper flakes and balsamic vinegar are the seasonings that I used this time. Season to taste. 

Add the rest of the veggies to the pot and sauté a few more minutes with the desired seasonings. 

Add the cold rice and mix well stirring constantly to avoid scorching.

Stir fry until hot. Adjust seasonings at this time. Usually, I  need to add a bit more soy sauce or liquid aminos. Watch out, they are super salty. 

Enjoy!

Mrs. Smith