Black Bean Surprise Bites

September 22, 2020September 23, 2020 / Amanda @fueling.veggie.athletes / Leave a comment

Happy Tuesday friends!

The old saying goes better late, than never, right?! I hope in this situation that is the case. 🙂

I promised both in person (before the pandemic) and on my Instagram months ago that I would share the final recipe my lab partner Gian & I developed in our Experimental Foods class last semester. So, I’m finally getting to that! 😛 If that’s all you are here for maybe just scroll to the recipe. 😆 But before you do enjoy this lovely hairnet photo.🤣

One of the 1st versions of Black Bean Surprise bites

I know that my semester is long over and I promise I did not forget about sharing the recipe! I just got sidetracked by many other things in my life from my development of an unexpected stress fracture in my foot to the beginning of my dietetic internship. Not to mention that going through life during a pandemic, extreme political division, and civil unrest has been tough, sad, and trying. 😦 But today is not the day to discuss all of those things, although I certainly can in a future post if there is interest.

I do plan to write about my stress fracture from a nutritional and running standpoint here, though, but also let me know in the comments or via e-mail if you want any posts of being a dietetic intern, being a dietetic intern during a pandemic, eating/cooking at home (because of the pandemic), work from home tips, etc.👇🏻 I’d really like to write posts here more than every month or two. So ideas are super helpful!

Anyway, let’s get to what you all really came here for, the recipe! It was interesting because we started the recipe development in class, but the class was moved to online after midterms due to COVID, so we were not able to do as many trials of the recipe as we would have liked. We are still pretty pleased with the final version and hope you are too!

Mixing everything in one of the early versions of the recipe.

The snack bites have hidden vegetables and legumes (sweet potatoes, kale, and black beans), but we don’t think you can even taste them. So they are perfect for picky eaters (just don’t tell them 🤐 )! And each 2 bite serving has ~7 grams of protein and ~6.5 grams of fiber! Who knew a vegan snack that tastes like an almond joy could be so healthy?! Black beans really are amazing! 😉 These are a great snack to add to your weekly meal prep rotation and the perfect lunchbox or midday treat! 🙂

Yield: 16 bites (8 servings)

Ingredients

1/2 can black beans

1/2 cup vegan chocolate protein powder (we used Garden of Life Organic Plant-Based Chocolate Sport Protein Powder)

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/3 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup turbinado sugar

1/4 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips (we used Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Morsels)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup water

1 sweet potato

1 bunch of fresh kale

13 Medjool dates, pitted

3/4 cup salted, slivered almonds

1/3 cup coconut flakes

4 teaspoons cinnamon

How to make Black Bean Snack Bites:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit for at least 10 minutes.

2. Drain and rinse black beans in a large colander 3 times with tap water.Wash, peel, and cut sweet potatoes into bite sized pieces.

3. Boil the sweet potatoes under medium heat and a high flame on the stove top until soft (about 15 minutes).

4. Wash fresh kale under cold water and chop into small pieces.

5. Steam for 5-10 mins, or until kale is soft, but retains bright green color. Then set aside.

6. Remove pits from dates and chop them into smaller pieces.

7. Combine black beans, protein powder, cocoa powder, coconut oil, vanilla, sweet potatoes, dates and kale in the food processor.

8. Process at high speed until completely smooth, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides if necessary. If the mixture is too dry add ~50 mL of water to the mixture.

9. Carefully remove the blade and stir in the chocolate chips and salted slivered almonds.

10. Spoon 1-2 tablespoons of mixture into paper cups and place into a 14 x 11 muffin pan.

11. Sprinkle cinnamon and coconut flakes onto the surface of the each piece.

12. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until set in the center.

13. Let cool for 15-20 minutes.

14. Remove cups from the pan. Serve immediately or store in the fridge.

15. Store leftover bites in the fridge in an airtight container, such as a Tupperware. They will keep for a few days in the refrigerator and even longer in the freezer. They taste best chilled!

Enjoy this quick, easy, and nutritious recipe! Let me know if you try it! And feel free to tag me on Instagram @fueling.veggie.athletes or e-mail me when you do!

Plants are cool #1: “Squacos” recipe

April 4, 2018January 20, 2021 / Amanda @fueling.veggie.athletes / 4 Comments

Good afternoon! 🙂 As promised many, many months ago, I am finally sharing my butternut squash taco recipe, AKA “squacos”!🌮 I am sharing this as a part of my new recipe series called “plants are cool”. Because duh, plants are amazing! And because we should all be eating a lot more of them! I’m here to show you that cooking with plants can be cheap, easy, versatile, and fun! I know I am biased because I am plant based…but please be open minded, maybe try a few plant recipes this month, and who, knows?! Maybe you too will agree that plants are cool! 😉

Of course, today’s recipe has black beans, because I have not been living up to my namesake!😱 This is a very basic recipe that lends itself to dressing up with different toppings and serving options, because that is half the fun with taco recipes! So, without further ado let’s make some “squacos”! 😋

“Squacos”

squacos

Yield: 2-3 servings

Ingredients

1 bag of frozen butternut squash or 1 whole butternut squash

Grapeseed or Avocado Oil (for sautéing)

1 cup rice or grains of your choice (I used 365 by Whole Foods Organic Super Grains, but other options I’ve used include brown rice, jasmine rice, and quinoa)

1 can of black beans drained and rinsed

Cumin (we never measure :P, but I’d put at least a teaspoon or two)

Cinnamon

Iodized salt (to taste)

Optional: avocado, tomato, cilantro, shredded lettuce, red pepper flakes, salsa, pico de gallo, guacamole, cheese (regular or non-dairy), and/or sour cream (if you aren’t vegan)

1. Measure and rinse your grain of choice in a mesh sieve.

2. After rinsing, prepare your grain of choice according to the package directions.

3. Chop the butternut squash if you aren’t using frozen.

4. Add the Grapeseed or Avocado oil to a sauté pan and add the chopped fresh or the chopped frozen butternut squash.

5. Sauté the butternut squash on medium high for about 5 minutes or until warmed.

6. Add the cinnamon and cumin to the butternut squash and make sure everything gets thoroughly mixed.

7. Add the drained and rinsed black beans to the butternut squash mixture.

8. Check the grains and if they are cooked, turn off of the stove top and fluff them.

9. Sauté the black bean and butternut squash mixture for another couple of minutes.

10. Serve on tortillas or make a taco bowl. Be sure to add in any of the fun extras listed above! The optional mix-ins add flavor and depth if you eat these on a weekly basis like my husband and I do! My personal favorite is making a taco bowl with salsa and other veggies and then using tortilla chips as scoops. 🙂

If you make “squacos”, I’d love to see your creations! E-mail me or share on social media ( Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter), but make sure to tag me! I’d be happy to feature your version of “squacos” on my social media channels!

Tasty Tuesday #7: Tempeh and Black Bean Taco Bowls

July 28, 2015January 24, 2016 / Amanda @fueling.veggie.athletes / 17 Comments

Good morning! I hope all of you are having a wonderful morning and a great week. 🙂 It’s hot here in the windy city, so I got my run in early this morning. I am so happy I did, even though I have the day off work, because holy cow it’s getting humid! I had another good run this morning of 3 miles at 7:35 pace. 🙂 I have a ways to go before getting to where I was before my injury, but I am starting to feel more like my old self. I still have to build up my mileage slowly and continue my PT exercises, but at least my run pace is starting to come down as I get back into shape!

Now, for the real reason I am here…Tasty Tuesday! This week’s Tasty Tuesday is a taco recipe because I am a little too excited about Taco Tuesday! I know, I know I already shared a taco recipe with all of you last week….BUT tacos are so tasty and this recipe is different! I love both recipes, but these tacos are a little more filling than the black bean and quinoa ones from last week. Plus, I absolutely love meals in a bowl and anything that is made with black beans, if you guys could not tell. 😛 These tempeh and black bean taco bowls are tasty, filling, full of protein, healthy, and last, but not least they are vegan. Bonus points for how quick they are to make! So do yourself a favor and make tacos tonight! I do have to confess that I made these last night…I could not wait for taco Tuesday! haha. I really want to make them again tonight because they are so delicious…. Without further ado here is the recipe! 🙂

Tempeh and Black Bean Taco Bowls

Yield: 2-3 servings

Ingredients

1 packet taco seasoning (I used mild, but if you like things spicy I’d use medium or hot)

1 cup rice of your choice (I used Jasmine rice)

1 package of tempeh (I used Lightlife original)

1 can of black beans drained and rinsed

1 cup of frozen peppers

canola oil (as needed)

Optional: red pepper flakes, salsa, pico de gallo, tortilla chips

1. Prepare the rice according to the directions on the package.

2. Mix the packet of taco seasoning with water, according to the package directions. Set aside.

3. Cut the tempeh into bite sized pieces.

4. Let the tempeh marinate in the taco seasoning mixture for 5-10 minutes.

5. Sauté the tempeh in canola oil and spoon some of the taco seasoning mixture into the frying pan for added flavor. Fry until the tempeh starts to brown ( ~ 10 minutes).

6. In the meantime, sauté the peppers in canola oil. Add the drained and rinsed black beans once the peppers are almost fully cooked (~10 minutes.). Optional: for more flavor add some of the taco seasoning mixture to the pepper and black beans too.

7. Once everything is fully cooked, serve! Spoon the rice into bowls, add the tempeh, black bean/ pepper mixture, and any desired toppings (salsa,red pepper flakes, pico de gallo, etc). Mix it all together! If bowls aren’t your thing, serve in a warm tortilla! YUM!! 🙂

I hope all of you have a great day and more importantly, a happy Taco Tuesday (am I the only one who thinks of the Lego movie?)!

Today’s question: Any fun plans this week or weekend? I’m going to Lollapalooza this weekend and I cannot wait! 🙂

Black Bean and Quinoa Taco Bowls

July 16, 2015July 16, 2015 / Amanda @fueling.veggie.athletes / 11 Comments

Good evening friends! Here in the windy city, the weather is dreadful. I even got poured on my way home from work. 😦 I hope all of you are experiencing better weather, though! I thought sharing a new recipe would be just the the thing to brighten up this dreary evening. It is a black bean recipe (of course)! With a blog called Black Bean Queen, I really have not been living up to my name. 😛 This recipe makes up for my lack of black bean recipe posts, I promise!

Last night after work was one of those nights where my boyfriend and I were lazy, indecisive, and hungry. I asked my boyfriend: “What do you want to make for dinner?” He said: “I don’t know, what do you want to make?” Then I said “I asked you first…” Then he said “Maybe we should go out to eat”. Me: “No, we have plenty of food here and we need to save our money…” I could not take our indecisiveness any longer. I’m sure we are not the only ones!! After along day of work or class, I often wish I could snap my fingers and have a tasty and nourishing meal appear. Last night, I took that as a challenge to make something new, fast, and simple.

I had a serious taco craving last night, so I looked around the apartment for random taco-like ingredients. This recipe is a random assortment of ingredients that, luckily, came together really nicely. These black bean and quinoa taco bowls are quick to make, simple, nourishing, and delicious. Honestly, they were the bomb.com! My boyfriend LOVED them! He even said to me “I think these might become a regular in our meal rotation now!” I hope all of you like them too! 🙂

Black Bean and Quinoa Taco Bowls

Yield: 2-3 servings (2 if you live with a very hungry runner or 2 😉 )

Ingredients

1 cup of quinoa & 2 cups of water

~1 Tablespoon canola oil

1 cup frozen peppers

1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 packet of taco seasoning ( I used mild)

Optional: red pepper flakes and salsa

1. Measure and rinse the quinoa with a mesh sieve. Do not skip the rinsing step as quinoa is coated in a bitter substance called saponin.

2. Bring the rinsed quinoa to a boil and then turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook until all the water is absorbed and white rings are visible within the quinoa, this will be approximately 15-20 minutes.

3. Put ~1 Tablespoon of canola oil into a separate saucepan and start sautéing the frozen peppers. Once the peppers are nearly cooked, add the canned of black beans and cook for another three or so minutes.

4. Prepare the taco seasoning as indicated on the packet (usually you just add some water and mix). Add 0.5- 1 whole packet of taco seasoning to the quinoa, once all the water has been absorbed. (I only added half of the taco packet). Let simmer for another 2-3 minutes.

5. Serve and Eat!

My boyfriend added red pepper flakes to his to make them spicier (I am a wimp and only like mild taco seasoning :P). I topped my bowl with salsa and it was amazing!

I am sure they would be wonderful in a whole wheat tortilla or eaten as a “dip” with tortilla chips acting as scoops. The toppings and ways to eat these bowls are endless! 🙂

Have a wonderful evening friends! Fingers crossed that tomorrow is my very last Physical Therapy appointment, so I can say I am officially over my injury!

What is your favorite quick, healthy, and easy weeknight dinner lately? I’d have to say ginger and soy tofu stir fry is my favorite, but these black bean and quinoa taco bowls may be serious contenders! 🙂

Rice, veggie, and bean bowls & Monday motivation

September 8, 2014September 9, 2014 / Amanda @fueling.veggie.athletes / 2 Comments

Hello friends, I’m back! I hope you all had a lovely labor day, week, and weekend. Sorry for the 1.5 week hiatus- school, studying, and more hours than I anticipated at my part time job have been keeping me busy, but regardless that’s no excuse. I’ll TRY to update this blog at least once a week from now on! 🙂

Today, I wanted to share my go-to quick week night dinner (or lunch) recipes. As many vegetarians already know, convenience food is OFTEN tailored to meat eaters. And yes, I know this is not completely true as there are veggie burgers, chickenless nuggets, faux hot dogs, and microwave vegetarian meals. Yet, just like their meat counterparts, vegetarian convenience food CAN high in sodium, calories, fat, and somewhat low in nutrients. Also, vegetarian microwave or convenience meals tend to be pricier than meat based convenience meals. So what’s a hungry vegetarian student who is trying to balance a part time job, attend class, be a part of school activities, and study all the bones in the human body to do? Okay, okay that last part about the human bones is specific to my nutrition course work, but you all get the picture. 😛

During the week busy and hungry vegetarian students need nutrient dense, healthy, quick, and budget friendly options for dinner so they do not turn to veggie convenience food all the time. Considering black beans are one of my favorite foods I hope it comes as no surprise that I used black beans in this recipe I am sharing with all of you. You could definitely use other types of beans you just may need to use different spices than I used then.

Now as a forewarning, the following recipe I am sharing is not super glamorous and may even be bland in some of your options. I personally love turmeric and garlic powder together, but feel free to substitute any spices you’d like. As a side note, toping with salsa and/or using cilantro are also both wonderful additions to this recipe! Benefits of this recipe: It is quick to prepare, easy to make for yourself or a few people, a complete protein, high in fiber, and the vitamin C in the peppers should help you absorb the plant based iron in the black beans more efficiently.

Rice, veggie, and bean bowls

ingredients:

1/3-1/2 can of black beans (or any canned beans you like)

1/2 cup-3/4 cup frozen sweet peppers or frozen mixed veggies

1/2 cup jasmine rice (or any kind of rice)

turmeric & garlic powder (or any herbs or spices you want)

optional: whole wheat wraps

1. Rinse the jasmine rice using a mesh sieve. Then, cook the rice according the package directions.

2. While the rice is cooking, microwave the desired amount of peppers or mixed veggies with a tablespoon of water and covered with plastic wrap or using a covered microwave safe dish.

3. Also while the rice is cooking, rinse the 1/3 can- 1.2 can of black beans and then cook in the microwave for approximately 3 minutes or on the stovetop, also covered. Store the remaining black beans in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

4. Once everything is thoroughly heated/cooked mix the rice, black beans, and veggies together in a bowl.

5. Add the turmeric and garlic or any spices you want. Sometimes I also eat this mixture in a whole wheat wrap topped with salsa for a bit of a heartier meal. Both the bowl and wrap are delicious and quick options so give them a try! 🙂

P.S. Here’s some very late Monday motivation. Use it to motivate you for tomorrow morning’s run (or tonight for those of you who are evening/night runners). I went on a lovely run this morning and while it was extremely hard to get out of bed early after working Sunday night I was so glad I did! I’ve been trying to keep up with morning runs so I do not use work or studying as excuses to prevent me from running later in the day.

I got up, ran, and finished all before 8 am and had plenty of time to eat and shower before for my 45 minute commute to my 11 am class! I love how morning runs make me feel, what about you guys? Today’s motivation is one of those “reasons why I run posts” and this one seemed especially fitting. 🙂

What is your go-to quick and easy vegetarian weekday meal (or meatless Monday meal for those non vegetarians out there)?

Tasty Tuesday #4: easy, peasy black bean salsa

August 12, 2014July 16, 2015 / Amanda @fueling.veggie.athletes / 3 Comments

Wow, it’s been way too long since I’ve posted a black bean recipe! Since black beans are one of my favorite foods and what inspired the name of this blog, I figured it was time for another black bean recipe. This black bean salsa is super easy to make, relatively healthy, and only takes about 5 minutes from start to finish. It would probably taste even better if you made your own salsa from scratch, but then it would take a little longer to make. This recipe is courtesy of my boyfriend and his sister. It will definitely be a part of our snack rotation here from now on. It tastes wonderful with tortilla or pita chips. 🙂

easy, peasy black bean salsa

ingredients:

1 can of organic black beans

2/3 cup of salsa (we used On The Border Medium Salsa)

steps:

1. Drain and rinse a can of black beans.

2. Put the uncooked and rinsed black beans and 2/3 cup of salsa in a food processor.

3. Puree the black beans and salsa until relatively smooth.

3. Store the salsa in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

While this salsa is delicious, I’d still have to say homemade black bean burgers are my favorite way to eat black beans. I posted a recipe for black bean burgers previously if any of you are curious . I’m thinking of making black bean brownies in the near future and featuring them on this blog, but we will see! I am always searching for new recipes using black beans so stay tuned. 😛 Have a great night everyone!

Have any of you ever had black bean salsa before? Also, do any of you have any recipes for homemade salsa you’d be willing to share with me? If so comment here or email me at blackbeanqueen@gmail.com.

Sleepy Sunday

July 27, 2014July 27, 2014 / Amanda @fueling.veggie.athletes / 2 Comments

Good evening friends! I hope all of you have had awesome weekends so far. I personally can’t believe how fast this weekend has gone. Today has been one of those days where I am super tired despite sleeping in. Even an afternoon iced coffee didn’t help! It must have been those late nights when my boyfriends roommate from college came to visit or the early morning yesterday to watch my boyfriend’s sister run in the Big Ten 10k. 😉 Oh well, I wouldn’t trade these past few days for more sleep, they were fun!

In terms of working out, I’ve been getting in a lot of cross training since my IT band hurt a bit after Wednesday’s run. Sometimes it feels like I take one step forward and ten back. 😦 I am trying to be positive, though, as it hasn’t hurt since Thursday so I’m excited to try a run again tomorrow!

Thursday

My boyfriend, his old roommate from college, and I went to the Cubs vs. Padre’s game on Thursday and I love the Cubs, but it was not pretty. We lost 13-3 and the atmosphere became considerably negative after that nine run 6th inning. Despite all of that it was still fun to go to my first Cub’s game this year. At least I knew going into the game Thursday that I would have another chance to see them play Sunday.

We all also get a free T-shirts for being among the first 10,000 guests at Wrigley Field. Unfortunately, the shirt is an XL so not quite a good fit for someone short and small like me. Regardless, it’s still a cool souvenir celebrating 100 years of Wrigley Field!

After the game, my boyfriend and his old roommate went out for some drinks and “dude” time and I stayed behind to let them catch up and enjoy having the apartment to myself for a little bit. 😉

Friday

Thursday was a late night for all of us, especially the guys so I’m not going to lie, we spent the most of the afternoon watching Parks and Recreation on Netflix. I did get in a cross training workout, went to the grocery store, read for a while, and went to another job interview so I wasn’t completely lazy all afternoon. 😛 After the job interview and some dinner we all met friend from our college who also lives in the city for drinks. We didn’t stay out too late though because my boyfriend and I knew were had to get up before six am to go to Soldier Field to watch his sister run the Big Ten 10k.

Saturday

It was rough to get up before six am on Saturday after a late Thursday night and semi late Friday night, but I am glad we did. It was nice to see my boyfriend’s mom, aunt, cousin, and sister. His sister ran really well and has a bright future ahead of her as a college runner! I couldn’t help but be a little envious of all the runners, but I know I need to be patient because soon enough I will be back to racing too. After the race my boyfriend and I made breakfast and said good bye to his old college roommate who had to drive back him. We were both pretty tired and spent most of the day reading, resting, and watching Netflix. Then had my favorite dinner-homemade black bean burgers (I posted the recipe a few weeks ago if anyone wants it: https://blackbeanqueen.wordpress.com/2014/07/08/all-moved-in-finally-tasty-tuesday-black-bean-burger-edition/). Then, I felt kind of lame on a Saturday night, but I fell asleep before midnight and slept until nearly ten today…It doesn’t happen often, but I still felt like a bum! I think those late nights earlier this week got to me. 😛

Sunday

Despite getting about ten hours of sleep I’ve been pretty sleepy all day. After sleeping in much later than intended, my boyfriend and I did not have enough time to get a workout in before the Cub’s game. We had to eat breakfast, get ready, and catch a bus to Wrigley Field by noon so we could meet our friend from high school who invited us.

This Cubs vs. Cardinals was closer than Thursday’s Cubs vs. Padres- the Cubs only lost 0-1. It was a fun game because the score was close the entire game and the weather was perfect! Now, we just have a low key evening filled with studying and maybe some Netflix, exciting stuff, right?! 😛 It really has been a sleepy Sunday.

This week I’m hoping to share some more vegetarian recipes with all of you and get some pain free running in. 🙂

I’m also really excited because it’s my second to last week of summer class (almost done!) and I’m going to Lollapalooza with my sister, my boyfriend, a friend from college, and my boyfriend’s sister. 🙂