refried beans (make your own) and avocado soft tacos

Perfectly seasoned beans are balanced by the fresh flavors of avocado, lettuce and tomato for a healthier version of a fast-food favorite. Kick up the heat with your favorite hot sauce!

Ingredients:

1 medium white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth, divided
1 (29 ounces) can no-salt-added pinto beans (about 3 cups), rinsed and drained
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
8 corn tortillas
2 cups shredded romaine lettuce
3 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 1/2 avocados, thinly sliced

Method:

Heat a large skillet over medium heat until hot. Add onion and garlic and cook 3 to 4 minutes or until beginning to stick to skillet. Stir in 1/2 cup broth and continue to cook 6 to 8 minutes or until onion is translucent and very tender. Reduce heat to medium-low, add beans and cook 2 to 3 minutes to soften, stirring frequently. Mash beans with a potato masher. Stir in remaining broth, cumin, pepper and salt. Cook 2 minutes longer or until warmed through, stirring occasionally and adding water or more broth as needed for desired consistency.

In a dry skillet, warm each tortilla to soften. Top with a generous scoop bean mixture. Add lettuce, tomato and avocado. Fold in half and serve with your favorite salsa.


Nutritional Info: Serves: 4
PER SERVING:420 calories (110 from fat), 13g total fat, 1.5g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 340mg sodium, 64g carbohydrate (20g dietary fiber, 5g sugar), 14g protein

Black Bean and Quinoa Salad with Avocados [2 recipes]

Ingredients4 cup cooked quinoa (here’s how to make fluffy quinoa)
1 cup mild or medium salsa (tomatoes, onions, cilantro, chili peppers)
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained
1 cup raw baby spinach
Salt and pepper to taste
1-2 ripe avocados

InstructionsCombine the first four ingredients and season to taste.
Serve with avocado chunks on top, or use the salad as a filling for half an avocado.

from Unprocessed October 2012

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Quinoa and Black Bean Lunch Bowl

1/2 cup quinoa
1/2 cup cooked black beans
1 small baby zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced crosswise
1/4 cup Zesty Hummus
Juice of 1/2 lemon
3 cups mixed greens
1/4 cup fresh salsa
1 avocado, pitted and sliced
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

1. In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup water to boil over high heat. Add quinoa.
Cover, reduce heat and simmer until most of water is absorbed, 10-12 minutes.
Remove from heat, fluff, cover and let sit 5 more minutes.

2. In a small saute pan, heat black beans and zucchini over medium-high heat. Add a splash of water and cook until water is evaporated and zucchini is slightly soft.

3. To make dressing, combine hummus and lemon juice.

4. Divide mixed greens between two bowls and add quinoa, and black bean and zucchini mixture. Pour dressing over top, and add salsa, avocado and cilantro to each bowl.

Servings 4 x 2cups
Calories: 200
Protein: 6g
Fat: 9g

Smashed Chickpea & Avocado Salad Sandwich

Yields enough for 3 - 4 salads

Prep Time: 10 minutes - Total Time: 10 minutes

This Smashed Chickpea & Avocado Salad Sandwich is a great quick and easy lunch option that is good for you too! The salad also makes a great dip!

Ingredients:

1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas or garbanzo beans
1 large ripe avocado
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped green onion
Juice from 1 lime
Salt and pepper, to taste
Bread of your choice (I use whole wheat bread)
Fresh spinach leaves or other sandwich toppings: lettuce, tomato slices, sprouts, etc.

Directions:

1. Rinse and drain the chickpeas. Place on a paper towel and remove the outer skins. You can leave them on, but I like to remove them.

2. In a medium bowl, using a fork or potato masher smash the chickpeas and avocado together. Add in cilantro, green onion, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

3. Spread salad on bread and top with your favorite sandwich toppings. I like to add fresh spinach leaves.

Note: This salad also makes a great dip. Serve with cut up veggies, crackers, or pita chips. Also, this salad is best eaten the day it is made because it will turn brown due to the avocado.

Source: Two Peas & Their Pod

Vanilla Avocado Banana “Ice Cream” (Vegan, Dairy-Free, Soy Free, Gluten Free)

1 ripe avocado

1 medium banana (previously frozen in chunks is optimal)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 c milk (nut milk, vanilla flavored nut milk, milk, cream, vanilla Coffeemate, or water)
1/2 c sugar (add/reduce/omit as desired, or use stevia or vanilla NuNaturals stevia drops, to taste, or agave)
1 cup ice cubes (optional)

Blend everything in Vita-Mix or blender until smooth.

Vita-Mix Tips: If you are using a Vita and the mixture is extremely thick, add more milk/agave/splash of water until blending is easier and blend on High. Don’t be afraid of High. Better to do this on High for shorter duration than lower speed/longer duration.

Store in container in the freezer. Mixture will freeze solid in the freezer and if so, let thaw for 5 minutes on countertop until you can scoop it out.

Note: After a week, this ice cream had not turned brown even though avocados tend to oxidize rapidly. And, the flavor still tasted spot-on.

Garbanzo, Tomato, and Cilantro Salad with Lime and Chile Dressing (with or without avocado)

(4 servings, recipe created by Kalyn with inspiration from a blog that no longer exists)

Ingredients:
1 can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed well and drained
4-5 tomatoes or 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, diced in 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 cup green onion, sliced
1 cup (1 large bunch) cilantro, washed, dried, and chopped coarsely with chef's knife or food processor
1 avocado, diced (optional, but good)

Dressing Ingredients:
2 T fresh lime juice (plus 2 tsp. more for avocado, if using)
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. ground Chipotle chile powder (I used Penzeys, you could substitute hot sauce if you don't have ground Chipotle)
1/2 tsp. chile powder (mild)
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. onion powder
zest from one lime
salt, fresh ground pepper to taste

Instructions:

Drain beans into colander and rinse until no foam remains. Let drain well. Mix together the lime juice, olive oil, ground Chipotle powder (or hot sauce), chile powder, ground cumin, onion powder, and lime zest to make the dressing, then put beans and dressing into a plastic container with a snap-on lid and shake a few times to combine. (Use a bowl that's big enough to hold all the salad ingredients.) Let beans marinate in dressing one hour or longer.

If using avocado, peel and dice the avocado and toss it with 2 teaspoons of lime juice. Dice tomatoes, place in colander with a small amount of salt and let tomatoes drain 10 minutes while you dice onions and chop cilantro. (You can skip that step if using cherry tomatoes or if your tomatoes aren't that juicy.) Thinly slice the green onions and wash, dry, and chop the cilantro.

Combine marinated beans with dressing, tomatoes, green onion, and cilantro and stir gently until well combined, then gently stir in the avocado (if using.) Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.