Black Bean Burritos

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a wonderful meatless Monday meal for busy cooks. It's a reduced calorie version of that old Mexican favorite black bean burritos. These burritos are delicious but the best thing they have going for them is the speed with which they can be assembled. They can be on the table in 15 minutes and the recipe can easily be doubled if you have a crowd to feed. I made a mild and a hot version yesterday. I used mildly flavored Rotel tomatoes for the children and the firecracker version of the tomatoes for the adults at the table. I also used a reduced fat version of cream cheese in our burritos. This version of the cheese makes a less creamy burrito than its full fat cousin, but a low-fat sour cream was among the toppings we served, so the change in texture was not noticed. I hope you will give this recipe a try. It is based on a recipe I found on Christine Cooks. Here's the recipe I used for this fast and simple treat.

Black Bean Burritos...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Christine Cooks

Ingredients:
1 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 (15-oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (10-oz.) can Rotel tomatoes, drained
1 package (8-oz.) low-fat cream cheese
1 cup cooked white or brown rice
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon teaspoon chili powder
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
4 - 6 Flour tortillas
Optional toppings: sour cream, shredded cheese, chopped fresh tomatoes,avocado

Directions:
1) Heat a small amount of oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. Add onion and cook until translucent. Add garlic; cook and stir for 30 seconds.
2) Add beans, Rotel, and cream cheese and heat through. Stir in rice and season with cumin, chili powder, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in cilantro.
3) Wrap in a tortilla and serve with desired topping. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Burrito Bowls - Closet Cooking
Beef, Bean and Cheese Burritos - Shamrock and Shenanigins
Machaca Burritos - Never Enough Thyme
Breakfast Burritos - You Made That?
Chili Bean Burritos with Corn Salasa - Dinner Du Jour
Chipotle-Style Burritos - Melbo's Kitchen

Corn Salad with Edamame and Tomatoes

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Despite predictions of glorious weather, we've had days this week with fog so thick you needed a machete to cut through it. Weathermen have the only job in the world where you can be consistently wrong and still be promoted. However, if you say things often enough and wait long enough, sooner or later you'll be right. Yesterday was that day. The weatherman finally nailed it. The sun rose glowing and stayed that way for the entire day. Under all that fog, the plum and pear trees and early daffodils had been waiting for the sun to signal their debut. They made their appearance yesterday, so, I can finally say with certainty that spring has come to my corner of the world. When the pear trees come fully into bloom, the valleys here will look like they've been sprayed with popcorn. That's eye candy for winter weary souls. Bob and I decided it was no day to remain indoors, so we took off early and came home late. We had breakfast and lunch on the road in quantities larger than our want, so we weren't ravenous when dinner time rolled around. I made a quick soup, some rice and this lovely simple salad that I want to share with you today. It contains protein rich edamame, green soybeans, and the beans add a lovely crunch to this quick salad. I do hope you'll give this a try. It's a perfect accompaniment to grilled anything. The salad has magnificent color and is meant to be eaten hot or warm. You'll find its color becomes less vibrant as it sits, so make this just before you plan to serve it. Here's the recipe.

Corn Salad with Edamame and Tomatoes...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite based on a recipe developed by Nancie McDermott

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 thin slices fresh ginger
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups frozen sweet corn
1 cup frozen edamame beans
3 tablespoons water
1/2 cup halved cherry or grape tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
1) Heat a wok or a deep skillet over high heat. Add vegetable oil and swirl to coat all surfaces of pan.
2) Add garlic, ginger and salt. Stir just until garlic releases its fragrance, about 30 seconds. Add corn and toss to coat with oil. Stir in edamame beans.
3) Add water and cook, tossing or stirring often, until the corn and edamame are hot and tender, about 5 minutes.
4) Add tomatoes and sugar. Toss or stir gently until they are warm and heated through. Add sesame oil and cilantro and mix well. Transfer to a plate. Serve hot or warm. Yield: 4 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Bulgur and Walnut Salad with Pomengranate Dressing - One Perfect Bite
Warm Asian-Style Rice Salad - One
Perfect Bite
Khmer Green Papaya Salad - One Perfect Bite

Vegan Red Lentil Soup

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I try to keep a supply of red lentils in the pantry. They're perfect for making a really quick soup that's hearty and filling but not heavy. Red lentils cook in about 30 minutes and there is a sweetness about them that can't be found in the green or black varieties. The real trick to this particular soup is the quality and flavor of the vegetable stock use to make it. A good commercial variety is fine, but taste carefully for salt. Lentils can be very bland and the minimal spicing used in this recipe demands a well-salted broth. This soup is very nearly a puree. If you prefer more texture, measure an additional cup of lentils and cook them separately in rapidly boiling water until they are just tender. To insure they don't over cook plunge them into cold water. Add them to the soup and heat through just before serving. While the lentils are a saffron red in their raw state they turn a most unattractive shade of mustard as they cook down. I use sweet paprika to make my soup more visually appealing. Not necessary, but nice. I suspect pimenton could also be used but that would produce a deeper and more smokey flavor. This soup is best eaten the day it is made. Like pea soup, it will thicken and will need to be thinned with additional stock or water if it sits. This recipe can be halved for small families or doubled if you are feeding a crowd. Here's the recipe.

Vegan Red Lentil Soup...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
3 cloves crushed garlic
1 pound red lentils
8 cups vegetable stock
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
Optional garnish: 1/2 cup vegan yogurt

Directions:
1) Heat oil in a heavy bottomed soup pot. When it shimmers, add onions and cook over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in cumin, coriander, allspice, paprika and garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
2) Add lentil to pot and stir well to coat with spices. Add vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes. Stir in vinegar. Adjust seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into soup bowl. Garnish with yogurt if using. Yield: 6-8 servings.

You might also enjoy:

Vegan and Red Lentil Flan
Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
Celery Soup

Cranberry Chambord Sorbet - Pink Saturday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a lovely palate cleanser to serve at the end of a heavy meal. I try to keep a quart of it in the freezer for those who don't like, or have room for, more traditional holiday desserts. Sorbet is a frozen dessert that's a bit like gelato, but it's softer and contains no dairy products. It's made with sugar and a fruit puree and it's suitable for vegan diets. This lovely recipe is an adaption of one that appeared in Relish Magazine. It can be made with raspberry or orange liqueur or orange juice. I've added a pinch of salt and some lemon juice to the original recipe. We are of two minds in our house. Bob loves it with Chambord while I prefer it made with Cointreau or orange juice. Chambord always seems to win. This particular recipe uses an ice cream freezer but it can be made without one using the directions that you'll find here. This is very easy to do. Here's the recipe.

Cranberry Chambord Sorbet...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1 (12-oz.) bag fresh or frozen cranberries
2 cups water
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup raspberry liqueur or strained fresh orange juice
1 pinch kosher salt
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Directions:
1) Combine cranberries, water and sugar in a 3-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until cranberries pop, about 5 minutes.
2) Remove from heat and stir in liqueur or orange juice, salt and lemon juice.
3) Strain mixture through a fine sieve into a shallow pan; use back of a spoon to press as much liquid as possible from berries. Chill strained liquid for 2 hours.
4) When mixture is very cold, pour it into canister of an ice cream freezer. Freeze according to manufacturer's directions. Spoon into a freezer-safe container; cover and freeze fro one hour or until firm. Remove from freezer 10 minutes before serving. Yield 6 servings.

This post is being linked to:

Pink Saturday, sponsored by Beverly at How Sweet the Sound.

Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup

I must be honest here. Broccoli didn't pass my lips until I was well past my 30th birthday. I was raised in an era when green vegetables were cooked until they turned gray and I became adept at hiding peas and other sundry in my dinner napkin. My conversion, when it came, was due to the power of Chinese takeout and the lovely crisp vegetables tucked inside those carry-out containers. Again, in the interest of complete transparency, you also need to know that I love a bargain. That will help you understand how 5 pounds of spinach, 3 pounds of broccoli florets and 2 pounds of snap peas simultaneously ended up in the vegetable crisper of a refrigerator that feeds two people. I reason that if we don't eat it all it's still less expensive than buying in smaller quantities. Here's the problem - I can't bare to waste food, so I end up scrambling to create usable recipes that will save my bargains from the compost pile. I really like today's recipe. It uses five ingredients to produce a vegan soup that is delicious - a real palate pleaser. It starts with broccoli that's cooked in vegetable stock along with a puree of caramelized onions, garlic and lite tofu. The end result is a creamy broccoli soup that contains no cream. I hope you'll try this one. I don't think you'll be disappointed. It improves as it sits, it's great for company and it can be served hot or cold. What's not to like?

Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups (14 to 16-oz.) thinly sliced onions
2 tablespoons (about 6 cloves) coarsely chopped garlic
1 (12-oz.) box lite silken tofu
1-1/2 to 2 pounds broccoli florets
2 (14.5-oz.) cans vegetable broth
1/2 cup water
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh lemon juice to taste (optional)

Directions:
1) Heat oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add onions; cook covered, stirring occasionally until onions are caramelized. Remove onions to bender jar. Add garlic to skillet; cook until garlic is fragrant. Add to blender jar. Puree. Add tofu. Pulse to combine. Return to skillet.
2) Add broccoli, vegetable stock and water to skillet containing onion-tofu mixture. Bring to a simmer; cover and cook for 10 minutes. Transfer broccoli, in batches to a blender jar. Puree. Season to taste to with salt, pepper and lemon juice if using. I've found this recipe needs a good deal of salt. Yield: 6 servings.

One Bowl Vegan Chocolate Cake

My youngest grandson has an allergy problem that has caused my daughter to change the way her family eats. A few months ago a friend gave her a recipe for a vegan chocolate cake. She loved the cake. I asked her to send the recipe to me and I must admit I was surprised at just how good it is. It's a one bowl wonder and very easy to do. There are many versions of this cake in cyberspace. Unfortunately, none of them credit the original source. I've done some searching and as far as I can tell the recipe is a variation of a cake that first appeared in the Moosewood cookbook. Oops, time for an update. Thanks to one of our readers, I can now tell you that this should be called a Wacky Cake. It was developed for the bare bones kitchens of the depression or WWII - sources are not in agreement as to which. A big thanks to laurelvb for letting us know. Hopefully, we're inching closer to the original creator of the Wacky Cake. I've made the cake twice. Once exactly as it was written and the second time with a few variations of my own. It's a nice cake! Even our little guy likes it and that really delights us because, as you can see, he didn't care at all for his first birthday cake. It's nice to know that he'll be able to celebrate his second birthday with a cake and a big smile. My changes to the recipe are small. I decided to add espresso powder and almond extract to heighten the flavor of the cake. The cake has a nice crumb and is remarkably moist. It keeps well.

Vegan Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup Dutch processed cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon espresso powder or crystals
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 cup canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups cold water
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 x 2-inch pan. Set aside.
2) Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa, salt and espresso in a large bowl. Add vanilla and almond extract to water in a two cup measure. Combine with oil and vinegar and gradually add liquid to dry ingredients. Beat with an electric mixer for 2 minutes. Pour into prepared pan.
3) Bake in center of oven for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Remove from oven. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar just before serving. Yield: 12 to 16 pieces.