Super Veggie Lentil Taco "Meat"

(Photo from The Ordinary Vegetarian)

This recipe was sent to me by Aubrey B. She said it has fabulous flavor and texture. She found it at The Ordinary Vegetarian.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup brown lentils, rinsed and picked over
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 large bell pepper, chopped (any color)
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms (any kind) (I left this out, since I didn't have any on hand, it worked just fine.)
• 1 carrot, peeled and sliced
• 2 ribs of celery, sliced
• 1-1/2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 bay leaf
• dash cayenne
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• Salt to taste

Directions:

Heat 1/4 cup water in a large skillet. Saute onion for 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, bell pepper, and mushrooms and cook for another 3 minutes. If the pan starts to dry up and the contents start sticking, add a tablespoon or two more of water. Add in the lentils, carrots, celery, chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, bay leaf, and cayenne, and saute for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in the broth and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium low and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the mixture starts drying out, add 1/4 cup water or broth. (I ended up putting in about 1/2 a cup extra water)

Remove from heat and carefully drain off any extra liquid (a little bit of liquid is fine, excessive liquid is not desirable). Remove bay leaf and stir in tomato paste and lime juice. Transfer to food processor or blender and pulse a few times, until a crumbly texture is achieved--do not puree. Serve hot.

Makes six 1/2 cup servings (about 3 cups), which could be used to make 12 tacos, 6 burritos, 6 taco salads, or 6 nacho platters.

Spicy Bean Burritos

Photo from Pink Parsley.

I found this recipe on Annie's Eats. She adapted it from Pink Parsley, who adapted it from Cooking Light. So it's been through some changes since the original recipe was found! You basically make your own re-fried beans, but they are much more tasty!

Ingredients:

For the bean filling:

• 2 tsp. canola or vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. minced chipotle in adobo sauce
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ¼ tsp. kosher salt
• Dash cayenne pepper
• 1/3 cup water, vegetable broth or chicken broth
• 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15 oz.) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 6 tbsp. fresh salsa

For serving:

• 6 (9- or 10-inch) flour tortillas, warmed
• Shredded cheese
• Diced tomatoes
• Shredded romaine lettuce
• Chopped green onions
• Low-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt

Directions:

To make the bean filling, heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, chili powder, chipotle, cumin, salt and cayenne; stir, cooking just until fragrant, 30-60 seconds. Add the beans and the water or broth to the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and allow the mixture to simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat, stir in the salsa and mash the mixture with a spoon or fork.

Spoon about a third of a cup of the bean mixture down the center of each tortilla. Top each serving with a pinch of shredded cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, green onions and sour cream. Roll the tortilla up tightly, burrito style, and serve immediately.

Yields about 6 servings.

Notes about this recipe:

1. I didn't use the cayanne pepper and only used 3 Tb. of our medium salsa and it was still a tad bit spicy. If you aren't one for spice I would put less of the chipotle in adobo or chili powder.

2. I added olives to mine and it was delish.