Sweet Potato & Black Bean Chili

I had a week or two when I was craving chili. It was during our 'cold snap' here in Arizona. It actually got down to 32 degrees!!

Also, I *love* sweet potatoes. Strange? Maybe, but so what. They are tasty, okay?!

Enter---> Sweet Potato & Black Bean Chili. *cue heavenly music*

You may think it sounds really weird, but just try it, okay? You won't be sorry. I got this recipe from Life Blessons.

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili
via eat me, delicious, adapted from The Clueless Vegetarian

Serves 3-4 as a meal.

1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 medium onions, chopped
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 cup vegetable broth
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 28-oz (796mL) cans diced tomatoes
2 19-oz (540mL) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp crumbled dried oregano

Heat the oil in a large saucepan* or Dutch oven. Add the onions and cook, stirring, over medium heat until the onions are soft - about 5 minutes. Add the chili powder and the cumin and cook for another minute or so. Add the vgetable broth and the cubed sweet potatoes, reduce the heat to low and cook, covered, until the potatoes are almost tender - about 10 minutes.

Add the tomatoes with all the juice from the can, the beans, salt, and oregano. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then let simmer until the potatoes are completely tender - about 20 minutes.


Go for the Dutch oven if you can, unless your saucepan is really very large. (Jillian note: I just made it in a big pot, and it worked out just fine.)


**Jillian note: To make it more of a 'meal', we added some of the leftover smoked turkey from Thanksgiving. Holy scrumptious, Batman! And, because my hubby is a better chef than I am, he had the brilliant idea of putting a couple of the smoked turkey bones in the chili while it was simmering to impart more of that yummy flavor. *drool*

Turkey Taco's

My brother-in-law made this for us a couple of weeks ago when we went to visit and it was awesome so I had to try and make it myself.

1 lb ground turkey
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 cup shredded cheese
1 diced tomato
shredded lettuce
1 cup cooked rice
1 can olives
1 can black beans
Salsa
Homemade tortillas (I bought tortilla flour, you just add water and fry. They are so yummy. Much better then the store bought)
Any other taco garnish you like

Cook your rice. Dice tomato, lettuce, and olives. Shred cheese. Heat black beans in a sauce pan. Cook the turkey with the taco seasoning according to package directions. Let that sit on low heat while you make the tortilla (this are the best when eaten while still warm). Pile all the yummy toppings on your tortilla and eat!!!

We give this 5 stars. I wasn't sure I was going to like it with ground turkey instead of beef but it was really yummy. Having the homemade tortilla's makes a big difference they are really good.

Jack Cheese Chicken & Black Bean Enchiladas

When I chose black beans for the challenge for this week, I was at a little bit of a loss as to what I myself would make with them. See, I love black beans, but I do a lot of instinctive cooking with them (no recipe), and I really love everything that I already make with them. So why bother making something new? I'm not dissatisfied. At the same time, what would I make...I've temporarily exhausted my own black bean creations.

Well, the next day, I was going through my Google Reader, and found a recipe on one of the nearly 30 food blogs to which I am subscribed, that when I read the title, I thought "That's the one. That's the recipe I'm going to make!" And I did. And it was sooooo good.

Recipe is originally found here on Get Off Your Butt and Bake! I made these on Cinco de Mayo, and we had company over for dinner that night. I pulled them out of the oven, put them on the table, and we sat down to eat. I didn't get a chance to take a picture, but there is one on the above-linked website if you want to see. I served these with Mexican rice, strawberry water, and these brownies (the richest and yummiest I have ever eaten in my entire life).

(Side note: If you make the brownies, I would suggest almost doubling the amount of cinnamon in them. Use semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of milk chocolate. Cut into smaller-than-normal portions, and have lots of milk on hand. You'll need it! Oh, and I've got a picture of them here.)

I rate these enchiladas definitely five stars. My husband complained that they weren't "hot" enough. I love my husband. He's gotten used to my spicy Mexican cooking, and these weren't hot enough. Ironic, huh? Actually, in this case, I think it was that I used a different brand of salsa than usual. Even though it was still technically "medium" heat, it wasn't as hot as the stuff we normally use. But the heat can be adjusted easily according to your tastes.

I doubled the recipe for four of us, since it only makes four enchiladas. They are very filling. Served with rice and cornbread (which I intended to make but didn't have time for), you really only need one enchilada to fill you up (especially if you're saving room for the brownies). (Can you tell I really loved those brownies? I'm making more today. They have flour in them...Jillian, can I count them for next week's challenge?) ;)

Okay, here's the recipe. Enjoy!

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Jack Cheese Chicken & Black Bean Enchiladas

2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (4-ounce) can diced green chilies
1/3 cup prepared salsa, mild, medium or hot
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
4 (8-inch) flour tortillas
1 1/3 cups shredded Monterey jack and or Cheddar

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute 2 minutes. Add chicken and saute 5 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Remove half of the chicken and reserve for another use. (So why doesn't the recipe just call for a 1/2 pound of chicken then?) Stir in black beans, green chilies, and salsa and simmer 5 minutes, until sauce thickens and reduces. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro. Arrange 4 tortillas on a flat surface. Top each tortilla with an equal amount of chicken mixture. Roll up tortillas and place side by side in a shallow baking dish. Top tortillas with shredded cheese (1/3 cup per tortilla). Bake enchiladas 15 minutes, until cheese is golden and gooey!
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Black Bean and Corn Wonton Cups

36 wonton skins

2/3 cup chunky salsa

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1 can (15.25 oz) corn

1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained

1/4 cup sour cream

cilantro sprigs, if desired

1. Heat oven to 350. Gently fit 1 wonton skin into each of 36 small muffin cups, (1 3/4 x 1 inch) pressing against bottom and sides. bake 8-10 minutes or until light golden brown. remove from pan, cool on wire rake 5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a medium mixing bowl, mix the remaining ingredients except for sour cream and cilantro sprigs. Just before serving, spoon bean mixture into wonton cups. top each with 1/2 teaspoon sour cream. Garnish with cilantro sprigs.

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These are way yummy! I didn't use the cumin powder though. I cooked the wonton wrappers the night before, then in the morning I put them together and it only took like 5 minutes. The wonton wrappers do get soggy after a few hours of being filled.

4 stars

This recipe is from the Summer 2006 Betty Crocker Fun Summer Appetizers

Fruit & Veggie Salsa

Fruit & Veggie Salsa
Yield: a ton!!

Ingredients:
1 (20 oz) can pineapple tidbits (you could probably put in less pineapple)
2 mangoes
1/2 white onion
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained (I didn't rinse them, but if you did it would probably improve the coloring of the salsa, making it less... 'murky'?)
1/2 can corn
8-10 strawberries
1/2 jalapeno (hubby said HE would have put in the whole thing. I'm a wimp, so I only put in half.)
1 tomato
1/2-1 bunch cilantro
2-3 tablespoons lime juice
salt to taste

1) Dice or chop up everything but the beans, pineapple tidbits, corn (since they're already 'chopped') and lime juice (obviously).

2) Combine all the fruit and veggies in a big bowl. If you are planning to chill the salsa, add the strawberries right before serving.

3) Add the cilantro, lime juice and salt. Stir it up.

4) Break out the chips and enjoy!


**
Okay, I just have to say this was an awesome experience! I looked at a few different recipes for salsa and was lacking one or two ingredients for each recipe, so I looked at what I had on hand and made up the recipe!! I can't even believe it. A few months ago I probably wouldn't have dared to make something like this up. And, it turned out great! I made it for a baby shower, and everyone thought it was really, really good. Several people asked me for the recipe and were amazed that I made it.

For all of the ingredients... if you really like that ingredient, add more of it. If you hate one ingredient, don't add it. Have some peppers on hand? Toss 'em in. Next time I make it I will probably add more cilantro and less lime juice (my hubby put in 1 TB, then added in #2 & 3 before I could say anything. Crazy kid...).

sweet potato burritos?

Several of my friends love these, so I thought I'd try them. Found the recipe here.

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
* 1 onion, chopped
* 4 cloves garlic, minced
* 6 cups canned kidney beans, drained
* 2 cups water
* 3 tablespoons chili powder
* 2 teaspoons ground cumin
* 4 teaspoons prepared mustard
* 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste
* 3 tablespoons soy sauce
* 4 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
* 12 (10 inch) flour tortillas, warmed
* 8 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Heat oil in a medium skillet, and saute onion and garlic until soft. Stir in beans, and mash. Gradually stir in water, and heat until warm. Remove from heat, and stir in the chili powder, cumin, mustard, cayenne pepper and soy sauce.
3. Divide bean mixture and mashed sweet potatoes evenly between the warm flour tortillas. Top with cheese. Fold up tortillas burrito style, and place on a baking sheet.
4. Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven, and serve.

*****
Comments: I love black beans and sweet potatoes, so I thought I'd give them a shot. I roasted sweet potatoes for an hour at 350, let them cool, then just popped them out of their skins and fork mashed them.

I halved the beans recipe and only added 1/2 c water, and they were still pretty runny.

I didn't bake these, just wrapped them up and served them. We left out the cheese. We don't do vegetarian at our house (because hubby won't eat vegan meals), so I also sauteed an onion with about 1-1/2 pounds of beef stew meat and 1/3 envelope of taco seasoning. I put the beef mixture in separate burritos from the sweet potatoes, but the beans went in both.

Hubby hated the sweet potato burrito, didn't even finish it (which is saying a lot). He did eat the meat and beans. lol. I didn't even give a sweet potato burrito to kiddo because she doesn't like sweet potatoes, but she did eat the beans and meat. I actually liked them, but rate the recipe a 1 because I will not be making it again (unless it's just for me). However, the beans themselves were great and I would probably rate them a 3 or 4 to take to a potluck if you were just serving the beans and not making a burrito (because burritos are hard to do at a potluck). If I were to do them again, I would still drain the beans but put them in a food processor instead of try and mash them, and then just add a little water for consistency.

Black Bean Burgers

I found this recipe in a post someone made in a group I am a member of on CafeMom. I thought it looked different and interesting.

Black Bean Burgers

1 can black beans, rinsed/drained, and smashed with fork
1 egg
2 tablespoons salsa
chopped and sauteed onions and green peppers
1/2 cup bread crumbs
spices (cumin, oregano, pepper)

Mix everything together and form into 4 patties. You can either brush them with oil and bake them or cook them in a pan with olive oil (flipping once). Then enjoy!

*****I made them exactly as instructed. We ate them on bread since we didn't have any buns, with ketchup and mustard. I thought this would be a good recipe to have if you had to live off of food storage (if you have black beans in your food storage) if you didn't have access to or couldn't afford meat. I think that as long as you have the basic ingredients (beans, egg, bread crumbs) that you could use dried onions and whatever herbs you wanted or had on hand.

I would rate this at 3 stars. I will definitely make this recipe again, but it isn't really something that you could take to a potluck and isn't *wow* enough for a dinner party. My husband and I had to keep reminding ourselves that we weren't eating meat!

Challenge Ingredient: BLACK BEANS

Good afternoon everyone, and welcome to the new challenge day here at What's in {Your} Oven?. I am personally very excited about this challenge. Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo, so I thought it would be fitting to do something Mexican-ish. Black beans are very Mexican.

(A side note before the schpiel on black beans: Cinco de Mayo, is not, as many, perhaps even most, Americans believe, Mexican Independence Day. That is actually September 16. Cinco de Mayo actually commemorates a Mexican victory over the French in the regional Battle of Puebla. But hey, it's an excuse to eat great Mexican food, so what do we care?)

Okay, moving on. Black beans.
I love black beans. Anytime I have the option of black or pintos, I will choose black.

Black bean quick facts:

• Black beans are a good natural source of antioxidants.
• Black beans are very popular not only in Mexican cuisine, but in most Latin American countries, including Brazil and Cuba.
• They are a good source of fiber and protein.
  
• They prevent blood sugar levels from rising too quickly after a meal, making them a good food for diabetics. (I'm actually very glad to know that if I ever have to deal with diabetes that I can still eat black beans, and lots of them.)

These are an ingredient that I use so often that I don't use recipes. These I almost always cook by taste and smell. The easiest black bean recipe I have to offer you is this:


Southwestern Crockpot Chicken

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 small bag frozen corn
2 chicken breasts (frozen or thawed)
1 jar salsa

Put ingredients in crock pot in order. Cook on low for about 6 hours. Pull chicken out, shred it, mix it back into the crock pot. Let sit for another 1/2 hour. Garnish with cheese, sour cream, and tortilla chips.


Happy cooking, and please post by Sunday night!