BLACK BEAN TACO BAKE

I’ve gone crazy for black beans recently. I’m so glad they have come in my life as they are fast becoming my substitute for rice or other grains. Today’s dinner was a dish I invented whilst walking my little puppy Buddy this afternoon. I suppose it’s similar to nachos. Whilst the recipe does seem detailed and time-consuming, there are a few shortcuts that you can take- for example, you can buy already cooked black beans instead of soaking them for 4 hours first and then cooking for 30 minutes. You can buy pre-made taco seasoning if you do have the spices to make your own. You can add cheese and/or light sour cream if you do not have a dairy allergy, however this does increase the calories. One tip- keep an eye on the oven as the taco shells do crumble quickly and can become mashed. Do not watch sex and the city and leave them for a whole episode- whoops!

INGREDIENTS


Filling

• 8-10 jumbo tacos, roughly torn 
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium green capsicum, finely chopped
• 1 x 800g tin diced tomatoes 
• 2 shallots, finely chopped
• coconut oil, liquid form
• 1 cup black beans (either raw black beans or 400g tin cooked black beans)
• 3 cups vegetable stock 
• Optional- light grated cheese
• Optional- a few slices of gluten free ham, finely torn

Taco seasoning 

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon mustard powder
• 1/4 sea salt 

Guacamole

• 1 ripe avocado, 
• 2 garlic cloves, minced or finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• sea salt to season

COOKING 

1. If using raw black beans, soak in a large saucepan overnight or for at least 4 hours, making sure that there is three times as much water as beans. After soaking, drain well. (If you are using already cooked black beans, skip step 1 & 2). 

2. Heat 3 cups vegetable stock in a medium saucepan with the black beans. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 30 minutes or until beans are cooked and tender. Remove from heat and drain. (Tip- taste 4-5 beans to make sure that they are all tender). 

3. Whilst performing step 1 & 2, preheat fan-forced oven to 200 degrees celsius. Lightly grease a deep overproof pan with coconut oil. Add torn taco shells, tomatoes, red onion, ham and capsicum. Make taco seasoning or use pre-made taco seasoning. Combine taco seasoning with drained black beans and toss to combine. Pour beans over the vegetable mixture and toss well. Sprinkle cheese over the top, if not dairy intolerant. Bake for 15-20 minutes, then serve with homemade guacamole and shallots sprinkled on top. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 4 hrs 30 minutes (if cooking black beans from scratch) / 30 minutes

Total Cooking time / cooking black beans from scratch - 50-55 minutes / already prepared black beans - 20-25 minutes

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SHEPHERD'S PIE

Today was a blissful day. The sun was shining, the flowers were blooming and I was cooking up a storm. I have been wanting to make a Shepherd’s Pie for a few weeks now, but have not had enough time to form a recipe and bake. This recipe is actually quite simple to my Bolognese recipe, minus /plus a few different ingredients and the pasta of course. The sliced potatoes on top are different from the traditional mashed potatoes, however I wanted to avoid using any milk, cheese or butter / margarine. Shepherd’s pie to me is the ultimate comfort food and perfect for a frosty night like tonight.

INGREDIENTS

• 500g extra lean beef mince
• 3 large sebago potatoes, peeled & sliced
• 1 medium brown onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely diced or minced
• 1 x 800g tin diced tomatoes
• 1 medium carrot, peeled & finely chopped
• 1 cup peas, fresh or thawed if frozen
• 500ml (2 cups) beef stock
• 2 tablespoons fresh or dried rosemary, plus extra to sprinkle over potatoes
• sea salt & black pepper
• coconut oil (liquid form)

COOKING 

1. Preheat a fan-forced oven to 180 degrees celsius. 

2. Heat a large, deep frying pan over medium heat, adding 1 teaspoon coconut oil (liquid form) and swirling to coat pan. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until onion is soft. Add beef mince and cook, breaking apart lumps with a metal spoon, until all mince is browned. Add carrots, tomatoes, rosemary and beef stock and stir well. Bring to the boil, then simmer, covered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the lid, add the peas and simmer, covered for another 10 minutes. Remove from heat. 

3. Meanwhile, place potato slices in a large plate and cover with glad wrap. Place in the microwave on high for 8 minutes. Remove from the microwave.

4. Lightly grease a deep ovenproof pan with coconut oil. Pour the beef and vegetable mixture into the pan and top with the sliced potatoes. Sprinkle more rosemary on top of the potatoes if you desire. Cook for 40 minutes in the oven or until potatoes become golden brown. Remove from heat and serve warm. 

Serves / 4 - 6

Total Preparation time / 17 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 1 hour 25 minutes 

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BACON & TOMATO BAKED BEANS

Do you have someone in your life who thinks that a meal is not really complete without ample amounts of meat in it? My boyfriend Chris is such a person and it aggravates me so much, particularly when I was going through my various failed attempts at being a vegetarian.  Whenever Chris comes home from work at night, he opens the apartment door and smells the kitchen air expectantly to see if meat made the dinner menu. It’s infuriating! I do understand that we all need meat, or at least need the protein and particularly iron that we get from meat products. I just don’t see why I have to cook it every meal. Last night I was running late to see a dear friend and needed to whip up dinner fast. Homemade baked beans seemed like a simple, no-fuss touch. The preparation time was minimal and I threw all the ingredients in a frying pan and left it to stew and become flavourful for 30 minutes. For something so modest, the beans tasted smoky, slightly spicy and delicious.

INGREDIENTS

• 100g weight watchers or low-fat bacon, fat removed, cut into small cubes
• 1 medium brown onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped or minced
• 1 teaspoon grape seed oil
• 1 x 400g tin of red kidney beans
• 1 x 400g tin of mexican chilli beans 
• 1 x 810g tin of diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup water 
• 2 tablespoons honey 
• sea salt & black pepper
• Optional - chopped fresh parsley to serve 

COOKING 

1. Heat oil in a large, deep frying pan over medium heat and add onion & garlic. Cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes or until onion has softened. Add bacon pieces, beans, tomatoes, honey and water and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, covered, stirring occasionally so that beans do not stick to the pan. Remove from heat and season with sea salt, pepper and fresh chopped parsley if you desire. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 7 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 40 minutes 

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RAINBOW OMELETTE

Do you ever have those days where you not only feel like shit, but every piece of news you receive is crappy? I had such a day yesterday and was, for once, not in the mood to cook. When I get really in my head, running is the only method that can chill me out. After my breathless, panting 8 km run last night, it was really 8pm and I was on the clock to provide something for dinner.

A little different from a conventional omelette, this Rainbow Omelette was a big crowd pleaser last night. Due to the sad and sudden disappearance of my spatula, I was unable to fold the omelette in half like is common practice. Instead I decided to let the egg completely set and serve the omelette in quarters. Me and my boyfriend Chris hungrily consumed this omelette at 8:30pm last night and my only regret was that I wish I had had 8 eggs in the fridge to make the meal bigger. Perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner. 

INGREDIENTS

• 6 eggs (preferably free-range)
• sea salt & black pepper
• 1/4 of a medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon dairy-free spread 
• a small handful of sun dried tomatoes, 99% fat free and finely chopped
• 3 heaped tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
• Optional- if not dairy-free, add 1 tablespoon light grated cheese, 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese. 

COOKING 

1. Beat the eggs in a medium bowl, adding sea salt & pepper. Heat dairy-free spread in a large frying pan over medium heat and swirl to coat. Pour the egg into the pan, spreading the mixture around the whole pan. Add the sun dried tomatoes, chives, red onion and cheese (optional) and let the omelette cook, letting it stand for 5-6 minutes or until all the egg has set. Remove the egg from the heat, cutting it into quarters and serve warm. 

Works beautifully served with some oven-toasted gluten-free bread with dairy-free spread and a sprinkle of rosemary. 

Serves / 2 

Total Preparation time / 6 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 6-7 minutes 

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ARTICHOKES WITH HERBS

My boyfriend bought me the most amazing French Cookbook for my birthday this year, after I dropped him all kinds of hints about how much I had fallen in love with the beautiful photos in the book (and not paid too much attention to the ingredients used). Upon receiving the cookbook, I was very disheartened to discover that I would probably never cook any of the recipes, as the amount of cream, oil and butter the talented cook uses would astound anyone. You may not know this about me, but as a general rule, I never use cream in cooking and will only use the occasional dollop of butter for baking. (If you do not believe me, feel free to check through the past 6 months of recipes). However, the cookbook has been a source of constant inspiration for me to pair certain vegetables, herbs and spices together. One such recipe I created is below. To increase the size of the dish, you can purchase 2-3 tins of artichokes and increase the ingredients as necessary. You can cook the artichokes from scratch, of course, however it is rather time consuming and more than a little fiddly!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 x 400g tin of whole artichokes, drained well
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon dried mixed herbs
• 1 small brown onion (60g), finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely diced 
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary 
• Optional- a drizzle of fresh lemon juice, to serve 

COOKING 

1. Place olive oil, onion, garlic, herbs and whole artichokes in a small saucepan or frying pan over medium heat. Stir gently, careful not to break the artichokes. Cook until the onion is soft, around 4 minutes. 

2. Place the onion mixture on the bottom of a serving plate and top with the artichokes. Drizzle with fresh lemon juice, if desired. 

Serves / 2- 4 as a side 

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