Tropical Black Bean Cazuela...Yum!

This is not a secret to the frequent readers of my blog - but I can eat the bright flavors of Mexico for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Not the goooopy-cheesy-fried-full-of-fatty-meat-cream-fare that leaves you in a food coma. Oh no...I'm talking about the yummy tropical fruit, creamy beans and fresh-fresh seafood thats real Mexican food.

We had a wonderful opportunity to spend the day with Rock Star Mexican Chef Rick Bayless  in March. What fun to explore a tortilla factory, a carnitas butcher and eat in the Test Kitchen with Chef Rick and his staff. (OH! the yummy margarita:) Not only did we spend the day learning about true Mexican food, we also spend the evening at Topolobampo, his Mexican fine dining restaurant that he owns with wife Deann. 

My take away from the fantastic dinner? I already knew that Mexican food is nothing like our Tex Mex or California Mex, but a fantastic explosion of sweet, tangy and piquant flavors. The incredible menu from Topolobampo is a super example of how food from South of Border can be Sweet and Savory, spicy and healthy, too.

I hope you enjoy this "take" on black bean enchiladas - our classes this week loved it!

Black Bean and Pineapple Cazeula*

2 Tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Cup Chopped Red Onion

1 Cup Chopped Red Pepper

1 Cup Chopped Fresh Pineapple

1 (15 OZ) Can Black Beans

1 Small Can Chopped Green Chilies

1 Tsp Sea Salt

4 Cups Shredded Low Fat Cheddar, divided

1 Recipe Enchilada Sauce, (recipe below), reserving 1 Cup of Sauce

¼ Cup Pineapple Juice

12 Whole Wheat Tortillas

1 Cup Non Fat Greek Yogurt

1 TB Lime Juice

Chopped Fresh Cilantro for Garnish

Step One To make the filling, heat the oil over medium heat and sauté the onion and red pepper until soft. Stir in the pineapple, beans, chilies and salt. Cook and stir until warm.

Step Two  Spray a 9 x12 ceramic baking dish with nonstick spray. Spread 1/3 of the filling over the bottom. Top with 3 tortillas that you have dipped in the Enchilada Sauce. Top with cheese. Continue layering until you have used all the ingredients. (You will be using 3 cups of the cheese in the enchiladas and 1 cup to top the dish.)

Step Three  Stir the reserved 1 Cup of enchilada sauce and the pineapple juice together and pour it over the prepared enchiladas. Sprinkle the dish with cheese. Cover with foil and bake for about 45 minutes at 350F or until golden and bubbling – removing the foil for the last 10 minutes.

Step Four  Whisk the lime juice into the yogurt. Serve the enchiladas with a dollop of the yogurt mixture and garnish with cilantro.

Cazeula* means casserole in Spanish.

Easy Enchilada Sauce

¼ Cup EVOO

¼ Cup Whole Wheat Flour

½ Minced Red Onion

3 Cloves Garlic, Grated

1 (28 OZ) Can Fire Roasted Tomatoes

3 TB Chili Powder

1 TB Dried Oregano

1 Tsp Cumin

1 TB Dark Brown Sugar, Packed

1 Cup Veggie Stock

1 Tsp Sea Salt

½ Tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Step One Heat oil in a saucepan over medium high heat. Whisk in flour, chili powder, oregano and cumin until well combined. Add the onion and cook and stir until the onion is soft. Add the garlic and cook and stir until fragrant.

Step Two Stir in tomatoes, brown sugar, veggie stock, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.

Mostly Meatless - SPRING Strawberry Jam Salad

I love berries. Earlier this week I was in the car headed to a week of fun work in St Pete, Florida. Its not a bad drive at all - I get in the car at my house and seven hours later I pull into my sister's driveway. Podcasts and audio books keep me company, and I always pack a PB and J for the drive since I'm not a fast food fan. Nothing stops me except a fuel and potty break, then its back on the road quickly.

Except for Monday, when I spotted the UPICK sign along the highway. About 10 miles of giant billboard strawberries tempted me to stop. In my mind, I calculated how long it would take me, and just how deep into rush hour traffic my sweet bliss would cost me. Over an hour and I would be hitting Tampa at 5:00, one of the most frustrating cities I've travelled through. (And this comment, from an Atlanta resident!)

I could taste the sweet warm berries, ripe and drippy, messy and perfect. Not the grocery store kind, those boxes of pretty red ones that taste like plastic, oh no. I wanted real berries. As I passed the last sign that said, "Turn here", I did. No, not for the UPICK, but for a container of berries that someone else toiled over, and spent the time I couldn't afford. I arrived in St. Pete with a pink stained shirt, smelling like strawberries. Heaven!

Here's one of my favorite strawberry recipes, to celebrate strawberry season. (Mom would like it for Mother's Day, too!)

Spring Strawberry Jam Salad

The Dressing 
1/4  Cup Strawberry Jam
1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar

1 Tsp Dijon Mustard

3 TB Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 Tsp each Sea Salt and Black Pepper

The Salad
8 Cups Spring Greens - Baby Spinach, Arugula or other Lettuces
1 Cup Shredded Red Cabbage

1 Cup Shredded Carrots

2 Cups Sliced Strawberries

4 Oz Goat Cheese, Crumbled

1/4 Thinly Sliced Green Onions

1/2 Cup Toasted Sliced Almonds

Step One To make the dressing, add the jam, vinegar, mustard and oil to a jar and shake well. Season with the salt and pepper. 

Step Two To make the salad, toss together the salad ingredients. Beginning with half of the remaining dressing, toss the salad, adding more if necessary.  

Rooibos Poached Pears OR Peaches with Ginger

Don't you love a recipe that evokes oohs and ahhs from your guests? This one qualifies. Bright flavor from the fruit, rich flavor from the tea and a hit of ginger make it irresistible. Bonus! Its easy to make - even ahead of time.

I had never tasted ROOIBOS (ROY-boss) until I visited South Africa. A beautiful red tea made from an indigenous shrub it has no caffeine, low tannins, packed with antioxidants and tastes great. What's not to like? Its been imported to the United States since the early 1900's and has recently become popular and easy-to-find in the grocery store. We've been serving it to our friends at Cancer Wellness as an iced tea with lunch. Garnished with a piece of orange or now that strawberries are in season, a big fat red strawberry hanging on the glass, and we get rave reviews.

It was the tea's glamorous red color that led me to develop this recipe. I absolutely love wine poached fruit, and serve it often as a "lighter" dessert. This time though, I was looking for a non-alcoholic version to serve at a survivor class. I hit on the rooibos idea and began to research. I found quite a few recipes using lots of spices and sugar, like cinnamon and allspice, even star anise. Great ideas, but I wanted the rooibos flavor to shine.

Here's my final recipe. I've made this dessert with pears and peaches, with and without the frozen yogurt,  mint garnish or not, (Check out the Spicy Tuesday recipe here if you are interested in what mint does for the dish). But the rooibos and ginger always shine together to create a great ending to a good meal.

Rooibos Poached Peaches

4 Cups Brewed Rooibos Tea


½ Cup Honey

2 TB Chopped Crystallized Ginger

4 Peaches, peeled, halved, and pitted 


Vanilla Frozen Yogurt and Mint for Garnish

Step One In a large saucepan, heat the tea and molasses until just boiling. Add the peach halves with cut side facing up. Reduce the heat to low and cook until tender, when they can be pierced easily with a skewer, about 8 minutes. Remove the peaches from the sauce. (If the sauce is still very liquid, you may want to reduce it further by continuing to simmer it.

Step Two To serve, place the peach in a bowl and top with vanilla frozen yogurt. Drizzle additional sauce over the top and garnish with fresh mint.