Refried Beans
These are delicious, vegetarian refried beans. Usually they are available in restaurants filled with fat- don’t get me wrong.. they are delicious but not the healthiest. You can also get them pre-made in a can. Honestly, I have never tasted the ones in the can, so I can’t comment- but you can’t beat the homemade variety.
I don’t make it exactly from scratch as I use the cooked pinto beans out of a can. This allows me to cook the dish in no time at all without compromising on flavor. This particular one I spiced with roasted cumin seeds and smoked paprika. I also added garlic and cherry tomatoes.
It is a delicious, healthy side dish you can make in a matter of minutes. It was a great complement to the steak tacos. Try it with tacos or any thing grilled for the summer…
- 1 can of (15 ounces) pinto beans
- ¼ cup vegetable or chicken broth
Place the beans in a saucepan and add the broth. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Mash the beans in the pan with a potato masher. Leave it a bit chunky if you like. Keep aside.
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon roasted cumin seeds, crushed
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup halved cherry tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ cup cilantro, chopped
Heat the oil in a medium sized frying pan. Add the cumin seeds, tomatoes, onion and garlic and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes- till onions are soft. Add the mashed beans. Mix well and sprinkle salt and paprika. Mix well and top with cilantro and serve.
Steak Tacos with Fresh Guacamole
This is a delicious recipe. I cooked the steak in a cast iron pan but I think it will be great on the grill. I marinated the steak in a spice mix. I used ground coriander, salt, and my favorite spice- smoked paprika. I bought a nice piece of steak from Trader Joes- I think it is called tip steak. It is a great piece to cut into small pieces and marinate. I let the steak pieces sit for a few hours in the fridge before cooking. The tacos were delicious with the spiced meat.
I already had salsa in the fridge so all I made was guacamole. Everyone loves guacamole, well.. my daughter doesn’t care for it too much. I always have lots of limes on hand- especially in the warmer months. They are great to make a quick guacamole or a mojito. The whole meal didn’t take very long. I served a green salad with the tacos and some delicious refried beans.. recipe to follow..
- 1 to 1½ pounds tip steak, sliced thin diagonally
Spice Mix
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
Mix together and add the spice mix and steak pieces into a ziplock bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 hours.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 to 6 corn tortillas
Heat a cast iron or non-stick pan with the olive oil. Cook the steak pieces making sure they are not over done.
Heat the corn tortillas and serve with steak, guacamole and salsa.
Guacamole
- 2 ripe avocados cut into 1-inch pieces
- ¼ cup red onion, minced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- 2 teaspoons salt
- Juice of 2 limes
Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour before serving.
Avocado and Cumin Salad
I have making this salad almost twice a week. We love avocados- well, my husband and I do. I usually make guacamole a lot and we enjoy it with fish, chicken or any other Mexican cuisine. Since we love avocados so much, I now incorporate them into a simple salad. Some mixed greens, halved cherry tomatoes and a delicious dressing.
The dressing in this salad is the star- I used fresh lemons, honey and extra virgin olive oil. The main ingredients that make this dressing amazing is roasted cumin seeds and smoked paprika. I think I need to make a big jar of it as I find myself licking the plate after the salad is done.
Definitely try this salad- it is delicious…
- 4 cups mixed greens
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 2 ripe avocadoes, cut into 1 inch pieces
Place the greens, tomatoes and avocado pieces into a medium salad bowl.
Dressing
- 1 teaspoon roasted cumin seeds, crushed
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of two lemons
- 2 to 3 teaspoons honey
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Salt
Add the cumin seeds, lemon juice, honey, paprika and salt into a small bowl. Slowly drizzle the olive oil until the dressing emulsifies. Check for seasonings and drizzle over the salad. Toss and serve.
Pomegranate Margarita
This drink is courtesy of my dearest husband who is a great mixologist.
Whenever we have people over, I cook and he makes fabulous drinks- it is a great combination. He loves coming up with different, delicious concoctions.
Recently some friends went to Mexico city and got us a very nice tequila. My husband was super happy to get a great quality tequila and couldn’t wait to give it a test run.
The same friends invited us over for a cook out and my hubby decided to make a pomegranate margarita concoction and take it to their house to serve right before dinner.
The pomegranate margaritas were delicious- perfectly mixed with the right amount of alcohol, lime juice and sweetness.
This drink will be ideal to serve for Memorial Day.
For one drink:
- 2 ounces pomegranate liquor
- 1 ounce Reposado tequila
- ½ ounce Triple sec
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed limejuice
- 1 tablespoon simple syrup
- ½ cup crushed ice
- Sea or kosher salt for the glass rim on a flat plate
- Half a lime
Add the pomegranate liquor, tequila, triple sec, limejuice, simple syrup and ice in a shaker. Shake well. In the meantime, cover the glass rim with limejuice from the half lime. Dip the glass rim in the salt and pour the drink and serve.
If you want the drink frozen and blended- add all the ingredients into a blender including the ice. Blend till smooth and pour into a salted glass.
Fennel Apple & Endive Salad
This is a delicious, crunchy salad- a departure from your regular, green variety. It has a combination of fresh fennel and endives. I added a crunchy apple to add some tartness and amazing flavor. I then complemented the salad with an orange dressing. The whole combination is delicious!!
- 1 fennel bulb, core taken out, cleaned and sliced thin
- 1 medium Pink Lady apple, core taken out, sliced thin
- 1 green endive, cut in half and sliced thin
- 1 red endive, cut in half and sliced thin
Transfer all the ingredients to a salad bowl.
Orange Dressing
- Juice of 4 clementines
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
Add all the ingredients to an airtight container and mix really well until all the dressing is emulsified. Pour on to the vegetables and toss well. Add salt and pepper if necessary.