Southwestern Pasta Salad

Southwestern Pasta Salad  (slightly adapted from AllRecipes, 8 servings, Total Time: 30 minutes)

Ingredients

·         1 (12 oz.) package rotini pasta

·         1/3 cup vegetable oil

·         ¼ cup fresh lime juice

·         2 Tbsp. chili powder, or to taste

·         2 tsp. ground cumin

·         ½ tsp. salt

·         2 cloves garlic, crushed

·         2 ears corn on the cob, cooked and kernels cut off cob

·         1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed

·         ½ cup diced green bell pepper

·         ½ cup diced red bell pepper

Directions

1.      Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

2.      In a large bowl combine oil, lime juice, chili powder, cumin, salt and garlic. Stir in pasta and set aside to cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.

3.      Stir in corn, beans, green pepper, and red pepper. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

I started out with ¾ of my package of rotini pasta, but after tossing everything, I found that I needed more pasta because the coating was much too thick.  I like the taste of this dish (it tastes like chili), but it does have a lot of carbs.  Good if you are carbo-loading, not so good if you’re looking for a lot of protein.  The pasta has a nice crunch to it, as do the bell peppers – that mixes nicely with the softer texture of the corn and black beans.  Overall, I like it; however, it leaves my teeth feeling coated, almost like I just drank a soda or something very sugary.  For this reason, I don’t think that I will make this dish again.

Tomato Cream Sauce

Tomato Cream Sauce (slightly adapted from AllRecipes, 5-6 servings, Total Time: 20 minutes)

Ingredients

·         2 Tbsp. olive oil

·         ½ small onion, diced

·         1 clove garlic, minced

·         1 (14.5 oz.) can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained

·         1 Tbsp. dried basil leaves

·         ¾ tsp. white sugar

·         ¼  tsp. dried oregano

·         ¼ tsp. salt

·         1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

·         ½ cup heavy cream

·         1 Tbsp. margarine

Directions

1.      In a saucepan, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat. Make sure it doesn't burn.

2.      Add tomatoes, basil, sugar, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to boil and continue to boil 5 minutes or until most of the liquid evaporates.

3.      Remove from heat; stir in whipping cream and butter. Reduce heat and simmer 5 more minutes.

I served this over rotini cooked al dente and both my husband and I loved it.  It has a slightly sweet flavor.  The only thing that I had an issue with was that I tossed it with too much pasta, resulting it being slightly dry.  I will probably double the recipe next time.  It is quick, easy, and very tasty.  The next time I make it, I will substitute half-and-half for the heavy cream.  No other changes needed!  Enjoy!

Mexican Lasagna – Lite

Mexican Lasagna – Lite (adapted from AllRecipes, 6 servings, Total Time: 1 hour)

Ingredients

·         1 package Morningstar Farms MealStarters burger crumbles

·         1 envelope taco seasoning mix

·         ¾ cup water

·         1-2 cups crushed tortilla chips (can also use corn tortilla shells)

·         1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chiles, drained

·         2 (10 oz.) cans enchilada sauce, divided

·         1 (8 oz.) carton nonfat sour cream, divided

·         1 (16 oz.) can vegetarian refried beans, divided

·         1 (8 oz.) package shredded Mexican cheese blend, divided

Directions

1.      Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

2.      Put frozen crumbles into a skillet over medium heat, breaking up into as it cooks.  Continue until no longer frozen, about 5 minutes.

3.      Stir in taco seasoning mix and water, bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer mixture until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in chopped green chilies and refried beans, remove from heat.

4.      Spread a scant 2/3 cup enchilada sauce evenly over the bottom of an 8x10-inch baking dish; top sauce with ½ of the crushed chips. Spread chips with half the sour cream, half the crumble/bean mixture, and 1/3 the cheese blend. Top with another 2/3 cup enchilada sauce and the remaining tortilla chips. Firmly press down on tortillas to compact the layers beneath.

5.      Spread remaining sour cream, crumble/bean mixture, 1/3 the cheese blend and 2/3 cup enchilada sauce onto chips. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese blend.

6.      Bake casserole uncovered in the preheated oven until the cheese topping is melted and bubbling and casserole is hot, about 20 minutes.

I was following the intiial recips (except using tortilla chips instead of shells) until I tried to spread the sour cream on top of the tortilla chips, then everything went to heck.  It is quite a difficult task to do without them moving around (so, use the shells if you like things a little easier).  I made a combination of the shells, enchilada sauce, and chips as the first layer, followed by the crumble/bean mixture.  The next layer ended up pretty much the same.  However, it doesn’t really matter how you make it – it tastes wonderful.  I used PepperJack cheese instead of a Mexican blend and it added a nice kick to the meal – I also used medium-style enchilada sauce.  It was spicy (not too much for my husband) and very creamy (I don’t think that even the tortilla shells would have held their crunch against this meal!).  The taste is absolutely declicious (my mouth is watering right now as I remember it) and a great Mexican bite.  I definitely recommend this one!

Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas

Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas (slightly adapted from AllRecipes, 8 servings, 45 minutes)

Ingredients

·         2 tsp. olive oil

·         3 Tbsp. finely chopped onion

·         1 (15.5 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed

·         2 ears corn, cooked and cut from cobb

·         1 Tbsp. brown sugar

·         ¼ cup salsa

·         ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

·         8 (8 inch) flour tortillas

·         1 ½ cups shredded Taco cheese, divided

Directions

1.      Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onion and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in beans, corn, sugar, salsa, and pepper flakes; mix well. Cook until heated through, about 3 minutes.

2.      Spray a skillet with non-stick cooking spray.  Place a tortilla in the skillet, sprinkle evenly with cheese, top with some of the bean mixture, and sprinkle with more cheese. Place another tortilla on top, cook until golden, then flip and cook on the other side. Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling.

I found this recipe very tasty – I never would have thought to include brown sugar in the mix!  It definitely gave it a little tang.  I used medium salsa, so this dish was not spicy.  I might add some jalapenos peppers next time or a little hot sauce.  It is high in carbs and I think that it needs more veggies (like zucchini, yellow squash, and/or bell peppers).  I only made two quesadillas; I served the rest as tacos with a lot of lettuce and tomato!  I do plan on making this again – just with more of the healthy stuff!