Sweet Potato Taco Bowls

If you liked the Sweet Potato Fajita Bowls, try these - it's a variation on a similar theme. They go together quickly, too, especially if you use a food processor to shred the sweet potatoes. I used leftover Slow Cooker Southwestern Beans in this, which was great, but you can also use plain black beans. And for this or any other purpose, if you happen to spot Sidehill Farm sour cream, buy some!! It is the best sour cream I've ever tasted.

Olive oil
2-3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and shredded
1 lb ground beef
Salt and pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
3-4 cups cooked black beans, plain or seasoned with cumin and chili powder

Toppings (use what you like):
Shredded lettuce or other greens
Guacamole
Sour cream
Pickled red onions
Pickled chili peppers
Salsa
Hot sauce
Shredded cheddar

Heat a little olive oil in a large skillet. Add the shredded sweet potatoes and saute over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until tender. Set aside.

Cook the beef in a medium skillet. Add cumin and salt and pepper to taste.

Heat the black beans. Reheat the sweet potatoes if needed.

To serve, place sweet potatoes in the bottom of each diner's bowl, then add spoonfuls of beef, beans, and toppings.

Serves about 4.

Chorizo and Squash Scramble

I was going to make a frittata but decided at the last minute that a scramble would be quicker and easier. I really liked the combination of flavors and textures here. We had leftover grilled chorizo from Hager's farm, which went in here nicely. I served this for dinner, but it would also work for brunch or lunch.

2 cups shredded summer squash or zucchini
4 ounces cooked chorizo, diced
10 large eggs, beaten
2 ounces cream cheese, in small cubes
1-2 ounces shredded sharp cheddar
Oil or butter for cooking
1 can black beans, drained
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the squash or zucchini in a strainer over the sink. Sprinkle with salt, mix, and let stand for 10-15 minutes to release excess liquid. Then squeeze out as much water as you can using your hands or a dish towel.

Combine the eggs, cream cheese, and cheddar in a bowl.

Heat a little oil or butter in a large skillet. Add the squash or zucchini and saute for 2 minutes or so. Then add the chorizo and beans. Continue to saute over medium heat until warmed through. Add the egg mixture and cook, scrambling, over low-medium heat until cooked through. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4-5 as a main dish.

Locavore Tacos

These have been a big hit with my family. I like that you can prepare all the fillings in advance and then just heat and serve at dinner time. I used beef from Freeman Farm, Sidehill Farm sour cream, local cheddar, locally grown and made tortillas from Mi Tierra, and greens and cilantro from my garden. As the season moves along, you can add local tomatoes, onions, and whatever else you like. Mix it up with different kinds of meat or beans. This is a great way to use up leftovers, too - meat, veggies, whatever.

I've been heating the tortillas on the grill several at a time, which is a big improvement over the skillet method.

12 corn tortillas (taco size)
1 lb ground beef
2 cups cooked black or pinto peans
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder (or to taste)
Salt and pepper
Chopped fresh onions or scallions
Sour cream
Shredded cheddar or jack cheese
Lettuce or other greens
Cilantro
Salsa or hot sauce

Brown the beef in a medium skillet, adding cumin, chili powder, and salt and pepper. When it's done, scoop out the meat and add the beans. Sprinkle with a touch more cumin, chili powder, and salt and pepper. If not serving immediately, refrigerate meat and beans.

When you're ready to serve, heat the tortillas just enough to make them pliable and aromatic. Pass fillings and toppings at the table, load up the tortillas, and enjoy!

Serves about 4.

Slow Cooker Bean Soup from the Pantry with Dried Garden Herbs

This is a classic pantry soup, made largely with stuff you probably have sitting around already and little that is fresh. That said, if you do have fresh (or frozen, or canned) veggies on hand, feel free to throw in whatever you like. The part I really liked about this was getting out jars of herbs from the garden that I dried last summer and crumbling them fresh into the soup. My hands smelled like summer when I was done. This makes a big batch, perfect for freezing.

You can use a packaged soup mix of beans here if you like, or mix and match from your pantry (back beans, red beans, navy beans, pinto beans, lentils...it's all good). I included some absolutely lovely, creamy local beans from Crabapple Farm - the variety was called Marfax.

3-4 cups mixed dried beans and barley
Vegetable stock
1 medium onion, diced
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 Parmesan rinds (optional)
1/4 cup dried parsley
1-2 Tbsp dried oregano
1-2 Tbsp dried basil
Salt and pepper to taste
Good quality olive oil for topping (optional)

Place the bean and barley mix in the slow  cooker and add enough vegetable stock to cover by 2 inches (be more generous if you won't be able to check on the soup during the day). Add the onion, garlic, Parmesan rinds (if using), and the herbs.

Cook on high for 7-9 hours (longer is ok), until the beans are all completely tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve hot. If desired, drizzle with olive oil at the table.

Serves about 8.

Savory Southwestern Cornbread Pudding

This was inspired by a large batch of leftover cornbread that accidentally got left out overnight uncovered. Too stale to eat on its own, but it seemed a shame to waste it. This bread pudding was the happy result. The format is quite flexible - I considered several ingredient and flavoring options before deciding on this one, but I plan to try others next time I have leftover cornbread. You could even take it in a sweet direction, using berries, cinnamon and sugar and topping with whipped cream.

This takes some time to prepare and bake, though mostly unattended, so save it for a night (or brunch) when you have time.

4 eggs, beaten
2 1/2 cups milk
Approximately 8 cups cubed stale cornbread
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups corn kernels (thawed if frozen)
1 1/2 cups diced red pepper (thawed if frozen)
1 1/2 - 2 cups cooked black beans
1/4 cup chopped pickled hot peppers (or to taste)
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar

Combine the eggs and milk in a large bowl. Add the cornbread and soak for about 30 minutes, carefully stirring once or twice.

Once the cornbread has soaked up a lot of the egg and milk mixture, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Add salt and pepper, corn, red pepper, black beans, and pickled hot peppers, along with half the shredded cheddar, to the cornbread mixture. Carefully mix, taking care not to turn the cornbread to mush.

Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish. Pour the cornbread mixture into the pan and spread it out. Top with the remaining cheddar.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until cooked through. The pudding will remain soft in the middle but the egg should all be cooked.

Serve hot.

Serves 6-8.

Variations: Substitute 2-3 minced chipotles in adobo for the pickled hot peppers, or add chopped fresh cilantro and/or scallions with the vegetables.

Tortilla Pie with Spinach, Chicken, and Black Beans

Here's a nice hearty baked dish for these dismal cold grey days we've been having. A great use for leftover chicken. This recipe makes two pies, but feel free to halve it.

Olive oil
10-12 garlic cloves, minced
2 medium onions, diced
2 Tbsp ground cumin
1-2 tsp chili powder, or to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
3-4 cups cooked black beans
3 cups shredded cooked chicken
1/2 lb spinach, washed, stemmed and coarsely chopped
4 10-inch tortillas (flour or corn as you like)
8 oz. shredded sharp cheddar

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly oil two large pie plates or 10-inch oven-proof skillets.

Heat a little olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven. Add the garlic and onions and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, and salt and pepper and mix well. Add the beans and chicken and heat through. Add the spinach and saute until wilted. Drain off extra liquid, either using a colander or by tipping the pan and sucking it out with a baster.

Place one tortilla in the bottom of each pan. The edges will fold up a little around the edges of the pan. Spread one quarter of the cheese over each tortilla, then add a quarter of the spinach mixture to each. Top with another tortilla, then the remaining filling. Spread the remaining cheese on top.

Bake the pies for about 15 minutes, until the tortilla crust is a bit crisp and the cheese begins to brown.

Serves 6-8.

Sweet and Spicy Caribbean Black Bean, Corn, and Beef Stew

I make all my long-simmered dishes on the weekend. I can put them together while the little man naps, then they bubble quietly away for a few hours until dinnertime. This stew brought a nice blast of tropical flavor to a grey, wet March day. Every time I cook corn that I froze from last summer's crop, I am amazed at how incredibly sweet and flavorful it is. (Next year, I really need to freeze more of it.) Serve this over white rice, if you like, or accompanied by cornbread.

2 cups dry black beans
Water
1 lb stew beef, cubed
2-3 tsp ground cumin (divided)
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour, fine cornmeal, or masa harina
Salt and pepper
1 Tbsp canola oil
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium onions, diced
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1-3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, finely minced
1/2 cup dark rum (optional but nice)
3 Tbsp honey
Beef stock and/or more water
2 cups corn kernels (frozen is fine)
1 Tbsp lime juice

Place the beans in a bowl and cover generously with boiling water. Let them soak while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Toss the cubed beef with 1 tsp ground cumin, the flour/cornmeal/masa harina, and some salt and pepper so that it is well coated.

Heat the canola oil in a Dutch oven or soup pot. Add the beef and brown over high heat, stirring occasionally, for 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and onion and reduce the heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring frequently, for 2-3 minutes. Add a splash of water to deglaze the pan and stir well. Stir in the remaining cumin, the coriander, minced chipotle peppers, rum, and honey.

Drain and rinse the beans, then add them to the pot. Add beef stock and or water to cover everything in the pot. Turn up the heat until it bubbles nicely, then reduce to very low. Cover and simmer on very low heat for at least 1 1/2 hours and as long as 3 or 4.

Toward the end of the cooking time, add the corn. Stir in the lime juice just before serving. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Serve hot.

Serves about 6.

Chipotle Black Bean and Sweet Potato Stew

This packs a bit of a punch, as most things with chipotle do. On the other hand, my two-year-old ate a surprising amount of it - he made a face with the first few bites, but kept spooning up more. If you open a can of chipotles in adobo sauce to make this, the remainder will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for months.

olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 cups cooked black beans (if seasoned, so much the better)
1 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, seeded and minced
1 Tbsp ground cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional toppings: cheddar, goat cheese, sour cream, or creme fraiche

Heat a little olive oil in a soup pot or Dutch oven. Add the onion and garlic and saute about 5 minutes, until soft. Add the black beans, sweet potatoes, chipotle, cumin, and salt and pepper. Add a little water if the mixture seems dry; remember that the sweet potatoes will give off some liquid as they cook. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sweet potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Serve hot, adding any of the optional toppings at the table.

Serves about 4.

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tortilla Pie

This used up the remaining sweet potatoes from our last CSA box. We get another one tomorrow, and I hope it has more!

If you have a food processor with a grater attachment, use it to shred the sweet potatoes. In fact, to really speed things along, you can do the onion that way, too.

olive oil
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, finely chopped (red onion is nice)
3/4 - 1 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and shredded
1 1/2 - 2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 15-oz can)
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2-1 tsp chili powder
Salt and pepper to taste
2 10-inch tortillas
3-4 oz. shredded sharp cheddar
Salsa for topping (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Heat a little olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the sweet potato, beans, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper. Saute over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until sweet potato is tender, about 5-7 minutes.

Lightly oil a 10-inch oven proof skillet or similar pan. Place one tortilla in the bottom and sprinkle with half the cheddar. Spread half the sweet potato mixture over the cheese, flattening it out as you do so. Place the second tortilla on top. Spread the remaining sweet potato mixture over the tortilla, then top with the remaining cheese.

Bake for about 15 minutes, until cheese begins to brown.

Serve hot. If desired, top with salsa at the table.

Serves 3-4.

Pizza with Squash, Black Beans, and Goat Cheese

This is a great use for leftover black beans that are already cooked and well seasoned. It's fine if they have some other ingredients mixed in, like onions and peppers.

1 14-inch pizza crust
olive oil
1 cup cooked black beans
1 tsp lemon juice
1 hot pepper, minced (frozen is fine) or chili flakes to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (or 1-2 thawed cubes from the freezer)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup cooked mashed winter squash or pumpkin
3 oz. crumbled goat cheese
2-3 oz. shredded mozzarella (optional)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Paint the pizza crust lightly with olive oil.

Toss the beans with the lemon juice, hot pepper, cilantro, salt and pepper. Spread the squash over the pizza crust, then top with the bean mixture. Dot with goat cheese, then top with the mozzarella.

Bake for about 15 minutes, until the crust is done and the cheese just begins to brown.

Serves 3-4.

I Feel Like a Squirrel

At some point over this weekend, Nate and I were looking out the window, watching a squirrel run along the fence with a good two or three nuts precariously clasped in its mouth. Nate wanted to know where the squirrel was going, so I told him it was probably going to stash those nuts away for the winter. Doing the human version of that was pretty much how I spent much of the rest of the weekend.

I husked two dozen ears of corn, stripped off the kernels, blanched it all, and packed it into the freezer. I harvested a bunch of kale from the garden, where it was once again overshadowing the smaller greens around it, steamed it and packed that into the freezer. I made tons of pesto, both the standard Italian basil variety and my own parsley-mint version, and stashed all that away in the freezer for quick meals to come.

While I was at it, I cooked a big batch of black beans in the crock pot (plugged outside on the deck to avoid heating up the kitchen unnecessarily) to replenish the stock I like to keep in the freezer and also to provide the basis for a quick meal later this week (to provide more time for working in the garden and putting up additional food). Oh, and I harvested a load of eggplant from the garden along with some tomatoes and cooked it up into sort of a stew with some garlic and onion, to be embellished later with additional ingredients for quick meals. Again, some went into the fridge for later this week and some went into the freezer. Whew.

Cold Southwestern Quinoa Salad

It's in the 90s for the fourth or fifth day in a row. I had been thinking about making corn chowder tonight, but no way do I want to eat something hot--never mind stand over a soup pot to make it. This salad is one of my favorite hot weather meals. It's hearty enough to be a main dish, and very flexible in terms of ingredients and quantities. I like it with quinoa, but I've made it with bulgur and even with pasta. You can use chives or scallions in place of the onion and vary the amount of each vegetable depending on what you have.

2 1/2 cups water
1 cup quinoa
3 cups cooked black beans
1 large red pepper, diced
2 cups corn kernels (raw if very fresh and sweet; otherwise lightly cooked)
1 small sweet onion, minced
1 hot pepper, minced (or to taste)
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 oz. sharp cheddar, in small cubes
1-2 cups salsa (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the water and quinoa in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 15 minutes, until water is absorbed and quinoa is tender.

Combine quinoa and all other ingredients in a large bowl. Chill until ready to serve.

Serves about 6.

Pizza with Black Beans, Kale, and Bacon

The kale in the garden has grown so big that it was completely overshadowing crops that had been next to it earlier in the season. So I picked a bunch last night and used it in this tasty pizza, along with hot peppers, cilantro, and onions also from the garden. The bacon was from Bostrom Farm as usual. Note that this recipe makes two pizzas; you could easily halve it. Also, feel free to substitute other greens for the kale, depending on what you have.

3 cups cooked black beans
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
2 hot peppers (such as jalapenos), seeded and coarsely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced lengthwise
6-8 cups coarsely chopped or torn kale (stems removed)
4-5 strips cooked bacon, chopped
2 14-inch pizza crusts
3-4 ounces shredded sharp cheddar
3-4 ounces shredded mozzarella

Combine the black beans, cilantro, and hot peppers in the food process and process until relatively smooth. Add a little water to achieve a consistency you like. It should be somewhere between sauce and hummus. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Paint the pizza crusts lightly with olive oil.

Heat a little more olive oil in a skillet and saute the onions for about 2 minutes. Add the kale, in bunches if necessary, and saute until tender.

Spread the black bean mixture evenly over the pizza crusts. Spread the kale and onions over the beans, then sprinkle with bacon. Top with cheddar and mozzarella.

Bake for 15-18 minutes, until crusts are done and cheese begins to brown.

Serves 4-6.

Slow Cooker Southwestern Beans

This is a staple in our house for nights when I won't have time to cook. I am still feeling very pleased with myself for freezing so many red peppers last fall--the supply is going strong and I am enjoying one of my favorite vegetables right through the winter. I usually serve these beans over rice, but you could also do them more like a soup. I've listed the vegetables I like to add, but it's entirely flexible: you can use more, less others, or none at all.

3 cups dried black beans, soaked overnight, rinsed and drained
1 large onion, chopped
2 bell peppers (any color), diced
Tomatoes, chopped (optional: as many or few as you like; frozen or canned both fine)
1 cup corn kernels (frozen is fine)
3/4 cup salsa
Water
Salt and pepper to taste
Shredded cheddar for topping
Hot sauce for topping (optional)

Combine all ingredients except water and salt and pepper in the slow cooker. Add water until the beans are fully but not generously covered. Add more water if you want the end result to be more like a soup or you won't be able to check on the beans while they cook.

Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 8-9 hours. Add salt and pepper before serving. Top with shredded cheddar and hot sauce at the table.

Serves 6-8.

Black Bean Soup

A spicy soup with Southwestern flair. The weather has abruptly turned cooler, making soup more appealing. We had this for dinner last night, with tomatoes, bell peppers, hot pepper, chives, and cilantro from the garden. Onions from Crabapple Farm. Corn from Schmidt's that I froze a little while ago. If you have time to cook dried beans, they are definitely better, but I have to confess I usually use canned ones. With the new freezer, though, I have ambitions of cooking up large batches of beans and freezing small containers of them for use in recipes like this one. This soup is best with all the optional ingredients, but still pretty tasty without them.

I've been freezing most of the ingredients in this soup, so I'll be enjoying it again in the winter.

Olive oil
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, diced
1 Tbsp ground cumin
5-6 cups cooked black beans (3 15-oz cans, drained and rinsed)
2 medium bell peppers (preferably ripe), diced
3 cups chopped tomatoes (seeded)
1 1/2 cups corn
1-2 chili peppers, seeded and minced
1-2 veggie bouillon cubes (optional)
1-2 Tbsp lime juice (optional)
1/4 cup chopped chives (optional)
1/4 - 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large pot. Add garlic and onion and saute for 2-3 minutes. Stir in ground cumin. Add black beans, peppers, tomatoes, corn, and chili peppers, bouillon cubes if using, and enough water to generously cover. Bring to a boil, then simmer until vegetables are tender. Add lime juice, chives, cilantro if using, and salt and pepper. Serve.

Serves 4-6.