Black Bean and Goat Cheese Pizza

Last week one day I put a post on Facebook saying that I was making a black bean and goat cheese pizza.  Having never tried it before I added the comment at the end…”How could that not be good right?”  To those of you who responded that there was no way it could be good, you’re just plain crazy.

This ended up being an absolutely delicious pizza and we all were fighting for the leftovers the next day. 
I pretty much followed the same recipe that I use when I make black bean and goat cheese quesadillas the only real change being the pizza crust instead of tortillas.

Goat Cheese and Black Bean Pizza
Preheat oven to 500F (I use a pizza stone on the bottom shelf and cook my pizzas on a cookie sheet directly on the stone.)
1 package of store bought pizza dough or your own recipe (I make a bread machine dough that we love).  Stretched as shaped on a pan.  We use a cookie sheet pan and make rectangular pizzas.
Black Bean Topping
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 lg yellow onion, finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
24-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 cup water 
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno, chopped or sliced if desired
4 oz. or more goat cheese, crumbled
Directions
In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat until hot. Add the onion and garlic and sauté, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the beans, cumin, chili powder, oregano and 1/2 cup water and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost all the water has evaporated, 5 to 7 minutes. Take the pan off the heat. With the back of a fork, break up the beans to make a chunky mash. Stir in half of the cilantro and season with salt and pepper.
Spread the black bean mixture over the pizza dough and crumble the goat cheese and dab on top, sprinkle with jalapeno.
Cook until hot and bubbly and the pizza crust is browned to your liking (should be about 20 minutes but keep an eye on it.  My oven is funky at 500F.  Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Grilled Pizza for dinner…

The first time I tried grilling pizza was when we were in Toronto visiting my family.  It was something we had all wanted to try but had just never gotten around to doing it. So out I went and bought some grocery store pizza dough (divide it into 4 servings when you get it home) and some fresh and yummy toppings and into the world of pizza grilling we dove!

Mine was simply olive oil, fresh garlic, mozzarella, fresh tomato and basil…

Our biggest concern was that the dough would drip through the grill plates but it cooks up so quickly that there is no real worry to it.  You need to have your grill heated up to about 350F to crisp it quickly.

The trick, I think, to this is to have all of your toppings ready to go on and to not overload the pizza.  You do need to work fast once the bottom which becomes the top is grilled nice and crispy.  We did individual ones for ease of preparation and they worked perfect.  No problem flipping etc…

The second time we made them was here at home and I used my bread machine pizza dough recipe.  We divided this one into 4 to make 4 individual pizzas for us.  This worked perfectly as well and was a bit easier to stretch and shape then the grocery store one…

This one was topped with garlic and herbed olive oil, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, fresh basil, oregano and some homemade arugula pesto…simply delicious!

Black Bean Hummus…

I was hunting around the other day waiting to pick the girls up and I stumbled across a recipe for Black Bean Hummus.  Turns out a friend of mine has also been requesting a recipe from me for hummus.  I gave her my original one that is here, but this black bean one sounded really good to me and i couldn’t get it out of my head.  I love black beans and who doesn’t love a nice garlicky hummus???

This came together in a matter of minutes in my food processor.  I think stirring up the tahini took more time the the recipe!

Black Bean Hummus (from All Recipes)

Ingredients:

1 clove garlic
1 (15 ounce) can black beans; drain and reserve liquid
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
10 Greek olives

Instructions:

• Mince garlic in the bowl of a food processor.
• Add black beans, 2 tablespoons reserved liquid, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, tahini, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper; process until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
• Add additional seasoning and liquid to taste.
• Garnish with paprika and Greek olives.

***I calculated this for WW as 2 points for a 1/4 cup serving…that’s not including the yummy pita that you HAVE to have with it!

Homemade (quick) Refried Beans

The other day I was making tacos for dinner when I realized that I had used up the last can of refried beans.  See, I really, really like beans and on my tacos they are one of my favorite things!  I was crushed…

I didn't have time to go to the grocery store so I jumped online to see how easy they would be to make them myself.  Guess what?  If you plan ahead you can make them real easy…only problem was I had not planned ahead and had about 10 minutes to figure this out!  I had no time to soak beans (even a quick soak would take too long).  So !reached for a can of pinto beans and went to work. 
This is one of my favorite ways to eat refried beans: Whole Wheat tortilla, refried beans, jalapenos, tomatoes and fresh cilantro!

Refried Beans

Ingredients:

1 can of pinto beans, rinsed and drained (I try to find the canned beans that have the fewest ingredients in them.  A lot of beans have added sugar???)
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 small can of chopped green chilies

Directions:

• Drain and rinse pinto beans.
• Place in small saucepan over medium heat and add water.
• As the beans heat mash them with a potato masher or fork. 
• Add all spices and stir well
• Add green chilies and cook on low heat stirring frequently until they reach your desired consistency.

I really need to try this with pinto beans that have been soaked overnight but I just never seem to be able to plan that far ahead…hehehe!

****Did you know that a 1/4 cup serving of fat free refried beans only have 1/2 a WW Point????  That whole lunch above is only 1-1/2 WW Points!

Orange-Cilantro Black Bean Salad

My Mom sent me an email today reminding me that I had not posted since last week some time…funny Mom! One of my problems is we are so busy that by the time I get to sit and eat I am so hungry and it is pitch black out. I have lights but am not satisfied with the pictures when I use them. Also my meals have been somewhat less than inspiring. Mostly based on what I have on hand and that hasn't really been anything fancy. But today I was flipping through sites and came across this recipe from Weight Watchers. It sounded wonderful and…I had everything on hand!!!

Orange-Cilantro Black Bean Salad (Weight Watchers Online)

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp olive oil
1/2 medium red onion(s), cut into thin wedges
2 medium garlic clove(s), finely chopped
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1 cup(s) canned black beans, rinsed and drained
2 Tbsp cilantro, fresh, chopped
2 tsp red wine vinegar
2 medium orange(s), peeled, segmented
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste

Directions:

In a large skillet, warm oil over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 2 minutes. Add garlic and cumin; cook 1 minute more.

Stir in black beans and cook just until heated through. Transfer bean mixture to a medium-size bowl and stir in cilantro, vinegar and oranges. Season to taste and serve. Yields about 3/4 cup per serving.

***If you are counting points this is described as being 4 servings at 3/4 cup each. They give it 1 weight watchers point. Not bad for a filling lunch!

Split Pea Soup without the ham...

Don't forget the hot smoked paprika...it really adds to this soup!!!

I love pea soup. Not the traditional pea soup with the smoked ham hock thrown in. Nope I like the pure taste of the peas to come shining through.

I first tried this soup back in February when I saw it on 101 Cookbooks. I wasn't sure though if the rest of the family was going to like it. Lucky for me they did. It's become one of our cold weather staples and we usually have it about 1 every week or so. Over that time I have made just a few small changes like adding garlic and some chicken stock, otherwise this soup is delicious just the way it is!

If you like you can buy or make a nice crusty loaf of bread to add to this hearty, cold weather meal!!!

Vegetarian Split Pea Soup (Heidi of 101 Cookbooks)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 large onions, chopped (I added 3 cloves of garlic as well)
1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
2 cups dried split green peas, picked over and rinsed
5 cups water (I substitute3 cup of the water with homemade chicken stock)
juice of 1/2 lemon (reserve the zest)

a few pinches of smoked paprika
more olive oil to drizzle

Add olive oil to a big pot over med-high heat. Stir in onions and salt and cook until the onions soften, just a minute or two. Add the split peas and water. Bring to a boil, dial down the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the peas are cooked through (but still a touch al dente). Using a large cup or mug ladle half of the soup into a bowl and set aside. Using a hand blender (or regular blender) puree the soup that is still remaining in the pot. Stir the reserved (still chunky) soup back into the puree - you should have a soup that is nicely textured. If you need to thin the soup out with more water (or stock) do so a bit at a time. Stir in the lemon juice and taste. If the soup needs more salt, add more a bit at a time until the flavor of the soup really pops.

Ladle into bowls or cups, and serve each drizzled with olive oil and topped with a good pinch of smoked paprika and a touch of lemon zest.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Jalapeño Poppers finally...

Jalapeño Poppers

I have been wanting jalapeño poppers for a while now. Every time somebody mentioned peppers or I saw jalapeños it was all I could think about. I wanted the yummy ones that we used to be able to get in the bars. Filled with piping hot cream cheese and just a little zing of hot pepper. These were way better than that.

Sunday was a pretty lazy day. We had set aside the morning to finally get our garden in. I am really hoping that we aren't too late but we'll see. We planted a variety of tomatoes and some zucchini, peas, arugula, basil, parsley, oregano, cilantro and just for fun some sun flower seeds. Every year I swear I will keep a diary of what works and what doesn't but I never, ever do. When will I ever learn...

Doesn't look like much yet but just you wait and see...

It was after that when I decided that we were having poppers for lunch. After hunting around on the internet for that perfect sounding recipe I decided that I liked what was in my head a bit better.


Jalapeño Poppers

Ingredients:

2 packages (8 oz) of cream cheese, softened
1 cup of cheddar cheese, grated
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
12 jalapenos, split lengthwise, seeds and membrane removed
1 cup milk
1 cup flour
1 box panko breading

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese, and cheddar cheese Spoon this mixture into the jalapeño pepper halves.
2. Mix the flour with the black pepper, salt, paprika and garlic powder
3. Put the milk and flour mix into two separate small bowls. Dip the stuffed jalapeños first into the milk then into the flour, making sure they are well coated with each. Allow the coated jalapeños to dry for about 10 minutes.
4. Dip the jalapeños in milk again and roll them through the breadcrumbs. Allow them to dry, then repeat to ensure the entire surface of the jalapeño is coated.
5. Place in the freezer to chill for about 20 minutes before frying.
6. In a deep pot, heat the oil to 365 degrees F ( 180 degrees C). Deep fry the coated jalapeños 2 to 3 minutes each, until golden brown. Remove and let drain on a paper towel.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Sunshine Citrus Chicken and Eggplant Fritters???

Eggplant Fritters with Sunshine Citrus Chicken!

Yesterday was the last day of school for this year. The girls were both super excited and so was I. I actually love the slower pace that we are able to enjoy in the ungodly hot months of June, July and August. We seem to be in our summer weather pattern already too (torrential rain and horrific thunderstorms every afternoon) which really inhibits what we can do later in the day. Of course we will still have the ice skating lesson 3 or 4 times a week and karate but at least it won't be so hectic. I also really am able to appreciate that I stay home with the girls. I love that we are able to spend a whole summer together getting to know one another!

Fresh Ginger - the skin hadn't even dried out yet!

Anyway for dinner last night I bought some boneless, skinless, chicken thighs (organic, free range, no antibiotics or hormones of course) and I marinated them in my Sunshine Citrus Marinade (I had some really old oranges and some really fresh ginger that I needed to use up).


Sunshine Citrus Chicken

Juice from half and orange
1 cup soy sauce (low-sodium if you like!)
1 tsp orange zest
fresh ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 Tbsp Canola Oil
4 chicken thighs

Allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes (longer is better). Grill or bake until done!

Now the real surprise came when I decided to make a new side dish using an eggplant that I had bought last week! I got the recipe (sort of a recipe) from Jenn's blog The Leftover Queen. During the week of her wedding her Mother in Law came to stay with them from Italy. Jenn's post had these really great looking meatless meatballs made with eggplant! I just had to try them. Well I must have done something wrong because they looked nothing like her MIL's did!!! I think I should have drained my eggplant after I had roasted it and scraped out all of the seeds. I had to drop them by the spoonful to fry them. They were like a fritter by the time I was done with them. But we were all really pleasantly surprised by them!

This was the consistency that I got. I was afraid to add more bread crumbs (smother the taste of the eggplant) so this was as good as it was going to get!

Here's what I did:

I poked several holes in 1 large eggplant and roasted it at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes. Once it had cooled a bit I cut it open and removed the seeds and placed the remaining pulp in my food processor with a handful of dried parsley (I didn't have fresh), about a cup of seasoned bread crumbs and processed it all together. I kept adding bread crumbs until it was a consistency that I could drop from a spoon. Jenn's MIL were very dry looking (in a nice way) and mine sure weren't'!!! Fried up though in some hot oil they were wonderful!

Would I make these again? Oh yes definitely!!! They were delicious fried up like that!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Beans, beans the magical fruit....

Black Beans and Rice with toppings

You know how it goes don't you? Anyway that is what I made for dinner tonight. After 2 days of field day at the girls new school, karate and ice skating I needed something simple to start off the weekend! My inspiration for this meal came from one of my blogging friends Robin of Caviar and Codfish. I had really wanted to make her version of black beans and then serve them with rice and the toppings that we like to use. But as what usually happens to me when I have too many things going on I can't cook let alone follow a recipe!!!

First thing this morning I put the beans in a pot to soak them (yep-I wasn't suppose to do that). I then left the house for a fun filled field day for my oldest daughter.

Field day fun!

I stayed until lunch time and then ran some badly neglected errands and then went on home to start the beans and make some pico de gallo to top this with. I picked up the pot to drain the water out and as I was pouring I was reading the recipe (yep-wasn't suppose to do that either!). I stopped pouring and managed to save about half of the water so I just added some more and chopped up the onion and minced the garlic and put the pot onto boil away.

T. was expected home around 5 so I wanted most of the stuff done so we could sit and enjoy a cocktail before we had to finish off dinner. I turned the beans up top thicken them a bit and went to get the bottle of sherry. Bottle of Sherry?????? I could have sworn we had one. So anyway at this point there was no way I could follow Robin's recipe so here is her recipe with the changes that I made...Sorry Robin. I have to try this one again.


Simple Black Beans

1 lb dried black beans (picked over and rinsed but not soaked-yep I soaked them)
1 medium onion (finely chopped)
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
3 Tbsp olive oil
8 cups of water (I used 1/2 of the water that I soak them in and added 4 more cups)
1 1/2 tsp salt

I did okay up to here but this is where I went my own way Robin's called for Sherry, Soy Sauce, Balsamic Vinegar and hot Chinese chili paste. If you would like to follow Robin's recipe or just to check out her great pictures follow this Robin's Simple Black Beans or you could just continue with mine.

1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar

Directions:

• Soak the beans for at least 6 hrs in about 8 cups of water. Dump out half of the water and add 4 cups of water (or skip this bone head move of mine and just start the pot to boil!!!)
• Add the onion, garlic, oil salt, oregano, cumin, and garlic powder.
• Simmer with the lid on for at least 2 hrs or until the beans are nice and tender. Remove the lid to reach your desired consistency.
• Stir in the vinegar
• Serve over rice with a variety of toppings.

We love the beans and rice with jalapenos, onions, pico de gallo and sour cream. This makes a nice hearty, low maintenance dinner!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

We loved this Split Pea Soup!

Anyone who knows us knows that T. is a huge lover of anything pork or made with pork fat...so how did I get him to eat Split Pea soup without a ham hock in it???? I made it and served it to him on Valentine's Day along with a loaf of fresh homemade bread, that's how! Is there anyway on a day that men are so filled with guilt could he have possibly said "no way will I eat that!" Anyway he ate it an really liked it so did the girls!!! I have to say that it was probably one of the best pea soups that I have ever had and it is all courtesy of Heidi at 101 Cookbooks.

Now, I know that her recipe says "vegetarian" pea soup but she has some really great recipes on there that you can tailor to a non vegetarian life style. I eat meat but I am very consciously aware about what I will consume. I will only eat meat that I am sure does not support any CAFOs therefore my family will only eat the same as I am their food source! I make all of my own stocks for soups and use only meats that are humanely raised.

Yes, this is challenging but I am not fully convinced that a vegetarian lifestyle is the best for me and my family. Now that all said we try to eat a mainly vegetarian diet with a small amount of meat protein thrown in. We are trying to make it so that is not the main part of our meal. So when I saw what sounded like a great recipe for Pea Soup I knew I had to try it! I did add chicken stock to help add some flavor and replace half of the water and I also added soup vegetable soup base to help bring out the flavor.

Will I make this again? Oh yes definitely. It was very fast and easy to make. Everyone enjoyed it - even the girls and T. took it for his lunch today so that says something right there!
Vegetarian Split Pea Soup (Heidi of 101 Cookbooks)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 large onions, chopped (I added 3 cloves of garlic as well)
1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
2 cups dried split green peas, picked over and rinsed
5 cups water (I substituted 3 cup of the water with homemade chicken stock)
juice of 1/2 lemon (reserve the zest)

a few pinches of smoked paprika
more olive oil to drizzle

Add olive oil to a big pot over med-high heat. Stir in onions and salt and cook until the onions soften, just a minute or two. Add the split peas and water. Bring to a boil, dial down the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the peas are cooked through (but still a touch al dente). Using a large cup or mug ladle half of the soup into a bowl and set aside. Using a hand blender (or regular blender) puree the soup that is still remaining in the pot. Stir the reserved (still chunky) soup back into the puree - you should have a soup that is nicely textured. If you need to thin the soup out with more water (or stock) do so a bit at a time. Stir in the lemon juice and taste. If the soup needs more salt, add more a bit at a time until the flavor of the soup really pops.

Ladle into bowls or cups, and serve each drizzled with olive oil and topped with a good pinch of smoked paprika and a touch of lemon zest.

Serves 4 to 6.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Do you have friends that are vegetarians?

Do you have any friends that are vegetarians? We sure do. I found this kind of amazing but on Labor Day at our home we had about 30 people here and can you believe that we had 2 vegetarians here??? When you figure that as a percentage it is almost 10%. To me that seems like a whole lot. Does that mean that in the real world close to 10 in every 100 people are vegetarians? It certainly is starting to seem that way. Now...don't get me wrong. I could not be a vegetarian. I love meat and I also like nice leather purses, shoes etc. Anyway you get the point. But when we invite people to our home for a meal I think it is very important to be able to accommodate peoples religious and personal preferences so we always prepare a special something for them. On Labor Day Tony outdid himself. Everyone was hoping for a little taste of what they were eating!

Here's how you can duplicate this. This is not just for our vegetarian friends!

****Tony helped me out and wrote out this recipe. He is a true foodie and his recipes always sound complicated when he writes them. This one is not. Do yourself a favor and try it out. If you have any questions about it or anything that you need clarified please email me at info@nofearentertaining.com .

Boursin Cheese Stuffed Portabella Musrooms (serves 2 but can be doubled or tripled)

4 large portabella mushroom (with stems removed)
2 small blocks of flavored boursin cheese (found in your specialty cheese section)
olive oil
1 shallot (Green onion) minced
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup Port Wine
1/2 cup Red wine (whatever you have)
salt
pepper

Do ahead of time:
Red wine and Port reduction
over medium heat flash sear (heat quickly) shallots stirring constantly 1 minute
add garlic and saute additional minute it will toast or brown and that's a good thing
add Port wine watch for flame up (keep your head back) scrape down pan
add Red wine ( I use Cabernet but any decent red will work)
reduce to thickness that will cover the back of a spoon (syrupy)
salt and pepper to taste
You can hold his for days in the refrigerator. Congrats you just made a sauce to die for

Mushrooms
Brush all sides with olive oil
Put Boursin in a freezer bag and warm to room temp
season mushrooms with salt and pepper thoroughly
and grill over medium heat bottom side first for 3-4 minutes
flip mushrooms grill 2-3 minutes
cut the corner of Boursin bag and pipe Boursin onto mushroom caps evenly
put the Mushrooms up on the warming rack of the grill and close lid 4 minutes
Remove mushrooms and plate 2 to a plate
Warm your Port Reduction in the Microwave and drizzle over mushrooms.
Serve and wait for the pats on the back
Your vegetarian friends never eat this well at a gathering they will Thank You.

****Tony wrote this recipe and it is not nearly as complicated a it sounds. He is a real foodie and loves what he does (so does everyone else!!!). If you need any further info on this email me at info@nofearentertaining.com . It really is worth the work!!!!!

Happy Entertaining!!!!

Judy
http://www.nofearentertaining.com/