Black Bean Burgers

1/3 cup coarsely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon cumin
1 1/2 cups canned black beans (or black soybeans), rinsed and drained
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
1 large egg, beaten
salt and pepper
Directions: In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, place onion, garlic, and cumin; pulse until coarsely chopped. Add beans, and cilantro; pulse until just combined (don’t puree). Transfer mixture to bowl. Add walnuts to food processor and finely chop. Add chopped walnuts and bread crumbs to bean mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in egg and stir until combined. Form into patties. (If burgers seem very wet, add 1/4 cup bread crumbs.) Chill patties, covered, at least 1 hour, and up to 1 day. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat until hot; cook patties until light brown, 4-6 minutes on each side. (we usually brush patties with olive oil, and cook on an outdoor grill, or an indoor
foreman grill , until heated throughout. I usually make a double batch and freeze extras for a quick, easy meal.)

Watermelon & Tomato Salad

2 1/2 cups watermelon, in 1-inch cubes (reserve juice)
2 cups tomatoes (mix regular and cherry), chop and drain off liquid
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Directions: 1. Combine the watermelon, tomato, cheese, scallions and salt in a bowl.
2. Whisk or blend together about two tablespoons of the watermelon juice, oil, and vinegar.
3. To serve, dress the salad with this mixture and garnish with cilantro.
4. Do not refrigerate and serve within 30 minutes.

Serves 6. Per serving: 140 Calories, 10g Fat,
7g Carbohydrate, 1g Dietary Fiber, 5g Protein

Pesto Veggie “Pasta”

2 medium zucchini
2 medium yellow summer squash
½ cup pine nuts
4 to 5 garlic cloves, peeled
½ cup cilantro
½ cup fresh basil
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
3 Tbsp. Bragg’s liquid aminos
1/8 tsp. salt
2 cups coarsely chopped tomatoes
pepper to taste
Directions: Shave zucchini and squash into ribbons using vegetable peeler. In a food processor, puree pine nuts, garlic, cilantro, basil, lemon
juice and liquid aminos until smooth. Add tomatoes and pulse just until blended. Toss squash ribbons with pesto. Season to taste
with pepper and serve. (Original recipe calls for raw zucchini & summer squash, but if you like, you can boil for 2 minutes.)

Serves 4. Per serving: 170 calories, 12 g. fat,
6 g. protein, 15 g. carbohydrate, 4 g. fiber,
590 mg. sodium.

Fresh Salsa

2 tomatoes, diced (drain off juice)
1/2 cup diced onions
1 clove garlic, minced
1 banana pepper, minced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped finely
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 tsp salt
Directions: Add all ingredients to a bowl, stir, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Experiment with the quantities of the ingredients. Some people add additional items, like green peppers, avocados, olive oil, honey, lemon juice, or
even fruit such as peaches or mangos. Some recipes also call for blending
ingredients in a food processor.

Roasted Tomatillo and Black Bean Tacos

Ingredients
3/4 lb. fresh whole tomatillos, husks removed (was under warm water to remove any sticky sap clinging to the skin)
1 cup bell pepper cut into 1/2” pieces
1 cup onion cut into 1/2” pieces
3 large cloves garlic, peeled
3 TBS coarsely chopped cilantro, divided
1 1/2 tsp minced jalapeno pepper
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
4 6-inch corn or flour tortillas, warmed
1 avocado, cut into 1/4” thick slices
2 TBS feta cheese (tastes best, but any cheese will do)
1/4 cup sour cream (optional)
Directions: 1.) Preheat oven to broil. Place oven rack 3 inches from heat source. Coat baking sheet with cooking
spray, and spread tomatillos, onion, bell pepper, and garlic on prepared baking sheet. Broil 12 minutes,
or until tomatillos are blistered and charred, and onion and bell pepper are softened and charred,
tossing once halfway through cooking time.
2.) Pulse garlic, 1 TBS cilantro, jalapeno, and tomatillos 10 times in food processor, or until chucnky.
Season with salt and pepper.
3.) Toss 3/4 cup tomatillo sauce with black beans, bell pepper and onion.
4.) Fill tortillas with black bean mixture, avocado, and cheese. Garnish with remaining cilantro. Serve
remaining tomatillo sauce and sour cream, if desired, on side.

Black Bean Burgers

Ingredients
1/3 cup coarsely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon cumin
1 1/2 cups canned black beans (or black soybeans), rinsed and drained
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
1 large egg, beaten
salt and pepper
Directions: In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, place onion, garlic, and cumin; pulse until coarsely chopped. Add beans, and cilantro; pulse until just combined (don’t puree). Transfer mixture to bowl. Add walnuts to food processor and finely chop. Add chopped walnuts and bread crumbs to bean mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in egg and stir until combined. Form into patties. (If burgers seem very wet, add 1/4 cup bread crumbs.) Chill patties, covered, at least 1 hour, and up to 1 day. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat until hot; cook patties until light brown, 4-6 minutes  on each side. (we usually brush patties with olive oil, and cook on an outdoor grill, or an indoor foreman grill , until heated throughout.

I usually make a double batch and freeze extras for a quick, easy meal.

Salsa Verde

From Authentic Mexican, by Rick Bayless

Ingredients
½ lb. (5-6) tomatillos, husked and washed
Fresh hot green chilies to taste (2 serranos or 1 jalapeno), stemmed – remove the seeds for a milder salsa
5-6 sprigs fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
½ onion, chopped
½ tsp. salt, plus more to taste
Directions: Boil fresh tomatillos in salted water until barely tender, 8-10 minutes, then drain. Place the tomatillos in a blender or food processor, along with the chilies, cilantro and onion. Blend or process to a coarse puree. Pour into a bowl, and thin to a medium-thick consistency with ¼ cup water. Season with salt. Let sit for half an hour before serving, to allow the flavors to blend.

Yield: 1 ½ cups

Avocado & Mango Salsa

Ingredients
2 avocados, cut into 1/4” cubes
1 mango, cut into 1/4” cubes
Juice of 2 limes
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded & minced (optional)
1/4 cup minced red onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup minced cilantro
Sea salt to taste
Ground black pepper to taste
Directions: In a medium glass dish (not metal) mix all ingredients. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, but no more than 1 hour before serving. The fruit will begin to “cook” in the lime juice and become soggy.

This salsa is great with fresh fish, especially grilled halibut. It also tastes great with corn chips or as a salad dressing.