Kale Chickpea Mash

Two things I always have in my kitchen: kale and chickpeas. So when I was searching vegweb.com for chickpea recipes one night, I knew I had to make this one. Even if you don't normally like eating greens, this is a good tasty way to do so. The spices and nutritional yeast give this dish so much savory flavor.

Kale Chickpea Mash

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp olive oil
2-3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 half medium onion
1 bunch of kale (I actually didn't have a whole bunch)
1 can garbanzo beans (or 1 1/2 cups soaked beans)
1 Tbsp Bragg's liquid aminos
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup nutritional yeast


Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large pan and sautee the garlic and onions on medium until garlic turns golden brown, just a few minutes.

Add the kale and coat it with the oil and garlic. You may want to add a few tablespoons of water. The kale will begin to wilt.

Add garbanzo beans and cook for about 4 minutes. 

Add remaining ingredients and stir.

Mash the chickpeas with a fork and continue mixing together.

Add more nutritional yeast and sesame seeds if desired.
Remove from heat and serve hot.

Delicious flavor and healthy too!

I've already made this recipe at least three times in the past couple weeks. It's so quick and tasty that I just want it all the time. Last time I added spinach and arugula in there as well. Loading up on greens! Haha so if you're looking for a quick healthy dish with loads of flavor you should definitely try this!

Cajun Black Beans & Sweet Potatoes

I found this one night when I was needing ideas for what to do with black beans. I had soaked half a pound of beans, so I knew I had to find delicious ways to eat 'em. I found this one on vegweb.com, which is a great website for recipe ideas.

This tasty dish is super easy, healthy, and cheap!

Cajun Black Beans & Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon oil (or water)
• 1/4 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large sweet potato, chopped into bite sized pieces, peel if desired
• 1/2 to 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning (or make your own mix. Ex: cumin, red pepper, chili powder, santa fe seasoning)
• 1 (28 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 lime

Directions:

1. Heat a saute pan over medium heat with oil or water. Saute onions and garlic for 2 minutes. Add sweet potatoes. Season this mix liberally with the Cajun seasoning or other seasonings.

2. Let this mix cook for 15 minutes or so until the potatoes are soft. You may want to add a 1/3-1/2 cup water and cover pan to speed this process along.

3. When potatoes are soft, add the black beans and the zest of 1 lime (optional). You may also want to add more Cajun seasoning to help further flavor the beans. Cook until the beans are heated through and you think the flavors have melded. Right before serving, squeeze some lime juice over the dish.

This is great over a bed of brown rice or even by itself. The next day I put some the leftovers into a quesedilla with Daiya pepperjack cheese. So delish! This dish is so simple and easy to change up. Add peppers and tomatoes and eat it like a fajita with some cilantro and avocado. Use different beans, different veggies, different seasonings. It can be anything!