Nacho Pizza

Hello and Happy Sunday to you!  I hope everyone has had a fantastic weekend and are ready for the long weekend ahead.  I know I've been slacking on posting lately but life has been a bit hectic lately, well actually, quite hectic!!!

As you know Krishma got married and went on a fabulous honeymoon - she went to Thailand, and I can't wait for her to share her experiences over the course of the next few months.  As for me, I have started an exciting new phase in my life as well, which has been taking up quite a bit of my time.  I can't remember if I ever mentioned it before but I absolutely love yoga and have been an avid practitioner for a few years.  One day, earlier this year, I got a wild hair and decided that I would really like to take my own practice to the next level and maybe teach yoga because I enjoy it so much.  And so the search for the "perfect program for me" began.  To make a long story short, over the course of the past few months, I've been taking classes in order to get my 200 hour certification so that I can teach yoga and share my passion with others.  So, needless to say, life has been hectic!  And since life has been hectic, I am all about "quick and easy recipes" these days.  With that said, this recipe has been one of my favorite quick and easy go to's for a few years.  It is based on a recipe I saw on Rachel Ray's 30 Minute Meals.  Try it the next time you need to make dinner in about 35 minutes or less and I promise it will be love at first bite!!!

Ingredients:
1 loaf baguette or french bread
1 cup very versatile black beans (click here for recipe)
1 cup salsa, prepared ahead of time or from a bottle
1.5 - 2 cups shredded cheese (I use Mexican blend)
1 heart romaine lettuce
1/2 cup olives
2 roma tomatoes, diced and seeded

Directions:
1. Split bread lengthwise.  Pull out the bread portion from the baguette so that you're left with boats.  Cut in to roughly 4-6 boats.
2.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
3.  Brush olive oil around the edges of the bread and spread the black beans evenly across the hollow portion of the bread.
4.  Top with salsa and sprinkle cheese on top, covering the bread to the edges.  The boats will be half-full.
5.  Melt cheese in the oven until it bubbles and begins to brown.
6.  Top the nacho pizza with lettuce, olives, tomatoes, and serve.
7.  Enjoy with your hands over a plate!

This is what your "bread boats" will look like

Yummy Nacho Pizza 

  

Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

Happy Monday guys! Hope everyone had an amazing weekend! I can't believe we are in November already, time is flying! This weeks recipe is super simple and easy and can be eaten with any meal. I actually make this as a side for Thanksgiving dinner or it can even be eaten with breakfast or a healthy snack. It doesn't matter what herbs you have on hand, it always turns out great. I've tried it with cilantro, rosemary & thyme, parsley...the possibilities are endless! Try this out at your next brunch or dinner and it won't disappoint!

Ingredients
- 3 cups cherry or grape tomatoes
- 2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1-1/2 TBSP freshly chopped herbs (whatever you have on hand)

Directions
- Preheat oven to 375.
- In a medium bowl, coat cherry tomatoes with olive oil and mix in herbs until evenly distributed.
- Place cherry tomatoes on a baking sheet and sprinkly generously with salt and freshly ground black    pepper. Roast for 8-10 minutes.
- Cool completely before serving.

Serving size- 4-6 servings

Very Versatile Black Beans

Hello friends and Happy Sunday to you! I hope you all had a fantastic weekend and are enjoying the beautiful fall weather as much as I have.  Today's post is for a recipe that seems to have become a staple in my home as of late. It's based on an episode of 30 Minute Meals by Rachael Ray that I saw almost 10 years ago, which makes me think, geez, time flies by! Anyway, it's pretty tasty, healthy, quick, and easy to make, which is why I love it so much.  Without further adieu, here's the recipe for Spicy Black Beans.

Ingredients:
1 jalapeño, seeded & chopped or 1 pickled hot pepper of any kind
1 can (15 oz) black beans
2 tsp hot sauce
1.5 tsp cayenne pepper
1.5 tsp ground cumin
1 TBSP EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
1.  Heat a small skillet over medium heat.
2.  Add EVOO, turn the pan quickly to spread the EVOO, & chopped jalapeño.
3.  After washing and draining the black beans,  add half of them to the pan, & mash with a fork or masher.
4.  Add hot sauce, cayenne pepper, cumin powder, salt & pepper to the beans and mix.
5.  Add the remaining beans to the mashed bean mixture and stir.  Stir in a bit of water if the mixture is too thick.
6.  Enjoy in tacos, Mexican pizza, nachos, or whatever your heart desires. =)