Even though this is the version that will remain for now, I think next time I make it I will double the batch to have a taller cake which will satisfy me more, especially after it is frosted. As far as the frosting is concern, I think it has been one of the best frosting recipes I have ever made. I haven’t posted anything similar before, so you are welcome!

If you are looking for a healthier frosting recipe this is the one you should try. High in protein and not that sweet at all.

This version is made with tofu but don’t be turned off by it. It is truly an awesome recipe. I hate when cake frostings are so sweet you can’t event taste the flavor of it. I really hate that. This frosting is not that sweet but you can modify the sweetness to your liking so if you would like to add more maple syrup go ahead.

If you guys want to make something sweet that won’t derail your dietary efforts this would be a great contender. This black bean cake with coffee frosting is full of protein, it is gluten free and not so bad for you. A super win recipe in my book.

I have actually made double the batch of the frosting and froze half of it so I hope it tastes the same as to when I made it at first. I will be using it this coming weekend so I hope it doesn’t have to go to waste.

If you are looking for a healthier take on chocolate cake look no further. This black bean cake with coffee frosting will satisfy anyone so I hope you like it as much as we did.

Enjoy!

Black bean cake with coffee frosting

Miryam's original recipe

Yield: 8 servings

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 15.5 oz. can black beans, thoroughly rinsed and drained
• 1 tsp aluminum free baking powder
• 1/2 cup unrefined sugar
• 2 tsp instant coffee granules
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 3 eggs
• 3 tbs coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla

Frosting

• 14 oz firm tofu, drained
• 4 oz cream cheese
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3 tsp instant coffee granules
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place unbleached parchment paper in the bottom of an 8×8″ baking pan. Grease the sides. This will be your security blanket to make sure the cake doesn't stick to the pan!!

Place all the batter ingredients in a food processor or blender and pulse thoroughly until smooth and well combined.

Pour batter into the baking dish. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the top is dry and edges begin to pull away from the baking pan. Cool completely before frosting.

Unwrapped the tofu and place it in a plate.  Place a couple of paper towels on top of the tofu followed by a heavy book. Leave the book over the tofu for 20-30 minutes. There would be a lot of liquid in the plate. Drain the liquid that will accumulate in the plate.

In a food processor add all of the frosting ingredients and pulse until you obtain a smooth homogenous consistency. Spread the frosting over the cake and top with some chopped pecans if you like. Serve.

NOTE: If you will like a taller cake double the batter ingredients. I know I will next time I make it.

The post Black bean cake with coffee frosting appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.

You see, I have never owned a pressure cooker because for some reason I was afraid of them. Not anymore. I have had my InstaPot in the box for over 3 months and I really don’t know why it took me so long to put it to work.

Canned beans are going to be out of the picture from now on. I have already bought enough beans where I don’t have to buy any canned variety. I just have to make sure to soak the beans overnight and then just cook them for a mere 20 minutes.

If you pre-soak the beans, this recipe will only take you about 20 minutes to make. While pre-soaking the beans is optional I prefer to do so since the cooking time gets cut by half so instead of taking about 40 minutes with dried beans it will take you just 20 for them to cook.

I am going to post the other chickpea curry recipe I made twice already in the blog. Super easy as well. I also wanted to make a video of this recipe so that you can see how easy it is to make. If you don’t have a pressure cooker I urge to get one. This brand that I have is rather easy to use and does different things.

I hope you like this caribbean black beans. I couldn’t believe how delicious it was since the recipe was so simple.

Enjoy!

Caribbean black beans

Miryam's original recipe

Yield: 8 servings

Total Time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb black beans, pre-soaked over night
• 14 oz coconut cream, or coconut milk
• 1/2 large onion, chopped
• 2 large peppers, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 tbs tomato paste
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp celtic salt
• Fresh cilantro, chopped
• 4 cups hot water

 

 

 

Directions:

In your InstaPot, or any pressure cooker, add all the ingredients. No need to mix it through. I did a bit but no need.

Close the lid and set the pressure cooker to 20-25 minutes. Enjoy with some brown rice or by itself.

NOTE: You can serve this with brown rice, I did!

The post Caribbean black beans appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.

The holidays are just around the corner, which involves gathering with family, friends and eating tons of good food. These tortilla burrito cups are the perfect appetizer for any gathering as they are easy to make, tasty and the perfect size.

I served these tortilla burrito cups at a friends’ party last week. To tell you these were a success is an understatement. Everyone kept asking for the recipe and trying to understand how I was able to make the tortilla cups. The little cups were super simple to make. The can also be filled with anything you may like. This time around I did a burrito theme cup but next time I will see what I can come up with. The sky is the limit!

The tortilla brand I used for the #recipe, which is one of my favorite tortilla brands to use, is TortillaLand. What I like the most about these flour tortillas is that they are made from five simple recognizable ingredients – wheat flour, water, canola oil, salt and sugar, unlike many brands out there. They are also great in taste and texture. They are truly delicious!

You can purchase these tortillas at Costco Club. To make sure your local Costco Club carries them make you can visit this tortillafan locator link to find out the nearest one to you.

When you have located you nearest Costco Club make sure you go to the refrigerated section to find the tortillas. That is where they will be.

These tortilla burrito cups were really easy to make. They really look great as well so any time I have a gathering I will be taking these with me to share. They look so fancy.

While making the cups you only need about 15 minutes. All you have to do is cut the tortillas into quarters and bake them away. After that, if you don’t want to use them right away you can store them in an airtight container for up to two days.

There is also a giveaway that I am running in which I am giving away a $50 Costco gift card. All you have to do for a chance to win is:

•  Comment below and let me know what you would create using TortillaLand tortillas. The more creative the better!

Rules:

• You must be 18 yrs old to enter
• Only US residents
• I will announce the winner 12/26

I hope you get to make these tortilla burrito cups. I only made 24 but you can make more if you like. These are delicious, easy to make and great as an appetizer for the holiday season. #tortillalandholiday

Enjoy!

Tortilla burrito cups

Miryam's original recipe

Yield: 16 cups

Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

 

• 4 TortillaLand Flour tortillas, cut into quarters
• 1 cup brown rice, cooked
• 14 oz canned black beans, drained
• 1 tomato, chopped
• ½ red onion, chopped
• 1 oz fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 avocado, chopped
• 3 oz crumbled feta cheese
• 2 limes, juice
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Press tortilla pieces inside muffin tins. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until evenly browned. Let tortilla cups cool in the pan.

Once tortillas are completely cool divide the brown rice between the cups followed by the chopped tomatoes, onions, avocado, beans and cilantro. Sprinkle the feta cheese, and lime juice followed by salt and pepper over each cup. Serve immediately.

NOTE: You can make the tortilla cups 1-2 days ahead of time and store in an airtight container.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of TortillaLand. The opinions and text are all mine.

The post Tortilla burrito cups appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.

I have not made homemade burgers in for ever. I have a black bean burger recipe in the blog that I made a while back but never cared to make any other variations after that. This one turned out great. What I liked about this recipe the most is that they were baked instead of fried. So much healthier for you. Also the fact that you can make these as fritters, or any shape and size of your liking, which is what I actually made with most of the mixture for this recipe anyways.

I wanted to experiment the mixture so I shaped a couple of burger size patties to see how they would come out. They did come out great. To give these burgers some flavor I used cumin powder. You can use any other spicy of your choice. This recipe is very versatile so use any spice flavors that you enjoy best.

For the quinoa black bean burgers – gluten free recipe go to my friends at Nuts.com. While you are there don’t forget to browse their products. They have a large variety of baking and cooking goods and their quality is the best. I can vouch for that!

I hope you like this recipe.

Enjoy!

The post Quinoa black bean burgers – gluten free appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.

I normally buy my quinoa in bulk at Costco because we go through this ingredient like water. We have been using brown rice quite a bit but a lot less lately since we are enjoying quinoa.

I kept this chipotle quinoa casserole vegetarian but if you like you can add some organic chicken breast pieces to the mix. It will bake nicely with the quinoa in the oven.

For the chipotle sauce, I bought mine already prepared at a local store but now that it is gone I intend to make my own for sure. It is so easy. All you need is chipotle peppers in adobo sauce mixed in with a little bit of tomato sauce pureed in your food processor and you are done. I will post a recipe for it soon.

For this recipe I used a 9×13 porcelain baking dish. Some of you have found that the mixture, when baking the other quinoa casseroles I have in the blog, is not big enough to fit all the ingredients in a 9×13 baking dish. I have remeasured my baking dish and I have gotten the same dimensions. I don’t know, maybe I am doing something wrong. If you have any other bigger baking dishes use them. I don’t want you to go through the hassle and transfer half your mixture to another dish.

If you have left overs this chipotle quinoa casserole recipe is great to freeze and have later on. I am making several recipes that I have been freezing for my busy days ahead because I am starting school very soon. Well, I am already studying so I am extremely busy and I don’t want to compromise the quality of our meals.

I hope you like this chipotle quinoa casserole. It is extremely easy, delicious and very healthy.

Enjoy!

Chipotle quinoa casserole

Miryam's original recipe

Yield: 6-8 servings

Total Time: 1 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 cups quinoa, dry and uncooked
• 8 oz frozen corn kernels
• 2 15oz canned black beans
• 1 lb canned marinara sauce
• 8 oz extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• 8 oz mozzarella cheese, grated
• 1 cup chipotle sauce, see note below
• 2 cups cruciferous veggie mix, shredded, any other green will do
• 3 cups hot water
• 1 1/2 tsp Celtic salt
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.

In a 9 x 13 rectangular baking dish, about 5qt capacity as the quinoa will expand and need more room, add all of the ingredients and mix through. Save some of the grated mozzarella cheese, and cilantro to sprinkle over the top. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake covered for 1 hour.

Remove the aluminum foil and sprinkle the rest of the cheese all over the quinoa and bake uncovered for another 30 minutes or until the quinoa is completely cooked. You may want to use your broiler for 2 minutes to brown the top a bit when the quinoa is done cooking. I normally don't do this step though. When the quinoa is done sprinkle the rest of the cilantro over the top and serve while still warm.

NOTE: You can make your own chipotle sauce by placing chipotles in adobo sauce in your blender with some tomato juice. If you use this make sure you add a bit less of it because it will be more concentrated. 1/2 cup of the sauce, depending on how spicy you want your quinoa, should be sufficient. If you choose to make your own chipotle sauce add an extra 1/3 cup water to the quinoa.

The post Chipotle quinoa casserole appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.

I have been experimenting with this Tex Mex Quinoa Casserole recipe for a couple of weeks now. I think it is a superb recipe. I am loving making one pot dinners in which you mix everything in a large baking dish and bake until it is done and ready to eat.

For this Tex Mex Quinoa casserole version I didn’t add any chicken to my casserole and kept it strictly vegetarian but if you like you can add some chicken chunks to it for some added protein.

This recipe makes quite a bit, I think at least 6 servings, which you can keep leftovers in the fridge or freeze for future consumption.

This Tex Mex Quinoa Casserole is going to be a recipe that I am going to make quite often. Lately I have been experimenting with recipes that are easy because come May I won’t be able to spend too much time cooking. Plus my husband is going to have to learn a few easy recipes since he is going to have to take over. Let see how that goes…

I used taco seasoning that I purchased at Trade Joes. You can use your own or any other varieties of your choice. Just make sure that the ingredients are herbs and nothing else. The food industry like to add caking agents and other crap to herb mixtures so be careful which ones you purchase if any.

When you bake the Tex Mex Quinoa Casserole make sure you cover it with aluminum foil the first 45 – 1 hr so the top doesn’t burn. I also think this allows the quinoa to cook better.

Anyhow, I hope you guys try this recipe and I hope you like it as much as we do.

Enjoy!

Tex Mex Quinoa Casserole

Miryam's original recipe

Yield: 8 servings

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients:

3 cups quinoa, dry and uncooked
8 oz frozen corn kernels
15oz canned black beans
1 lb canned chopped tomatoes or marinara sauce
6 green onions, chopped
16 oz skim mozzarella, grated
4 cup hot water
1 1/2 tsp Celtic salt
1 tbsp taco seasoning
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.

In a 9 x 13 rectangular baking dish, about 5qt capacity as the quinoa will expand and need more room, add all of the ingredients and mix through. Save some of the grated mozzarella cheese, cilantro and green onions to sprinkle over the top. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake covered for 1 hour.

Remove the aluminum foil and sprinkle the rest of the cheese all over the quinoa and bake uncovered for another 30 minutes or until the quinoa is completely cooked. You may want to use your broiler for 2 minutes to brown the top a bit when the quinoa is done cooking. I normally don't do this step though. When the quinoa is done sprinkle the rest of the green onions and cilantro over the top and serve while still warm.

The post Tex Mex Quinoa Casserole appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.