Cantina Black Bean Taco Salad

¼ cup vegetable oil
1 pound frozen whole kernel corn

4 -15 oz cans black beans

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 Tab. lime juice

16 oz. ranch dressing

1 Tab. chili powder

1 lb. romaine lettuce
ready to use, chopped

3/4 pounds yellow cheddar cheese
shredded

2 cups grape tomatoes
fresh, whole, or cherry

2-6 oz. cans olives
sliced, ripe, canned

2 bags round tortilla chips

To Prepare Black Bean Corn Salsa

Heat vegetable oil in skillet over medium heat.
Add frozen corn to skillet, stir until edges start to brown.
Rinse and drain beans. Add beans to skillet.
Add cumin and lime juice to skillet, gently fold until combined.
Set black bean corn salsa aside in refrigerator.

To Prepare Taco Ranch Dressing

Mix ranch dressing and chili powder in a bowl.

To Assemble Salad

Place 1 cup of lettuce in each salad bowl.
Portion ¼ cup cheese on top of lettuce.
Portion ¼ cup tomatoes on top of cheese.
Rinse and drain olives. Portion ¼ cup olives on top of tomatoes.
Portion ½ cup black bean corn salsa on top of salad.

Serve with Taco Ranch Dressing, and tortilla chips on the side.

Instapot Split Pea Soup

1 yellow onion
3 carrots
3 ribs celery 
2 cloves garlic 
1 lb split peas 
2 Tbsp oil
1 bay leaf 
1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika 
1/4 tsp thyme 
Freshly cracked pepper 
6 cups vegetable broth 

Crusty bread

Dice the onion, slice the carrots and celery, and mince the garlic. Place the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in the pressure cooker along with all the remaining ingredients.
Secure the lid on the pressure cooker, close the steam valve, and set the cooker to high pressure for 15 minutes (Instant Pot: Manual function, set time to 15 minutes). After 15 minutes of high pressure, allow the cooker to release pressure naturally. (Total cook time with coming up to pressure, cooking, and natural pressure release is approximately 45 minutes.)
Once the cooker returns to normal pressure, open the steam valve, open the lid, and stir the soup. Taste and adjust the salt or other seasonings as needed. Serve hot with crusty bread for dipping.

Southwest Black Bean Salad

Salad:

15 oz can of black beans
drained and rinsed

10 oz can of corn kernels
drained and rinsed

1 red bell pepper
finely chopped

1 cup cherry tomatoes
quartered

1/4 cup red onion
finely chopped

Dressing:

1 ⅔ tablespoons olive oil

1 ⅔ tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon lime juice

1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 tablespoon honey


Toss together all Mexican bean salad ingredients in the vinaigrette. Keeps for up to 5 days.

Caprese Salad

1 tomato
large, sliced into 8 slices

8 oz fresh mozzarella
sliced into 8 slices

5 basil leaves
sliced or whole

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

salt

black pepper


Place sliced tomato on a large plate or platter. Whisk together olive oil, vinegar and salt and pepper. Top tomato slices with mozzarella and then drizzle olive oil and vinegar mixture over all the slices. Spread basil leaves evenly over all slices.

Garden Caprese Salad

8 plum tomatoes, eeded and cut into 1/2 inch chunks

2 cucumbers
medium, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch chunks

1 red onion
small, small dice

1 Tbsp olive oil

3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 oz (15 leaves) fresh basil
chopped

¼ tsp salt
optional

¼ tsp black pepper

113g (4 oz) fresh mozzarella
cut into small chunks


In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Mix well. Best if marinated in refrigerator for a couple hours.

Lemon, Kale, and Goat Cheese Flatbread

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups kale, packed, chopped, ribs removed
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
2 whole grain naan flatbreads
olive oil for brushing breads
4 ounces goat cheese
1 lemon, thinly sliced
Crushed Red Pepper, if desired


Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a medium skillet, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the chopped kale and fresh lemon juice. Season with salt and black pepper and cook until kale is tender and wilted, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.

Place the Naan flatbreads on a large baking sheet. Brush each flatbread with a little bit of olive oil. Sprinkle chunks of goat cheese evenly over the breads. Top with cooked kale and lemon slices. You will want 3-4 lemon slices for each flatbread. Sprinkle crushed red pepper over the flatbreads, if using.

Place baking sheet in preheated oven and cook for 12-14 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and cut into pieces. Serve warm.

Note-I like to eat the lemon, but you can always remove it. It will still add great flavor!

Ploughman's Lunch

 

crusty bread

cheeses

eggs

hard boiled

fruit

seasonal

pickles

Small

chutney. optional

beer