Chip time

My Meatless Monday dish might have been the most easily prepared dish ever (with the exception of a frozen meal warmed in the microwave).

Soak a 1-pound bag of black beans overnight in 8 cups of water. The next morning, put the beans in slow cooker with:

• 2 cans of chili-ready diced tomatoes
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1.5 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Set the slow cooker on low and leave it for 8 to 9 hours. Voila! Dinner is served.

The only problem? It makes a TON of chili, and this girl is the only one in the house who eats black beans. While I could eat bowl after bowl of this stuff, it gets a bit monotonous. You have to spice it up.

Like, today.


For lunch, I brought baked tortilla chips, sprinkled them with cheese and melted it in the microwave. I warmed the chili (in a separate container) and dumped it over the chips. Add on top of that a simple salad/salsa of avocado, tomatoes, red bell pepper, red onions and cilantro, and you have some loaded nachos.

I also have plans to turn the black bean chili into a veggie melt burrito lunch, adding the chili to a whole-wheat tortilla with some cheese and sauteed onions and peppers. I'm going to make some more of that simple salad/salsa for a garnish. Some 0% Fage might be a nice garnish, too.

As for the rest? I think it might be headed for the freezer and another Meatless Monday.