My Plant-Based Family

Eating Whole Food, Plant-Based Diet recipes, On a Budget.

Black Beans

Meal Plan Monday: In The Beginning

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When my husband, little boys and I first started eating a Plant-Based Diet we ate a lot of comfort foods; Chili, Lentil or Quinoa Tacos, Nachos, Baked Potatoes were normal fare for us. I also made baked goods to help ease us off the junk food we were accustomed too. Since our teenage daughter had decided to live with us I thought it would only be considerate to eat more of these types of foods. One of the problems is we started eating plant-based in the winter, it is summer now so some of the foods we are then just don’t seem as appealing now.

My husband and I are happy with simpler meals, we can eat rice, lentils, and leafy greens and be satisfied. That is a tall order and would have been impossible for us in the beginning. It took a while for our taste buds to accept the kinds of food we like now.

A few days ago I made baked potatoes for dinner. I had some chili in the freezer that I thought would make a perfect accompaniment. I was right! Both of our teenagers liked it and my daughter even requested that I make it again this week. Yesterday my daughter flipped through my new Forks Over Knives Cookbook and picked out recipes she was interested in; I’m hoping to try a few this week.

Meal Plan

Breakfast is toast, fruit, muffins, and cereal more often than I would care to admit. We have oatmeal once or twice a week, usually with raisins, cinnamon, and a touch of agave.

Lunch is usually leftovers, nut butter sandwiches, bean and grain bowls, Big Salads, or bean burritos.

Snack ideas include: hummus with veggies, chips and salsa, smoothies, or fruit.

Dinner this week will include 3 Bean Chili, Beans and Rice, Black Bean Burgers with Twice Baked Potatoes, Quinoa or Lentil (or both) Taco Salad.

There are three nights this week with activities so we will be eating early, late, or out on those days. If you are wondering how I have time to cook so much food let me assure you I’m not slaving in the kitchen every day. Yesterday I cooked a big pot of lentils and a big pot of brown rice. I soaked pinto beans last night and cooked them today. Even if I don’t get the black beans cooked I have enough pintos and lentil to get several good meals made. By cooking beans and other foods that take a long time during my “down time” I can get dinner together in about half an hour.

While rice cooks, or beans heat up I can chop, steam, or otherwise prepare veggies.   

What are you eating this week?

Black Bean Goodness

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I finally did it, I made Black Bean Soup. I had never eaten it but had it on my Meal Plan several times. About a month ago I finally got a taste of Black Bean Soup from Paradise Bakery. It was lovely and I decided I would make it soon. This was the week. I put it on the Meal Plan, bought beans, and finally made it. Since I have been working out (almost daily) I’ve been needing more food. I was craving a huge bowl of fuel so I made Potato Soup on Monday and Black Bean Soup on Tuesday! They were both delicious!

Spicy Black Bean Soup

Ingredients

  • 6 cups soaked beans, 3 cups unsoaked
  • water to cook beans
  • 2 onions
  • 2 jalapeno peppers
  • 2 tomatoes (optional)
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1 tbsp chili powder (of more to taste)
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast (optional)
  •  a few tbsp of Better than Bullion Veggie broth (optional)

Do

  1. Measure out 3 cups of dried black beans, sort them (look for random rocks to remove), the rinse them.
  2. Put in a pot or large bowl and cover with water (overnight or for several hours).
  3. Discard soaking water and rinse beans. Place beans in a pot with clean water that covers beans.
  4. Cook the soaked beans on the stove (medium heat) for about an hour. Test beans for doneness by tasting or by placing a few beans on a spoon and lightly blow on them. If the skin cracks and starts to peel back they are done. If they are not done cook for an extra 30 minutes or more.
  5. Take approximately half the beans and place them a  food processor or blender along with some of the water and blend until smooth.
  6. Add the onion, jalapeno, garlic and tomato to the blender and wiz, chunky is ok.
  7. Pour this mixture back into the bean pot and simmer.
  8. Add chili powder and cumin. I added the Better than Bullion Veggie Stock here. Why didn’t I add it to the beans when they were cooking? So I could save some unseasoned black beans in case I make Black Bean Brownies.
  9. Simmer until flavors are incorporated.

Serve

Eat this delicious soup with corn bread or corn fritters for a “southern” inspired flavor. This is also great poured over brown rice with a bit of avocado (lunch today). Although this is called spicy, my 1 and 3-year-old kids LOVED it. It was not too spicy for them.

My husband can’t eat seeds but loves spicy food. Instead of adding the jalapeno to the blender I just stabbed it with a knife a few times so the seed stayed in, I then added it to the pot to simmer for a while. The soup had a nice spicy, but not too spicy flavor.

My husband resisted black beans when we first began eating a plant-based diet. Even if you are not in love with the flavor you should eat them because of how good they are for you. I happen to love them!

A cup of cooked black beans provides 227 calories, 15 g of protein, 1 g of total fat, no saturated fat or cholesterol, 41 g of carbohydrate and 15 g of fiber. Black beans contain no saturated fat or cholesterol. One cup of black beans also provides 20 percent of the daily value, or general recommended amount for adults, for iron and 5 percent of the daily value for calcium. Black beans also provide significant amounts of the minerals magnesium, phosphorus and manganese, and the B vitamins thiamin and folate, or folic acid. LiveStrong

Meal Plan Monday: Focus on Fitness

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I am not an athlete. I used to blame my knee’s. Oh yes, the “bad knee’s story”. Nothing has ever happened to my knee’s, I’ve just been so out of shape that I would be in pain if I tried to run. Great logic huh, too out of shape to exercise. There was a time in my early 20s that I worked out daily. I looked fit and was comfortable with the way my body looked for maybe the first time. I used the machine for lifting and the bike for cardio. I would only get on the treadmill if there was no bike available and I would not run, back to the bad knee story.

After that I got married and my husband already had 3 kids. Between working full-time, taking care of my new husband and kids, and a little work on my MBA (that I never finished, thankfully) I didn’t have much time to work out. I joined a Curves and worked out there. It was fun but not a tough workout. I maybe lost a few pounds but nothing substantial. Then we moved to AZ and I’d start working out again ever so often. When I shared my story I talked about working out for months and not losing weight.

A few month’s ago something started to stir in me, I started working out again, not running, but I didn’t stick with it, again. My husband wanted us to work out together and I started dreaming about running. What if I really could run? I watched past episodes of The Biggest Loser and would see a person who weighed 400 pounds running, working out, getting fit. I knew that if they could do then I could too. I was done with the excuses but would I stick with it. I also have two incredible friends who are runner and are faced with some obstacles that make it difficult/impossible to run right now.

I went running a few times, not far and not long but it was progress. I talked to my husband and one of my dear friends, who is a runner, about it. I knew what I had to do. I had to blog about it. Once I put it out there for everyone to see I knew I would be committed. No one likes to fail in public and the internet is public enough for me. 

So one week ago we committed to a one month fitness challenge. My husband and I are working out together and I’m going on short runs, hoping to run faster and longer as I get in better shape. I’ll share more about what we are doing some other day. For now I need to share how we are fueling these workouts.

Meal Plan

Breakfast will be Breakfast Quinoa, oatmeal with fruit, toast with nut butter, fruit, soup (I love leftover soup for breakfast) and the occasional bowl of cereal. My favorite way to eat cereal lately is with blueberries, banana’s and almond milk.

Lunch will be leftovers on most days. I like to grab a quick almond butter sandwich on busy days. Lately I can’t get enough bean burritos. I bought a vat of spinach so I’ll need to eat plenty of wraps so it doesn’t go slimy like last week.

Snack is mostly fresh fruit, like strawberries, blueberries, banana’s and nut butter.

Last week I just sat out cooked grains, beans, and veggies and we made out own meals. We didn’t enjoy this much. It works better as a once in a while type of thing not an every night thing. This week I’ll be making a distinct meal most evenings but not necessarily assigning a special night to it. Also, I work with kids at church on Wednesday night’s so we need a quick meal or take out and my husband is hosting a “Guy’s Night” this week so I’ll be making food for that.

 This week Dinner include’s:

  • Potato Soup with Carrots, Onions, and Garlic (made on Sunday night)
  • Gluten-Free Spaghetti with Mushrooms and Red Sauce, also a Big Garden Salad
  • Spicy Black Bean Soup, I may make this in the Crock Pot, and I have avocados at the ready
  • Chopped Salad or some other Big Salad

I’m also planning the food for the Plant-Based Food Demo I’m hosting soon. I will need to begin cooking some of the dishes I plan to serve to make sure everything turns out the way I want.

Since we have been working out for a week I am definitely craving more calories (and more junk food)! Any suggestions for a newbie runner and aspiring athlete?

Meal Plan Monday: Fueled For Fun

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I finally made it to the store this weekend. The last few weeks we have been so busy we would just run in for banana’s, almond milk, and what ever else we needed for survival. This week my kitchen is stocked with anything a girl could ask for.

Last night I made a Mexican Quinoa Dish that was so amazing my husband and I ate a huge serving bowl full. Since it was full of healthy, yummy goodness neither of us had that overeating bloaty feeling. YAY for eating plants!

While grocery shopping I had one of those experiences that only really happen a few times a year. I’m pushing my cart through the store and smell a glorious medley of apricots, nectarines, and peaches. I stopped my cart and backed it up, then filled bags with yummy summer time fruit. If you shop at Sprout’s I was the crazy lady smelling the pineapples too! This happens to me in the fall when apples catch my attention too.

Meal Plan

Breakfast this week will be bagels (I found them on clearance), oatmeal, Breakfast Quinoa, my husband likes Baked Sweet Potatoes with a little cinnamon, toast, and fruit.

Lunches will be leftovers (more quinoa), nut butter sandwiches, GF pasta with veggies, leftover pancakes (from Father’s Day), and anything else inspiration stirs up.

Snacks will be fruit since I have apricots, nectarines, apples, bananas, pineapples, cantaloupe, honey dew, oranges, blueberries and a couple of peaches. I’m sure I’ll have peanut or almond butter on the apples and bananas. I found some organic soy yogurt on clearance that my husband and boys will have. Hummus and veggies are sure to make an appearance as well. A few months ago I would set hummus and carrots on the counter and munch every time I would walk by. I came to realize my hummus addiction was out of control so I have cut back substantially. 🙂

Dinner will come in the form of “Build You Own” nights. I’ll have grains, beans, veggies, and sauces at the ready and we can pick what we want. So for Monday we may choose Baked Potato topped with spicy lentils and a side or broccoli. Tuesday we may have a wrap with quinoa, beans, salsa, diced tomatoes and jalapenos. The “Build Your Own” foods will be:

  • Quinoa
  • Brown Rice
  • Millet
  • Black Beans
  • Pinto Beans
  • Lentils
  • Baked Potatoes
  • New Potatoes
  • Bell Peppers
  • Tomatoes
  • Jalapenos
  • Spinach
  • Broccoli
  • Carrots
  • Portobello Mushrooms (these will probably be grilled)
  • Avocado

I’m experimenting with this style to see if I can save time and cut down on a little waste. My husband usually takes leftovers for lunch so this may help us be better prepared to that too.

What are you eating this week? Are there any grilled veggies in your future? Are you in love with summer fruit like I am?

How To Get It Done

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I’m very fortunate and thankful to be a stay-at-home-mom. I love being home with my kids. Occasionally I miss the working world, usually it is when my kids are driving me crazy. My boys do keep me busy during the day, I can’t just stand in the kitchen for hours at a time.

Using this weeks Meal Plan I’m going to give you examples of how I prepare our dinners. I’ll give you a day by day run down of what I’ve done and how it works for us. We primarily use dried beans and grains. If that doesn’t work for you feel free to use canned beans. Dried beans are less expensive so I prefer them. I do keep canned beans in the pantry for those days I don’t plan ahead. Sometimes I do all of the soaking and cooking on the weekend; that approach may work better if you work full time during the week.

Saturday: I put about 3 cups of rinsed quinoa in 6 cups of water to soak over night. You do not have to soak your quinoa but we prefer it this way.  If you don’t know how to cook quinoa check out this link from The Kitchn.

Sunday: I rinsed the quinoa, again you don’t have to do this step but I prefer it this way. I put it in a sauce pan and with new water and cooked it for about 15 minutes. Once it cooled we put some away for my husband to take to work and the rest is stored for meals throughout the week.

On Sunday night I rinsed 2 cups of white beans and 2 cups of red beans and left them both to soak in 4 cups of water each.

Monday: I cooked both set’s of beans in the morning. It will be hard to resist those come lunch time. They could be combined and cooked in a slow cooker as well. This evening I’ll throw the red and white beans into a large pot with all of the other ingredients for Minestrone Soup. While I’m cutting veggies for this soup I may cut extra for tomorrow nights soup as well.

Tuesday: Cook Potato and Broccoli Soup, this could be done in a slow cooker before you left for work. No prep work unless I want to cut veggies for tomorrow nights meal.

Wednesday: I’ll cook a Veggie Noodle Soup. While it is cooking I will rinse black beans and soak them in water over night.

Thursday: I’ll soak beans to use in Friday night’s Chili. I may have enough leftover beans and not need to cook any new beans.

Friday: I’ll cook Chili. Depending on our leftover situation I may start something new soaking. I try to use up all our leftovers over the weekend so I can shop for groceries and plan a new week of meals.

This works for us but may not work for you. Some nights we just grab bean burritos from a drive thou or eat a PB&J.

If you’ve planned your meals for this week try thinking ahead. What can you do now to save time later?

 

Meal Plan Monday: Soup Week

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Potato Soup

My household is a little under the weather this week. I want to pack as much wholesome nutrition into our meals as I can, hopefully we will recover quickly. With that in mind, I have proclaimed that this is Soup Week. And no, it has nothing to do with the Super Bowl.

For the next few weeks I will not have any rice or rice products (rice milk, rice noodles, etc.) in the Meal Plan. My 1 year old has eczema. It has gotten much better since I removed dairy from my diet (he is still nursing). Sometimes I notice reactions to rice products so I’ve decided to eliminate all rice for a few weeks to see if his eczema gets better. Instead of rice I’ll be adding plenty of other grains like quinoa, millet, and maybe even amaranth. 

This week’s Meal Plan

Breakfast will be oatmeal or toast with a nut butter and fruit.

Snack will be fresh fruit, smoothies, or raw veggies with Jalapeno hummus.

Lunch is typically leftovers or sometimes a sandwich or a wrap. My favorite lunch is throwing together leftover grains, beans, and seasonings or salsa.

Dinner

Monday: Minestrone Soup

Tuesday: Potato and Broccoli Soup

Wednesday: Veggie Noodle Soup

Thursday: Black Bean Soup

Friday: Chili

The Best Chili Ever

Last week was much less hectic since I had a meal plan, click here to see it. I had already done the shopping and planning, there was no reason to dread the question, “what’s for dinner.” I didn’t stick to it the plan perfectly but I didn’t plan to. On Thursday night we ended up having bean burritos instead of the black bean burgers. We went out to eat on Friday so there was no planning involved.

Have you planned your menu for the week?