Enchiladas with Black Beans and Rice

These are SO GOOD.
adapted from: http://www.motherthyme.com/2012/10/black-bean-and-rice-enchiladas-with.html

shown here served with avocado and salsa

Ingredients:

For Enchilada Sauce:
8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 cup water
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
dash of red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

For Enchiladas:
2 cups cooked brown rice (save yourself time and buy one of those microwave pouches of already cooked rice. I bought seeds of change brown rice and quinoa with garlic).
15.5 oz. can black beans - drained and rinsed!
1 cup corn (I used some thawed frozed corn)
1/2 cup chunky salsa
2 cups Mexican cheese
1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce (recipe above)
10 6" flour tortillas (I found slightly larger tortillas - maybe 10 inch? package of 8, and the filling fit perfectly in 8 of them)


Instructions

For Enchilada Sauce:
In a small bowl wisk together tomato sauce, water, chili powder, cayenne, pepper flakes, tomato paste, garlic powder, salt and cumin until blended and set aside.
Heat vegetable oil over medium heat in a small saucepan. Stir in flour until flour dissolved. Gradually whisk in tomato mixture. Reduce heat to low and stir until sauce thickens, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.Makes 1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce.

For Enchiladas:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray non stick cooking spray on a 9"x13" casserole dish and set aside. (I ended up using 1 9x13 pyrex dish plus another 8x8...probably because I had larger tortillas)
In a large bowl combine rice, black beans, corn, salsa, 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce and 1 1/2 cups of cheese. Stir until combined.
Divide mixture between each tortilla. Wrap each tortilla and place seam side down in casserole dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce on top.
Bake for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake for an additional 5 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

NOTES:
To reduce the fat/calories, next time I may half the canola oil and flour (just because the sauce was VERY thick, and I think it would have been fine a little bit thinner). Also might be worth trying low fat or fat free or whole wheat tortillas, low fat cheese, or no-sodium products to make it a little healthier. I'm also wondering if reducing the salt in the sauce will make any difference.

Chili Seasoning

2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp crushed red pepper
1 Tbsp dried minced onion
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp white sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 to 1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp paprika (normal or smoked)
1 tsp onion powder


instructions:
mix all ingredients in a bowl. Add to your favorite chili recipe.


My Chili recipe:

1 batch chili seasoning
1 can red kidney beans
1 can black beans
2 (or 3) 8-oz cans tomato sauce
1 package vegetarian "beef" crumbles (like boca or morningstar)

brown "beef" in a large saucepan. Add sauce and both cans of beans (I usually drain and rinse the black beans but keep the liquid from the kidney beans.). Add seasoning and simmer for 10-15 minutes. If you need more liquid, add water or more tomato sauce. Server with your choice of toppings (frito's scoops, shredded cheese, avocado, etc.)

Black Bean Chili Stuffed Peppers with Quinoa

adapted from http://www.snixykitchen.com/2012/06/19/black-bean-chili-stuffed-peppers/

for stuffed peppers:
4 medium sized green (or red) bell peppers
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 or 2 jalapeno peppers, minced (seeds in or out depending on preference - I left in about half the seeds)
2 tsp minced garlic
1 15-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup corn (I used frozen)
1 15-ounce can diced fire roasted tomatoes (I used fire-roasted garlic diced tomatoes)
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or 1 Tbsp chili powder + 1/4 tsp cayenne)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano (or italian seasoning)
1 tsp salt
shredded cheese for topping ( I used mozzarella but cheddar or pepper jack would be good also)

for quinoa on the side:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
2 Tbsp margarine
salt, pepper, garlic, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, cayenne, and oregano to taste

directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Heat some olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook for a minute or so. Then add jalapeno and minced garlic and cook for a couple more minutes. Add black beans, corn (frozen), tomatoes and all spices. Bring to a simmer.
While simmering, prepare peppers to be stuffed. For smaller peppers, cut out the top and remove seeds. For larger peppers, cut out the top, slice lengthwise and remove seeds. Line a rectangular baking pan with tin foil and spray with cooking spray. Arrange peppers in pan. When some of the liquid has cooked off of the bean mixture, scoop it into the peppers, filling them as much as possible.
Cook peppers for about 30 minutes, or until tender.
While peppers are cooking, bring quinoa and water to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer (covered) for 10-15 minutes (until liquid is gone). Add margarine and spices to taste.
Once peppers have cooked for 30 minutes, add cheese on top and cook for 5 more minutes. Serve with quinoa. (Could also be served with rice)