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Quinoa and Black Bean Bowl

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This savory Quinoa and Black Bean Bowl is simple, tasty, healthy, vegan, and gluten-free.  

This savory Quinoa and Black Bean Bowl is simple, tasty, healthy, vegan, and gluten-free.  

To be honest, I discovered this meal by complete accident.  We had quinoa in the fridge for the Healthy Quinoa Breakfast Bowl and some black beans from the previous night’s jerk chicken.  I needed a quick lunch, so I grabbed an avocado from the counter and combined the three.  I was shocked at how good it was, especially considering the absence of meat! To make it even better, it was super easy to make and nutritionally solid.

Handling the Avocado

The key to keeping the avocado in chunks and not smashing to the resemblance of baby food is simple.  Make the cuts before removing the green flesh from the skin. Using a pairing knife, half the avocado, remove the pit, and make both horizontal and vertical cuts on each halve.  Then, simply scoop the perfectly cut chunks out of the skin with a spoon. 

Other Ingredient Tips 

It is 100% possible to make this dish “organic”, if you choose.  When cooking the black beans, I typically add a teaspoon or so of Flavorgod Everything to help develop flavor.  The recipe calls for red quinoa.  Regular quinoa works just as well, but I use red because it has a more nutty taste that adds depth to the dish.  The choice is yours. Enjoy!

Quinoa and Black Bean Bowl

This savory Quinoa and Black Bean Bowl is simple, tasty, healthy, vegan, and gluten-free.  

Ingredients

  • 1 can black beans
  • 1 cup red quinoa
  • 1/4 red onion
  • 1/2 Jalapeno
  • 1 avocado
  • season to taste

Instructions

  1. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil over medium-high heat.
  2. Add the quinoa, reduce heat to low and cover for 15-20 minutes. Stir occasionally. A fork works great to break up the quinoa, or "fluff" it.
  3. While the quinoa is cooking, place the beans and diced vegetables in a small pot/saucepan and bring to a boil. Season to taste. Reduce heat to low and let beans simmer until quinoa is fully cooked.
  4. Halve, pit, and dice the avocado.
  5. In a bowl, layer the quinoa, avocado, and beans (in that order) and serve.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 3 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 314Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 554mgCarbohydrates: 43gFiber: 16gSugar: 2gProtein: 13g
© Cody
Category: 30 Minutes or Less

 

Buffalo Chicken Mac

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This deliciously gooey and spicy Buffalo Chicken Mac will have you stuffed with satisfaction.  Seriously! I literally eat to excess every time I make this. 

This deliciously gooey and spicy Buffalo Chicken Mac will have you stuffed with satisfaction

Back in my law school days…….well, the two years that I attended anyway, my meal prep/cooking would lag on occasion.  At times it was just easier to swing by somewhere on the two (plus) hour commute to grab food.  The closest restaurant to school had this as an appetizer! I had been warned that it was as filling as any meal but was like, psssshht. I mean, I’m a foodie and can put it away with the best of them.  If you didn’t know this, early phase law students (some……not all) tend to parallel the Globo Gym motto.

Oh, what’d you know!? I was wrong, haha.  I walked into three and half hours of some overly interesting lecture 🤨 (after working the better part of the day) weighted down with gooey deliciousness.  All internal and external signals were saying “sleeeeeep, sleeeeeep”. The struggle was real, but the food was good.  So, I tortured myself with this same scenario on more than one occasion. 

I rarely pass that restaurant these days and am unlikely to make any special trips to make it happen. Instead, doing what I do, I recreated it myself.  When I get the crave, I hit the kitchen and whip this up in less than 30 minutes!

Buffalo Chicken Mac

This deliciously gooey and spicy Buffalo Chicken Mac will have you stuffed with satisfaction
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 8 oz mild cheddar
  • 8 oz American cheese
  • 8 oz milk
  • 1 box chicken fry mix
  • 1.5 lbs chicken tenders
  • 16 oz trompetti noodles
  • croutons
  • buffalo sauce

Instructions

  1. Bring water to a boil in a large pot.
  2. Add trompetti noodles and return to boil. Cook uncovered until done, or approximately 12 minutes.
  3. Strain noodles and return to pot.
  4. Cube or shred the cheeses and add to the pot with milk. Place on medium-low heat and cover. Stir often.
  5. Once cheese has melted, remove from heat.
  6. Batter the chicken in fry mix. Follow the instructions on the specific fry mix of your choice. I use Zataran's New Orleans Style Hot & Spicy; which requires me to mix a small amount of water with the mix, dip chicken tenders in the liquid, then roll in the dry mix.
  7. Fry chicken until the internal temperature reaches 165, or approximately 6-8 minutes for tenders.
  8. Chop the chicken tenders and toss in the buffalo sauce of your choice. I like Guy Fieri's Buffalo NY Wing Sauce and Moore's, too.
  9. Mix in with the pasta.
  10. Garnish with croutons and drizzle with buffalo sauce. If you want to get extra cheesy, top with fresh shredded cheese.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 581Total Fat: 32gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 94mgSodium: 1269mgCarbohydrates: 40gFiber: 2gSugar: 2gProtein: 33g
© Cody