Southwest Zucchini Patties

It's time again for Secret Recipe Club reveal!  My secret blog assignment this month is pizza rossa, a lovely blog written by Rachael.  Rachel has lived in Switzerland since 2001, and she and her husband have been vegetarians for many years.  She loves sharing delicious and healthy recipes, along with some decadent sweet treats, and encouraging people to try something new.

Looking through Rachael's blog, I found several recipes I really want to try. Tuscan Style Roasted Vegetables, Spinach & Zucchini Pie, and Potato and Spinach Waffles are just a few that caught my eye.

But I eventually decided on these zucchini patties.  They just sounded so good. (Mine got a little extra browned, so the picture does not do it justice, but trust me, these are good.)

Southwest Zucchini Patties
adapted from pizza rossa

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. zucchini, 1 medium or 2-3 small
• 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
• 1 can (15 oz) can kidney beans
• 2 green onions, minced
• 2 T chopped cilantro
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• about 1 cup dry breadcrumbs
• Oil for frying

Directions:

1. Grate the zucchini on a box grater and spread over a couple of sheets of paper towels; top with more paper towels and put a heavy cutting board on top. 
2. Rinse and drain the corn and kidney beans in separate strainers.
3. Lightly beat the eggs in a mixing bowl.  Add kidney beans and roughly mash with the back of a fork or a potato masher. Mix in corn, zucchini, minced onions, and cilantro.  Add cumin, cayenne, salt & pepper.
4. Stir in enough breadcrumbs so the mixture becomes quite stiff.  Use damp hands to shape the mixture into patties.
5. Heat about two tablespoons of oil in a skillet and cook the patties until well browned on both sides, 4 – 5 minutes per side.

Makes about a dozen large patties or 20 small ones

These smelled so good as soon as I mixed the ingredients together.  And then, when they were cooking - even better.  I added the cilantro and cut the cayenne down because my husband does not like things too spicy.  Other than that, I pretty much stuck with Rachael's recipe - except I just wrote 'bread crumbs' when I copied the recipe instead of dry bread crumbs, so I ended up using more bread crumbs than the recipe called for, and the mixture never did get very stiff.  So next time I'll be sure to make sure my bread crumbs are nice and dry and see if that makes any difference.  It still formed nice enough patties that cooked up really well.  I cooked them for 5 minutes on the first side without disturbing them, just to be sure they held together, which is why mine ended up a bit over-browned. 

Rachael served hers with some gorgeous pico de gallo, which would have been great, but we just topped them with salsa and sour cream  So good!  I wasn't sure how my husband would respond to having these for dinner and no meat (Gasp!), so I made some Spicy Avocado Chicken too, as an alternative option.  He ate some of both, and then went back for two more of these patties.  I'd say that's a win.

The leftovers heat up really nicely, and I have eaten a few of them cold too.  They're pretty much good however you eat them, and I'll definitely be making these again.

An InLinkz Link-up

Southwestern Turkey and Hash Brown Casserole

I was searching for a recipe for "Turkey Breakfast Casserole" on Pinterest, because I had some cooked turkey in the fridge, and I was looking for a good way to use it for dinner.  Makes sense, right?  But I just wasn't finding anything interesting by just looking for a turkey casserole.

Anyway, I'm not sure why this particular recipe came up because it had absolutely no turkey in it, but it sounded really good so I went with it.  I just substituted my turkey for the sausage in the original recipe, added some corn, and used roasted red pepper instead of the diced green chilies.  It's pretty much the same...

Southwestern Turkey and Hash Brown Casserole
adapted from Julia's Album

Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 a bell pepper, chopped
• 1/4 cup diced roasted red pepper
• 1-1/2 to 2 cups diced cooked turkey
• 1 tsp chili powder, divided
• 1 tsp ground cumin, divided
• 1/2 tsp salt, divided
• 3 cups frozen hash browns 
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1 can black beans (15 oz), drained
• 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375° F.  Generously butter a 13x9" baking dish.
2. Heat oil in large skillet; add chopped onions and cook on medium heat 2-3 minutes. Add chopped pepper and cook until onion is translucent, stirring often. Add roasted red pepper, turkey, and half the spices (1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, and 1/4 tsp salt) and cook until fragrant.  Add hash browns, corn, and  black beans; mix well.  Turn off heat.
3. In medium bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and the remaining spices (1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, and 1/4 tsp salt - and a dash of black pepper).
4. Mix 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese and the shredded mozzarella cheese into the hash brown mixture.  Cheese will start to melt.
5. Spoon half of hash brown mixture into prepared baking dish and pour half of egg mixture on top.  Repeat with remaining hash brown mixture and then egg mixture.  Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of cheddar on top.
6. Bake, uncovered for about 40-45 minutes, until eggs are set and casserole is nicely browned. Let sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

This turned out really well.  It's good either just the way it is, or with some salsa and sour cream on top.  I love the browned edges.  And the flavors are all really good together.

I thought about adding some crushed tortilla chips to the mix, but since I was planning to serve this with some cornbread muffins, I decided to skip the chips. I also think a green salad would be great with this, but we'd just finished our salad for lunch, and I didn't feel like making another one.  So we had peas instead.  I think it just needs something green to go with it.  Of course, I think that about a lot of things.  Every meals deserves some green.

Southwestern Black Bean and Barley Salad

I've had a thing for barley recently, and really love this Curried Chicken and Barley Salad, though my husband mentioned that he isn't a huge fan, so I went looking for another kind.  I came across this one on Pinterest and just had to try it.  I'm a huge fan of all these flavors together, so I'm hoping he'll be liking it too.  Now that the weather has started to warm up, I need some good salads to serve for dinner - instead of the soups I rely on in the winter months.

I made this to take for a potluck, so I haven't done much more than just taste it - to adjust for seasonings, of course - but the couple bites I had were amazing.  So good!

Southwestern Black Bean and Barley Salad
adapted from BetterRecipes

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked pearled barley
• 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 cup frozen corn, rinsed
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
• 1/4 cup onion, diced small
• 1/2 jalapeno, seeded & finely chopped
• 1 handful cilantro, finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder
• Juice & zest of 1/2 Lime

Directions:

1. Toss cooked barley, diced tomatoes, corn, black beans, red pepper, onion, jalapeno, and cilantro in large bowl, 
2. Sprinkle with salt, garlic powder, cumin and chili powder. Add lime zest and juice and mix thoroughly.
3. Taste and add more salt as needed. Refrigerate.

I used more barley than the original recipe called for.  Did I mention that I'm a huge fan?  I also used garlic powder and salt instead of garlic salt - mainly because I couldn't find the garlic salt when I looked for it.  I didn't think it needed any additional salt when I tasted it, but it's still a good idea to taste it and adjust according to your tastes.  I'm thinking this will be really good served with some tortilla chips, for some crunch and a little added salt.  Also, I bet this would be great wrapped up in a tortilla. With avocado.

Serve with some grilled chicken - with taco seasoning - maybe?  So many options.  He better like this stuff.

Related articles

• Southwest Chicken Salad with Cilantro Lime Dressing
• Chicken and Sweet Potato Chili

Southwest Barley and Black Beans (Slow Cooker)

I've made this a couple times so far, and it is really good.  I love all the flavors, and I especially love how easy it is.  Slow cookers are the best!  I usually mix all the ingredients in the slow cooker and refrigerate overnight - or longer - and then start it cooking the next day or whenever needed.  It's great for potlucks or taking food to share.  It would also make a great weeknight meal.

Southwest Barley and Black Beans(Slow Cooker)
adapted from 365 Days of Slow Cooking

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked chicken (or turkey), chopped
• 2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3/4 cup pearl barley (NOT quick)
• 1 cup frozen corn, rinsed
• 1 bell pepper, chopped (red is prettiest)
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 2 T chopped cilantro
• 3/4 cup salsa
• 2 cups chicken (or turkey) broth
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. garlic salt
• salt & pepper
• juice of a lime
• 1 bay leaf

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients in slow cooker.
2. Cook 4 hours on High, OR 6-8 hours on Low, until barley is cooked and tender.  Add additional salt and pepper to taste if needed.
3. Serve with desired toppings: cheese, sour cream, additional salsa, cilantro, avocado, and/or tortilla chips.

The original recipe called for less liquid and none of the veggies.  I just had to add some corn because it goes so well with chicken and black beans.  And then I had a pepper I needed to use and some onions and cilantro, and I just had to add those too.  And cilantro goes with all of it!  It looks really pretty too.  This is before I added the broth and salsa:

If you want to keep it really simple (not that this isn't simple) you can skip any or all of the added veggies and just use the chicken, barley, black beans, broth, salsa and seasonings.  Either way it will be good.  The seasonings are great.  I will definitely be making this again - in one way or another. (It depends on what I have in the house, but don't all recipes?)

Tex-Mex Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

It's time again for  Secret Recipe Club (Secret Recipe Club) reveal!  This month I got to choose a recipe from Beth's blog It's Good To Be The Cook.  Beth lives outside Philadelphia, loves her family, her wonderful (and cute) boyfriend Dave, and her dog Stella.  Her posts are so much fun to read.  They're not just about the food - though the food is definitely front and center with recipes and loads of mouth-watering pictures.

So I started looking at the recipes - Oh, Beth!  So many great recipes.  How am I supposed to choose?  I love all the spicy stuff and that there's spinach in practically everything.  OK, maybe not everything, but a lot.  It looks like she's almost as obsessed with fresh spinach as I am.  I love it in practically everything!  Also, she has all her clipped and saved recipes organized in a binder - something I've thought about/wanted to do for ages, and never got around to it.  Yep, I still have boxes of magazine and newspaper clippings, recipes I wanted to try but may never find again.  I'm kinda jealous of her organizational skills.

Anyway, I started looking through the recipes, and I wanted to try the Buffalo Chicken Soup, the Black & White Bean Quesadillas w/ Avocado Ranch Dip, the Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Baked Potato, the Chicken and Bean Burritos, and several more, but I finally decided on these Tex-Mex Stuffed Sweet Potatoes. And it was a very good decision.  These things are yummy!!!

Tex-Mex Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
slightly adapted from It's Good to Be the Cook

Ingredients:

• 2 Sweet Potatoes
• 2 T Olive Oil
• 1/2 Onion, chopped
• 1 T Garlic, minced
• 1 Jalapeno, chopped (seeded for less heat)

  

  just some Spinach

• 4 or 5 mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup frozen Corn, thawed
• 1 T Cumin
• 1 T Chili Powder
• a bunch of fresh Spinach (sorry, I didn't measure)
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• 1 can Black Beans, drained and rinsed (1-1/2 cups home-cooked)
• 1 T Cream Cheese
• 1/2 cup Plain Yogurt
• 1 cup (or less) Cheddar or Mexican Blend Shredded Cheese
• Parsley Flakes & Paprika for garnish

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.  Wash potatoes and pierce a few holes or slices in the top. Pat dry and place on foil or a baking sheet in the oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes, checking at the 1 hour mark. They will be cooked when they can be easily pierced with a fork.  Set aside while you prepare the filling.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet on medium high. Add the onions and saute for 3 minutes then add the garlic, jalapeno and mushrooms and saute another 3 minutes or so. Now, add the corn and saute for another 3 minutes and then stir in the seasonings. Let that saute for a bout a minute and then add the spinach and saute until it’s just cooked and wilted. Season with the salt and pepper. Turn heat to low.
3. Add cream cheese to skillet and stir until it is melted.  Stir in the yogurt and beans.
4. Slice the potatoes in half lengthwise, scoop out most of the potato with a spoon, and add it to the skillet.  Stir to combine, and taste and add seasoning if necessary.
5. Evenly spoon the filling back into the sweet potato boats and top with shredded cheese.
6. Turn the oven to broil and slide the potatoes back in until the cheese is just lightly browned and bubbly, about 3 minutes.
7. Garnish with a shake of Paprika and Parsley and serve immediately!

I didn't actually pay attention to how long I sauteed the onions, garlic, peppers, etc.  Just added the onion to the skillet, cooked it a bit, then started adding all the other ingredients.  It's basically what looks good to you.  It does look good, doesn't it?  Oh, and I only used 1/2 of the jalapeno because I thought the whole thing would make it too spicy for my husband, but it didn't turn out spicy at all, so I'd suggest sticking with the whole thing.  Or using the pickled ones like Beth did in hers.

Onions, garlic, jalapeno, mushrooms and corn

And then I added the cream cheese - the heat from the skillet melted it very nicely - and the yogurt and beans.  Doesn't this look yummy?  For some reason, I didn't taste it, but it certainly smelled amazing.  I'm thinking this mixture right here would be perfect for something.  I'm not sure what yet - over pasta?  With some pasta mixed in?  Spread over tortilla chips, topped with shredded cheese and baked like nachos?  Yeah, there's something...  I should've tasted it, though, because I forgot to add the salt and pepper like I was supposed to.

Creamy!

My potatoes were so done that I had to be careful not to scoop all of the flesh out of them, leaving nothing but the peel behind.

Sweet potatoes scooped out

I put as much filling as I could into the scooped out potato skins, and I had some left over, so I saved that for later.  It was great warmed up and wrapped in a tortilla and also just scooped up with tortilla chips.  This is good filling!  I added some salt right before I sprinkled the cheese on - because I forgot to taste and add it earlier. 

Ready to go under the broiler

The filling is already hot, so it doesn't take long to melt the cheese under the broiler, and they're ready to eat.

Ready to eat!

These things are really filling.  We had one potato half with some salad, and that was enough!  That means we got to enjoy them for another meal.  I just put them into a Corningware dish and baked them, with the lid on, for 20 to 30 minutes at 350°.  Perfect!  My husband just ate the filling both times and threw the potato skin away.  I ate the skin, and I liked it much better after it was baked.  It kind of crisped up a bit.  I'm thinking that next time I make these I'm going to bake them until the cheese is melted and browned, instead of broiling.  Either that or scoop absolutely all of the potato out of the skins, mix the filling, and put it into some kind of baking dish to broil and melt the cheese.

So many yummy flavors.  I am definitely making these again!  And trying some of those other recipes from Beth's blog.  Be sure to check it out for yourself.

Corn and Black Bean Salad

I found this recipe at Cooks.com

Corn and Black Bean Salad

• 1 (12 oz.) can whole-kernel corn, drained
• 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/2 c. green onions, diagonally sliced
• 1/2 c. red onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 med. tomato, chopped
• 1 Jalapeno pepper, seeded & finely chopped (optional)
• Cilantro sprigs or red onion wedge, for garnish

Dressing:

• 3/4 c. Italian salad dressing
• 3/4 tsp. hot pepper sauce
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tbsp. fresh lemon or lime juice
• 1 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped

In large bowl, combine corn, beans, bell pepper, green onions, red onion, garlic, tomato, and Jalapeno pepper.

For Dressing: In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine Italian salad dressing, hot pepper sauce, chili powder, lemon juice and chopped cilantro. Close lid. Shake to mix well. Pour dressing over corn mixture. Stir to mix. Refrigerate, covered, at least 6 hours, or overnight. To serve, put corn mixture in attractive salad bowl. Garnish with a few sprigs of cilantro or a thin wedge of red onion.

I used a green pepper, because I didn't have a red one and also didn't have a red onion, so I just used a regular yellow onion.  I didn't really measure the onions, but had about 1 cup of onion between the green onions and the yellow onion.  I used 1-1/2 tomatoes, because 1 didn't look like quite enough.  2 would have probably been OK.

I whisked the dressing ingredients together in the measuring cup I used to measure the salad dressing and then poured it on the salad.  When I got everything mixed together, I just felt it was missing something, so I cooked some Basmati rice and added a cup of that.  As far as putting it in an attractive bowl - I'm taking it for a potluck.  I'm just going to take the lid off the container and hope it tastes as good as it looks and smells.

Also, I'd like to try the dressing as a marinade next time we decide to grill.

• Print this recipe (at Cooks.com)

Southwestern Shepherd's Pie

I grabbed this recipe originally because all I could think when I saw it was, "I have got to try this!"  And yes, I did try it.  It is just as good as it sounds!

Southwestern Shepherd's Pie

by Sheila Lukins and Laurie Griffith
published: 02/17/2010

Try this spicy twist on a comfort classic.

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 small green bell pepper, diced
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp chopped green jalapeño
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 cups tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 cup cooked corn
• 1/2 cup black beans, rinsed
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1 1/2 lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup milk

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper; cook, stirring, for 10 minutes. Add garlic and jalapeño; cook for 2 minutes. Raise heat to medium-high; add beef and brown for 5 minutes.
2. Add tomato paste and spices; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes; simmer until liquid reduces, 15 minutes. Add corn, beans, and 4 Tbsp cilantro. Spoon into a 9x9-inch baking dish.
3. Place sweet potatoes in a saucepan with water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Drain; mash with butter and milk. Spread mash over the meat mixture. Bake in a 400°F oven until brown, 30 minutes. Garnish with more cilantro.

Serves 4. Per serving: 460 calories, 49g carbs, 29g protein, 80mg cholesterol, and 19g fat. 

from Parade

all I need is some cilantro...

• Print this recipe

Corn Lover's Veg Stew

Corn Lovers Veg Stew

Ingredients: 2-1/2 cups vegetable or chicken broth 1 medium onion, thinly sliced 2 cloves garlic, minced 4 cups cubed, peeled butternut squash 15-oz can diced peeled tomatoes 1-1/4 cups fresh or thawed frozen corn kernels or 15-1/4 oz can whole kernel corn, drained

1 Tbs. chopped fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried 1 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. pepper 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained 1 medium green pepper, cut into 1-inch squares

Directions:
In Dutch oven or large saucepan, bring 1/2 cup of broth to a boil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add squash, tomatoes, corn, thyme, salt, pepper and remaining 2 cups broth; stir to blend. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes. Add kidney beans and green pepper and return to a simmer. Cover and simmer until squash and bell pepper are tender, about an hour or so. (The original recipe said cook 10 minutes, until squash and bell pepper are tender but not mushy.  However, I like my squash mushy, so I cook it longer.)  Serve warm. 

Source: Vegetarian Times

• Print this recipe

I usually eat this one by myself, but that's OK because I love it. It's best if you cook it one day and reheat the next - and it gets better every time you reheat.

I recently found a recipe for Butternut Chicken Stew over at Simple Daily Recipes, and everyone loved that one. Though they're not exactly the same, they are similar. Maybe next time I make this, they'll give it a try.

Update: The recipe for Butternut Chicken Stew has been published in this cookbook - Simple Daily Recipes Reader's Favorite Dinners - along with a lot of other yummy recipes.