Quesadillas de Frijoles de Anasazi, Arroz Integral y Verdura (Anasazi Bean, Brown Rice, and Vegetable Quesadillas)

This was one of the best new meals we have tried this summer. We both really like Anasazi beans, but they are often forgotten with the traditional black beans, pinto beans, and kidney beans we usually use in our Mexican food. If you can get your hands on some Anasazi beans, I highly recommend them. They have an oddly "poultry-ish" quality and also a smoky flavor. Anasazi beans are also incredibly filling, it's crazy! We made quesadillas last night, no bigger than we normally do, and neither of us could eat the whole thing - we don't often have that problem.

This was also an excellent application for yellow summer squash. As I'm sure you've noticed if you've been reading this blog for any length of time, we are "beans and rice folks" (neither of us like tofu beyond tofu sour cream, we don't like seitan, and we most definitely do not like tempeh), and we are also quite obsessed with Mexican food. So it has been a fun challenge trying to figure out how to create "authentic" Mexican meals that utilize ingredients such as zucchini and summer squash that grow so well here in the Midwest. I can tell you from experience, the zucchini is harder to make "work" than the summer squash, we've had a few "hits" with zucchini, but also some "misses", things that were edible, but that weren't "blog-worthy" nor worth making again, so I was happy to find a meal that used squash that worked out really well. I can say though, with a little creativity and patience, almost anything can be used in Mexican food and it still taste "authentic", you just have to get familiar with the flavors and textures used in traditional Mexican cuisine.

Anyways, I've also gotten a few comments asking what, if any, produce used in our meals comes from our gardens. This excites me to no end that people enjoy the garden updates and our local food, so for the rest of the summer I will use a "legend" to show which fruits and veg came from our gardens, our CSA, the farmer's market, or the "regular" store.

The legend is:
no asterisk = from the grocery store
* = farmer's market
** = CSA
*** = Container or Community Garden

Without further ado, here are the pictures and the recipe.

















NOTE: I am going to try to start "titling" my recipes in Spanish, since it is pretty much just Mexican food. Not only do I think this is neat, but I learn a little bit of Spanish along the way. Now, with that said, I am coming up with these translations via online Spanish to English dictionaries and translators, and they aren't always accurate. So if you know Spanish, and know I am wrong with my translation, please correct me, it will help me learn!

Quesadillas de Frijoles de Anasazi, Arroz Integral y Verdura (Anasazi Bean, Brown Rice, and Vegetable Quesadillas)
1 cup anasazi beans, cooked
1 cup long grain brown rice, cooked
2 tomatoes, diced ***
1 yellow summer squash, diced ***
1/2 onion, diced **
1/2 bell pepper, seeded and minced ***
1 hot banana pepper, seeded and minced ***
1 serrano pepper, seeded and minced ***
2 cloves of garlic, minced *
ground coriander
chipotle chili powder
cumin
salt

tortillas
salsa

Heat a few tablespoons of water in a small skillet. Add squash, onion, peppers, and garlic. Cook for about 10 minutes. Drain any excess water.

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and season to taste.

Layer a few tablespoons of filling in warmed tortillas. Fry if desired.

Yummy!

I wanted to end this post with a reminder about the Quit Now Challenge. It officially starts tomorrow and it is not too late to sign up. I will be posting a reminder tomorrow to all you quitters out there that the challenge has begun!

'Til next time.