Simple Southwestern Black Bean and Corn Soup is tasty, satisfying, and can be thrown together in under 5 minutes with ingredients that keep in your pantry
Wow, looks like I’m snowed in today … but I got the perfect soup for the occasion. You can throw this together in minutes yet it’s sooo flavorful and satisfying. It’s vegetarian, but it would also be great with added sausage, ground beef, chicken, whatever.
The trick here is combining some already really good stuff from Trader Joe’s, add green chiles, and garnish with whatever you have a hankering for. Their Latin Style Black Bean Soup is already nicely seasoned and has a smooth, pureed texture. Add their Corn and Chile Tomato-Less Salsa and you get a flavorful chunky soup. Then it takes some green chile to add some heat and that awesome chile flavor. I used feta cheese and green onion for garnish, but cheddar, Monterey jack, sour cream, all kinds of accents would be good.
Another plus is that these ingredients can be kept in the pantry and have a shelf life of at least 6 months. I love ingredients at hand for a great meal I can make on the fly without going shopping.
This is one of those recipes that I’ll probably experiment with every time I make it. Hope you like it!
optional garnish: crumbled feta or cotija cheese, green onions, sour cream, shredded cheddar or jack cheese, cilantro, whatever
Instructions
Dump the black bean soup, corn salsa, and green chiles in a pot. Heat and stir to blend. Add chiles to taste, if desired.
Serve in individual soup bowls and top with garnishes of your choice.
Enjoy!
Notes
Commentary: Wow, looks like I’m snowed in today … but I got the perfect soup for the occasion. You can throw this together in minutes yet it’s sooo flavorful and satisfying. It’s vegetarian, but it would also be great with added sausage, ground beef, chicken, whatever.
TJs-soup-corn-200The trick here is combining some already really good stuff from Trader Joe’s, add green chiles, and garnish with whatever you have a hankering for. Their Latin Style Black Bean Soup is already nicely seasoned and has a smooth, pureed texture. Add their Corn and Chile Tomato-Less Salsa and you get a flavorful chunky soup. Then it takes some green chile to add some heat and that awesome chile flavor. I used feta cheese and green onion for garnish, but cheddar, Monterey jack, sour cream, all kinds of accents would be good.
Another plus is that these ingredients can be kept in the pantry and have a shelf life of at least 6 months. I love ingredients at hand for a great meal I can make on the fly without going shopping.
This is one of those recipes that I’ll probably experiment with every time I make it. Hope you like it!
I just discovered this at a conference in San Diego – Social Media Marketing World. I took this photo at the conference. It hit me as amazingly clever. It’s such a convenient way to serve a really elegant appetizer to a crowd. And they’re so pretty. Plus very tasty. I ate 5 of these as a meal. Well, a sort of meal – I was really hungry.
The gist of this is that you roast your veggies, fill those standard plastic cups (like in the picture) with about an inch of chipotle ranch dressing or green chile ranch dressing, then arrange some veggies on top of the dressing in each cup. Voila! Easy and special. Of course, you can use whatever dip or dressing you want. And whatever veggies you want.
Try this at your next get together – bet you’ll love it!
Small whole mild peppers (King Soopers sells them in a bag in produce)
Whole baby carrots
Cauliflower florets
Baby zucchini (or zucchini strips)
Olive oil
Dressing:
2 cups ranch dressing
½ tsp chipotle powder, additional as needed
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place veggies in a plastic bag and pour olive oil over. Shake and massage bag to coat the veggies with oil Use 1 tbsp oil per 4 cups of veggies. Alternatively, you can place veggies in a bowl, pour oil over, and toss to cover.
Spread in a baking dish and roast for 30 minutes.
For dressing, blend the dressing with chipotle powder and set aside to let chipotle flavor develop. Taste and add more chipotle as needed - heat level varies a lot with different chipotle powders.
Pour about ⅛ cup of dressing into each cup, Arrange veggies on top of dressing in each cup.
Serve & enjoy!
Notes
Commentary: I just discovered this at a conference in San Diego - Social Media Marketing World. I took this photo at the conference. It hit me as amazingly clever. It's such a convenient way to serve a really elegant appetizer to a crowd. And they're so pretty. Plus very tasty. I ate 5 of these as a meal. Well, a sort of meal - I was really hungry.
The gist of this is that you roast your veggies, fill those standard plastic cups (like in the picture) with about an inch of chipotle ranch dressing or green chile ranch dressing, then arrange some veggies on top of the dressing in each cup. Voila! Easy and special. Of course, you can use whatever dip or dressing you want. And whatever veggies you want.
Try this at your next get together - bet you'll love it!
I love roasted veggies, and this is a super simple version with a really nice set of spices. Very flavorful! Also nutritious, vegan, gluten-free, and just a great overall side dish.
I topped this with Cacique Cilantro Lime Mexican Style Sour Cream. I really like this stuff – it’s great as a topping for all kinds of food. But this dish is very good with no topping, straight sour cream, melted cheese, or whatever.
I’ll be making this again and again … and experimenting with variations on the seasoning. Hope you like it!
For years, I’ve been blending mayonnaise and Pace Picante Sauce for a tasty, low-fat salad dressing. It just occurred to me that this would be great as a coleslaw dressing. Well … it turns out to be better on slaw than on a regular salad – just seems like a natural. And it’s so easy.
I’ve tried this with other brands of salsa. Some curdle when mixed with mayonnaise. The Pace Picante always blends beautifully. Often I make this without hot sauce and it’s mild but tasty. My preference is to add about 1/4 tsp hot sauce. It will taste milder when mixed with the cabbage, so you might make the dressing a bit hotter than you want the slaw to be.
This is one of my staple recipes. I always have a jar of Pace Picante and mayonnaise, so I can just whip it up in about 2 minutes. Hope you like it!
Add hot sauce to taste. Remember that mixing it with the cabbage tones it down, so if you want it spicy add a little extra.
Pour the dressing over the cabbage and mix well.
Enjoy!
Notes
Commentary: For years, I've been blending mayonnaise and Pace Picante Sauce for a tasty, low-fat salad dressing. It just occurred to me that this would be great as a coleslaw dressing. Well ... it turns out to be better on slaw than on a regular salad - just seems like a natural. And it's so easy.
I've tried this with other brands of salsa. Some curdle when mixed with mayonnaise. The Pace Picante always blends beautifully. Often I make this without hot sauce and it's mild but tasty. My preference is to add about ¼ tsp hot sauce. It will taste milder when mixed with the cabbage, so you might make the dressing a bit hotter than you want the slaw to be.
This is one of my staple recipes. I always have a jar of Pace Picante and mayonnaise, so I can just whip it up in about 2 minutes. Hope you like it!
Collard greens? What? You didn’t expect collard greens? Well…. I grew up in Virginia, and believe me I know what good collard greens taste like. Many Virginia restaurants (and most bbq joints) have collard greens on the menu. They are usually very good. You need to cook them well (ie, thoroughly) and season them well. But, of course, in the South they don’t add green chiles – which add a special touch. I can eat these as a whole meal.
Hope you try these – it’s easy and well worth having in your repertoire.
4 strips thin sliced bacon (or 2 thick), cut crosswise into ¼ inch pieces
½ cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp sugar
¼ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
A couple dashes hot sauce
2 tbsp cider vinegar
1 lb collard greens, coarsely chopped (prewashed chopped bag is good)
½ cup water
1 tsp chicken bouillon
¼ cup diced green chiles
¼ tsp ground cumin
Instructions
Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until it just begins to brown, stirring occasionally. Add the onions and cook until softened and beginning to brown. (Do not drain bacon fat.)
Add garlic, salt, pepper, sugar, and hot sauce. Cook about a minute.
Add vinegar and simmer until liquid is reduced by half, scraping any browned bits from bottom of the pot.
Mix the chicken bouillon into the water and add to skillet along with the collard greens. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until collard greens are very tender.
Stir in green chiles, then add vinegar, salt and hot sauce (if desired) to taste.
Serve with juices from the pan.
Notes
Commentary: Collard greens? What? You didn't expect collard greens? Well.... I grew up in Virginia, and believe me I know what good collard greens taste like. Many Virginia restaurants (and most bbq joints) have collard greens on the menu. They are usually very good. You need to cook them well (ie, thoroughly) and season them well. But, of course, in the South they don't add green chiles - which add a special touch. I can eat these as a whole meal.
Hope you try these - it's easy and well worth having in your repertoire.
Original Jose’s Special is a Southwestern twist on the legendary breakfast dish that originated at Original Joe’s Italian American diner in San Francisco in 1937. Full of beef, eggs, spinach, and chiles … yum!
Waaay back in 1937 San Francisco, at Original Joe’s a dish was introduced that became legendary. Is it a super breakfast egg dish or a main dish for dinner? Whatever you want. It’s certainly really tasty and filling. You can find many versions of it on the web, ranging from scrambled eggs with lots of ground beef and spinach to versions so meaty you can’t even tell there are eggs in it.
Making a Southwestern version was a no-brainer – it’s at least as good as the original. I’m calling it “Original Jose’s Special” as a play on the original. It’s really Original Anita’s Special. Everybody loves this. It’s not a diet dish, but it’s great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Try it – you’ll like it!
Beat the 6 eggs in a large bowl, blend in the basil and set aside.
In a large skillet, melt butter with olive oil and saute the onions over medium heat until translucent. Add the pressed garlic and cook another minute.
Add the tabasco, ground beef, salt, pepper, and cumin. Brown the beef while breaking it up into small chunks. Drain off any excess fat and stir in the green chiles.
Add the spinach, turn heat to low, cover and let cook/steam for about 5 minutes to let the spinach fully wilt and cook. (If using frozen spinach, it only takes a couple minutes.)
Stir the spinach and beef well to mix, then pour the eggs over the top and gently stir in to blend the mixture. Let the eggs fully set, about 2 minutes, and serve.
Top each serving with grated parmesan cheese and enjoy!
Notes
Commentary: Waaay back in 1937 San Francisco, at Original Joe's a dish was introduced that became legendary. Is it a super breakfast egg dish or a main dish for dinner? Whatever you want. It's certainly really tasty and filling. You can find many versions of it on the web, ranging from scrambled eggs with lots of ground beef and spinach to versions so meaty you can't even tell there are eggs in it.
Making a Southwestern version was a no-brainer - it's at least as good as the original. I'm calling it "Original Jose's Special" as a play on the original. It's really Original Anita's Special. Everybody loves this. It's not a diet dish, but it's great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Try it - you'll like it!
Loaded Colorado Caviar is a deluxe version of the classic Cowboy Caviar, with black beans, corn, bell pepper, garlic, chiles …. and bacon. Satisfying and great as a side or even a meal
Waay back in 2007, I published Colorado Caviar – a yummy variation on Cowboy Caviar. And very easy to make! Back in 2019, I went to my Denver Bloggers Club catered by Mad Greens. Guess what they served? (Among other scrumptious dishes) Cowboy Caviar – a new dish on their menu. I’ve had lots of Cowboy Caviar before, but this was the first one I had with bacon in it. What a fabulous addition! Makes it really irresistible. So I had to make my own version. I went one step further by adding avocado. You could eat this dish as a full meal. Between the bacon and avocado, which is more important? The bacon by far. This dish has so much flavor the avocado has more impact on the texture than the flavor, but the bacon is a real standout. They still have it on their menu, so if you don’t have time to cook, you can order a batch of Cowboy Caviar from Mad Greens. They still have it on their menu in 2025. On the other hand, this is a super simple recipe, and easy to double or quadruple for a big Super Bowl party.
So here’s a great addition to your Super Bowl game day menu – easy to make and likely to be unique on the buffet table. It’s a guaranteed hit, and it’s even healthy.
Olive Chile Cheese Appetizer – a really quick snack or treat for any party made with gourmet cheese, olive tapenade, and chiles on a Ritz cracker or baguette slice. So easy and satisfying!
Green chiles and cheese are always a hit together. Try different kinds of cheese and odds are it will work just about every time. Add olives and it gets even more interesting, and a little salty. For the cheese, I used Trader Joe’s Le Delice de Borgogne, which is a triple cream, very soft, expensive gourmet cheese. By expensive, I mean $13/lb. But it’s really good! A brie or camembert also works well. For the olives, I used Trader Joe’s Olive Tapenade.
This is super simple to throw together: Spread some cheese on a Ritz cracker or slices of a French or sourdough baguette, then top it with green chiles and olive tapenade. Super simple! I tried it with just cheese and olives, cheese and green chiles, or all three. All are good. I also tried it with 505 Southwestern Sweet N’ Spicy salsa, also very good. I really like that touch of sweet.
Next time I’ll make this with a baguette rather than crackers. Preparation is quicker and bread goes especially well with this. Try it, you’ll like it!
Brie or camembert cheese (I used TJ's Le Delice de Borgogne)
Diced green chiles
Olive tapenade or minced olives
Instructions
Spread each cracker or baguette slice with a layer of cheese, then top with green chiles and olive tapenade.
For variety, top some with just green chiles, some with olive tapenade, and some with both!
Note: do not heat; high fat French cheese will completely melt.
Notes
Commentary: Green chiles and cheese are always a hit together. Try different kinds of cheese and odds are it will work just about every time. Add olives and it gets even more interesting, and a little salty. For the cheese, I used Trader Joe's Le Delice de Borgogne, which is a triple cream, very soft, expensive gourmet cheese. By expensive, I mean $13/lb. But it's really good! A brie or camembert also works well. For the olives, I used Trader Joe's Olive Tapenade.
This is super simple to throw together: Spread some cheese on a Ritz cracker or slices of a French or sourdough baguette, then top it with green chiles and olive tapenade. Super simple! I tried it with just cheese and olives, cheese and green chiles, or all three. All are good. I also tried it with 505 Southwestern Sweet N' Spicy salsa, also very good. I really like that touch of sweet.
Next time I'll make this with a baguette rather than crackers. Preparation is quicker and bread goes especially well with this. Try it, you'll like it!
Chicken Tater Curry is more like a robust, flavorful curry stew or soup. Thick and spicy with chunks of chicken, it’s a full meal all by itself.
This is essentially a very classic chicken soup foundation chock full of vegetables, pureed into a very thick soup/stew, and spiced up with green chiles and curry powder into a very robust, flavorful complete meal in a bowl. Personally, I found this to be an incredibly satisfying meal all by itself. It’s too thick to be called a soup and too thin to serve on a plate. You can serve it over rice – that’s what many would do – or just in a bowl by itself as I did.
When I made this basic recipe, I used just 1/4 cup green chiles and 1 tsp curry powder. Then I wanted more oomph, so I took it up to 3/4 cup diced chiles and 1 tbsp curry powder. You can make it even spicier – this recipe can handle it.
This is a recipe that you can throw extra veggies into. I tried adding some butternut squash, and it turned out great. You can also add extra chicken if you want it meatier. This also freezes well, so it’s becoming a recipe that I use when I have various vegetables that I need to use up.
Slice carrots and celery. Put chicken in slow cooker and add veggies. Pour wine on top and add spices. Add enough water just to cover.
Cook on low 4-5 hours or high 1-2 hours until chicken thoroughly cooked and veggies are soft. (Alternatively, rapid boil in covered pot on stove 20-25 minutes until chicken cooked.)
Remove bay leaf & toss. Remove chicken, let cool and shred.
Puree the vegetables. Stir the shredded chicken back in, then blend in the green chiles.
Add salt, pepper, and additional curry powder to taste.
If desired, stir in ½ cup sour cream (makes it richer, and of course more fattening).
Serve in bowls and top with sliced green onions if desired.
Notes
Commentary: This is essentially a very classic chicken soup foundation chock full of vegetables, pureed into a very thick soup/stew, and spiced up with green chiles and curry powder into a very robust, flavorful complete meal in a bowl. Personally, I found this to be an incredibly satisfying meal all by itself. It's too thick to be called a soup and too thin to serve on a plate. You can serve it over rice - that's what many would do - or just in a bowl by itself as I did.
When I made this basic recipe, I used just ¼ cup green chiles and 1 tsp curry powder. Then I wanted more oomph, so I took it up to ¾ cup diced chiles and 1 tbsp curry powder. You can make it even spicier - this recipe can handle it.
This is a recipe that you can throw extra veggies into. I tried adding some butternut squash, and it turned out great. You can also add extra chicken if you want it meatier. This also freezes well, so it's becoming a recipe that I use when I have various vegetables that I need to use up.
Yellow Squash Casserole – a simple, healthy dish that really makes plain ‘ol yellow squash something special. Really tasty and a guaranteed hit with the family.
Personally, I’ve never been a big fan of squash. It’s usually not all that interesting and I tend to cook it in dishes with lots of other ingredients. Well, this dish is really, really good, and it’s mainly … squash. And cheese. It’s a wonder what onions, garlic, and green chiles do for squash.
You can cut the cheese in half and it’s still very good. Note the Triscuits – I had trouble deciding which flavor to use. Triscuits has introduced many different flavors, and all seem to be really good. I had Smoked Gouda Triscuits, Fire Roasted Tomato and Olive Oil Triscuits, and Honey Fig Triscuits. Wow – any of these would be really good in this dish. I used the Honey Fig because the box had been opened and happened to have the exact right amount left. I’ve seen similar recipes to this that use saltines. Saltines? How boring…
I’ll be buying yellow squash a lot more now. Hope you like this as much as I do!
In a skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Saute squash, onion, and garlic until crisp-tender.
Remove from heat; stir in chiles, crackers, salt and pepper. Spoon into greased 1½ quart casserole. Top with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.
Serve & enjoy!
Notes
Commentary: Personally, I've never been a big fan of squash. It's usually not all that interesting and I tend to cook it in dishes with lots of other ingredients. Well, this dish is really, really good, and it's mainly ... squash. And cheese. It's a wonder what onions, garlic, and green chiles do for squash.
You can cut the cheese in half and it's still very good. Note the Triscuits - I had trouble deciding which flavor to use. Triscuits has introduced many different flavors, and all seem to be really good. I had Smoked Gouda Triscuits, Fire Roasted Tomato and Olive Oil Triscuits, and Honey Fig Triscuits. Wow - any of these would be really good in this dish. I used the Honey Fig because the box had been opened and happened to have the exact right amount left. I've seen similar recipes to this that use saltines. Saltines? How boring...
I'll be buying yellow squash a lot more now. Hope you like this as much as I do!
The trick here is combining some already really good stuff from Trader Joe’s, add green chiles, and garnish with whatever you have a hankering for. Their Latin Style Black Bean Soup is already nicely seasoned and has a smooth, pureed texture. Add their Corn and Chile Tomato-Less Salsa and you get a flavorful chunky soup. Then it takes some green chile to add some heat and that awesome chile flavor. I used feta cheese and green onion for garnish, but cheddar, Monterey jack, sour cream, all kinds of accents would be good.
