Baked Quesadillas

Servings: as many as you like!
Time: about 20 minutes

* tortillas
* refried beans, canned (for us, 1 can makes about 4 quesadillas)
* grated cheddar cheese (or whatever cheese you like, really)
* anything else you want to add to the quesadillas, for example: sliced bell pepper, mushrooms, tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes, onion
* salsa &/or sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Assemble the tortillas on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (or forget the baking sheet & parchment paper, & just put them on aluminum foil, if you don't mind the bottom tortilla a little soft). Put the tortillas together by spreading the beans onto one tortilla, layering your vegetables over the beans, & sprinkling as much cheese as you like. Then put another tortilla on top, like a sandwich.
3. Bake for about 10 minutes.
4. Serve with salsa & sour cream.


*Note: These are super-easy to make, and really tasty if you add lots of vegetables.

Cous Cous Soup

~special thanks to Candi for this recipe!~

Prep time: 15 min!
Servings: 8

* 8 cups broth (the orignal recipe calls for chicken broth, I used vegetable broth)
* 1 cup cous cous
* 1 1/2 cups diced fresh tomato
* 1-2 thinly sliced, seeded jalapeno peppers
* 1 tbsp lemon juice

1. Bring broth to a boil.
2. Stir in cous cous & cook for 5 minutes. (Meanwhile, dice the tomato & jalapeno.)
3. Add the tomato & jalapeno. Cook for about 8 more minutes.
4. Remove from heat, stir in lemon juice, & serve.

Note: if the soup becomes too thick, add water.

Note: add Tabasco sauce for a Mexican flavor or fresh basil for an Italian flavor!

Tortilla Soup

~ suggested by Jen! ~

Prep Time: about 45 min
Servings: about 8

* 1 onion, chopped
* 1 cup corn kernels (frozen/canned), rinsed
* 3 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 cup white hominy, rinsed
* 1 tbsp olive oil
* 4 oz can chopped green chile peppers
* 2 tsp chili powder
* 1 can black beans, rinsed, drained
* 1 tsp dried cumin
* ½ cup chopped cilantro
* 2 cans veggie broth
* 28 oz crushed/diced tomatoes

Optional ingredients (Jen says: I use about 2 tsp lime, a lot of cayenne):
* Lime juice
* Cayenne pepper or tobasco to heat it up
* Sugar- if it gets too sour from all the acid

Garnish options:
* Tortilla chips
* Sliced avocado (Jen says: my favorite)
* Monterey Jack cheese
* Chopped green onions

1. In a medium to large pot, heat olive oil over medium. Saute onion & garlic. Stir in chili powder, cumin, tomatoes, broth. Bring to boil & simmer 10 minutes.
2. Stir in corn, hominy, green chiles, black beans, cilantro. Simmer 10 minutes.
3. Serve with any of the garnishes above.