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Recipes    |
Spicy Southwestern Pasta
I love the spicy flavor of southwestern cooking and two of the stars of this region are black beans and chiles. This is a simple meal to prepare that is full of flavor while also being a healthy choice (only 2 grams of fat per serving and high in fiber). You can of course also make it more or less spicy depending on your appreciation for heat. One of the ways to make this meal healthier is to go for low sodium tomato sauce and to choose whole wheat pasta. I like Barilla brand whole wheat pasta as they are made with half whole wheat flour and half white flour and they don’t have that gritty flavor that you sometimes get with whole wheat pasta noodles. After black pepper, cumin is the most-used spice on Earth and cumin complements chiles wonderfully by bringing an unmistakable flavor that is spicy-sweet, aromatic and somewhat bitter undertones. Cumin also perfectly balances the fruitiness of chiles. Don’t waste your time grinding your cumin seeds or using ground cumin. Cumin seeds are small enough to eat whole while providing plenty of flavor and when left whole their bitterness and unique musk really comes through. Ingredients: 2 tsp cumin seeds 1 can tomato Puree (7 oz), low sodium 1/2 yellow onion, diced 2 garlic cloves, minced 1/2 tsp black pepper, coarse 1 tbsp New Mexico chile powder 1 tsp Mexican oregano 1 can of red Enchilada sauce (8 oz) 1 can of black beans (14 oz), rinsed 1/2 cup frozen corn 8 oz whole wheat pasta 4 tsp of cilantro (optional) Directions: 1. In a large skillet over medium heat add the cumin and toast until you can smell the aroma (be sure not to overcook or burn the seeds) 2. To the skillet add the tomato puree, onion, garlic, pepper, New Mexico chiles and Mexico oregano 3. Mix well, bring to a boil and then turn heat to low, cover and simmer for 25 minutes 4. To the skillet add the enchilada sauce, black beans and corn and cook for another 10 mminutes 5. Serve over 1 cup of cooked pasta and top with cilantro Serves 4 Nutritional Information (per serving) Protein 20g Carbs 83g Fat 2g Trans Fat 0g Fiber 13g Sodium 528mg Sugar 8g Calories 405 |
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