Charred Poblano Peppers, Tofu, and Black Bean Skillet Burritos

Poblano Peppers for the Win!

What a delight to come home to a new, delicious meal! My dear husband made these scrumptious burritos for the family! What a treat! And made from a plentiful supply of fresh poblano peppers delivered from a friend earlier in the day! He adapted the recipe from various other recipes, linked below.

Here are just a few Poblano Pepper Benefits!

Poblano peppers are nutritious, offering high levels of vitamins A and C for immune and eye health, antioxidants to fight cell damage, and fiber for digestion, and a million other benefits, all while being low in calories. Their capsaicin content may offer pain relief and metabolic benefits. 

The love of a homecooked meal is beneficial to well-being!

Charred Poblano, Tofu & Black Bean Skillet Burritos

Made 8 good sized burritos

Ingredients:

6–10 poblano peppers, halved + seeded

1 block firm tofu, pressed + crumbled

1 can black beans, drained

1 onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1–2 cups corn

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp oregano

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari

Salt + pepper

Optional: lime, cilantro, avocado, tortillas, rice

Instructions:

Char poblanos under broiler or on grill until blistered. Chop. Sauté onion. Add tofu, soy sauce, cumin, paprika, oregano. Brown lightly. Add poblanos, black beans, corn, garlic, nutritional yeast. Simmer 5–10 min. Finish with lime, salt, pepper. Serve with rice or tortillas.

Various Poblano Scrambles and Stuffed Peppers from:

Baking Fairy

Minimalist Baker

Simple Veganista

Everyday Plant-Based

Try Beans This Way! Plus, more Benefits :)

Beans to add 4 joyful years to your life! Plus, it tastes great!

Here's another way to eat them: Tricky Traditional Lasagna!

Tricky Traditional Lasagna

Dan Buettner is an author/researcher who studies the places on Earth where people live the longest, and shares the habits and traditions they all have in common to help us all live longer. I wanted to share a link to Dan Buettner's email newsletter, though I have been unable to locate it online, on his website or elsewhere (this is a link to his first 49 editions), so here's a big quote from Dan's Live to 100, Edition 56:

"If there’s one food that unites the world’s longest-lived people, it’s beans. Lentils in Ikaria. Black beans in Nicoya. Garbanzo beans in Sardinia. Soybeans in Okinawa. Pinto beans in Loma Linda. They all show up day after day, often as the centerpiece of the meal.

And here’s what’s remarkable: In every blue zone, people eat at least a half cup of beans daily, often without thinking about it. It’s not part of a fad or challenge. It’s not something they have to remind themselves to do. It’s just what they’ve always done.

A way of eating that’s woven into their culture, their kitchens, their lives.

It turns out, that half cup might be one of the most powerful dietary decisions we can make for our health and longevity. A 2023 meta-analysis of over 1.1 million people found that eating just 50 grams of legumes a day (about half a cup) was associated with a 6% lower risk of death from all causes, and a 9% lower risk of dying from stroke.

That’s a small amount of food with an outsized effect and meaningful long-term impact.

So what makes beans so powerful?

Let’s start with the fiber. Most people fall far short of the recommended daily fiber intake and low fiber is linked to a host of chronic issues, from heart disease to colon cancer to type 2 diabetes. Beans are one of the richest sources of both soluble and insoluble fiber, which helps regulate blood sugar, reduce cholesterol, promote fullness, and support healthy digestion. Soluble fiber also feeds the gut microbiota, the trillions of beneficial bacteria that live in our intestines and play a key role in everything from immune function to brain health.

But it’s not just about fiber. Beans are a slow-digesting carbohydrate, with a low glycemic index that keeps blood sugar stable. That’s critical for long-term metabolic health, especially as we age. They're also one of the few plant-based proteins that are rich in lysine, an essential amino acid that helps with tissue repair, hormone production, and calcium absorption. Plus, they deliver key minerals like iron, magnesium, potassium, and folate, which support everything from heart function to cognitive performance.

Beans are also a stealth anti-inflammatory food. Thanks to their high levels of polyphenols and resistant starches, they help lower inflammation at the cellular level. This matters because chronic inflammation is a major driver of aging and many age-related diseases—including cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, and certain cancers."

I encourage you to sign up for Dan's biweekly newsletter by going to the very bottom of his website and filling out your name and email address.

Here is a previous fresh-you post about the Blue Zones

Creamy, Satisfying Peanut Butter Pie

If you love peanut butter, you have to try this simple, protein-packed recipe! Both of my teenage girls love this pie that we sometimes even eat for breakfast!

Last week, I stressed the importance of protein in the morning. More specifically, beans in the morning, and all day long! Tonight, I am going to share a dessert that's so healthy it could be breakfast!

CREAMY, SATISFYING PEANUT BUTTER PIE

CREAMY, SATISFYING PEANUT BUTTER PIE

Yes, this sweet treat contains soybeans and garbanzo beans (tofu and chickpeas), and of course peanut butter. This recipe comes from Broccoli Mum, a vegan mum who lost 66 pounds on plant based whole foods of high nutrient density and low-calorie density. Her name is Ami Deane. She lives in New Zealand and has a lovely English accent. She has been vegan since birth. She makes quirky recipe videos on TikTok with wonderfully simple, nutritious, and creative recipes. I love her passion!

I only tweak Broccoli Mum's recipe in a few tiny ways.

Ingredients:

CRUST (this amount blends well, there will be enough to make another pie)

2 cups chickpeas, 1 can, drained 

1 cup oats

12 deglet noor dates (or 6 medjool dates)

2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp vanilla

FILLING

3 plantains, cooked in microwave

1 package of silken tofu (I read that firm has worked for others)

1/3 cup natural peanut butter (original recipe uses 1/4 cup peanut butter powder)

1 tsp vanilla

Note: original recipe uses a pinch of salt in each of the crust and filling mixes

Plantain preparation (Broccoli Mum's video is great for this part especially): slice through peel of full length of each plantain. This is similar to puncturing potatoes before baking. Microwave plantains for around 6 minutes. They will be very hot.

In food processor, blend crust ingredients. Press half of mixture into pie pan. Store remaining contents for future use. Next, remove plantains from peels and combine with tofu, peanut butter, and vanilla. Process until creamy. Finally, pour mixture over crust and refrigerate for a few hours. Then, enjoy!

Key Words:

High nutrient density: this means a food has a lot of great stuff, vitamins, minerals, fiber, phytochemicals, and more, for very few calories. 

Examples: kale, raspberries.

High calorie density: this means a food provides very few nutrients with the cost of many calories.

Examples: soda pop, oil, cheese.

Tricky Traditional Lasagna, Simplified :)

I simplified this recipe, so now it is easier to make with fewer ingredients, and still DELICIOUS!

Loads of Dr Greger Daily Dozen 

Check Marks: 

1) grain

2) flax

3 and 4) lentils and tofu

5) spices

6) tomato sauce, especially if you make it yourself.

OMGosh - this is the bomb! My 11 and 12 year-old niece and nephew LOVED this dish! These are the children of a Sicilian-born restaurant owner and chef at delicious Alessandro's. One said "I love this meat!" and the other said "This is really good! If you would have offered me tofu and lentil lasagna, I would have probably said NO".

Let's get to it!

Tricky Traditional Lasagna

The 'Meat'
1.5 c lentils
1 clove garlic (tsp)
3 Tbsp Italian seasoning (make your own!)
2 Tbsp ground flaxseed
Optional: you can get away with adding 1/2 inch of fresh turmeric without anyone noticing! Also, you may add some water if you want to make mixture easier to add to lasagna.

The 'Cheese'
2 packages firm tofu (smooth works too)
2 Tbsp onion powder
Tbsp lemon juice
Tbsp Italian seasoning (make your own!)
(You may only need to use half of this mixture, but it blends will with plenty of tofu)

Whole wheat lasagna noodles, prepare per box directions

3-6 cups spaghetti sauce (1-2 jars)...you could get away with 1 jar and a can of diced tomatoes

For meat, simmer lentils in water covered for 20-30 min. Add spices and flax and blend in food processor until it looks like ground beef (few min)!

For cheese, drain tofu, and combine with other 'cheese' ingredients in food processor, and process until smooth. Taste test and add spices as you like!

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Cover bottom of a 9x13" pan with some sauce, then lasagna noodles, then 'meat', then 'cheese', and repeat until pan is full, ending with a layer of pasta covered in sauce. If you have extra ingredients, you can make an extra small lasagna, and share with a friend! Bake for an 45-60 min, and enjoy!

Plant-Based Traditional Lasagna
(with vegan ground meat and vegan ricotta cheese)

This recipe makes me so happy! I love making this basic, traditional meal with no meat or cheese! It's also fun that you really don't need any veggies on the side because it is made entirely of veggies! I've made the Plant-Strong Lasagna (check it out here), and it's a great veggie meal. On the other hand, Tricky Traditional Lasagna provides the familiarity of a meal you've probably eaten many times before, as you try potentially unfamiliar tofu and lentils. I hope you love it as much as we do!

PS- I always add a bit of water to the empty marinara jar and shake with lid on, to get every last bit of sauce out, add anywhere within layers.

COMMENTS: What vegan Italian food do you like to eat?

Egg-Less Egg Sandwiches! Save Time AND Your Health!

Among the many benefits of a plant based diet (prevention and treatment of heart disease and cancer and the good of the environment, just to name a few), is the fact that in some cases you will SAVE TIME! So try this! Imagine making egg salad without having to cook and peel hard-boiled eggs!

Egg-Less Egg Salad Sandwich
1 package firm tofu, drained
1-2 Tbsp mustard
2-3 Tbsp vegan mayo*
3-4 celery stalks, chopped
1-2 tsp pepper
1-2 tsp turmeric
salt (optional)

1-2 tomatoes, sliced
whole wheat bread (I used this awesome bread, Eureka Organic Grainiac, that we just found at our bread outlet!)

Eureka Organic has some sugar, but no strange chemicals and a good bit of fiber :)

Squeeze tofu block between two plates to remove excess water. Crumble tofu and mix with celery, mustard, mayo, and spices. We enjoy our "egg" salad topped with tomato slices on toasted whole wheat bread, and hope you do too!

That's it! No cooking, pulling out or cleaning a food processor, peeling egg shells, and really...you could even skip measuring! I sure love the simplicity here!

*You can make mayo with...you guessed it --tofu! Here is a mayo recipe (I might use dates instead of maple syrup, and skip the salt)

My kids don't eat eggs because they know all about their harmful health effects. So, I called this a "tofu sandwich" to get them to try it! We're 50/50 so far for the kids liking it, one gave it a yay, and another gave it a nay, but I love it! I've eaten 2.5 sandwiches today! No need to worry about counting though, when we're making healthy choices :)




Harmful Effects of Eggs (bottom of this post)
5 Reasons to Make Your Meat Portion Small
Plant-Based Diets are Powerful

Tasty Tofu?! YES! Hubby-Approved!!

One of the first meals I started regularly making when I really began cooking about a decade ago. I am not sure what even made me think to try tofu! ...though a discussion of SOY is coming SOON!

My hubby who doesn't (DIDN'T!) like tofu ... thinks this is delicious!!!

Rich and Tasty Tofu Stir Fry


3 Tbsp soy sauce (or to taste)
1 Tbsp garlic, minced 
½ tsp ginger
Cayenne pepper (to taste)
1 lb package tofu, EXTRA-FIRM
2 T sesame seeds
1 onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 c broccoli, chopped
16 oz bag spinach
1 c cashews CLICK HERE to find out about why nuts are wonderful!
2.5 c uncooked brown rice (prepare)
Optional: some cooking wine and a bit of sesame oil...we have been omitting these for several years, but originally included.

Drain water from tofu as much as possible. Chop tofu in ½-inch cubes. Heat skillet or wok. Bring soy sauce, garlic, ginger, pepper, and some water to boil. Add tofu, cover, and simmer about 15-20 minutes, until tofu well-soaked with sauce; stir occasionally. I don't get tofu to crisp, unless I cook it in the oven, but it's always tasty. Remove tofu and remaining broth from skillet. Heat skillet and cook vegetables over medium-high heat, about 5 minutes, until crisp-tender. Add tofu, remaining broth, and cashews. Heat together. Serve over brown rice.

You could probably use any type of veggies for this; any frozen bag of mixed or stir-fry veggies would work. The sauce flavors are so tasty -- they make anything really yummy -- like tofu!!

BONUS HINT about tofu: Firm is for savory dishes, and silken is for smoothies and desserts!

Reversing can be disastrous! Once, around the time I started making this recipe, I tried making a smoothie with firm tofu -- no matter how many pieces or varieties of fruit I added, I could not get rid of the unpleasant, tofu taste! I think he avoided trying new foods for a long time after that experience! Sorry, Nicholas.

As for stir-fry, you simply need the firmness to hold shape!

Read 5 BIG Reasons to Make Your Meat Portions Small!

Coming soon: Benefits of Soy; Soy and Cancer, and Milk Comparisons!

COMMENTS: How do you like your soy? How are you spending Mother's Day?