Delicata Squash Stuffed With Spicy Black Beans and Saffron Rice

Delicata squash makes a whole meal when
stuffed with spicy black beans and saffron rice.

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Delicata Squash
Delicata squash grow easily and I harvested about 2 dozen of them a few weeks ago. Although I usually just roast them with rosemary , lately I've been stuffing them with various things. Since Doug loves black beans, for lunch today I baked the delicata squash, made some saffron rice in my rice maker, heated up a can of spicy black beans with some fresh red bell peppers from my garden, and voila - a yummy, meat-free meal! 

Black beans are a great source of high quality protein, folate, thiamin and fiber. Here's the recipe!


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Stuffed Delicata Squash
Vegan (if made with Earth Balance), Gluten Free
[makes 4 servings]

Ingredients
2 delicata squash
Earth Balance or ghee
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup rice (Tamaki Haiga or short grain white rice)* 
Pinch of saffron
1 small organic red bell pepper, finely diced
1 (15-ounce) can organic spicy black beans

* Tamaki Haiga rice has the bran removed but still contains the germ. I call it "white rice without the guilt!"

Directions
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut off the stem of the delicata squash and then cut in half vertically. Clean out the seeds.

Liberally spread Earth Balance or ghee all over the inside of the squash. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Don't worry about the fat as most of it will steam off in the oven.

Place the delicata face down in a shallow casserole dish with a 1/2" of water. Place in the heated oven and bake until a fork can easily pierce the skin, about 30 to 40 minutes.

While the squash is baking, prepare the rice according to directions. If you are using a rice maker that takes almost an hour, you should start the rice before you make the squash. 

Crumble the saffron into the rice while bringing the water to a boil. If using a rice maker, just add the crumbled saffron to the water.

While the rice is cooking and the squash is baking, place the finely diced red bell pepper into a small saucepan with a small amount of water. Cover and steam until it starts to soften, about 5 minutes.

Add the can of spicy black beans and its liquid to the peppers and simmer, uncovered, until heated and most of the liquid evaporates.

Make sure the organic spicy black beans
come in a can with a non-BPA lining.

Place the four delicata halves on individual plates and fill each half with one quarter of the cooked saffron rice .

Spoon the black beans over the rice and serve.

Enjoy!

It's Easy To Make Your Own TortillasWhole Wheat Black Bean Tortilla Recipe

Black beans add fiber and protein to these whole grain tortillas.

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So Simple to Make
Home-made tortillas, hot off the grill, are a great addition to any meal. And they are surprisingly easy to make. To add some nutritional goodness to today's recipe, I use King Arthur's White Whole Wheat flour and organic black beans. Each tortilla provides 3 grams of dietary fiber and 4 grams of protein.

Let's get started!

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Whole Wheat Black Bean Tortillas
Vegan, Dairy Free
[makes Eight (7 1/2-inch) tortillas or a dozen (5-inch) tortillas]

Ingredients
1/2 cup canned organic black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 1/2 cups King Arthur White Whole Wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or organic canola oil)
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon warm water

Directions
Place the black beans, flour, salt, and oil in a food processor. Pulse to blend.

With the food processor running, add water slowly through the shoot until the dough forms a ball.

Remove the dough and roll into 8 balls. If you want smaller tortillas, roll into 12 smaller balls. 

Cover with wax paper or plastic wrap and let rest for 15 to 30 minutes.

Heat a non-stick pan. 
Roll out each ball to the desired size. I use a rolling pin on a a Tupperware Pastry mat. I don't think they sell those anymore but there are quite a few silicone pastry mats available.  Or, if you have a tortilla press, you can use that.

Place each tortilla in the heated pan and cook until the tortilla bubbles, about 1 minute.

Turn over and cook until both sides are brown, another minute.

One of my favorite possessions is my cloth tortilla warmer, a gift I received from my nephew Dave many years ago. NOTHING keeps tortillas warmer than this. Place your tortillas in the warmer as they come off the grill. If you don't have a warmer, wrap the tortillas in aluminum foil to keep warm.

Tortilla warmers can keep tortillas warm as they come off the grill or can be used to heat them back up in the microwave.

Black bean tortillas can be served as your whole grain starch with any meal or use them to make quesadillas or fajitas. Our favorite way to eat them is spread with vegan cream cheese.  

Nutritional Information
Per serving (8): 164 calories, 9 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 84 mg omega-3 and 1,003 mg omega-6 essential fatty acids, 4 g protein, 16 g carbohydrates, 3 g dietary fiber, and 74 mg sodium.

Per serving (12): 109 calories, 6 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 56 mg omega-3 and 669 mg omega-6 essential fatty acids, 3 g protein, 11 g carbohydrates, 2 g dietary fiber, and 49 mg sodium.