Black Bean and Quinoa Tacos

 by Aysegul Sanford

While I was working on the pico de gallo and yogurt sauce, Chrissann made the quinoa and black bean mixture. To make it, she cooked 2 cans of black beans for a couple of minutes, and then stirred in the quinoa. After allowing it to cook for 5 minutes, she gently mashed it using a potato masher.

When it was time to serve, I placed all the components of the tacos out on the table. To assemble, I stacked 2 corn tortillas on top of each other, spooned a generous amount of the quinoa mixture, and then topped it off with pico de gallo and yogurt dressing. To make it even more delicious, I added some cubed avocados and some shredded cheddar cheese.

As is usually the case, it took us almost 30 minutes to make it but less than 10 minutes to eat it. Over our meal, we enjoyed each other’s company, finally able to focus on the beauty around us and less on swatting away sand flies.

Black Bean and Quinoa Tacos

Prep time:  15 mins

Cook time:  10 mins

Total time:  25 mins

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• For Pico de Gallo
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, chopped
• ½ red onion, chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 3 scallions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 1-2 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
• Salt & pepper
• For the sauce
• ½ cup non-fat yogurt
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 2 scallion – green parts only, chopped
• ½ teaspoon salt
• For veggie tacos
• 2 (14 oz.) cans of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 ½ cup cooked quinoa
• 1 ripe avocado, cut into small cubes
• ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 10-12 corn tortillas
• wedges of fresh lime

Instructions

1. To make the Pico de Gallo, place tomatoes, red onion, garlic, scallions, lime juice, and cilantro in a medium size bowl. Add ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Mix until evenly combined. Set aside.
2. To make the dressing, whisk yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, and ¼ teaspoon salt in a bowl. Stir in the scallions and set aside.
3. Place the beans in a medium-size saucepan. Cook stirring constantly until warm, 4-5 minutes. Stir in the quinoa. Cook 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Using a potato masher, mash some of the black beans. Place it in a large bowl and set aside.
4. To assemble: spoon 2 tablespoons of the black bean and quinoa mixture into the center of 2 corn tortillas stacked on top of each other. Top it with 1-2 tablespoons of pico de gallo, cheddar cheese, and cubes of avocado. Drizzle it with a tablespoon of the yogurt sauce.
5. Repeat the same process with the rest of the corn tortillas.
6. Serve it with wedges of fresh limes.