vegan fajitas & spicy refried black beans

Skipped the gym last night as my hip was still hurting pretty bad.  All was good as I had an amazing dinner I wanted to cook up for J.  I have made veggie fajitas many times, but was really happy with this recipe!  The marinade really made the difference on this recipe. To go with it I whipped up some quick guacamole and spicy refried black beans.

Making these worked out great as Friday at work we are having a going away party for a co-worker.  The menu - Mexican...beef, chicken, cheese...you get the picture.  I know I am safe with rice and hopefully the beans if there isn't cheese on top.  However, now I am armed with a mason jar filled with vegan fajita leftovers that I can bring in and enjoy with everyone else!  Again, thinking ahead will save you every time!

Vegan Fajitas
From: Diary of a Nutritionist

 Fajita Marinade

•          2 T. Water
•          1 T. Orange juice
•          Juice of 2 limes
•          3 Chipotle chiles, chopped
•          3 T. Roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
•          ¼ tsp. Ground cumin
•          ½ tsp Chili powder
•          ¼ tsp Paprika
•          1 T. Gluten-free tamari, low sodium

Fajita Mix

•          8 oz. Portabella mushrooms, sliced into strips
•          1 Yellow bell pepper, deseeded and cut into strips
•          1 Red bell pepper, deseeded and cut into strips
•          1 Orange bell pepper, deseeded and cut into strips
•          1 Red onion, diced
•          1 Cup scallions, chopped
•          4 Garlic cloves, roughly chopped
•          8 Soft corn tortillas

Heat a medium pan to medium-high heat. Add garlic, peppers, red onion and 2-4 T. of water or vegetable broth to prevent sticking. Sauté for 4 minutes and add mushrooms and scallions, stirring constantly. Sauté for 4 minutes, or until peppers and onion are sweating, and add remaining marinade ingredients. Cover and let steam on low heat for 6 minutes to absorb marinade flavors.

Edit: The recipe really didn't tell how to use the Marinade very well.  I mixed mine up before starting the Fajita Mix.  Once I added the mushrooms and scallions I added the Marinade to my mix.  Seemed to work great!

The black beans were pretty simple.  I used two cans of low sodium black beans, rinsing them first, and placing 1/2 in my food processor along with jalapenos and spicy carrots. Pulse until slightly lumpy. Add those, the other 1/2 of black beans and 1 T. of garlic powder into a pot and heat on low until warm all they way through.

Enjoy!