Friends, I must say that the Denver area has surprised me with its food and beer. Not that I had doubts, but you know, I had been most looking forward to San Francisco and the huge foodie scene there that I didn’t take time to stop and think about Denver.
It began when we arrived and our friend Jeni took us to a free jazz concert at City Park. She brought along with her hummus, baba ganoush, an olive tapenade, chips, wine, chocolate…oh, it was delightful. We barely noticed the music since we were so busy eating and catching up.
The following day seemed like three days. After driving all weekend it was a welcome change to have activities. We had a nice breakfast of yogurt, granola, and fruit on the deck. We drove to New Belgium Brewery in Fort Collins and had a private tour (thanks to my former boss’s sister, who works there) and sampled amazing beers, learned about how it is made, and were awed by the worker-owned co-op that is New Belgium. We got lunch at an old hippie place and Justin and I split a falafel sub and a Greek wrap. After a swim in a nearby lake, we headed back to Denver and cleaned up for dinner. We ended up at a cafe where I could build my own salad. It was perfect with arugula, sun-dried tomatoes, avocado, goat cheese, smoky portabellas, and balsamic vinaigrette. For dessert, I had a “scout cookie” — a sweet potato chocolate coconut concoction that I need to learn how to recreate.
Today Justin hiked a 14,000 foot mountain. Crazy? Yes. But he did it, and he loved it, and now he’s limping on calloused feet. He ate three burritos, and more, when he got back. While he was gone, Jeni and I went for a bike ride, ate more delicious food, did a little shopping, and got some sorbet. A great day. Now we’re at our friends Becki and Michael’s house and we made them dinner. I chose an easy recipe with sweet potatoes and black beans that I would love to share with you. I know I had said there wouldn’t be any recipes for the next month, but I guess you got lucky.
Next stop? Zion National Park!
Other Delicious Recipes
- Black Beans & Sweet Plantains: A classic Latin American recipe that is best served with all the fixings: sour cream, cheese, and tortilla.
- Sweet Potato Sausage Calzone: Creamy, satisfying, and flavorful – this calzone has got it all.
Black Bean Sweet Potato Burritos
Ingredients
- 3 cups sweet potatoes cooked
- 1 onion diced
- 2 cups black beans cooked, or about 1 can
- 1 tbsp olive oil plus extra for oiling pan
- 1.5 tsp cumin
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp red chili flakes or cayenne pepper optional
- 8 sprouted whole grain tortillas
- 1 1/2 cups raw cheddar cheese divided
- probiotic sour cream, salsa, and/or cilantro optional, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don't have any leftover sweet potato, peel and cut two medium sweet potatoes into quarters. Place in pot with enough water to cover, bring to boil, then simmer over medium heat (covered) for about 10 minutes until soft.
- Saute onion in olive oil over medium heat until soft. Combine cooked sweet potato, sauteed onion, black beans, cumin, cinnamon, optional cayenne pepper, salt, and half of cheddar cheese. Mix well.
- Lightly oil a 9×13" glass baking pan with olive oil. Divide sweet potato and bean mixture evenly among 8 tortillas. Roll up and place in pan. You may need to crowd them in on their side a bit. Sprinkle remaining cheddar on top.
- Bake for about 25 minutes until lightly golden. Serve with sour cream, salsa, and cilantro.
