how-not-to-die Hello everyone! I hope you are doing well and staying true to those New Year Resolutions, right?! Well anyhow, i wanted to share with you a great book i’ve been enjoying: How Not to Die Amazon Link here from Doctor Michael Greger with Gene Stone. I have followed Dr. Greger at his website Nutrition Facts for many years and he recently published this marvel. It’s a great read that explains in a simple way many of the advantages of adding loads of fruits, veggies and whole grains to your diet. He discusses a wide range of issues which simply apply to all of us from heart disease to diabetes, different cancers, infections, liver diseases, mental disease and on an on. He even has very practical ideas on how to structure meals, add key ingredients to your diet, boost your metabolism and your exercise among others. It even includes easy recipes an fun experiments along the way. And best of all, for those of you eager to go to the original journals and papers with the medical research behind, there is a meticulous bibliography throughout the book. Thus, inspired by this book, here is a recipe of a delightful Mexican Layered Casserole. It hasn’t been approved by Dr. Greger himself, but I sure hope he would enjoy it!

Healthy Mexican Layered Casserole

This is a great recipe to make at home for friends and family alike. I am presenting this recipe in an illustration mode, i.e. without exact measurements. In my cooking classes, i always encourage my students to take the fear out of cooking and just go at it. It’s the simplest way to get yourself more at ease in the kitchen, keep those stress levels down and the flavor factor up.

Preheat the oven to 300 F. You will need about 4 to 5 cups of salsa and a large or two (previously baked) sweet potatoes. Extra points if you make your own salsa to keep it low sodium! (2 large cans of crushed lo sodium tomatoes with diced sauteed -preferably with no oil for a no-oil sautee method, click here– green and red peppers, a jalapeno or two, an onion and 2 cloves of garlic and a whole bunch of cilantro, leaves and stems chopped). First, spread about 2 cups of the salsa on the bottom of your casserole dish. Arrange a nice bed of sliced white button mushrooms just to cover the salsa just as in the first picture. Continue with a nice layer of thinly sliced zucchini and squash as illustrated below.

salsa on the bottom, then sliced shrooms

A layer of sliced zucchinni and squash

Continue the layering of ingredients with a blizzard of chopped leafy greens. These can be any combination of spinach, kale and collard greens (stems removed and finely chopped), arugula, beet greens or swiss chard (in Dr. Greger’s parlance, an antioxidant party!). If you only have one of the greens, it’s also fine but the more the merrier. Follow with a layer of sliced sweet potato (remember this should already be baked previously for faster cooking) and about a cup or two of corn kernels (frozen are fine).

Finally, you should top this with some good ole (fat free) refried beans from a can (or make your own!). A large casserole dish may need 2 cans which i usually thin with about 1/4 cup of water or more for better spreading. Once you have poured the beans, finish the casserole by adding the remaining salsa. Bake for 30 minutes or just until the squashes are soft and the whole thing is a bubbly delicious mess. Serve with chopped cilantro and green onions on top and perhaps some diced avodado.

Enjoy!

I love having these beans as a readily available snack in the fridge with crudités or no salt added oil free crackers. I have been known to make tacos with warm corn tortillas, and a dollop of fresh salsa and chopped lettuce. Voila dinner or lunch! Feel free to add a jalapeno or some chili powder to make it spicy as well.

Fat Free “Refried” Beans
Makes about 3 cups

3 cups cooked pinto beans or black beans, may also be canned no-salt-added, rinsed and drained
1 large yellow onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup no added sodium vegetable broth or water
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or chipotle pepper powder (optional)

In a sauté pan over medium-high heat add the onions and stir frequently. Steam sauté the mixture by adding about 1 Tablespoon of vegetable stock at a time just to avoid the onions from sticking and cook until the onions begin to caramelize, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cumin and sauté for another minute adding water/broth in Tablespoon increments as needed. Reduce the heat to low, and add the cooked beans, about half a cup of broth, cumin, and cayenne pepper (if using), stir to combine, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, and using a food processor, a potato masher or a fork, to mash the beans to your desired texture, adding additional liquid if needed. These may also be pureed on a food processor.