We love black beans at our house. They are loaded with protein and fiber and are so versatile for any dish. Our favorites are Black Bean Soup, Black Bean Burgers and Black Bean Cheesy Enchiladas, just to name a few!
Once you start eating these delicious black bean burgers, you’ll wonder if you’ll ever need to eat a meat burger again! Serve with your choice of bun, lettuce, tomato and condiments. YUM-MO!
Oh, and how can I forget the famous, delicious, hearty Vegetarian Chili. A Cerrato household favorite!
See recipe tab at top of page for these three Black Bean dishes, along with other delicious recipes. Let me know your thoughts once you’ve had a chance to eat them!
foodjules.com 
Hey there!
I would love as a new-er Mommy (my little one is almost 18 months) what kinds of foods you might suggest for a picky eater. She has a great appetite for the things she likes – pasta with sauce, fruits, etc. But is SUPER picky able meats and “funny” textures.
What are some of your favorite recipes for your kids? I’d love to hear about what you cook for them!
Variety is key! I like to expose them to as much flavor, texture and culture as possible. Especially since I enjoy different ethnic dishes and am always open to trying something new, I want them to do the same. Just keep offering a variety, and she’ll eventually start trying it.
It may sound silly but my father used to (and still does) make “ummm… so yummy” sounds while he was eating to get us excited to eat and I used to laugh about it and now I do the same thing! Let her see YOU enjoying the food and she will too.
I stayed away from giving them meat or fish until they were closer to three years old. I wanted them to first develop a taste palate for different vegetables.
Soups are always an excellent way to get all different textures and vegetables in them. You can offer her puree soups, such as potato leek soup, carrot soup or butternut squash. These might be easier to get her to eat since there isn’t much texture and they have simple ingredients. Then, little by little, you can puree it a little less and get more of the smaller chunks in there.
Once she’s conquered those, you can start offering her a more textured soup such as vegetable soup, lentil soup or kale soup. These are some of our favorites.
Some other foods that we enjoy with our children are Vegetarian Chili, Black Bean Burgers, Roasted Potatoes, Asparagus, Beets, Spaghetti with Swiss Chard, Pasta with Peas, Chickpea stew and polenta, Tortellini with Spinach… these are just to name a few. There are so many recipes that I can offer you. Start with the easier, softer foods and then move on to the texture. When Lilliana started eating solids, she took a little longer enjoying texture so I offered her lots of pureed soups. Just pick up a hand blender and start pureeing!
By the way, have you offered her hard boil eggs? They are soft and have a mellow flavor. Drizzle them with some olive oil so they aren’t too dry. Also, polenta (cornmeal) is really easy to make and my kids love it. It is very soft and with some parmesan cheese on top is super delicious!
I hope this helps. I have some recipes posted on this blog – just click on the recipes tab on the top of the page. If there is a recipe you’d like, just let me know and I’ll be sure to post it.