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This was adapted from a recipe on kitchenmusingstoday.com to create my "Beans" for Black Beans and Brown Rice. The original recipe made a killer layered party dip, but this is only for the basic beans. After pressure cooking, the mixture is very soupy, ready to turn into a gourmet black bean soup. I elected to reduce the liquid until the bean mixture was fairly thick. It is astounding to me how great these beans taste, as simple as they are. You could use 2 jalapenos if you want pronounced zip, or add the seeds to the beans; this version is relatively mild.

Adapted from kitchenmusingstoday blog. The Raspberry Chipotle Sauce made the dip. The Lime Cashew Cream didn't impress us, but perhaps I forgot that salt. This is a little spicy, but the sweetness of the sauce countered that. The original recipe suggested a second jalapeno. Serve with tortilla chips (not included in nutritional calculations).

Shake of the Day. It fills me up and guarantees I'll have at least 5 freggies for the day.

An emergency variation of my go-to green protein smoothie

This is my own blend, spicier than most Shake 'n Bake mix recipes, but not fiery. It calls for 4 chicken thighs (772g). The oil helps the coating to stay on. I often use grams because they are easier to scale. DH insists that I make this at least once a week - and he gets the spiced skin off my chicken thigh. DH eats 2 and I eat one for dinner.

I use Orville Redenbacher's Gourmet Popping Corn - Original. One tablespoon of vegetable oil or coconut oil is all I need to make 1/3 cup unpopped kernels turn into 2 quarts of delicious popcorn, using my West Bend Stir Crazy popper.

I have beans or legumes for at least one meal a day to keep cholesterol in check. These beans are packed with flavor; the Caribbean flavor comes from the allspice and ground cloves. I found that 1 teaspoon of hot pepper sauce provides a 2 1/2 alarm heat rating, a little hotter than I usually eat (spicy but not fiery) but that didn't interfere with my enjoyment of this dish. I prefer to cook my beans in a pressure cooker so I can reduce salt and additives; you may use 3 15-1/2 oz. cans of pinto beans or kidney beans that have been rinsed and drained. The proper portion is 1 cup bean mixture over 1/2 cup cooked brown rice.

If you like a power protein-veggie shake to start off your day, and you want to observe Clean Eating rules, hemp protein powder (100% hemp, no sugar, no additives) is your best bet, but the hemp taste can be overpowering. The addition of nonfat Greek yogurt removes this from the Vegan category, but it makes it a tasty shake that won't make you grimace.

I used Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder, and the chocolate flavor was intense; I think I would prefer everyday unsweetened cocoa. I made this with almond milk, which lowers the calories significantly, but I think non-fat milk would taste better. I added 1 Tablespoon of maple syrup, and the result was not very sweet. This was extremely thick in my Vitamix, so I would add more liquid next time.

Nice low-fat vinaigrette

Simple vinaigrette. I don't shy away from olive oil any more. When I did, I just used a high quality balsamic vinegar by itself as a salad dressing. Now I think the olive oil is good for my skin.

One of my favorite breakfast smoothies combining protein, fruit and veggie. Yes, it is comes out very green, but it tastes great!

Version 1 of Super Shake, using Whole Nectar (Soy) Protein Smoothie Mix

From Maryland Governor Tawe's Kitchen, this is typical of the Maryland Eastern Shore. Where the locals have easy access to freshly caught Maryland Blue Crab, they prefer to taste only the delicious crab meat, so they might omit the Old Bay seasoning completely. If you want a spicy crab cake, then use up to 3 teaspoons of Old Bay, but that is a Baltimore-style crab cake. In Maryland people are proud if their crab cakes tend to fall apart because it is a badge of honor to add the least amount of bread or saltines needed to bind the ingredients together. If you don't have access to excellent fresh Blue Crab, but have to use pasteurized crab or even Asian Blue Swimming Crab, please use Old Bay and add some chopped red bell pepper and/or chopped celery and green onions. You may substitute 1/4 cup of crushed saltines for the bread crumbs. Make your crab cakes the serving size you prefer. In Maryland, we like big crab cakes!

In Joy Bauer's Life Diet, if you don't have a salad with dinner, you should have 2 cups of this soup in one of its herb-spice variations. Original recipe called for "mushrooms", I like to use Baby Bella mushrooms for additional flavor. This is very bland, but it is a satisfying zero-point snack.

WW friendly. This is so tasty, yet so healthy, even when each adult eats two large burritos. I adapted this from a recipe on a plastic produce bag at a Mars Supermarket.