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Nachos w/ Calabaza Black Beans & Brown Rice

Nachos w/ Calabaza Black Beans & Brown Rice

These calabaza nachos are a spooky addition to any Halloween season. With the savory orange of the squash rice and hue of the black beans and blue corn chips. Toss in some festive green avocado dip and a hefty dollop of coordinating hot sauce? And you have a festive holiday dish that is absolutely to die for.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Latin American, Mexican
Servings 2 servings

Equipment

  • Baking Sheet
  • Oven

Ingredients
  

Black Beans

  • 1 ½ c. calabaza squash roasted & puréed
  • 1 ½ lbs. black beans ~3 cups
  • 3 habaneros minced
  • 6 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/2 red onion minced
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 2 tsp. pepper
  • 2 tsp. coriander
  • 2 tsp. cumin
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 2 tbsp. olive oil
  • 4 ½ c. water

Brown Rice

  • 1/2 c. calabaza squash roasted & puréed
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/4 red onion diced
  • 2 Anaheim peppers diced
  • dash cumin
  • dash salt
  • dash pepper
  • 1 c. brown rice
  • 2 ½ c. water (or vegetable broth)

Calabaza Squash

  • 1 calabaza squash roasted & puréed

Nachos

  • ~1/3 c. black beans
  • ~1/3 c. brown rice
  • ~1/3 c. calabaza squash
  • ~2 handfulls tortilla chips
  • 1/2 c. cheddar cheese
  • 1/3 c. avocado dip (optional, omit or substitute sour cream)
  • dollop hot sauce (optional)

Instructions
 

Prepare Ingredients

  • Slow Cooker Black Beans take 8 hours to cook. I recommend starting it the night before so that it cooks overnight or in the morning before going to work so that it's ready when you get home. It's also a good quick and easy recipe to start ahead of time and reheat later on.
  • Cook Brown Rice w/ Calabaza Squash & Anaheim Peppers. This takes about an hour and requires a rice cooker or stove. You can also easily create a different flavor profile or utilize the produce that you have on hand. I almost always keep a batch of rice or quinoa in the fridge for exactly this purpose.
  • I used Roasted Calabaza Squash in this recipe. This takes a couple of hours and requires a calabaza (or other squash or pumpkin of choice) as well as aluminum foil and a baking dish.
  • I also topped this burrito with Potluck Avocado Dip w/ Greek Yogurt & Walnuts. This is entirely optional. You can easily substitute sour cream, Greek yogurt, or omit entirely depending on personal preference. Although this avocado dip is my new favorite thing and I highly recommend giving it a try. It's kind of a mix between hummus and guacamole. And is absolutely delicious!

Cook Nachos

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Meanwhile, lay out tortilla chips across a baking sheet.
    Cover until you can't see the baking sheet any longer. They should be touching, but not overlapping too much. You really just want to be able to add toppings to every chip without it getting too much on the baking sheet!
    Exactly how much chips you use is largely a matter of personal preference as well. I've never sat there carefully measuring chips! Roughly two handfuls usually equates to about a serving. I tend to cook far more than I actually need, though. So, as always, adjust to personal preference!
  • Spread the black beans, brown rice, and calabaza squash evenly across the tortilla chips.
  • Sprinkle with cheddar cheese.
  • Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cheese melts and the chips begin to toast.
  • Once the nachos are done cooking, remove from the oven and top with avocado dip and hot sauce.
  • Serve immediately. Once the nachos begin to cool down, the tortilla chips will absorb too much moisture and soften. Once this happens, there isn't a lot that you can do to crisp them up again!

Tips, Tricks, & Notes