One Pot Wonder Southwest Pasta

This is a great dish, filled with so many flavors--and it can easily be customized as well. Best part, one pot, very little dishes in the end. The pot, a knife and cutting board. yummy.
My favorite thing to add to Mexican flavored meals is cilantro. Topped it with a bit of that, and actually used crumbled queso fresco.  I made my own taco seasoning to use in this as well, so as to take out a bit of sodium. Used low sodium black beans as well.

Ingredients

• 1 13.5 oz. box of whole wheat rotini (or any pasta you like)
• 2 cups frozen corn kernels
• 1 medium green bell pepper cut into thin strips
• ½ medium red onion, sliced
• 1 15 oz. can Rotel canned tomatoes and chilies (I used the Mexican blend with lime and cilantro)
• ¼ cup taco seasoning (I used Old El Paso, medium)
• 1 tsp. salt (if the taco seasoning you use contains a lot of salt, you may want to reduce this)
• 2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cups fat-free chicken (or vegetable) broth
• 1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
• ¼ cup Mexican cheese blend, plus more for topping (Optional)

Instructions

1. Add all but the last 2 ingredients (beans and cheese) to a large pot. Stir, cover, and bring to a rolling boil.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. There should be ¼ to ½ inch of liquid in the bottom of the pot when it is done.
3. Remove from heat. Stir in the black beans and cheese (optional). Let it rest for 5 minutes to warm the beans, melt the cheese, and absorb the excess liquid.

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 1 cup Calories: 320 Fat: 4.2 Saturated fat: 0.9 Carbohydrates: 60.1 Fiber: 7.4 Protein: 11.7