Plantains, Beans an Rice

Today I swung by Market Basket in Chelsea for some things, and found a bunch of dented cans of black beans on sale for 30 cents, and a pile of beautifully yellow plantains. I also had some leftover cilantro from last nights supper, and rice. that seemed like a good start for dinner.

When I worked at a non profit residential program for kids in trouble (throw em a couple of bucks if you can), one of my favorite guys on staff was named Manolo. His family was from the Dominican Republic, and he would make platanos, beans and rice for the kids. I used his method for tonights dinner:

Peel the plantain (it's pretty much like peeling a banana except it helps to use a knife to get started because the peel is so thick). Slice into 1 inch slices. Fry on each side in a pan of cannola oil.

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Then drain on a paper towel

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Use the bottom of a glass or some other flat object to squash the fried plantain,

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then refry again in the oil,

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Drain again on paper towels, and salt and pepper the finished product and enjoy!

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For the beans I chopped up an onion and three cloves of garlic and sauteed in butter. Then I chopped up a tomato and a cup of cilantro and added a can of black beans. I seasoned them with some adobo, which is a combination of salt, pepper and spices. If you don't have it, then salt, pepper and cumin should do. Rice was just rice, so...that should be easy :P

I have a bunch of Kale at my house from our CSA, and I figured I'd make some stew with potatoes and beans. I like the way the stew has both sweet and salty flavors. Zeke had a great idea of adding peanuts for some crunchy, which I would definitely do next time.

Moroccan Veggie Stew

Ingredients
1 onion chopped
4 cloved garlic minced
1 sweet potato peeled and cubed
4 potatoes peeled and cubed
1 bunch kale, stems removed cut into 1 inch strips
1 can diced tomato and juice
3 cups veggie broth
1 cup dried lentils
1 can garbonzo beans
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tsp aleppo pepper (or 1/2-1 tsp cayenne pepper)
2 tbsp honey
1/2 cup raisins or chopped dried apricots
2 tbsp butter

in pot melt butter and sautee onion and garlic
sautee kale for 3 min
add the rest of the ingredients and simmer until lentils soften

Curried pumpkin black bean soup

Curried pumpkin black bean soup
Originally uploaded by kel h

Curried Pumpkin and Black Bean Soup(ish)

(so, when I cook and not bake, I am not the best at measuring. this is my best guess as to what is in this)

Definately in the soup
-1 can pumpkin puree
-1 can black beans (not drained)
-4 cloves garlic minced
-1 bay leaf
-1 individual container greek yogurt (I have a bunch left over from trader joes, so it is going in everything until we use it up)
-1 large white potatoe cubed (this would also be good with a sweet potato but I was too tired to cut one up)

Other stuff that i am mostly guessing at the measurements for
1/2 cup vermouth
2 cups veggie broth
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 onion chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp dried thyme
1 or 2 cups egg noodles

Here is what I did

Heat the oil in the pot and cook up the onions, garlic and bay leaf until they brown (maybe toss in a pinch of salt)
then add the pumpkin, vermouth, broth and potatoes
bring to a simmer
Then add the yogurt and spices and stir well to incorporate
Then add the black beans and noodles and cook until the noodles and potatoes are soft

YUM!

Quinoa and Black Beans

Quinoa and Black Beans
Originally uploaded by kel h

Quinoa is a great whole grain, and black beans are full of protien. This is one of my favorite recipes for Quinoa, and it's especially good on a cold day like today.

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

* 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
* 1 onion, chopped
* 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
* 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
* 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
* 1 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or replace with 1 chipotle pepper chopped up, but beware because it's a bit spicier this way)
* salt and pepper to taste
* 1 cup frozen corn kernels
* 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
* 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

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DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, and saute until lightly browned.
2. Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with vegetable broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes,
3. Stir frozen corn into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in the black beans and cilantro.

pumpkin stew

pumpkin stew
Originally uploaded by kel h

Mmmm. Rachel Ray had a pumpkin pasta recipe, and i thought it would make for a good stew.

Chop an onion, about 5 cloves of garlic and two or three shallots and brown in a stock pot. Add a cup or two of broth and throw in a couple of handfuls of peeled cubed turnips. Let it boil for about 5 minutes or so then throw in three cubed potatoes and cook for another five minutes or so. Then chuck in a bunch of veggies (I added frozen carrots and pearl onions and some left over frozen butternut squash), 1 small can of pumpkin puree, a can of black beans, more broth to the consistency you want and a bay leaf. Cook for a good while (i dunno, maybe 10 min) and add seasonings to taste. I like a tablespoon of cinnamon, a few teaspoons of cyanne pepper, and i added half a pack of sazon cause i had it. My "cooking" recipes tend to be very vauge because i start with a recipe and then just sort of improvise. It's tasty tho! Just be sure to take the bay leaf out before eating.