Beans 'n' Rice

Sometimes people think I'm joking when I tell them we had beans and rice for dinner. (I don't usually volunteer this information. But if someone asks...) Friend: What are you cooking for dinner tonight? Me: Oh, beans and rice. Friend: Yeah...beans and rice. [some chuckling]

I love beans and rice! Mostly black beans and lately I'm hooked on brown basmati rice. (It really does smell like popcorn while it cooks. No, seriously.) Last night we had:

Black Beans and Brown Basmati Rice
Cook together 2 cans rinsed and drained black beans, some minced garlic, 1 c. of chopped tomatoes, cumin, some chopped fresh cilantro, salt, and pepper. Serve over rice or stir it altogether. Expecting something fancy? This is a pot of beans. Over rice.

I very occasionally will soak and cook dried beans. I've experimented cooking them all day in a slow cooker without soaking, and that works ok. Since brown rice takes so long to cook, I often cook it in the morning before I go to work and reheat it later.

Last night I sprinkled my BnR with pumpkin seeds. Tasty!

Is this gross?

Lunch today: Mixed greens, red and yellow peppers, pumpkin seeds, quinoa, brown basmati rice, tossed together as a salad with balsamic and olive oil. It tasted good to me, but I sometimes wonder what I wouldn't eat.

This morning I ran about 3.5 miles. We're having a little cold spell, but it was still ok.

I [heart] a good sandwich

Last night Sweet LJ and I headed over to Oakhurst Jazz Night. It had going for it:

• Free
  
• BYO food and drink
  
• BYO dog (optional)
  
• Starts at 7 PM
  
• outside

The weather was nice, and the music was good. I don't know anything about jazz, and this band sounded a little bluegrassy to me? Jazz people probably want to kill me right now.

We had tortellini salad (fresh YDFM tortellini, roasted yellow and red peppers, mixed greens, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, S&P), fab roast beef sandwiches, and 2 of my favorite under-$10 bottles of cab: McManis and Pine & Post.

Good times, good times.

No running Thursday or Friday.

Wednesday's Dinner

Sweet LJ cooked me one of his famous dishes last night: Pecan Crusted Tilapia. (I think I called it Croasted last night since it's crusted and roasted.) Anyway, he mixes together some dijon mustard and a little mayo, slathers it on some tilapia, and coats the fish with finely chopped pecans. (He's also made it with walnuts, which I might like even better.) Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. Thanks, Sweet LJ.

I made a multigrain pilaf to go with it: Cook some brown basmati rice, quinoa, and bulghur. (I already had these cooked, so it came together fast.) Saute red and yellow peppers and add the grains and a bit of water if it's too dry. Last night I stirred in some chopped fresh Italian parsley because I had some. What's really good is to saute the peppers with chopped walnuts, and then add the rice. Since we were having the croasted tilapia, I thought it's be nut overload.

What we ate Monday

Sweet LJ is such a good sport about eating what I cook. He's always so generous, even about the bad stuff--like the time he said, "the onions were a little raw," when the whole dish tasted like raw onions and he hates onions. He really seems to like this original creation, and I do, too:


Chickpeas with Pasta
8 oz whole wheat linguine. I like Delverde, and I especially like translated-into-English websites!
1 T. olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced or pressed using your favorite garlic press
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 roasted red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 roasted yellow bell pepper, cut into strips
1 c. quartered cherry tomatoes
2 T. chopped fresh basil
Salt and pepper and red pepper flakes

Cook the pasta. While it cooks, saute the garlic in olive oil for a minute or so. Add the chickpeas, peppers, and tomatoes. Simmer together for about 10 minutes. Drain and add the pasta to the veg. (I tong out the pasta and drop it in the vegs to save washing a colander, plus I like a bit of pasta water in there to keep things loose.) Toss it all together. Stir in the basil. Add salt, pepper, and red pepper to taste.

Variations: Add some zucchini. Don't roast the peppers first (not as good). Don't add any peppers and add more tomatoes. Use 2 cans of chickpeas. Etc. A very adaptable "recipe."

Why am I thinking about this 2 days later? I ate some for lunch today. Oh yeah, it makes a lot.