The Broke Man's Dinner

Rice and beans. If you've ever been in a tight spot financially you have probably been told you should eat more rice and beans. I once ate this for dinner every night for a week. Last summer, while I was in Spain, Chris asked what he could make for $5 and still have leftovers. I told him my special rice and beans recipe. He liked it so much he started making it all the time while I was away. You can eat it as is, or in a burrito, or with chicken on top.

Tonight, we chose to eat it in burritos. 

Rice & Beans:

What You Need: 

• 1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice
• 1 can black beans
• 1 cup salsa
• 3 tbsp chili powder

The Process:

1. Cook the rice according to the packaging. To make it a quick meal, use instant brown rice. 
2. In a pan mix the rice, beans, salsa, and chili powder. Let simmer until the mixture is warm. 

Start of Favorites Week!

I am so happy that Chris suggested a favorites week! It's nice to take a break from experimenting with new vegan recipes and go back to some in home classics. We kicked off our favorites week with Mexican Casserole. It was a huge hit the first time I made it a few months ago but that was before the switch to vegan. Tonight was my first attempt at a vegan version and Chris couldn't even tell the difference! Talking about it now is making my mouth water.

Mexican Casserole
What You Need:

• 2 cans black beans
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 1/2 cups salsa
• 1 can corn or 1 1/2 cups frozen corn
• 2 tbsp taco seasoning
• 3/4 cup (vegan) sour cream
• 1/2 tsp cumin (optional)
• whole wheat tortillas
• 2 1/2 cups (vegan) Mexican blend cheese

The Process: 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. In a large skillet, heat the black beans, taco seasoning and onion for about 5 minutes. Stir in salsa, corn, sour cream and cumin. 
3. Spoon a generous layer on the bottom of the casserole dish, sprinkle with cheese, and top with tortillas. Repeat until you are out of the mixture. Top with tortillas and use all remaining cheese on top. 
4. Cook in the oven for 25 minutes. Serve hot and enjoy :) 

Long Week = Less Than Perfect Cooking

It has been a long week here. Extra stress lead to less than perfect cooking. I messed up a few of the recipes we tried this week which meant I had little to update here in blogland. However, Chris has requested a favorites week so we are very excited! We will be repeating some of our favorite meals, a few of which are already on the blog such as the Kidney Bean Risotto and Pita Pizza while others haven't made appearances yet but will next week!

Saturday I will be working on the garden and planting a few of the baby plants such as the zucchini and crookneck squash. Both are doing really well and I can't wait to finally have some plants in the garden!

Yesterday was another long hard day for me so I was really excited when I came home and Christopher had taken the initiative to see what was planned for dinner and prepared it :) So while none of the meals I personally prepared this week were hits, his stuffed bell peppers were!

Black Bean Stuffed Bell Pepper
What You Need:

• 4 large bell peppers
• 2 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
• 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans or one can black beans
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 14.5 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp sugar

The Process:

1. Cut the tops off the bell peppers, save them for later use, and remove and discard the seeds and membranes. Arrange the peppers upright in a slowcooker. 
2. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the rice, beans, salsa and onions. Mix well. Fill the pepper cavities evenly with the rice and bean mixture, packing it lightly. Replace the pepper tops.
3. In the same bowl, combine the tomatoes, cumin, oregano, and super. Pour over and around the peppers in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours. 

This was a great meal for us because a stuffed bell pepper is enough to fill me up but Chris wanted more and ate his with mojito chicken. If we didn't just have these last night they could easily be on our favorites list for next week!