Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Project #41 - Black Beans Cuban Style

Black beans and rice are a staple of Cuban cooking. They're the one Cuban dish that I can make just as well as my mother or my abuela, so I like making them when we host Wednesday night dinners.



I forgot to take a picture of today's dish until it was mostly eaten. Oops.

Ingredients: (serves 3-4)

  • 1 can black beans
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 1/4 onion, diced
  • ~1/8 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 red or green pepper, diced
  • 1/8 cup mojo criollo marinade, or vinegar
  • 1 bay leaf
I forgot to buy an onion, so we're just going to pretend that I diced one and fried it in the olive oil on high heat. Add the garlic just as the onion starts to brown a little. Cook until the garlic smell fills the kitchen and the garlic is slightly brown.

Add your can of beans liquid and all. Toss in the diced pepper, the bay leaf and the marinade. Stir and let simmer uncovered on medium heat. I like my black beans to be kind of saucy, so I let the liquid reduce for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep the beans from burning to the bottom of the pot. Discard the Bay leaf. Serve immediately or keep on low heat until the rest of dinner is done.



We served the beans over rice and with tacos and the flan I made yesterday. The flan got extra good overnight. The vanilla bean seeds had extra time to work their magic and the night in the fridge melted the sticky caramelized sugar into tasty tasty syrup. I was super happy when our dinner guests each had seconds. Last time that didn't happen so much.

Okay, so this has been three days in a row of food posts, but I'll be back on the crafty side of things by tomorrow. That's because I'll have two days to assemble what I'll be wearing for Valentine's Day Eve and V Day itself. Unfortunately, it's going to be much colder than today, so I'll be shelving the flirty dresses I had planned in favor of more casual separates with more layering power.

Here is the fabric palette I'm considering:

(From left to right: red tulle, lightweight khaki twill, numbered heavy-weight cotton, red Kona cotton, burgundy Kona cotton, purple silk organza)

I think I know what I'm going to make for Friday dinner with friends at the Red Lobster (cheddar biscuits!), but I'm not sure if I'll have time to get ready for Saturday. I know that Valentine's Day is a silly holiday, but I'll take any excuse to make a new outfit.

Labels: ,

posted by Alison 2/11/2009 11:21:00 PM : (0) comments : splink



prime-number.com

site feed

Archives:

Powered by Blogger



www.flickr.com
This is a Flickr badge showing items in a set called DIY. Make your own badge here.

My Rules for the year:
• Make something new every day.
• Don't buy anything you can make yourself, especially clothes.

Elsewhere:
 Bio
Graphics Homework
Pictures
Email Me

Very Old Flash Homework:
 Old Flash Page
Aquarium
KiteBuilder
Shapes

I belong to:
 WeddingBee
Metafilter

Weblogs Written By Nice People:
 » Munsoned in the Middle of Nowhere
» Ben Bonetti
» romej.com
» The Rector's Page
» A Dress A Day
» The Point of Babette

Old Versions:
 Fall Leaves
Early to Rise
Chopstick
Equine


Old Splash Pages:
 Old Splash Pages:
 »Original Recipe
»Sketch of Clark
»Big Blob
»Another Big Blob
»Digi Charat Bear
»Linoleum Samples




Google



Search WWW
Search www.prime-number.com


Current Weather in Pittsburgh, PA: The WeatherPixie