Mexican Rice

Well it's about that time again... it's the end of the month which means it's time to get creative with whatever spare ingredients we have left before our big shopping trip (NOTE: Emily actually wrote this in October, but I have been a slacker in publishing the posts). Tonight the weather was almost-November-gloomy and I wanted to make something a little more colorful and exciting than our usual standby, plain old beans and rice. We were blessed to get a few fresh hot peppers from a friend last week, and so they became the inspiration for the rest of this dish. I hesitate to call it Mexican Rice, since I have no idea if Mexicans would eat it or even like it, but I'm hoping they would because it's awesome.

Ingredients:

• 1 c brown rice
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves minced garlic
• Olive oil
• 2-3 hot peppers, chopped with seeds removed
• 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 c water
• 1 c frozen corn
• 1/2 Tbsp chili powder + another 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 Tbsp cumin + another 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp turmeric
• Black pepper, salt, and ground cayenne to taste

Cook the rice in 2 cups of water (check out this article if you aren't sure how to cook brown rice: http://www.eatingwell.com/blogs/healthy_cooking_blog/how_to_cook_brown_rice_perfectly). It will take about 40 minutes. Take a break and go do something fun, or be responsible and get your veggies chopped up and ready for the next step while the rice is cooking.

When there's about 15-20 minutes left on the rice timer, peel the garlic, press it, and let it sit in the open air for 10 minutes. I just do this because Tim heard on NPR that it's healthier. And NPR wouldn't lie... right?

Saute your well-rested garlic, chopped onion, 1/2 tablespoon of the chili powder and 1/2 tablespoon of the cumin in some olive oil (I didn't measure it, just guess how much you need) in a large frying pan. As the onion is starting to get floppy, mix in the hot peppers, making sure that they get coated in the colorful spices along with the onion and garlic. Saute for a few minutes more and by now the rice should be done.

Add the rice, 1/2 cup water, and the corn. Keep stirring and heating, and mix in the beans.  By now there are so many ingredients in the pan that you need more spices, so add the rest of the chili powder and cumin, as well as the turmeric (this is really great for color!) and however much cayenne you dare. Heat it all through, season with salt and pepper, and enjoy! 

*Note: I think this recipe would be even better with some grated cheese melted on top and maybe some sliced black olives and Rotel tomatoes. But since the point of the recipe was to use only ingredients we already had, I had to forego those luxuries for now. Feel free to add anything you have on hand that would spice it up even more and make it your own!

Snack of the Night: Sriracha-infused hummus and crackers

What's a better snack than crackers and hummus? Crackers and hummus mixed with a healthy dose of rooster sauce!

Chili & Lime Black Bean Pasta

A Timothy Huguenin Original. I'm not sure if  anyone else makes anything like this; I don't think I've seen it. I don't remember when or why I invented it. I just figured that a lot of stuff has chili and lime flavor, so why not spaghetti? 




Ingredients:

• 1/2 c lime juice
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 (15 oz.) can of black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/4 tsp salt, divided
• 1 tsp sugar
• 6 oz thin spaghetti
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
• 3/4 tsp ground black pepper

Bring 2 quarts of water to boil in a medium pot.

While you're waiting for the water to boil, add the lime juice and the butter to a medium saucepan over Medium/Low heat and melt together, stirring. Add the black beans, 1/2 tsp of salt, and 1 tsp sugar, and stir together.

When the water for the spaghetti is boiling, add the spaghetti. Let it boil for 6 minutes (or until desired tenderness).

While the spaghetti is cooking, raise the temperature on your buttery-limey beans and bring them to a boil. Boil for two minutes.

Drain the spaghetti, then put it in a serving bowl or back into the pot, but do not apply more heat.

Pour the saucepan of beans and limey mixture onto the spaghetti and mix.

Add 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper, 3/4 tsp ground black pepper, and 3/4 tsp salt, and mix these in well. It may help to mix them in one at a time.

Serve hot. It should feed two or three people. Depends on how hungry I am.

Spicy Catalina Trout

This recipe is for a marinated grilled fish filet that mixes the sweet tanginess and tantalizing color of Catalina dressing along with the hot and spicy flavor of the beloved rooster sauce. If you're cooking more than one fish (which you probably are, even if it's just you that's eating), cook each in a separate foil to preserve flavor. If I know I'm going to be making this, I usually prepare the fish the night before the meal and let it sit and marinate in the refrigerator overnight, but it also tastes great straight onto the grill. In addition to trout, I've made this recipe with tilapia, swai, and flounder, but the best tasting fish is the fish you've caught yourself (or that Dad has caught himself, until he teaches me how to fish better)!

Ingredients:

• 1 (4-6 oz.) fillet rainbow trout
• 3/8 c Kraft Catalina salad dressing
• 1 tsp. Huy Fong Sriracha sauce
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 3/8 tsp. sea salt
• 3/8 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp. ground mustard
• 1/4 tsp. ground white pepper

Take a sheet of aluminum foil and pinch up the edges to keep liquids from spilling out while seasoning and marinating the fish. 

Pour the Catalina dressing in the middle of the foil, then place trout in the dressing, flipping and spreading until it is coated in the dressing. 

Distribute spices evenly to both sides of the fish, then wrap it up in the foil.

Put in a bowl or kind of dish to catch any leaks while it sits, and put this in the refrigerator to marinate overnight. Or, if you're too impatient, throw it on the grill immediately! Grill over medium-high heat until the fish is opaque and flakes easily. Will cook in 8 to 10 minutes.

Flamin' Rooster Wing Sauce

This won't be a long or complicated post. I just thought I'd put the buffalo sauce recipe I used for tonight's Super Bowl wings, using my favorite hot sauce of all time: Huy Fong Sriracha Sauce, aka, "Rooster Sauce." You can get it about anywhere, and it goes good on anything. Pizza? Yes. Spaghetti? Yes. Car tires? It could happen.

In case you didn't know, home-made buffalo sauce doesn't always get too complicated, unless you're a fancy-schmancy kind with your wings. Basically, it's butter/margarine + hot sauce. I cooked the wings on my charcoal grill per instructions on the back of the bag of frozen wings I got at Kroger, so I won't go into detail on that. While that was going on, I had plenty of time to get the sauce ready; after the wings were cooked, I just mixed it all in a bowl. So here's what I did for the sauce:

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c margarine or butter
• 1 1/4 c Sriracha Hot Sauce (ALL HAIL THE ROOSTER!!!)
• 3 cloves fresh minced garlic

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over enough heat to melt the butter. Mix together.

Not much else to say, once you put that ambrosial elixir on some chargrilled chicken wings. Should be enough for a 4 lb bag of frozen wings.

NOM NOM NOM NOM