Black Beans and Rice with Mangoes

I made this for dinner tonight, and I was surprised and happy with how well it turned out. I'm a wimp when it comes to spicy heat, and this was just spicy enough for me. I found the recipe online and changed it only slightly. Here it is:

Black Beans and Rice with Mangoes
Serves 4-6

• 1 T olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped [I used frozen onion]
• 1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped [I used a mix of frozen yellow and red bell peppers]
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced [I used canned chopped jalapenos and eyeballed the amount]
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin [I skipped this because I hate cumin]
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 2-15.5 oz cans of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 c water
• 1 tsp light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• 3 c cooked brown rice [I used Uncle Ben's whole grain brown rice]
• 2 ripe mangoes, medium sized, peeled and diced [Again, I used frozen and just eyeballed it. I needed to chop them smaller once they thawed.]

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, and jalapeno; cover and cook 5 min or until softened.
2. Add in seasonings, mix well, and cook for about 1 min.
3. Transfer mixture to a 3-4 quart slow cooker.
4. Add beans, water, brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Stir well.
5. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
6. Cook rice according to package directions. Then add the rice and mangoes to the slow cooker. Allow everything to cook for another 10-15 min. Serve.

Next time, I might use peaches or pineapple instead of the mango. Right now mangoes are out of season and therefore expensive, plus I have a hard time telling when they're ripe. The problem with the frozen ones is that the company seems to have had trouble telling when they were ripe too. Under-ripe mangoes have a weird undertaste (which I noticed in a couple bites of this dish). Ugh.

I think this is supposed to be a pseudo-Cuban dish, and I don't think sour cream is authentically Cuban, but I served it alongside the rice and beans anyway. The dish is vegan unless you use sour cream! I'd definitely make this again. It was filling, unique, and quite tasty. Enjoy!

Mmm... soup.

I plan to write a lot more about cooking and food in this new blog, since cooking has become a pretty big part of my life in recent months. Below is a recipe I made earlier this week... it's for a vegetable soup called "gypsy pot." I found the original recipe on TravelersLunchbox, but below is my modified recipe.

Olla Gitana (Gypsy Pot)
Serves: 4-6

• 2-14 oz cans chickpeas, drained
• 2 handfuls of baby carrots, cut into chunks
• 2 32-ounce cartons of chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 medium butternut squash, cut into chunks
• 1 medium zucchini, cut into chunks
• 10 oz. fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths
• 2 small slightly underripe pears, peeled, cored and cut into 1-inch chunks
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 large garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
• 2 medium ripe tomatoes, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

1. Combine the chickpeas, carrots and enough stock to come about 1 1/2 inches above the top in a large heavy pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Add the squash, zucchini, green beans, and pears and season with salt to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered until the vegetables have softened, about 15-20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion to the skillet and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and paprika and stir for a few seconds. Add the tomatoes and a few tablespoons of the cooking liquid and cook until the tomatoes soften and reduce, about 7 minutes. Gently stir the tomato mixture into the pot with the chickpeas and vegetables.

3. Continue cooking until all the vegetables are very soft and the squash is almost falling apart, 5-7 minutes longer, adding more broth if the stew seems too thick. Add the thyme and vinegar to the pot. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt, pepper and/or vinegar if necessary. Let the stew cool for about 10 minutes and then serve.

I served it with cheese Texas toast on the side. The soup was AWESOME. I like the fact that it doesn't call for a lot of seasoning, because then the vegetables make the soup taste really earthy and fresh. It would be great to make on a cold winter day, I'm sure. It was a lot of work, but I'll definitely be making it again.