Since the previous night was the beloved Burrito Night, we had plenty of leftover chopped veggies, brown rice and my almost-famous black beans. I had also been working on the design for Troy's Cuban Deli menu, which features a little number called the Hialeah Breakfast. It is basically black beans and rice with eggs on top. Spicy Latin food is comfort food for me, but I wasn't sure how this particular eggy incarnation would go over with Rob. So, I kept the idea and edited the format a bit. I ended up making an egg scramble with the onions, peppers, tomatoes, shredded cheese, lots of spice and topped it with salsa. Black beans on a bed of brown rice, topped with light sour cream became a side. I added some Pink Lady apple slices as another side, for color and raw plant matter, and that was that.
I did a little math, with the help of the USDA nutritional charts, to weigh this behemoth. With about 25 grams of protein and around 400 calories, it was a perfect meal. It was all done in about 10 minutes because all of the prep and major cooking was done last night. It was perfectly satisfying but not at all heavy. We ate every crumb on our plates. I will definitely make this again. This recipe serves two adults, but it could be easily multiplied.
Here's how I did it.
1/2 cup prepared black beans recipe follows
1 cup cooked brown rice use 1/2 water and 1/2 veg broth instead of all water
Sour cream and salsa for serving
Egg Scramble
1 tbsp vegetable oil
4 eggs
Splash of heavy cream or milk
1/2 chopped green bell pepper, or whatever peppers you have around
Handful chopped onion
Handful chopped tomato
Handful shredded extra sharp cheddar
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp dried oregano or 1/2 tsp chopped fresh oregano
1/4 tsp garlic powder
Tony's Creole Seasoning or salt and pepper to taste
Salsa for rerving
1. Heat the oil over medium high heat in a medium skillet.
2. While the oil is heating crack the eggs into a bowl and cream or milk and wisk until the mixture is all light yellow.
3. Saute the onions and peppers until they begin to soften. Add spices and tomatoes and continue to saute until the vegetables are soft but not browned.
4. Turn down the heat to medium low and add the egg mixture.
5. Stir and flip the mixture almost constantly until it looks opaque, being sure to scrape the bottom of the pan. Add the cheese and continue cooking until it's melted.
6. Serve topped with a spoonful of salsa.
Black Beans
1 large can black beans, rinsed and drained
1tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup vegetable broth
l/2 chopped onion
finely chopped peppers - 1/2 red bell, 1/2 Anaheim, 1/2 jalapeno, the more variety, the better
1 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp dried oregano or 1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh oregano
2 chopped cloves garlic
Tony's Creole Seasoning or salt and pepper to taste
Chopped fresh cilantro for serving
Sour cream for serving
1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat.
2. Add onion and peppers and saute for a couple of minutes until they begin to soften.
3. Add garlic and spices, turn down heat to medium and continue to saute until garlic is tender but not brown.
4. Add black beans and stir to coat them with all of the seasonings.
5. Add broth, reduce heat to low and simmer for up to 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
The longer it simmers on low heat, the more flavor it have. If you're short on time, you can simmer for as little as 10 minutes.
6. Serve on a bed of rice, topped with a dollop of sour cream and a pinch of chopped cilantro.
Happy Happy
