Dinner

Since we were talking about chicken recipes on twitter the other day, I thought I'd start a thread for Dinner Recipes.

I made the Honey-Mustard Chicken that I mentioned, and I thought I'd copy the recipe out here for anyone who wants it:

Mix:
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup mustard
3 Tbsp milk
1 tsp salt
1 tsp curry powder

Pour mix over chicken (I use about 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken thighs)
Bake 45 minutes - 1hr at 350 degrees. Turn chicken thighs over about every 15 minutes.
Enjoy! ;)

When I went down to Miami I fell in love with Cuban food, so I asked for a Cuban cookbook for Christmas. I've tried a bunch of the recipes, but my favorite is the simple recipe for black beans. Seriously, I'm like obsessed. It's just me, so I'll make a big pot of beans on a Sunday and then eat it for dinner all week. Soooo good.

It's from the book "Memories of a Cuban Kitchen" by Mary Urrutia Randelman and Joan Schwartz. You should check it out. There's a recipe for black beans where you have to soak the beans and all that, but then there's this one...

Frijoles de Lata (Beans from Can or in otherwords, Quick and Easy Black Beans)

-1/2cup pure Spanish olive oil
-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
-1/2 small red onion, finely chopped (I wasn't reading well the first time I made this and I put in the whole onion but it was still fine. The second time I used a regular white onion and it was not as great but still fine.)
-1 medium-size green bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped
-1 large ripe tomato, chopped, or 1/2 cup chopped and drained canned whole tomatoes
-two 16 oz. cans black beans, with their liquid
-1/2 cup beef broth (I added a whole cup the second time I made it and I liked it better)
-1 teaspoon ground cumin
-few dashes of Tabasco sauce, optional
-1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, optional
-salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
-chopped onion, minced fresh parsley, or minced fresh coriander (cilantro) for garnish

In a medium-size saucepan over low heat, heat the oil until it is fragrant, then cook the garlic, onion, and bell pepper, stirring until tender, 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook another 10 minutes. Add the beans, stock, cumin, Tabasco, and vinegar, stir to blend, correct the seasonings, and simmer, covered, until heated through, 20 minutes.

Garnish (yeah, I didn't do that) and serve the beans hot over white rice (yeah, I didn't do that either). It says it makes 6 servings, but I guess when you're not putting it with rice and you're eating it as your only meal it makes sense that it would end up as being 3 servings, which is what I got.

Usually I double the whole recipe, but when I made them yesterday, I just doubled the beans. I also added a few tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder like it was a chili, and they are soooo good. I've messed around with the recipe a lot, tried lots of different things, but this week is the best I've ever made them.

Enjoy!

Quinoa Primavera Salad

Ingredients:
10 sun dried tomatoes (not oil packed)
1 can (14.5 oz) vegetable broth
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1 cup frozen peas
1 can (15-16oz) pinto bean, rinsed and drained
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup sliced carrot
2 cups sliced zucchini
1 small leek, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh or 1 teaspoon dried dill weed
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil

Directions:
Pour enough hot water over sun-dried tomatoes to cover. Let stand 10-15 minutes or until softened; drain and cut into halves. Heat broth to boiling in 2-quart saucepan. Stir in quinoa. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to medium. Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Mix quinoa, peas, beans, and tomatoes in glass or plastic bowl.

Heat 2 teaspoons vegetable oil in 10 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Cook carrot, zucchini, leek and garlic in oil about 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until carrot is crisp-tender. Stir zucchini mixture into quinoa mixture. Mix dill weed, lemon juice and 1 tablespoon olive oil; toss with quinoa mixture. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Interesting. I bet I could substitute black beans for the pinto beans. I've got a thing for black beans. Mmm.

I'm sure you could. I ate it today for lunch and it was delicious!