Vigo Beans and Rice

Vigo Beans and Rice

We have discovered this packaged dinner that is really great and I wanted to share it.

I picked up the Vigo Red Beans and Rice when I was at Jungle Jim's in Cincinnati a couple of months ago. 

Then my friend Vinita told me that our local Kroger also has it so I stopped by and found out they also carry the Black Beans and Rice.

I don't like a lot of packaged rice dishes (sorry, I don't really like Zatarans), but Vigo brand is really good.

You simply bring 3 1/2 cups of water to a boil in a skillet.  Then you add the package, stir, cover and simmer for 20 or so minutes.  And you're ready to serve.

My entire family really likes it and it makes such a healthy, quick dinner.

If you were so inclined you could add cooked kielbasa sausage or chicken very easily.

We just like it as is, with a side dish like broccoli.

Enjoy!



Vegetarian Tacos

Vegetarian Tacos

Sometimes when I am not creative with what I want to cook for dinner in the coming nights, I'll ask the boys for a couple of suggestions.  Thomas invariably asks for a Taco Night.

Taco Night is awesome, healthy, and makes life easy for me because everyone can add what they want to their tacos.  Last night we had a vegetarian version and it was great.

I usually do ground beef or shredded chicken, but went with beans instead and it was really good.  I don't think anyone even noticed we didn't have meat.

I usually have corn tortillas, flour tortillas, and taco shells on hand, so I warmed a few of each up in the oven at 375* for just a couple of minutes.  The microwave works well too.

I used leftover Mayocoba beans for this dish, but 2 cans of rinsed, drained pinto beans would work well.  Or black beans, which I often serve with tacos.

I coarsely chopped and then roughly mashed the beans and heated them with olive oil in a skillet.

I then added cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper to taste.

Then we layered shredded lettuce, tomatoes (some of us!), red and green salsa, and other goodies in our taco shells and on our warm tortillas and rolled them up, ready to eat. 

The boys had 3 each.  They loved them.

I can easily make a vegan option by omitting the cheese and sour cream from mine.

Other topping options:

cilantro

black beans

sliced black olives

green onions

salsa verde

peppers

hot sauce

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Buen Provecho!



Peeps Cake

Peeps Cake from Cake Central

I saw this Easter cake on Pinterest and decided to make it for Easter!

The cake comes from Kayleesgrammy on Cake Central.

I made a Duncan Hines Orange Supreme cake and frosted it with Classic White frosting.

Decorated with Bunny Peeps, and topped with Easter M-n-M's.

I made the mistake of frosting and covering my cake the night before I decorated. 

Then the Bunnies wouldn't adhere. 

I recommend decorating with the Bunnies immediately after frosting. 

I ended up purchasing another tub of frosting to stick the Bunnies on.

It worked fine!

Waaaay too sweet for me, but the kids at our Easter dinner liked it!

I had never tried the Orange Supreme cake mix before - it was good. 

I think it would be good with crushed pineapple.

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Happy Easter!



Soba with Cabbage

Soba with Cabbage

This is one of those dishes I thought I'd try, but didn't have high hopes for. 

It was just a side dish, so if we didn't like it, then no big deal.

It turned out really well, and David especially liked it.

I'll certainly make soba again (perhaps without the cabbage for Brennan since he isn't a vinegar fan).

Soba are buckwheat noodles, commonly found at Japanese restaurants.

For this recipe I used 4 packs of noodles (a pack is wrapped together in the purple paper).

You cook them in boiling water just like you do spaghetti, and drain once it's good and tender - about 4 minutes.

At the same time I sauteed packaged shredded cabbage with green onions in rice wine vinegar, then set it aside.

Then I added the drained noodles, soy sauce, more vinegar, chili powder, and sesame seeds and tossed together with the pickled cabbage.

Surprisingly good!

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どうぞめしあがれ

(douzo meshiagare)

Bon Appetit in Japanese 



Black Beans and Rice

Black Beans and Rice

This dish is what David calls "basic food", and is his favorite kind of homemade dish.

It is simple, filling, healthy, and we all liked it - and it made enough for the next day's lunch leftovers.

Win-win-win!

I checked out several recipes online before I created my own. 

This recipe is very forgiving.  You can customize it to your taste very easily.

I made these in the Crock Pot because I was going to be out for several hours, but they can be made on the stove just as easily.

Start by soaking a bag of black beans in water for 4 hours or overnight.

They'll double or triple in size.

Rinse and drain.

Place black beans and 4 c vegetable or chicken broth in the crockpot and set for 6 hours on medium.

Because my boys don't like "chunks" of tomatoes, onion, and peppers in their food, I then blended the remaining ingredients before adding it to the crockpot.

I blended a 14 oz can of tomatoes, 1/2 onion, 1 chopped bell pepper, salt, spices, and herbs.

And done.

I made up a big pot of rice (and brown for myself) and served the dish with Tony Cacheres and Tobasco on the table so everyone could add their own heat.

Yum!

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Bon Appetit!