Yummy Yellow Rice Salad with a Kick

I love salads composed of rice, beans and/or pasta. My brain thinks I'm eating a healthy salad and my stomach is happy because it's actually FULL (unlike those salads with pitiful greens). For today's overcast / cloudy lunch, Rob and I whipped up a very bright and sunny Yellow Rice Salad with Roasted Peppers and Spicy Black Beans from Bon Appetit. It's good. REALLY GOOD.



I didn't realize it until I started collaborating on this blog, but I clearly have some cooking themes. Cilantro shows up A LOT. Lime Juice -- ditto. Cumin is also one of my favorite flavorings and I'm rather surprised that I haven't grown tired of it. This recipe is no exception. I had to add more roasted red peppers (shucks) to make up for the lack of green bell pepper, but it wasn't missed.

I Want Chicken Tonight, Chicken Tonight

7 times out of 10, when I ask Rob what he wants for dinner, he starts singing "I want chicken tonight, chicken tonight." Naturally, this is not very helpful, but then, neither are the other 3 times out of 10 when he says "orzo!" Sigh... one can make only so many orzo dishes. However, this ultimately means that I can make whatever I want, which is definitely helpful.



I don't make a lot of chicken. When I was living by myself as a first year grad student and as a new cook, I probably made chicken 30 different ways (mainly varying the 'sauce'). I sort of became sick and tired of chicken, unless it's roasted (pre-brined, of course) or drowning in sauce (as in chicken pot pie or enchiladas). Tonight I was haunted by a flashback - I had to make 'cooked chicken breasts'. So, unlike my younger attempts with chicken that lacked flavor depth, I decided to sear them in olive oil, encrusted with salt and pepper. Thankfully, that did the trick.

The meat is then is shredded for a southwestern style Chicken, Rice, and Black-Bean Salad from Everyday Food Magazine. Like Rachel Ray, Everyday Food recipes are hit and miss. This one, however, went above my fairly low expectations. Why? Well, how can any 'southwestern style' salad with black beans and tomatoes NOT include lime juice, cilantro or avocado. I had serious reservations. The only spice was cumin, and the only dressing was white wine vinegar and olive oil. Sounds positively boring. Plus, the plum tomatoes were not looking so hot - rather unripe (see photo). I was absolutely wrong - it was really really good and I haven't a clue as to why. I'll make this one again for sure.

Stuffed Peppers, Vegetarian Style

I remember when I was little my mom would make stuffed peppers. They were good. I don't remember TOO much about them, other than there was meat in them. In my neverending quest to find a GOOD vegetarian meal that all of us will like, I decided to give this a go. This recipe comes from our featured cook, Rachael Ray ( I PROMISE, no more RR recipes for a while - I can't commit for too long).  Tonight we have Southwestern Stuffed Peppers. The vegetarian likes rice, onions & green peppers, so I can't miss right? Well, luckily he liked it ok, my daughter not so much. (just thinking about this makes me want to rip my hair out!). I did make a few changes to the recipe. Mainly, I forgot the cilantro so we didn't have any. I didn't mention it to the others in the house, because they probably would have been angry about this. We are a cilantro lovin' house.

I did happen to have a little sour cream left over from my Salmon Pasta, so I added that on top. The boy doesn't like sour cream - I think it's because of the word "sour". I wouldn't touch it either when I was his age. But then I became enlightened to the fact that it's not sour, but is cream.

But I digress. I also added a little cheese. I had some Trader Joes shredded mozz, Monterrey Jack and cheddar blend, so I sprinkled it on top hoping to make it more appealing. Oh, finally, I added a little cumin when I cooked the onions. I think the only thing disappointing in this meal was the fact that it used a jar taco sauce. I think I would have liked it better if the seasonings we fresher - rather than from a jar. Perhaps using a Penzey's Taco blend or something might do the trick.

Overall,  we liked it.

Oh yeah, David added some Tobasco. Surprise?

One last fun fact from this meal. The kids really FINALLY realized that we are branching out and trying more things. Last night my son said "you sure are makings lots of fancy things. you've been making souffle's and all sorts of fancy stuff. ". I haven't made one souffle yet. Perhaps I will!