Dinner tonight was based around a recipe for Caribbean rice from one of my favorite cookbooks, "Regina's International Vegetarian Favorites". Where there is rice, there must be beans, and where there is rice and especially black beans, I always feel the need to have sweet potatoes.
The rice was white Arborio rice (used in risottos) with coconut milk, almond milk, the zest of an *entire* orange- I feel like all I've done is shred things the last two days!- vanilla and almond extract, nutmeg, cinnamon, dried unsweetened coconut, and raisins. Oh, and 1/4 of a cup of brown sugar. It made a big pot, but I forgot that I usually cut sugar in half, and it was very sweet. But also very, very good.
Since I knew the rice would be sweet, I made the potatoes very simply, adding just a bit of blackstrap molasses. 1 TBSP of the stuff has 20% of you DV of calcium, as well as 20% of your DV of iron, and only about 40 calories. I sprinkled a bit of cinnamon as well, mashed them with a splash of coconut milk, and they were done. The black beans came from a can, and I spiced them with cumin and garlic salt. I made sure to fill up half my plate with them, since I had worked out for two hours today. Plus, I wanted to counteract the sweet of the other two sides. A big glass of water finished this meal off. Next time I'll probably leave the sugar out altogether, although I was thinking this would make a good breakfast rice pudding, especially if instead of the sugar I used molasses, and put a good dose of walnuts in it for some good protein and crunch.
I love black beans and rice, as simple as it is - every time I eat it I remember how much I love it. I've never thought to use coconut rice or eat it with sweet potatoes, though. Sounds like a wonderful pairing!
ReplyDeletewhat great recipes! i've been wanting to incorporate more vegan and vegetarian meals into my diet. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteJessica- I know, it's such a comforting meal. And the pairing of the coconut rice and sweet potatoes was really good, but definitely should be kept as a little pop of flavor next to the main event of the black beans- at least until the next time when I remember not to put so much sugar in it! I really try to avoid sugar because it aggravates a health condition I have.
ReplyDeleteAllison- thank you! I'm glad it helps :) I would highly suggest Vegetarian Times as a great, extensive online resource for recipes. Epicurious is also super helpful because they tag their recipes, so you can just search "vegan" or "vegetarian" in the search bar and you get heaps of new things to try.