Spanish Rice

Delicious, fluffy and loaded with vegetables! Goes great as a side with lots of meals, or served simply with black beans.


Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
1 white onion, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, diced
2 large or 3 small jalapenos, seeded and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 roma tomatoes, chopped
1 cup long-grain brown rice, rinsed
2 cups water
1 large or 2 small bouillon cubes
8 cracks black pepper
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano


Directions

Saute onions and rice in the olive oil. When the onions turn transparent, add the bell pepper, jalapenos and garlic. Continue to saute until the garlic browns. Stir in the tomatoes, bouillon, spices and water, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 40 minutes or until rice is cooked. Remove from heat and let sit another ten minutes. Fluff and serve.

Pico de Gallo

Pico de Gallo is a really basic, traditional salsa. The ratio of ingredients is very flexible, so adjust it to suit your taste.


Ingredients

2 tomatoes, diced
2 jalapenos, minced
1/2 small red onion, minced
2-3 tbsp cilantro, minced
juice of 2 limes
8 cracks black pepper
1/2 tsp salt


Directions

Combine ingredients and allow to rest for an hour so the flavors can mingle.

Basic Vinaigrette

This recipe is almost directly from http://www.vinaigretterecipe.com/


Ingredients

2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground mustard
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil


Equipment

Whisk, blender, immersion blender, food processor or jar with sealable lid.


Directions

Thoroughly combine all the ingredients except the oil.

Gradually add the olive oil while and blend until emulsified.

Tahini Sauce

This is the traditional Middle Eastern sauce for falafel sandwiches. I also use it on salads.


Ingredients

1/2 cup tahini
1/3 cup warm water
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1/2 tsp salt


Equipment

An immersion blender, a stand blender or a food processor... or a whisk and lots of muscle.


Directions

Combine ingredients. Emulsify.

How to brew tea

(Author’s note: These are merely my opinions on the fine art of tea brewing. I do not engage in certain very commendable practives, such as the use of loose tea leaves, so I should be considered not an authority but rather an amateur.)

Set water to boil in a kettle. Meanwhile, prepare your tea cup by making sure it’s clean, and prepare your tea bag by opening the packet. When the water boils, fill your cup about halfway (returning the kettle to the flame) and let the hot water sit for 20 seconds or until the cup is hot to the touch. Dump out this water, place the teabag in the cup and pour boiling water over the tea bag. If you have poured properly, the tea bag will inflate at least momentarily. Give it a quick pull to stimulate the tea leaves, and then steep the tea for at least two to three minutes, or longer, depending on your preferred strength and bitterness.

If you insist on using a sweetener, brown sugar or honey is best. To quote George Orwell, however, “Tea is meant to be bitter, just as beer is meant to be bitter.”

For iced tea, use a large mug and two bags. Allow the tea to rest for 15 to 30 minutes after brewing, because if you ice the tea too quickly it will be bruised and bitter. Once it has cooled somewhat, pour the tea over ice in a large glass.

For green tea, pour water into your mug and let sit for one minute. This should lower the temperature to about 170 degrees Fahrenheit. Add the tea bag and steep for two minutes. You can reuse green tea bags up to two times after the initial brew. The caffeine steeps out during the first brew, but there’s still plenty of flavor in those leaves.

How to make a smoothie

First, you need a blender. I would recommend one in the $20 to $30 range. Hamilton Beach and Oster both make fine models available at reasonable prices.

Next, you need your fruit. Frozen is best, if you like ice-cold smoothies. My favorite fruits, because they’re cheap, are strawberries and bananas. Pre-frozen strawberries are available cheaply year-round, but when strawberry season hits they can be much cheaper fresh. Wash the strawberries and then remove the green tip with a paring knife, coring out a bit of the interior as well. You’ll know you’ve got the right method if you’re seeing the empty space inside the strawberry. Put them in tupperware or baggies and place them in the fridge to cool before you freeze them. This will reduce freezer burn.

For the bananas, peel them and then break the banana into three to five chunks, depending on the size of the banana. Again, cool in the fridge before freezing.
This basic method can be applied to many fruits. Peaches, for instance, as well as mangoes. If you see that a specific fruit is in season and available cheaply, don’t be afraid to stock up. They will keep well for several weeks or longer, depending on your freezer.

You will also need a fluid. I like to use orange juice, though I frequently cheat by buying the frozen concentrate and adding that with some water directly to the blender.

The main thing is that you’re trying to balance creaminess, sweet and sour. The trifecta of bananas, strawberries and OJ handles this quite well.

Per person, use half a banana to a whole banana (depending on size), four to eight strawberries (depending on size), and one serving of OJ. Blend until desired consistency is achieved, adding more fluid if necessary.

PROTIP: Some people like to combine the fruit chunks in single-serving baggies, so they can plop their strawberries and bananas directly and easily into the blender.

PROTIP: Flaxseed and wheat germ are popular additions to add fiber and protein to smoothies. Use two tablespoons of either per serving.