Black Beans & Rice

If using dry beans...Soak over night and then add all the ingredients in the crockpot in the AM cook on low the whole day.

For those who use canned (which I do). I just do it on the stove in my cast iron dutch oven.

Sautee 1-2 onions in butter until caramelized
Add 1 diced red pepper and sauté until cooked.

Add in 3 cans of black beans
2-3 tbs of cumin
1-2 tbs of thyme
2-3 cloves of garlic
3 cups of beef stock
1 bay leaf
salt
pepper

Simmer all for 2 hours until starting to thicken.

Serve over cooked brown rice (I cook mine in beef stock in my rice cooker). I serve with hot salsa, more diced onions and LOTS of sour cream.

Chicken, Bean & Summer Veggie Casserole

We made this for dinner tonight. Acutally my 12yo made it and it was really easy and YUMMY.
Great way to use up leftover roasted chicken and leftover rice.

Chicken, Bean & Summer Veggie Casserole

• 2 cups cooked brown rice (soaked, cooked in broth)
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/3 cup diced onion
• 2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
• 2 medium yellow squash, thinly slice
  
• 2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
• 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• salt to taste
• ground cayenne pepper to taste
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained
• 1 (4 ounce) can diced green chile peppers, drained
• 2/3 cup shredded carrots
• 2 cups shredded cheese (we used monterey jack but you could use whatever your fav is...Swiss would be yummy too)
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a large casserole dish.
2. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, and cook the onion until tender. Mix in the zucchini, squash, chicken, and mushrooms. Season with cumin, salt, and ground cayenne pepper. Cook and stir until zucchini and squash is lightly browned and chicken is heated through.
3. In large bowl, mix the cooked rice, onion, zucchini, chicken, mushrooms, beans, chiles, carrots, and 1/2 the cheese. Transfer to the prepared casserole dish, and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
4. Cover casserole loosely with foil, and bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven. Uncover, and continue baking 10 minutes, or until bubbly and lightly brown
5. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.
   

Note: We did find it a little bland. We like this pretty spicy....so feel free to spice it up the way you like it. I am thinking some fresh basil or oregano would be yummy next time.

My Breakfast - Easy Peasy Brown Rice Breakfast Pudding

This started out as a wonderful recipe from a GP friend :).....you know who you are........ of course I changed and added to make it work for my tastes. This is what I ended up with this morning. SOO yummy and Gluten FREE! I made a bunch. Madalynn loved it and asked for seconds. David took 2 bites and just wanted a bowl of raisins. This made enough for Madalynn & I to have a nice filling breakfast and I have a 1/2 qt leftover in the frig for dessert tonight.

Easy Peasy Brown Rice Breakfast Pudding

1 qt cooked brown rice (leftover soaked/cooked in chicken broth brown basmati)
4 C Raw Milk (local grass-fed)
1/2 cup Raw Honey
2tbs Pumpkin Pie Spice
2tbs Vanilla Extract
1/2 C Raisins
2tbs Arrowroot

Add everything to a sauce pan. Bring to a simmer on medium heat. Stir often for about 20 minutes or until thickened. Adding more arrowroot as needed to thicken. Remember it will thicken more as it cools. Remove from heat. Serve in bowls with a any/all of the optional toppings.

Optional toppings: Vanilla Yogurt, Sliced Almonds, Sunflower seeds, shredded unsweetened coconut flakes, diced apple