To make this as good for us as I could, I used brown rice.
1 cup brown rice
1 Tblspn vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups chicken broth (preferably low sodium, or vegetable broth if you're going meatless)
1/2 onion finely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper finely chopped
1 fresh jalapeno chopped
1 tomato, seeded and chopped
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 cup fresh cilantro chopped
1 clover garlic, finely chopped
Here are the traditional cooking instructions.
In medium saucepan, cook rice in oil for about 3 minutes. Pour in chicken broth and bring to a boil. Stir in onion, green pepper, jalapeno, and diced tomato. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, cilantro and garlic. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes
I've made it in a saucepan and it is very good. However, I've since bought a rice cooker and I love using it. I put all the ingredients into the rice cooker, OMITTING THE OIL and let it cook until it is done. So easy, no stirring, no potential for scorching, etc. and very easy clean-up.
You've got to try this the next time you have a craving for Mexican food. It is fairly spicey, so you may want to use less jalapeno.
For me, recipes are suggestions. It is a list of ingredients that go well together and can be adjusted for your personal taste.
Hummus is a dip whose primary ingredient is chickpeas aka garbanzo beans. This is my favorite hummus recipe so far. The recipe calls for several ingredients, but I think it is worth the effort. It has lots of flavor. Use as a dip for veggies or when I want something really crunchy, I use pita chips.
1 (15 oz) can garbanzo beans - drained
1/8 cup tahini (sesame seed paste, NATURAL peanut butter can be used as a substitute)
1/8 cup fresh lemon juice
1 Tblspn olive oil
1/2 of a canned chipotle pepper in adobe sauce (this is half of ONE pepper, not half a can)
1 clove garlic
3/4 tsp cumin
1/2 of a 7 oz jar of roasted red bell peppers
3 oil packed sun-dried tomatoes (drained)
1/4 cup cilantro (chopped)
Salt & Pepper to your taste
Put the first 7 ingredients into food processor (I use a blender) process until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and pulse processor until ingredients are coarsely chopped into the hummus base. Transfer to serving bowl and chill until ready to serve.
When I first used this recipe, it was double the amounts. It made quite a bit so I've halved the recipe and this is how I make it now. If you find the initial mixture too thick, add up to 1/4 cup of water to thin it.
I was only able to find tahini paste in a health food store. Everything I read on the internet said I could use peanut butter as a substitute. I wanted to taste it for myself first before I tried any substititions. Tahini does taste very similar to NATURAL peanut butter. Do not use regular peanut butter as a substitute.
The canned chipotle peppers in adobe sauce can be found in the Mexican food section of your grocery store.
If you're like me, these ingredients intimidated me a little. I went for it and am glad I did. It's a new taste and a healthy snack!!
I've also spread this on a whole grain "thin bun" and added some chopped rotisserie chicken and made a sandwich. Good stuff.
I hope you enjoy it
