Spanish Rice

"The Cardiologist Diet: if it tastes good, spit it out."  Anon

The reason for the above quote comes from a phone call I just received from a friend.  She was telling me about the different recipes she's tried from my blog and ended by assuring me that everything really tastes good!  I love it when people find out that healthy food can also taste good.  And I also love it when I can take a recipe and make it simpler.  Here's a recipe that I recently had a go at and I love the results.

Yummy Spanish Rice

Ingredients:
  1 T olive or coconut oil
  1 onion, red or sweet, chopped
  1 red pepper, chopped - any color will work
  4 or more cloves roasted garlic, mashed (Jan 27 blog)
  1 cup rice, uncooked
  diced tomatoes, 14.5 ounce can
  salsa, 14.5 ounces
  water, 7.25 ounces
  1/2 t paprika
  1/2 t basil
  1/2 t oregano
  1/2 t cumin

Distructions:
  Saute the onion and pepper in oil for 3 to 5 minutes.   Add everything else.  Now the fun begins!

At this point you can either put everything into a 9.5x13 roasting pan, cover with foil, and bake at 375 degrees for about an hour, or you can put everything into a heavy kettle, cover, and simmer for about an hour.  Either way, it's a good idea to roast or cook everything for about 30 to 40 minutes and then check and stir it every so often until the rice is done.

As you can see by the recipe, I used the diced tomato can to measure the salsa and water - filled for the salsa and half-filled for the water.  That means I didn't have to dirty a measuring cup.  Also, you get to choose the degree of heat in the salsa, which means you can make this dish as mild or spicy as you wish.  Furthermore, I used only the 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon to measure all of the spices.  Again, fewer dishes to wash.  Incredibly clever or incredibly lazy?

 Some recipes for Spanish rice include celery and mushrooms, so if you have some in the fridge that are looking for a home feel free to add them or any other ingredient that strikes your fancy.  As for the resulting rice dish, it's great as a side or under veggie chili.  It's also good with re-fried black or pinto bean tacos or tostadas.  The fun never ends!

Loveya
The Mom