Dairy Free Friday

Happy Friday, everyone!. I've got another great recipe from Oh She Glows to share with you: Spicy Rainbow Rice and Bean Salad. This is a great mid-week meal as it requires VERY LITTLE slicing/dicing, and the ingredients are all standard things that you might already have on hand! I only had to buy a onion to make this recipe - I love it when I have the majority of the ingredients!

This recipe also scores points with me because it has a nice kick to it! If you aren't a spice monster like me, maybe leave out the crush red pepper... I probably increased the spices by about 1/2 because I love spicy food. :)

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked rice

1 tbsp oil of your choice (I used EVOO)

1/2 cup chopped sweet onion (I used a red onion)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp coriander

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp mustard seeds (optional - I included)

1 garlic clove, minced

1 green onion, chopped (optional - I did not include)

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

3 tbsp Tamari (gluten free soy sauce)

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup frozen corn

2 medium carrots, peeled and grated

1 tsp Earth Balance, to stir in

And here is the recipe, in pictures!

Saute onion over medium-low heat until softened/golden. Add spices, garlic, and optional green onion and saute on low for a few minutes until the spices start to bubble (careful, don't burn them!) 

Add the black beans and Tamari sauce (you could use regular soy sauce). Heat for 5 minutes over medium heat.

Now comes the rainbow part. Add in the frozen pea & corn and the shredded carrot. Heat for another 5 minutes on medium heat.

Add in your grain & 1 T. of Earth Balance (or butter for dairy eaters) - I went with basmati rice (which I made in my rice cooker) because that's what I had on hand. I think next time I will use quinoa!

Serve up. Maybe garnish with some fresh cilantro. I don't really do garnishes because when you are cooking for one, I don't feel like a garnish is worth the effort. ;)

See? Easy peasy. And further proof that you can cook delicious, flavorful, healthy food without gluten or dairy!

Have a fabulous weekend, everyone! I'll spend mine studying, but am rewarding myself by going to my brother's to grill a little surf & turf! I haven't had a steak off a grill since I visited my sister in January! Can't wait!

What are you up to this weekend?