In the Kickchen

Easy Black Beans and Rice Recipe
Ingredients
 1 cup uncooked white rice (3 cups cooked rice)
 1 Tbsp olive oil
 1 small onion, chopped
 1/2 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
 1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced (for added flavor you can substitute roasted red bell peppers or some chopped pimentos)
 3 cloves minced garlic
 2 16-ounce cans of black beans, rinsed and drained
 2 Tbsp white vinegar or 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar or 2 2/3 Tbsp lemon juice
 A few dashes of Tabasco or 1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
 1 teaspoon dried oregano or 1 heaping Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
 Salt and pepper to taste
 Optional Lime wedges and cilantro for garnish
Method
1 Cook rice according to package instructions. White rice usually takes 15 minutes to cook once the water is simmering, and 10 minutes to sit.
2 Heat oil in a large skillet on medium high. Sauté onions and bell peppers for 3-4 minutes, until just beginning to soften, then add garlic and sauté a minute more. Add the black beans, vinegar and Tabasco or cayenne. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
3 Stir in rice and oregano. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serves 6.
http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/005208easy_black_beans_and_rice.php

Pumpkin Pancakes

INGREDIENTS
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar

DIRECTIONS
In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and vinegar. Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and salt, stir into the pumpkin mixture just enough to combine.
Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.
6 servings.

I read the reviews for this recipe:
-You can substitute the seasonings for 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.
- Good with wheat flour instead of white.
- If the batter thickness is a problem for you, you can add a little milk, or just make sure the batter is spread out on the griddle.
For variety/extra flavor you can add chocolate chips or pecans to the batter.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pumpkin-Pancakes/Detail.aspx

Curry Rice Salad

Ingredients:
Short grain brown rice - 1 to 1 1/2 cup, best is organic (I used 4 cups cooked brown rice.)
One large yellow onion - chopped
Curry paste (mild), 2 heaping tablespoons, or curry powder - red or yellow Indian (not Thai)- 2 tablespoons
1/4 cup Olive oil , (I didn't use quite that much oil, more like 2 tablespoons.)
dash Cumin
dash Chili pepper
a few drops sesame oil
chopped Cilantro
1 cup Raisins
One apple - cored and chopped (not peeled)
2 tablespoons honey
Salt
Celery - chopped
Snow peas - stringy ends chopped off, then chopped
Bell pepper, red, green, or yellow - chopped
Green onions - chopped
Italics = optional ingredients
1. Prepare the brown rice. Put rice in a big pot, add 1 3/4 cups of water for every cup of rice, bring to a boil, cover, lower the heat on very low, let simmer for 45 minutes, take off heat and keep covered for at least another 10 minutes.
2. Prepare onions and curry oil. In a large saucepan put 1/4 cup of olive oil on medium high heat. Add a couple heaping tablespoons of curry paste (if it is mild) or add a couple of tablespoons of mild curry powder. Add a dash of chili pepper and cumin and a few drops of sesame oil if you have it. Let the curry simmer for a minute. Add the chopped yellow onion and cook until translucent.
3. Mix rice and onions. In a large mixing bowl, put in the hot rice and then fold in the onions with the curry infused oil in which they were cooked. You'll need to use a strong wooden spoon to mix. Taste test the rice at this point. If it needs more curry flavor, heat some more curry powder, chili, and cumin in olive oil for a few minutes and add to the rice to desired spiciness. I didn't need to add any more.
4. Add other ingredients to taste - cilantro, raisins, apple, celery, snow peas, bell pepper, green onions. Add a couple tablespoons of honey. Add a dash of salt to taste.
5. Chill and serve. Serves 4 to 6.
The secret to this recipe is the cilantro, raisins, and chopped apple. Sesame oil is a nice touch.
You can also add shrimp, large or small, to it to make it more of a cold main salad dish.
The salad gets better the longer it sits in the fridge (to a point) because of the absorption of the curry oil. So it is a good idea to make a big batch because the leftovers are even better.
http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/000050curry_rice_salad.php (simply recipes)

Bean Guacamole

1 cup cooked white beans (navy, great northern, cannellini)
1 large ripe avocado
1/4 chopped Italian plum tomato (1 medium) ----a roma tomato!
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro or flat-leaf parsely
hot pepper sauce
salt
Mash the beans completely with a potato masher. Add the avocado to the beans and mash until evenly combined. Stir in the tomato, lemon juice, and cilantro or parsely and mix well. Add the hot pepper sauce and salt to taste.

The Healthiest Diet in the World by Nikki and David Goldbeck. 1998. P. 47.