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Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Camarones Feast

I can't help it. Now that I've started, I just want to get in the habit. This was one of the best meals we've had lately. We were getting ready to go to Mexico and tried to recreate a fabulous meal we'd had there the year before. It made a lot of dishes to wash, but all of the elements were very simple - Shrimp (sauteed with lime, garlic, and cilantro), rice, Easy Pinto Beans, avocado salad, and a farmer's market squash that John rubbed with Blacken Seasoning and roasted in the oven.

Blacken Seasoning

We use this when we make one of our favorites - fish tacos, but it's also great to sprinkle it on potatoes or squash before roasting. If you mix this in a grinder that you also use for coffee beans grind some stale bread (especially the heels) before and after so your spices don't taste like coffee and your coffee doesn't taste like cumin. You can also just mix it in a jar and give it a shake before using it.

Blacken Seasoning

3 T cracked pepper
2 T kosher salt
1 T dried thyme
1 T paprika (smoked or not)
1 T dried mustard
1 T granulated garlic
2 t cayenne (that's the little t for teaspoon!)
1 T powdered sage
1 T cumin (even better if you've toasted and ground cumin seeds)

Easy Pinto Beans

Easy Pinto Beans

4 cloves of garlic, sliced
1 30 ounce can of Pinto beans with the liquid (I like Sun Vista brand)
1 15 ounce can of tomatoes with the liquid
2 T pickled jalapenos, diced (watch out, these bring the heat!)
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
juice of 1 lime

Saute the garlic in a little oil in a largish frying pan until the garlic has started to brown. You can easily use a smallish sauce pan, but the liquid cooks down quicker in a frying pan and I'm always running late with this.
Add the pinto beans, tomatoes, and pickled jalapenos. Simmer, stirring once in a while so the beans don't stick, until they are the consistency you like. For us, it takes about half an hour. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro and simmer about 5 more minutes.
It's a great side dish for the feast shown above, but these also make a perfect filling for enchiladas or tacos (cooked a little longer so they aren't too runny).
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