Recipe from February 29th Lunch

Our February 29th lunch was another success. Thanks so much to all the volunteers who came to help us out, we hope to see you again! Here is a recipe for what we cooked up...

Roasted Veggies with Adzuki Beans and Rice

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, 1 zucchini, 1 red bell pepper, 1 yellow bell pepper, 1/2 acorn squash, 1 large carrot, 4Tbsp cumin, 4Tbsp coriander, 3Tbsp Hungarian (hot) paprika, 2Tbsp cracked black pepper, 1c Adzuki beans**, 3c water, 1tsp salt, 2c brown rice, 3c vegetable stock, 4 large tomatoes, pureed in the blender (or 3c canned tomatoes, crushed), 1 diced onion, 3 cloves garlic, diced

Method:

- Prepare the veggies: cut the eggplant in half and slice into 1/2" pieces. Prepare zucchini in the same manner. Seed the bell peppers, cut in half, and slice into fat strips. Peel and seed the acorn squash, and cut into bite sized cubes. Slice carrot into 1/4" rounds.

- Roast the veggies: spread the eggplant, carrots, and squash onto a baking tray. Sprinkle with olive oil and half of the spices. Spread the zucchini and peppers onto a separate tray. Sprinkle with olive oil and the remaining spices. Bake both at 350f for about 45 minutes or until very tender (eggplant/squash/carrot tray will take longer). While the veggies are roasting, begin preparing the beans and rice.

- Cook the beans: Combine Adzuki beans, water, and salt in a small pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer until beans are very tender, about 30 minutes. Drain and rinse thoroughly.

- Cook the rice: Combine brown rice, vegetable stock, tomatoes, onion and garlic in a small pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer until the rice is fully cooked (add more water as necessary so that it does not dry out).

- Prepare the beans and rice: once fully cooked, mix beans and rice together in a casserole dish. Place in the oven while the veggies are finishing roasting, and allow top to crisp and brown. Salt the veggies to taste. Serve with a chili sauce (we made ours by blending jalapeños, some tiny hot chilis, 1/2 a tomato, and a pinch of salt in the blender until it was smooth).

Enjoy!

**If you think you can't find Adzuki beans, you haven't looked hard enough - you can buy them in bulk at Sprouts! Alternatively, black beans or pinto beans will work just as well, but may require a little longer to cook.