Eat your heart out, Chipotle

Okay, that's not actually the title of this recipe (it's actually Spicy Beans with Chorizo and Chipotle Cream), which I clipped out of Bon Appetit, but it might as well be. So yum! I cut the recipe in half so I have another serving waiting for me tomorrow. I can't wait!

I used dried beans, like the recipe calls for. A note about dried beans. If your dried beans have been sitting around for awhile, they're going to need longer to soak and longer to cook. And either way, they're likely to be firmer to the bite than canned beans. I threw the beans in a pan of water Sunday afternoon and let them soak until I got home from work Monday night when I cooked them for 2 hours, prepped the recipe and then refrigerated it, as noted in the recipe, to reheat tonight. With soups, dried beans can be really nice because they do stay firmer and won't disintegrate and thicken up the soup. But this recipe could easily be done with canned beans instead.

Don't get too hung up on the "chipotle" hot sauce. I used good ole' Texas Pete's, and I went a little easy on it because I'm a wimp and I thought this was going to be spicy enough already.

Then, just to make it awesome, I made some cilantro lime rice. Yep, just like Chipotle. I cooked some plain white rice (not Minute Rice) using a trusty recipe. For one serving, put 1/4 cup of white rice in a pan that has a tight-fitting lid, along with 1/2 cup of water and about 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a bare simmer and cover with the lid. Let simmer for about 12 minutes until the water is all absorbed. Then, to make it cilantro lime rice, throw in a couple of tablespoons of finely chopped fresh cilantro, squeeze in a few teaspoons of fresh lime, sprinkle in 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of cumin and stir into the rice.