Chipotle Doesn't Have Anything on Me

As you all know by now, I am a sucker for Tex-Mex and Mexican food. It is always my go to when I am out of ideas for dinner time, I not-so-jokingly kid that I could eat my weight in chips and fresh salsa, and it is the only way I have found to stomach avocados (I am still on uneasy ground with them... see here.) That being said, my weekend was filled with nothing but writing my business plan (not joking, that's all it was - I need to go back to school to get a break!) but was interrupted briefly to make this yummy bowl of comfort.

I think I should go ahead and put my two cents in there when it comes to the burrito fast food debate. Qboda, Chipotle, Pollo Loco, Taco Del Mar, Taco Bell (shudders)... so many to choose from, essentially offering the same things, and shamelessly overpricing their product. I mean come now, how expensive is rice, beans, grilled vegetables, and lettuce? Not. Very. But I have a special weakness for Moe's: http://www.moes.com/. But really, Moe's salsa. I buy it by the cup full and ask for it as a birthday and Christmas present, not joking. Seriously, if you aren't lucky enough to have a Moe's by you, drive to the nearest one, tell them Katelyn sent you, and I'm sure they will give you a discount.

And I am now following them on Twitter... I'm such a dork...

To avoid paying too much for rice and beans, plus saving the time to walk there, I decided to make my own rice bowl this weekend. It turned our scrumptious, I could use brown rice (which Mexican restaurants won't jump on board with,) and I saved eight bucks. Win-win-win!

Cilantro Lime Rice Vegetable Bowl

Cilantro Lime Rice:

1 cup cooked brown rice

1/4 cup finely minced fresh cilantro (I used the paste that comes in the produce section of the grocery)

juice of half a lime

salt and pepper to taste

Cumin Scented Black Beans:

1 can black beans, un-drained

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

2 TB minced cilantro

Toppings:

diced avocado

salsa/pico de gallo

shredded lettuce/spinach

shredded cheese (I used pepper jack!)

Mix rice ingredients together and place in your serving bowl. Warm your beans in a saucepan, bring to a hard simmer, then take off the heat and spoon your desired amount over your rice (making sure to get some of that yummy, spicy, cumin-scented juice too.) Top that with your sauteed veggies of choice (I used onions and red bell pepper) or meat for you carnivores out there. And finally, top off your bowl with all the toppings your heart desires.

I Have a Challenge for You All!

I am trying really hard to learn to like avocados. I mean really REALLY hard. I know they are good for me. They have tons of vitamins and minerals, not to mention all the good for your fat that makes your skin glow and your hair shiny. I like healthy skin as much as the next girl, but I just can't stomach an avocado. I don't even like guacamole. Maybe it isn't the fruit but the methods by with I have tried to desperately to digest this conundrum. It isn't bad on sandwiches simply because usually you can't taste anything other than the creaminess it add to the bite. I am way too much of a salsa person to be into guac. I don't like fried food so fried avocado doesn't even sound appealing (and I have heard such wonderful things about it too.) But I am a determined person.

I have tried salads.

But the bell pepper, salt, and pepper didn't hide the avocado enough. I am quickly realizing I am a texture person and my dislike of mayo, sour cream, or any other similar fatty, coat-your-mouth foods just turn me off in the worst way. Avocado falls into that category.

I have tried little bites.

This was somewhat better. First of all, texture was restored by the baked tortilla chip and I added salsa, which masked the bland avocado blugh taste. Which allows me to maintain faith that one day, hopefully in the near future, I will find an avocado recipe that I like enough to get some of those wonderful health benefits I am dying for.

Which leads me to my challenge: have any wonderful avocado recipes out there that will make me change my mind for good about this much dreaded green goo? I would to replace my current five year old "icky" face with a more adult appreciative, thoughtful face when discussion turns to avocado, but I am going to need your help. Post whatever you'd like, and I will be sure to try them and hopefully be able to write soon about my wonderful frolics down avocado lane...

Until then... I'm going to ignore the avocado that's in my fridge right now. Frozen yogurt anyone?