Make it Up as You Go Along

Everything you see below is something I came up with as I went along using the ingredients at hand.  I happened to have picked up some ripe avocados the other day and was dying to try them, so that became the basis of this whole meal.  Avocados are really good for you and they are an extremely healthy fat source.  The amounts and portions are enough for 4 adult servings and 2 four-year-old servings.  I set the meal up as a way to be able to have a good meal with these as leftovers tomorrow.  Of course, the four-year-old isn't all that interested in the guacamole, so his servings came down to chicken, rice, tomatoes, and spinach- I'm not even going to try to fight an avocado battle with the boy.


MAKE IT UP AS YOU GO ALONG GUACAMOLE
2 avocados mashed
2 tomatoes diced
1/4 onion
4 cloves garlic chopped
Several bunches of spinach, chopped
Salt and Pepper
Garlic Powder
Chili Powder
Cumin
Turmeric
Cayenne pepper
Basil
Thyme
Olive Oil
(Cilantro if you have it, but I didn't have any tonight)

1. Put olive oil in a pan and put on medium heat
2. When pan is hot, saute the onion until clear
3. add the garlic for about 2 minutes, continue to stir
4. add the tomatoes
5. add the spinach
6. add a little of each of the seasonings and continue to stir
7. When mixture is cooked down remove from pan and set aside
8. Cut open the avocados and drop them into the bowl of the mixture
9. use two forks or a masher of some sort and mash and mix the avocados into the mixture
10. add a little of all the seasonings, stir well, then taste
11. add seasonings to your preferred taste

CHICKEN

• 2-3 chicken breasts, cut into 12-16 thin strips, seasoned with salt and pepper 
• Grill in pan coated with olive oil

RICE

• 2-2.5 cups chicken stock/broth (I used homemade)
• 1 cup brown rice
• First boil the stock, then simmer
• cook for about an hour

BLACK BEANS

• 1/2 cup dried black beans in a pan
• boil water in a kettle, then pour over the beans and immediately return the water to boil in the pan
• boil about 5 minutes, then simmer for 45 min to an hour

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

1. Drain the black beans and combine the bean and rice mixture
2. Season to your liking, but I used similar seasonings to that of the guacamole
3. I put a small bed of raw spinach leaves on the bottom of the plate
4. Portion the black beans and rice mixture as the base of your stack- I portioned it onto 4 plates, two for tonight and 2 in to-go containers for tomorrow
5. I put 3 slices of chicken on top of each portion of rice/beans
6. I then spooned the guacamole mixture evenly on top of each stack

*It was good and filling, and overloaded with complex carbohydrates, protein, fiber, healthy fats, etc.

So, open your cupboards, refrigerators, and cabinets- you may just have a healthy meal at home that just needs to be put together by you.

**Don't forget the 40 day challenge!  Tomorrow is Fat Tuesday, Mardis Gras, the last day of indulgence before the fast begins.  I hope you accept this challenge as I know many others have.  I can't wait to hear your stories!

God bless you all!