The queen and the princess have traveled for the week, leaving just me and the boys to fend for ourselves.  I’ve taken it easy for the past couple of days, serving the boys sandwiches and quick pasta meals.  The same thing was about to happen yesterday, but Little Z offered to cook.  He didn’t want a sandwich or yet another pasta dish.  I gave him the option of rice, so we collaborated and the result was fantastic.

Yesterday was a looooong day.  The boys had a two hour school test in the morning, then we had to travel up North to make Ste Martaen’s first delivery to Delicious Cafe.  I treated the boys to some sandwiches.  I had the ‘breakfast sandwich’ with our pepper jack cheese…let me say, it was out of this world…you have got to try this one.  The boys split a ‘breakfast sandwich’, a ‘grilled cheese’ and a ‘peanut buttter n banana’ sandwich.  All tasty, all devoured, boys happy…for now.  This was the fun part of the day, the rest downhill.  My car broke down; we went on a 2 hour walk; then a 2 hour ride home on the “el”.  Joy!!

So when we finally got home…I was in no mood to get all gourmet and stuff.  However, Little Z to the rescue.  He offered to cook and produced a masterpiece – Spanish Rice with Bean Curd…a little Latin Asian Fusion.  I didn’t know Little Z was so progressive.  He calls it ‘Latin Asian Fusion Rice’…I call it simply delicioso!  Now this recipe is very spicy, so it is not for the weak of tongue.  However, Little Z’s spice combination is well balanced and flows evenly across your palate, not just a hard slap to your taste buds…the boy has skills.  Let’s see how he did it.

The Innovator: Chef Little Z

First, cook 3 cups of your favorite rice..we are using Basmati.

The Veggies:

• 1 green onion
• 1 plum tomato
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 jalapeno

Dice up the green onion, garlic and jalapeno

Good work Little Z.  Now heat up 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil in large cast iron or regular stock pot using a medium flame.

Toss your veggies in and let them feel the heat.  Saute for about 5 minutes.

The Spices:

• 1 teaspoon Chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon coriander
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 2 tablespoons red wine
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar (not shown)

We are also using 2 cups of Imagine Organic Creamy Tomato Soup. We used this soup during our food photo shoot and the picture headed our May 6th blog entry.  It took a good picture, however the soup was not that tasty by itself.  So it has been sitting in the freezer since then, until Little Z thought to use it as the base to his fusion creation.  Although, the flavor of the soup does not stand alone, it is a fantastic base to this recipe and provides a good platform for the other ingredients to blend on.

Add everything to the pot and let simmer for 5 minutes.

Get a little taste…So Good, Little Z can’t see straight.  Man!  Slap your momma good!  Now, time for a little Asian curve ball.

Oh no he didn’t!!  Is that…could it be…are you serious!?

Yes, a package of Dried Bean Curd Sheet (6 oz size).   You can pick this up at your local Asian market, typically one that specializes in Chinese food products.  While the package is un-opened, crush the bean curd in your hand as seen above.

Add the bean curd to your pot and mix in.  Let the bean curd absorb some of that spicy stock for about 3 minutes, then add 1 cup of filtered water.

Mix everything up again, cover your pot and let simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes.

Time to close this baby out…

Dice your tomato…

check on your simmering bean curd.  Most of the liquid has been absorbed by the bean curd…looks good.  At this point, you can serve the bean curd ‘as is’ on top of some plain rice…almost like a Latin-style stir fried bean curd.  In fact, that sounds like a good idea…maybe next time.  For this recipe, Little Z is finishing the fusion with fabulous finesse.

Add your rice to the pot…

add the diced tomatoes…

Mix it all up…

and it’s ready to serve.  A delicious one pot meal.  A crowning dish that will brighten up any tough day.

Little Z thought it would be nice to serve with a little taco sauce and vegan sour cream.  As I said before, the Latin Asian Fusion Rice is spicy, so this is not for the faint hearted.  The sour cream adds a nice coolness to the well spiced rice.

Little Z serves his brothers:

The Middle Man

(Please excuse my recyclables)

The Prince who thought he was King

How was it…

Well, an empty bowl is a chef’s ultimate compliment.

Great job!  Chef Little Z…take a bow…oh, you get to eat too.

Now that’s good eatin’!

Nahum St. Martin