Black Bean Rice

When making black beans from scratch, the broth that results is very rich. This morning I made a pot of black beans and pureed the beans in my food processor to make refried black beans, first straining out the liquid they cooked in. Pictured above are the resulting refried black beans and a portion of the reserved liquid. I like to use that liquid to make Black Bean Rice, pictured below. If you look at the photo larger, you may note a few whole beans in the rice. That's because not all of the beans made it into the food processor. It wasn't on purpose, but it turned out nicely having a few beans incorporated into the rice.

Black Bean Rice

1 Tablespoon oil (olive oil is fine)
2 cloves garlic, mashed, papery skin removed
1/2 of a small white onion, minced (optional)
1 cup of brown rice
3 cups of black bean broth

Heat the oil in a pot, add the onion if using onion and saute for about five minutes. Add the garlic and saute several more minutes, or until the onion is transparent and the garlic flavor has infused into the oil. Add the cup of rice and stir for a couple of minutes, letting the rice coat nicely with the oil. Add the black bean broth. Once it starts boiling, reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the liquid has absorbed and the rice is tender. Remove from heat and let sit covered for at least five minutes. Brown rice generally takes at least 40 minutes to cook.