Red Beans and Cauliflower

So when I started making this dish, I had no intentions of blogging it. But when I sat down to eat, I thought this was really interesting and different, so I grabbed my camera! Therefore, I have no step by step photos, but that's ok, because its pretty simple anyway.

I found the original idea and recipe here

You will need:

One head of cauliflower

15 oz can of can of kidney beans (or your bean of choice)

15 oz can diced tomatoes

One half white onion

Brown sugar

Chili inspired spices (chili powder, cumin, hot sauce, brown sugar, etc)

Drain and rinse your beans and put them in a medium pot.

Add your diced tomatoes. I only used half of the liquid from the can.

Then add your spices to taste.

I probably put in about 2 tbsp of brown sugar, 1/2 tbsp chili powder, 1/2 tbsp cumin and a few dashes of hot sauce. I definitely winged it, so go with your gut on this one!

Set your stove on simmer (or low) and let cook for at least 30 minutes

Meanwhile dice your onion and cook in olive oil in a saute pan.

After about 10 minutes of cooking, sprinkle on a bit of brown sugar to caramelize the onions.

Once they have cooked for about 5 more minutes, add them to your beans.

While your beans are simmering, break up the cauliflower into bite size pieces and put into a microwave safe bowl that has a lid. Add just a bit of water to the bowl and microwave covered for 5 to 10 minutes.

I was worried that I had overcooked my cauliflower, but it turned out that the softer it was, the better it worked for this combo.

I feel that the key to this dish is letting it slow cook for a long time. Each time I went back to taste it, it was better than before.

When everything is ready to go, grab some cauliflower and spoon on the red beans. Mmmm Mmmm.

I served the red beans and cauliflower with my cornbread pudding. A perfect match!

And just for fun, here is a picture of my guys. Edgar likes to help clear the table when we're done eating ;)  He's so helpful.