No Groceries, No Worries: Rice Pilaf

Happy February! This time last week I was heading home from a great week in Montreal and Kingston -- hope to post about that soon. It was straight to our CaRMS residents' social on Sunday night, then into interviews on Monday. Edmonton in the wintertime is a bit of a tough sell, but fingers crossed we showcased our program well.

we had cookies + candy + our own logo (cool or try-hard? we'll let the med students decide) 

The rest of the week was pretty ordinary. The only photo I took was this one

which marks the second highlight of the week, my co-resident mixing it up with Farrow for journal club. I know you can't tell from the picture but they're amazing sandwiches. The staff was well pleased.

I took it easy this weekend. This morning was beautiful and sunny but cooold. It was touch and go starting my car after it spent last night out in minus 30, but on the third try it pulled through. I've never been so grateful for my little Fit. It got me home for a lazy post-call Sunday, featuring a nap, cookies, a little research, and the start of a new book.

view from the couch

PB chocolate chip oatmeal, current favourite

I didn't actually go to the grocery store this week, so looked to the cupboards for meal prep inspiration. I always have canned beans and tomatoes on hand, and had cooked and frozen some wilting spinach a while back, so I figured cooking those up with rice would make a decent meal.

Because this recipe was so easy and customizable, I wanted to share for the next time you're short on time and groceries and need some one-pot deliciousness.

I guess you'd call it rice pilaf -- or perlow if you're The Sweetest Vegan. (Side note: I've made her perlow recipe a few times over the years. It's great. I'm not sure the baking step is necessary though.)

Here's my version:

• a bit of oil or butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 can red kidney beans, rinsed
• 1 can diced tomatoes (mine happened to be chili style)
• 1 block frozen spinach
• 2 cups uncooked rice, rinsed
• 2 cups water or broth (I used water and it turned out fine)
• garlic powder, paprika, cumin (sorry, didn't measure -- just add a bit of each, to taste)

In a large pot, I cooked the onions in a bit of canola oil, a little ways in adding the frozen spinach. When the onions were soft and the spinach thawed, I added the kidney beans, tomatoes, rice, water, and spices.

I let it cook over medium heat until it came to a boil, then stirred and reduced the heat to a simmer for fifteen minutes (just however long it takes the fluid to be absorbed).

The result is pure comfort food, topped (of course) with sriracha. You can easily customize it to whatever you have on hand -- sausage, more veggies, different spices -- for lots of delicious variations. Bon appétit!