Of the tsunami & red beans and rice

In the wake of the tsunami devastation, all believers explore how a good & omnipotent G-d can allow such things to happen. For me, natural disasters come down to the butterfly-in-China explanation. One small event in Nature has many repercussions, & sometimes a repercussion is a tragedy beyond our ken. (Historical atrocities like the Holocaust come down for me to perversions of the free will that G-d has given Man.) I pray that if you are/were a religious person, your faith has not been completely shattered by the earthquakes. G-d needs all the faithful prayer that we can give, even if what we ask for is simply the understanding of why He allows mass death.

HELPFUL HINTS:

To save time & utilities cost while cooking, I always keep the pot covered while I am bringing anything to the boil – pasta water or the ingredients in this week’s recipe, for examples. I just stand by with a book to pass the time, while waiting for the tell-tale steam to escape, letting me know that it’s time to move on with the cooking steps.

In painting a room that doesn’t get much visitor traffic – such as the garage interior -- use up what’s left in several cans of used paint. Just pour them all into one can & stir most thoroughly. You are likely to get an appealing shade, since YOU were the one who had chosen all the constituent colors! (This won’t work if you’re a lover of bright red, bright purple, & other shrieking colors, though.)

The cheapest -- & most environmentally sound – way to keep your household drains clear is to boil a teakettle’s worth of water, pour half down a sink, wait 5 minutes, & then pour the other half down. Works like a charm!

Do you have a spray bottle that is not spraying? Probably it is low in fluid. If it’s not water which you can replenish, take out the sprayer itself & place it into a drinking straw (you may have to cut it down to fit). Once you’ve replaced the sprayer-cum-straw, it should work just fine.

Lipsticks that are not made with harsh chemicals tend to fade quickly. The way to keep your lips bright is to apply the lipstick twice: the lipstick, a dusting of powder, & then the lipstick again.

STILL ANOTHER CATALOGUE ITEM THAT YOU DON’T NEED TO BUY:

For a little girl, a $50 item marked down to $25 is a bed canopy. This is a cone of fabric attached to a ceiling hook, with the cone attached to a fabric cylinder. In turn, the cylinder is attached to tulle/netting which flows over the sides of her bed. Tulle costs 50 cents per yard, so you can see the extent of profit on this item, even on half-off sale.

RECIPE:

This recipe came about as a way to use up Spanish tomato sauce that I had erroneously bought in place of the standard type, on a sale that was too good to miss. Furthermore, I slightly undercooked the rice purposefully, to create a textural contrast with the beans. The result? A chewy dish that is hot, but not too hot. (If you do want it hotter, just add more hot pepper sauce to the 4 drops called for.)

Red Beans & Rice a la Deb:

1 tsp salt
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 T canola oil

1-3/4 c red beans (that you have baked & thawed if frozen, as per the instructions in the September 10, 2004 blog, OR one 15-oz can of red beans, drained & rinsed)
2 c brown rice, raw
1 bay leaf
4 drops of hot red pepper sauce
2 c (16 oz) Spanish tomato sauce
2 c water

Saute the onion & garlic, salted, in the canola oil in a covered Dutch oven over low heat for 10 minutes; stir thoroughly; & continue to sauté the veggies for another 10 minutes.

Add all the other ingredients. Stir thoroughly. Bring to a boil on high heat. Cover & reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for 25 minutes without raising the cover. Reduce the heat to low & continue not to raise the cover. You will have cooked the rice mixture for a total of 45 minutes. Remove to a cool burner for 10 minutes – do not uncover until the 10 minutes have elapsed.

Stir thoroughly & remove the bay leaf before serving to 8.