Brown Rice & Beans with Avocado, Lime, & Feta

Me: "This has 3 of your favorite ingredients."
The Mrs: "Tomato, Cilantro, and Lime?"

Me: "No..."
The Mrs: "Black Beans, Tomato, and Cilantro? ... oh wait? Tomato, Avocado, and Cilantro!"

Clearly this was a dish that was custom-designed with her taste buds in mind.  That's why I tore the page out of Bon Apetit magazine and suggested we have it.  I'm not sure why the pictures turned out with so much glare.  Maybe I need a professional photographer like the magazine has to make sure the photos do the flavors justice.

This is a really filling vegetarian dish that is certainly not short on flavor.  It was so filling that I actually had leftovers that I made some tacos with.

My wife decided to make brown rice the real way instead of opting for the easier instant rice variety.  You start by sauteing down some onions in oil over medium heat.  Then add the rice, stirring to coat, and water. Bring it all to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, and simmer (covered) for 40-50 minutes.  It's a lot more work that throwing instant rice in the microwave -- but I think it was worth it ... maybe because she did all the work ... but also because the flavor and consistency were really nice.

Then in a separate saucepan saute onions in more oil along with coriander and cumin.  Then add vegetable broth and black beans.  Bring this to a boil too, then reduce the heat and simmer for 8-10 more minutes.

Fluff the rice with a fork and fold in generous amounts of cilantro.

You can make your own salsa, or just use some from a jar.  Put the rice in one half of your bowl, the beans in the other half, and then top it all with avocado, more cilantro, feta cheese crumbles, and a lime wedge.  If you have access to queso fresco, that would be really good too.

There is a lot of richness from the avocado & cheese, a floral note from the cilantro, and nice acidity from the lime juice.  I think you'll find there is a lot of different contrasting flavors that really work well together.  Some people may not be able to get behind the concept of a dish like this.  But for those of you willing to try it, it was really quite delicious.