Of Rice and Beans and Eggplant

I've had beans and rice a couple of times, using rice left over from what I cooked to go with the Marsala chicken and a can of black beans.  Ordinarily, I would have used lots of bacon to do this, but the bacon I bought is gone now.  I did save the bacon grease, though, because I knew I wanted to make beans and rice and still have that good bacon flavor.

What I did:  In bacon grease, I browned a large chopped onion with minced garlic.  I added a can of tomatoes with chilies and a can of black beans.  I microwaved to heat the left over rice, combined it with the bean/tomato mixture, and today when I had it, I stirred in a little sharp cheddar for a bit of kick.

NOTE:  When I use can beans, I dump them into a colander and rinse well to get rid of as much sodium as possible.  It takes about 20-30 seconds under cool water until the sodium stops bubbling over them.  Then I just toss them in the colander a bit to drain before using.

What I ate tonight for dinner was about needing to do something with food so I don't have to throw any more out!  I needed to use the eggplant a neighbor had given me, so I did a really simple dish to bake in the oven.  I lined a bread pan to do this, with the goal of being able to simply lift the eggplant from the pan by holding on the foil after it was baked. 

Ready for the oven

I also needed to use some of the broccoli slaw I got on clearance, so I mixed some with a little mayonnaise and threw in some thawed green peas for color and more nutrition.

Simple Eggplant:  Peeled and cubed eggplant was sauteed in olive oil with minced garlic for about 10 minutes to cook a little before a can of tomatoes with chilies was added.  Seasoned with salt, pepper, basil, and oregano and then put mixture into a bread pan lined with foil.  Topped with shredded sharp cheddar cheese and baked at 350 for 30-35 minutes.  Let sit for about 10 minutes before lifting out of pan and onto a plate.  Use a spatula to slice and serve.

There's still a lot of fresh food here that I need to at least get cooked and stored before it goes bad.  A sale isn't a bargain if I end up throwin' the food out, so will be focusing on that over all else right now.