Celebrate Something!

What’s cooking? Black Bean/Avocado Tacos and Avocado Margaritas

Cinco de Mayo is here, and all I can think is, “Thank goodness for something to celebrate.” St. Paddy’s Day was all but lost in the confusion over who was sheltering in place and who wasn’t. We spent so much time cancelling flights and theatre tickets – I waited a full hour to speak to someone at United Airlines, and felt lucky to get them at all – that any thoughts of wearing green got mowed over by the need to wear masks. Easter came and went with online church services and only virtual hugs from my children and grandchildren, who were supposed to be hugging me in person. I didn’t even get to wear my new shoes.

So now that we’ve gotten used to the new normal, and are even enjoying various aspects of it, along comes a day without much heavy lifting, unless you count the energy it takes to raise a glass. As many of you may know, the celebration honors the Mexican Army’s victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. And who can object to that?

As it happens, the Kitchen Goddess has been experimenting with a couple of Mexican-ish dishes, which I’m happy to say are amazingly good, given their simplicity. And if you don’t have all the ingredients today, there’s always “mañana.”

The first dish is a vegetarian taco that uses black beans as the foundation. Folks, these are not your standard issue black beans, and – miracle of miracles – they start from a can. (Even the best chefs have the occasional recipe that uses canned beans.) But it’s the treatment that produces the magic. The source is Kendra Vaculin, who is a staff writer for Epicurious, and who refers to this concoction as The Very Best Black Beans In The World (her caps, not mine, but well deserved). You use the entire can, including the liquid, and “a bit of doctoring,” as Ms. Vaculin puts it. The entire process – including any chopping and measuring – took me less than a half hour. She describes the flavor as “vaguely Cuban,” which is close to Mexico, so I dove in.

Smokey and creamy, with a tiny bit of sweetness – those beans... let me just say that I’m not sure I will ever be able to eat canned black beans any other way. I used them to make tacos for my Prince and me, then bogarted the leftovers for my lunch the next day. And I can hardly wait to make them again. I'll just put it on my list, which is somewhere...

I saw a photo of the tacos and knew I had to make some. I’ve included the ingredients, but you can use whatever you have or what you like. They can be eaten hard or soft. We had them using soft corn tortillas because, as you may remember, the Kitchen Goddess doesn’t do deep frying. (Too hot, too messy.)

The second dish I bring you today is a version of margarita I came across in... (drum roll, please) Hawaii. Go figure. My hubby and I were on the island of Kauai, in a small town called Kapa‘a, at a tiny but inspired restaurant, "jo2," where the chef-owner makes whatever he feels like each day and the waitstaff adjusts. We were served these stunningly beautiful avocado margaritas, and, of course, the KG had to have the recipe.

In the restaurant, the bartender muddles the avocado with the cilantro, but the Kitchen Goddess thought a blender would be faster. And so it was. And when you are waiting for a margarita – especially in these COVID-19 times – fast is important.

But we have to make the food first. So here you go...

The Very Best Black Beans, in Black Bean/Avocado Tacos

Adapted from Kendra Vaculin on Epicurious, April 2020

Kitchen Goddess note: As with most taco recipes, the mix and quantity of ingredients is extremely flexible. This quantity of beans should be good for a dozen tacos (3 each for 4 people). I probably used a couple of tablespoons of beans for each taco. After that, I added two slices of avocado, a tablespoon each of the corn and bell pepper (so 2 tablespoons of the mix if you combine them as I did), and shredded lettuce, salsa, and cilantro. A list of other possibilities is below.

Serves 4.

Ingredients

For the black beans:

2 tablespoons olive oil

Sofrito 

½ cup diced (¼-inch) onion (about 1 small onion or ½ medium onion)

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ cup diced (¼-inch) red bell pepper (can substitute roasted red bell pepper from a jar)

1 15-ounce can black beans

½ can chicken/vegetable stock, or water plus ½ teaspoon Knorr chicken/vegetable bouillon powder

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon ground coriander

¼ teaspoon smoked paprika

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

For the tacos:

corn or flour tortillas (KG thinks corn tortillas work best here, but your choice)

frozen corn, thawed (or freshly cut from cobs if you have it)

diced red bell pepper

shredded lettuce

salsa

cilantro

Other possibilities could include diced jalapeño, red onion, shredded cheese (Monterrey Jack, Pepper Jack, queso fresco, or queso blanco), lime, and/or a dollop of sour cream. A note of caution: With too many ingredients, you risk masking the flavor of the beans, which would be sad. So try not to overfill.

Directions (for the beans)

Make the sofrito (the Mexican equivalent of mirepoix), by heating the oil in a heavy, medium pot or skillet over medium heat, and adding the onion, garlic, and red bell pepper. Stir occasionally until the onion and pepper are soft, about 5-6 minutes. If the sofrito starts to brown or burn, reduce the heat. Don’t let the garlic burn.

The sofrito. Notice that I used red onion. You should use what you have -- I did.

Add the beans and any liquid from the can into the skillet. Pour in an additional ½ can of water or stock, swirling it in the actual can so as to incorporated any bean pieces left behind. If you use water, also add the bouillon powder. (If you don’t have bouillon powder or stock, don’t worry. Just add the water.)

Stir the beans and liquid into the sofrito until well combined. Add the seasoning mix (cumin, coriander, paprika, salt, and pepper), and stir well.

Bring the bean mixture to a simmer over medium heat and continue to stir often. As the mixture cooks down, which will take 10-12 minutes, use a wooden spoon or spatula or some other weapon with a broad flat bottom (the Kitchen Goddess used a Pyrex measuring cup) to mash about half of the beans, which will also thicken the mix. (It should still look plenty chunky.)

As you stir, you’ll want to make sure the mixture isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pan. If you need to lower the heat, do so slightly. When the mixture looks thick enough that you can scrape a trail across the bottom of the pan with a spoon, remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the honey and vinegar, and let the mix sit for a few minutes before serving, as it will set up some as it cools.

Of course, you have to have something to wash these tacos down, so here it is.

Not quite as striking as the ones at the restaurant, but equally delicious.

Avocado Margarita

Adapted from jo2 restaurant in Kapa‘a, Hawaii

These quantities make 2 drinks, which is about all I can serve these days.

Ingredients

½ small avocado

2 tablespoons cilantro

3 ounces tequila (We used Don Julio Tequila Blanco.)

1 ounce orange juice

1 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 ounce simple syrup*

1 ounce Cointreau or other orange-based liqueur (We used Paula’s Texas Orange.)

Sugar or salt for rimming the glasses (I used a combination.)

Garnish: thin slices of avocado and small bright flowers if you have them

*Kitchen Goddess note: Simple syrup is one of those things I like to have always in the fridge. It’s indeed simple but supremely helpful for sweetening all kinds of cocktails, iced tea, iced coffee, lemonade, and other cold drinks. As a liquid sweetener, it’s much easier to blend into cold beverages than regular sugar. To make it, gently heat equal parts sugar and water in a small saucepan, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Remove the syrup promptly once the sugar is dissolved, and store it in a sterilized jar in the fridge. Simple syrup made and stored this way will keep for at least a month.

Directions

Place all ingredients in a blender, and blend the crap out of it. While the blender is running, rim the glasses by dipping the rims in a shallow plate with about ⅛ inch of water in it. Spread the sugar/salt in another plate and when the rim has been moistened, carefully dip the rim of the glass into the sugar or salt or sugar/salt.

Add ice to the rimmed glasses and pour in your beautiful avocado margarita. Toast with “Salud, amor, y pesetas, y tiempo para gozarlos.” (“Health, love, and money, and time to enjoy them.”)