Unhealthy Broccoli-Rice Casserole

Ingredients:

2 bundles of broccoli from your local grocer (or one broccoli and one cauliflower)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup rice
2 cups chopped vidalia onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 tbsp butter
~8 oz of shredded sharp cheddar cheese
salt & pepper

Cut the florets off the broccoli and steam. Cook rice. Saute celery and onion in butter. Mix all ingredients together. Bake in 2qt casserole dish ~10 minutes. Take out of the oven and cover with the cheddar cheese.

Serve as side dish or with pita chips as a dip. If you are really feeling crazy, substitute the rice with grits.

Works well as an entree if you add 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Boil the chicken breasts, let cool, then shred. Mix the chicken breasts in with all the ingredients and bake for 10-20 minutes or until hot.

Black Bean Chili Dogs

Ingredients:

6 Brats (any variety, but I used Jalapeno Cheddar for this recipe)

6 Buns (you pick)

2 Cans Frijoles Negros

3 Cloves Garlic

1 Jalapeno Pepper

1 Can Green Chiles

1 Medium Size Red Pepper

1 Beefsteak Tomoato

1/3 Cake of Queso Fresco

Premium grade Olive Oil

Seasonings:

Sea Salt or Kosher Salt

Freshly ground Black Pepper

Cajun Seasoning

Cayenne Pepper

Directions:

Heat Coals to about 325 degrees F.

Add and entire bunch of garlic and roast. You can pull off the 3 cloves from the bunch after roasting and save the rest for other recipes.

Add the jalapeno to the grill and roast.

Pour about 1-2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a grillable pot. While oil is heating, dice the onion. Add half to two-thirds of it to the pot once the oil is hot. Cook onions until tender but not carmelized.

Go ahead and add the brats to the grill, but keep them out of the direct heat.

Once the onions are done, add the 2 cans of black beans and the green chiles to the pot and the seasonings. Try these amounts (I've never measured and have different tastes than you, but this will give you a guide):

1 tablespoon Salt

1-2 teaspoons Black Pepper

2 teaspoons Cajun Seasoning

1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Once the jalapeno is blackened on all sides and tender, remove it and let it cool. The garlic should be done by now as well. Once cooled, scrape the skin off the jalapeno, open it and remove most of the seeds. Depending on how hot you want the chile to be is how much seed you will want to reserve. Feel free to discard all seeds if you want. Dice the jalapeno and mince the cloves and add them to the pot. Stir and let simmer while the brats continue to cook.

While the brats are cooking deseed the tomato and dice it up. Crumble the queso fresco. Add the remaining onions, cheese and tomato to a large bowl so that you can garnish the brats at the end.

Once the brats are done, remove them and the pot from the grill. Put the buns on the grill and let the toast.

Pull everything off and assemble.

Brat on bun, black bean chili on the brat, then garnish with tomato, onion and cheese. It should look like this: