Tuesday, October 5, 2010

An autumn barbeque; spicy black bean roasted pepper dip

The leaves have just about fallen off the trees and recent near arctic temperatures serve to remind us that winter is just around the corner; so what better time than to fire up the barbecue. The summer sailed by without once removing the tatty plastic cover that hides this outdoor cooking appliance.  The main reason we never bothered was because we were out of propane gas. Easy enough to replace but being confined to a small balcony at our old apartment, I envisioned losing a few items over the side and onto the busy street while inhaling the accompanying traffic fumes. Not really my idea of fun cooking in the great outdoors. Now though, we have a roomy-enough yard and with the impetus of having a fellow comedian over for dinner, Doom finally got a new tank.
One of my favorite barbecued items is corn on the cob, shucked and put straight onto the grill. It really brings out the sweetness without the usual boiling away of flavor. Having said that, I do prefer to smear mustard all over the corn instead of butter, which always brings forth a comment or two. I declined the ketchup; that I reserve for most other things. We had to reprimand Doom’s buddy about throwing his cob into the garbage. The cobs will make a great new treat for the worms and the husks I’ll use for mulch around the strawberries.

We loaded up at the Calgary farmer’s market with lots of sweet bell peppers with the intention of throwing them onto the barbecue as well. I ended up with a bargain bag so I decided to make a spicy black bean roasted pepper spread that’s great with crackers. 

Black bean tips
Easy Beans: Fast and Delicious Bean, Pea, and Lentil Recipes, Second Edition
366 Delicious Ways to Cook Rice, Beans, and Grains 

Spicy black bean roasted pepper dip:

Skewer 3 cloves of garlic with the skin still on
                        4 bell peppers  (preferably not green) core and remove seeds
hot peppers  e.g. jalapeño or habanera peppers (depends on how much you like a "kick." I used two)           
                        1 red onion  remove skin and slice into thick rings

Coat these ingredients lightly in oil (I used olive) and put them on the barbecue until the skin of the peppers start to blacken and the onions and garlic go soft  (don’t forget to flip them over.) Remove the blackened skin from the peppers and garlic.  Remove the core and seeds from the hot peppers. Chop everything into finer pieces and put into a container in which the rest of the ingredients can be mashed or blended together.

Rinse and mash 1 can of black beans (easier than soaking and cooking dry beans but can still be done ahead of time, if you prefer).
                        Sprig of cilantro chopped
                        The juice from one lime
                        2 tbl of oil (in reality I put in just enough olive oil to make the mashing or blending easier and smoother) 
                        A little salt and pepper to taste

Add these ingredients to the vegetables and blend together, a hand blender or a masher will do the job too. And voila ! Use as a dip with raw bell peppers and other crudités or stick some on crackers.

1 comment:

  1. I am going to make this on the weekend, thanks for what looks like a delicious recipe!

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