Brown Spanish Rice & Healthy Tostadas

I don’t have many recipes to share this week, mainly sticking to already posted favorites.

Meals have been easy. Things like vegan tostadas, grilled thinly sliced apple and sharp cheddar sandwiches, Slow Cooker Spicy Bison Chili, Coaches Oats Multigrain Pancakes with pan fried apples and toasted walnuts and doctored up jarred pasta sauce over linguini. Dessert was a low sugar banana pudding recipe that needs more testing.

I have a favorite new tea too. Stash Peppermint with an ounce of sugar-free vanilla syrup and a splash of milk. This past month has been a struggle to break my caffeine and sugar habits, but I feel I’m finally over these addictions.

Brown Spanish Rice has been a gem in my staples lately. Here as a base for flavorful tostadas.

To make these healthy tostadas, warm corn tostadas as directed on the package, smear on Spanish Brown Rice, sprinkle with warm pinto beans, shredded lettuce, fresh salsa and black olives.

Brown Spanish Rice
Print Recipe
You’ll need a rice cooker for this recipe. Though you can cook this one entirely on the stovetop, I don’t recommend it unless you want to switch out the brown rice for white because it tends to be crunchy. For white rice on the stove, place a tight lid on your sauté pan and cook for about 30 to 35 minutes on a low-simmer, or until the liquid is absorbed.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup long grain brown rice
1 cup chopped onion
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 cups veggie, chicken or beef broth
1 cup tomato sauce
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. In a skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and bell pepper and cook until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until toasted. Move the rice mixture to a rice cooker.

2. Add the broth, tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder and salt to the rice cooker. Select the proper setting according to your rice cooker and press start.

Nutrition per half cup of rice: 93.6 calories. 3g fat. 14.6g carbohydrates. 2.8g protein.

SparkPeople recipe adapted for a rice cooker by Laura Flowers.