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When I was a kid, time after school was usually spent at my neighbor Isabel’s house until my mom came an hour later to pick us up.  Isabel was our babysitter (although at age 9, I was no baby), and we thought of her family as our extended family.  She even recently attended my wedding last year, and I kid you not, has not aged a bit since almost 20 years ago!  Being Cuban, her house was always filled with the fragrant aromas of sofrito bubbling on her stove, and fried plantains.  It was delicious, and from then on, I’ve always loved Cuban food.

It’s amazingly simple to make this little dish and perfect for a little appetizer when you’re getting together with friends.  Definitely better than the ubiquitous chips and dip you’ll see at many a party.  Crisp plantains and savory black beans, cut with the coolness of light sour cream and a squeeze of lime.  I don’t fry my plantains in a lot of oil; instead, just a tablespoon of olive oil in a large, nonstick shallow pan will perfectly brown the plantains without getting too oily.  I call this my perfect little snack – to me, black beans are in their own right a superfood.  In a cup, you’ll get yourself 15 grams of protein (equivalent to about 2 ounces of meat), 15 grams of fiber (most need about 25-30 grams of fiber daily), 64% of your folate needs, and surprising to many, a high amount of antioxidants due to its flavonoid-rich dark skin.  It’s like the merlot grape in a land of chardonnays in terms of antioxidant power!

Frijoles Negros con Platanos

serves 4

For the black beans:

1 tsp olive oil

1 16-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup diced yellow onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

A couple pinches of cumin

A couple pinches of sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup water

1 serrano chile, deseeded and chopped finely

For the lightly fried plantains:

1 plantain (yellow with many brown spots), sliced into 1/4-inch-thick slices

1 Tbsp olive oil

Accompaniments:

Fat-free or light sour cream

Lime wedges

Diced tomato

Cilantro

1.  In a saucepan, heat the 1 tsp olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic, stirring frequently to sweat out the onions and lightly brown them.  Add the black beans, cumin, salt, and pepper to taste – adjust seasonings per preference.  Allow the mixture to simmer and bubble, until the liquid is slightly thickened and reduced.  Take 1/2 of the mixture (or all of it if you want the black bean mixture completely creamy), and pulse in the food processor until pureed.  Add the pureed black beans to the whole beans in the saucepan; stir to combine and set the saucepan on low heat, stirring a couple more minutes before serving.  Stir in the serrano chiles or garnish.

2.  For the plantains, heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil over medium heat in a large shallow pan.  Place the plantain slices on the pan, turning after a few minutes when golden brown.  Lightly brown a couple more minutes before taking the plantain off the pan and on  a couple paper towels.

3.  Serve with light or fat-free sour cream, and garnish with diced tomato and cilantro.