Habichuelas Colorados con Calabaza Guisado / Red Kidney Beans with Calabaza Squash

Habichuelas Colorados con Calabaza Guisado is a  popular Puerto Rican side dish made with red kidney beans and a Caribbean squash called Calabaza. It is a hard skinned squash with orange flesh similar to Acorn or Butternut squash, either of which may be substituted in this recipe. The Calabaza squash, which is easily found in Latin markets, adds a slightly sweet and earthy flavor to the beans. Serve over cooked white rice to create a perfect a side dish for grilled, roasted or fried meats. 

Ingredients:

1/2 pound chunk of Calabaza

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped Cubanelle pepper (Italian frying pepper)

3 cloves garlic

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon dried cilantro

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 – 16 ounce cans red kidney beans (or if you have more time on your hands than I do, feel free to soak some dried beans)

1 – 8 ounce can  tomato sauce

Method:

Peel, remove seeds and dice the Calabaza into 3/4 inch pieces.

 

Place the diced Calabaza into a sauce pan with enough water to cover the cubes add a 1/2 teaspoon of salt and simmer for 10 minutes or until fork tender. Drain the Calabaza reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

Place onions, green peppers, garlic and olive oil into a small food processor and pulse a few times until a coarse puree is achieved.

Place puree into a large thick bottomed saucepan and sauté for 5 minutes over low heat.

Add remaining ingredients plus the cooked Calabaza  and the reserved 1/2 cup of cooking liquid to the sauce pan and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes.

Crab Rangoons with Sweet and Sour Sauce

Did you ever wonder what was in the neon red colored sauce that comes with your order of Crab Rangoons? Today I decided to find out, so I headed out to an Asian market and picked up a bottle of Sweet and Sour Sauce and I started to read. After reading the label and removing all of the ingredients that I couldn’t pronounce I realized how easy it would be to make at home with no artificial colors and no preservatives. Once I was done making the sauce I had a new dilemma, dipping sauce and no Crab Rangoons! So after a little bit of trial and error and a few wasted wonton wrappers I was filling and folding my own. If you love Crab Rangoons, I know you will enjoy this recipe.

Crab Rangoon
8 ounces cream cheese
1 can – 4.5 ounces crab meat
2 sliced scallions
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon grated ginger
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of sugar
One egg yolk +1 teaspoon water (beaten)
One package wonton wrappers
Vegetable oil for frying

Combine cream cheese, crab, scallions, garlic, ginger, salt, pepper and sugar then set aside.

Remove one wonton skin from package and place on counter so it looks like a diamond.

Brush edges of wonton skin with egg yolk.

Place 1 teaspoon of cream cheese mixture on center of wonton skin.

Bring bottom point to top while sealing edges.

Alternate folding method:

Pinch left and right points.

Pinch top and bottom points.

Push all points towards the center and seal the top.

Heat the oil to 365 degrees. Fry the  Rangoons for  about 2-3 minutes until golden brown.

Sweet and Sour Sauce

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons catsup
2 tablespoons corn starch
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil then reduce to simmer and continue to cook until the sauce thickens. Chill before serving. Sauce will keep in the refrigerator for up to one week.