Carnitas and Black Beans is a yummy meal to ring in the New Year! Swine represents progress and beans represent lots of money! So eat up and enjoy!
I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday weekend! I had a quiet weekend with friends and my dogs in Evergreen. It’s kinda awesome not to have to do anything for Christmas. Just show up, have fun, eat and drink. Ha! I wish every holiday was this easy… Now, just one more holiday to get through and life gets back to normal. I’m still in shock though thinking that this year is coming to a close. It’s so weird how time flies. Freaks me out a little but it’s all good. I feel like great things are in store in 2017 and I’m looking forward to it!
To get things going on the right note, I decided to do some research on lucky foods to eat on New Years day. Heck, everyone deserves some good luck, so why not get it through food. Lucky for me, I learned a few things on my quest to decide what to make. To my surprise, pork represents progress because the pigs push their-selves forward as they become rooted to the ground before they move on. Pork also has more fat content which symbolizes wealth and prosperity. I have always had a predisposition for all things pork, now I know why! Then there are the legumes. Beans, peas and lentils are all lucky foods. Their small size that swell when they are cooked represent financial prosperity. Who would guess that these little buggers represent lots of money! I think that I need to incorporate more beans in my diet! 🙂
This brings us to Carnitas and Black Beans. One, carnitas are one of my favorite foods. Two, if I can eat carnitas with a big bowl of black beans, salsa and tortillas and it brings good fortune than sign me up! I’m all over it! Carnitas and black beans is an all day process to make but so worth it. Start it in the morning, watch football, contemplate the new year and then eat. Sounds like a great New Years day to me! Lucky for me, I have this made already and will be eating it all week! Maybe 2017 will be extra lucky for me!
Have a safe and fun New Years everyone! Until next year!
- [br][b]For the Dry Rub[/b][br]
- 1/4 cup chili powder
- 2 tbs salt
- 1 tbs pepper
- 3 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp coriander
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp onion powder
- [br][b]For the Black Beans[/b][br]
- olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced small
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large jalapeno, seeded and diced small
- 3 tsp cumin
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 16 oz bag of dried black beans
- 6 cups chicken broth
- [br][b]For the Carnitas[/b][br]
- Olive oil
- Dry rub
- 4-8 pound pork shoulder (make as big as you like)
- garlic cloves
- 4-5 cups chicken broth
- To make the dry rub, combine the chili powder, salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, garlic powder and onion powder. Mix well and set aside.
- To make the black beans, in a medium sized stock pot, saute the onions, garlic and jalapenos until they become soft. Stir in the cumin, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Add the beans and chicken broth. Bring to a boil for two minutes, reduce heat to low and cover. Cook for approximately 3 hours or until the beans become soft. There will still be liquid left in the pot. This is good.
- To make the carnitas.
- Cut slits into the top of the roast, and push in cloves of garlic. Do as many as you like.Coat the pork shoulder with olive oil and liberally put the dry rub all over making sure you get all sides. Place the pork in a large dutch oven and put about 1 1/2 cups chicken broth in bottom of pan. Roast in a 300 degree oven for approximately 2 hours or until the top gets browned. Add the remaining chicken broth, cover the pan and cook until the pork pulls apart easily. The time will depend on how big your pork shoulder is. Anywhere between 5-10 hours. My suggestion, start this in the morning and let it cook all day!
- Remove the pork from the pan and reserve the liquid. Shred the meat and put in a bowl. Pour the reserved liquid over the meat. You may not use it all, use your best judgement.
- Heat up a large saute pan with about an inch of olive oil. Add the pork in small batches and “fry” until golden brown. Remove and drain off excess oil.
Ok, I did it. I saw a Food Network video on how to make this. Turned out pretty cute, eh? I used ranch dip at the base instead of cream cheese and instead of the dripping sour cream snow (I don’t like sour cream), I just sprinkled Parmesan instead! This my friends was a big hit!
On another note! Check out these amazing pictures that I got when we went down to see the lights at Hudson Gardens! What a beautiful experience! If you are in Denver, go check these out. Simply amazing!
Wow-ZA! Check this out! Seriously stunning! How do they do this?
I can’t get over all the lights. One can never get tired of this! If this doesn’t make you smile, someone peed in your Wheaties! lol!
A fantasy of mine. To spend a cold night in a yurt and have all the stars at your doorstep. This kinda reminds me of that!
The people wouldn’t leave… Still beautiful!
Kinda really cool to walk through a tunnel of lights!
I think trees should be lit like this all year long!