Arroz À La Cubana (Cuban Rice)

 I don't often post recipes since there are so many hundreds of blogs which do just that.  But yesterday I met a lady who heard that I have blogs and her first question was..."do you give recipes?"

My answer was that I don't have time to experiment frequently with new culinary creations as I try to keep our diet simple and basic, with as little baked goods and sweets as possible.

But then I thought ....well,  after so many years of living and cooking in Spain, there are many dishes I have learned to make that could perhaps interest others.

So today I'm filling in here with a recipe before I write about a lovely garden party I attended yesterday to launch a new book about Tenerife written by an author and historian from the Isle of Man.

Today I'm giving you one of my "lean days" menus that I learned to make while living in Palma de Mallorca, as a music teacher with two small children and very little income.
My little girls loved this dish.

  Cuban Rice or Arroz à la Cubana was one of the things we ate a lot.  I don't know if the recipe did originate in Cuba but it was also a dish that could be found on the menu of the more humble restaurants in Palma, and I have even seen it offered here in a popular Tenerife restaurant.

My photo, by the way, has been copied many times on the internet.  You will see it when you Google  Arroz Cubana or Arroz à la Cubana.  It has been altered, reversed, added to and changed a little to hide the fact that it was copied.  But nevertheless it is my original photo.

  I guess I was lucky that the egg turned out just right without breaking and since copying is a form of flattery, I don't mind a bit that my photo of Cuban Rice has become so popular.

CUBAN RICE (ARROZ À LA CUBANA)

For three people:

3 ripe bananas

3 eggs

rice - three servings

tomato sauce or puré - about 1 cup

salt and pepper

oil or butter

1) Boil the rice until tender in salted water.  Drain.

2) Split the bananas lengthwise and sauté gently in butter or oil.

3) Heat the tomato sauce.

4) Fry the eggs in butter or oil keeping yolks runny.

5)  Arrange the rice in the center of each plate, with a banana half on each side, cover the rice with an egg and pour sauce over top.  Add salt & pepper.

Poached eggs instead of fried are also good.

* Note:  here in Spain the tomato sauce I use is called "tomate frito".  It's a smooth sauce of tomato fried in olive oil which comes in tetra brik packs, tins or glass jars and is used a lot in Spanish kitchens.

 See you soon!  Hasta la vista.