one starch, one sauce, and two sets of dietary restrictions

first, there was the jar of spiced garlic puree for 99c on cetak's sale rack.

then open harvest had the fancy mixes of lundberg brown rices for 1.99/16 oz pkg. and kohl's had a lovely fifty dollar rice cooker for half price.

one group's requirement: kid-friendly vegan. the other: not so much on the vegetables, thanks.
i made a full pot of the brown rice. and used the jar of spiced garlic puree between these two:

1. brown an onion in the garlic puree. toss in a chopped head of kale and a half-cup of water. stir regularly. when kale is almost done, toss in two chopped tomatoes. keep over low heat for five minutes. stir in a can of beans, stir in 3/4 of the rice, cover and remove from heat. this will thicken as it cools. (smaller picture, obviously.)
2. brown a pound of stew meat from cetak's in a skillet with some of the garlic puree. then turn down the heat. saute covered over low heat for at least an hour (test for tenderness as much as doneness), stir every now and then. meanwhile, use an egg slicer on several portobello mushrooms and toss those in near the end of the meat's tour of duty. when the mushrooms are almost done, stir in the remaining rice, cover, and remove from heat.

serve either whenever. both warm up well.