Cafe Rio Goodness :)

You know you love it. You know you want to try it for yourself. Now you can! And the best part? I've already tried several recipes and played with them and tweaked them and found my favorites... so you don't have to! Yay!

I haven't found a pork recipe which is good enough to replace the real pork barbacoa, but if I do, I'll add it to the list!

For now, take your favorites and pile them in a tortilla-lined bowl and top with romaine lettuce and enjoy! Let me know if you try it out! :)

(If I don't currently have a picture, I'll try to remember to take one. These I took a year or so ago and forgot that I had them.)


Spanish Rice (via Sherry)

• 1 green bell pepper (or I used Anaheim), chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce

Saute bell pepper and onion in oil in a skillet until the onions are clear. Combine the bell pepper, onion, rice, chicken broth and tomato sauce and cook normally for rice.

Cilantro Lime Rice (SOOOO good! Not pictured)

• 1 c. uncooked rice
• 1 tsp. butter or margarine
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 can (15 oz) chicken broth
• 1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
• 2 tsp. sugar
• 3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

Combine rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp. lime, chicken broth and water and cook normally. Remove from heat. In a small bowl combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.

Cafe Rio Chicken (via Camille)

• 1 small bottle kraft Zesty Italian dressing
• 1 T chili powder
• 1 T cumin
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3-5 lbs chicken breasts

Cook all together in a crock pot for at least 4 hours. Shred meat and continue cooking for at least ½ hour. (In this picture I shortened this by boiling the chicken to cook it then shredding it, mixing it with the sauce and cooking in the oven @275 for an hour. You can also use cannery chicken and cook for 1 hour.)

Cafe Rio Black Beans (not pictured)

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/3 c. tomato juice
  
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro

In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell it. Add beans, tomato juice, and salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving stir in the cilantro.

Pico de Gallo

• 1 large Anaheim pepper
• 2 large tomatoes
• 1 large sweet onion
• ½ c cilantro, chopped
• Juice from half a lime
• Salt and pepper

Roughly dice pepper, tomato and onion and mix together. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Mix in lime juice and cilantro.

Creamy Tomatilla Dressing

• 1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
• 1 c light mayonnaise
• 1 c chopped cilantro
• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 tomatillos (I prefer fresh than canned. Just make sure to remove the husks!)
• 1/3 c milk
• ¼ t cayenne pepper
• Juice from half a lime

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Keep refrigerated.