Copy-Cat Meal

The first Wednesday of each month is set aside for Dinner Divas. 

Dinner Divas started out as the book club "Classically Cosmopolitan", but we started focusing more on the food and drink and less on the book so we quit pretending to be something we weren't and threw the books out completely. 

Which is quite interesting considering all but 1 of us work in a school setting!

There are about 10 of us in the group and everyone has their own distinct style.  It's so fun to go to a very different dinner party every month, but only have to host once a year!

This month's hostess is one sophisticated and fabulous lady.  I would love to hire her as my personal stylist.  Her clothes are fabulous.  Always.

Here is her table setting:

Since it was Cinco de Mayo she made us delicious, fruity Strawberry Mojitos and some real-deal-lucille queso to get things going. 

For our main course she made a Latin meal that included rice, beans, grilled chicken and all sorts of fresh veggies.  For the life of me I cannot remember the name, but I remember how great it tasted. 

I decided to make my own copy-cat version for dinner one night this week...with a few of my own touches.

Layer 1:

I am never without a couple of packages of saffron rice in my pantry. 

My two favorite brands are Mahatma and Vigo. 

Layer 2:

Black beans - another pantry staple.

Layer 3:

Some leftover corn from last night's dinner. 

I had stirred in a little honey butter in to it and the way the sweet played off the other flavors was wonderful!

Layer 4:

Chicken marinated in a little olive oil, lime juice, orange juice, cilantro, salt and pepper for about 15 minutes and then grilled over low heat 5 minutes a side.

Layer 5:

A little bit of thinly sliced red onion is never a bad idea. 

Layer 6:

Shredded savoy cabbage and a little monterrey jack cheese means we are almost there...

Layer 7:

To top it off: a little bit of that yummy sauce we used on our fish tacos. 

This is what absolutely made this meal!

The further ahead this sauce is made, the better it tastes. 

Another super simple, inexpensive and amazingly delicious meal that turned in to the best 'leftover lunches' the next day.