Vegetarian feijoada and coconut rice, garnished with roasted peppers, cilantro, and toasted coconut

Like Cuban black beans, feijoada is nothing special to look at. But a visit to Brazil opened my eyes to the colorful presentation of this dish. Consider colorful tablecloths, banana leaves, or the edible garnishes listed at the end of the recipe to liven it up.

1 T olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
1 t ground cumin
1 t ground thyme
2 sweet potatoes, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut in 1/4-inch slices
1 T dark rum
2 T lime juice
1 large tomato, sliced
2 16-oz cans black beans
Rice
Beautiful, colorful things to garnish: Cilantro leaves, orange slices, lime wedges, grated carrots, grated beets, slices of raw white onion

In a large skillet or dutch oven, saute the onion for a couple of minutes. Add the peppers and garlic and cook until soft. Add the sweet potatoes, spices, rum, and lime juice, and cook until the sweet potato is tender. Stir in the tomato and the black beans and heat through. Serve with rice and garnish with cilantro and orange.