My first attempt at substituing in a recipe

I started a search on allrecipes.com for green olives and ground beef as I was craving something salty and easy!

This recipe came up in my search: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/picadillo-cuban-beef-hash/detail.aspx

As I was reading the reviews of things others did I tried to incorporate some of their suggestions. Here is what I ended up with with what I had on hand:

1 lb Laura's Lean Ground Beef and then 2 T chopped garlic cooked together.

I added lots chili powder, a tiny bit of chipotle pepper powder, and some cinnamon. I wanted to also add oregano, but I did not have any.

I cooked this all together, drained the beef (not that there was much grease) and added a 15 ounce can of Trader Joe's chopped tomatoes with jalapenos (the only can I had).

I chopped up about half a jar of pimento stuffed green pepper and most of the brine.

I started letting this cook down and continued my recipe reading. Apparantly, Piccadillo usually contains raisins. I love a sweet salty combo, so I added the only dried fruit I had. I chopped up a few dried plums (sounds better than prunes, right?) and simmered on low for about 45 minutes.

The results- fabulous! Probably a little more spicy than I read traditional Cuban food to be. I didn't want any extra carbs, but it is usually served with rice, beans, or plantains.

Lunch is going to be a little more exciting the next few nights.

Any great substitutions in recipes?