beans

Posts Tagged ‘beans’

Smoky Beans with Rice & Collards

There are many things that get me fired up and my husband often jokes about how passionate I can sometimes be. My voice becomes two (or three) octaves higher, hands flailing about and sometimes it may look like I’m arguing, but really I just get a little carried away.

When it comes to issues on food, there are so many that I can sit here a tell you I disagree with, but the number one on that list is the fact that there are children who go hungry on a daily basis. This is absolutely not acceptable.

Today, along with many other bloggers, I’m donating this post to raise awareness about a documentary film called A Place at the Table. The film follows three families struggling with food insecurities, and sheds light on the very real problem of hunger in America. But I’m also asking you to send letters to Congress to protect SNAP funding and make anti-hunger legislation a priority.

Basic needs start with food and creates a trickle-down effect in the development of a child. Statistics show how much better a child does in school when he or she has a meal and when a child does better in school it provides them with an education, self confidence and reassurance because they have one less thing on their mind. And this is a cycle. Something only maybe a handful of those children will grow up and not have to deal with, but the reality is they will most likely find themselves in the same situation with their own families. And to think, a meal they didn’t have was a big contributing factor; nope, this is totally not right.

I can also tell you how wrong it is that we are subsidizing all the wrong products, things like corn and soy, that have absolutely no place in packaged foods you see on the shelves of grocery stores. I’m not usually a pusher of what I believe. I very strongly want my blog and voice to be of one of inspiration to eat whole foods because they’re delicious; to lead by example, but not everyone has this choice. People live in what are now coined “food deserts” where things like chips, soda, and other processed food cost less than fruit and vegetables, even the non-organic ones in some cases. This just blows my mind! How can we become healthier, educated, full potential beings, while feeding everyone crap!?

Can you tell my voice is becoming higher (hands flailing) as you read? Because it is. But really people, I’m sure you know how hard it can be to concentrate on work, while your stomach is growling. Now imagine doing that daily, but knowing that meal may not be there. So today, April 8th, get involved and click here to spend 30 seconds of your time to tell congress that you do care, and support anti-hunger legislation.

If you would like to read up on these issues further you can go to the Share Our Strength website. If you would like to view the film you can click here to find it in a city near you or watch it on demand through iTunes and Amazon.

When I was thinking about a recipe to include in this post, I kept coming back to rice and beans; two staples I’m never without. Both are cheap (especially when you buy dried in bulk), but they’re also nutritious and a little goes a long way when added to any meal. The collard greens and leek came from my garden, but any dark leafy green that’s in season or on sale in your area should work just as well.

Smoky Beans with Rice & Collards / serves 4
Adapted from The Northwest Vegetarian Cookbook

2 tablespoons oil or ghee
1 large leek, rinsed well and sliced into thin half circles
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder or 1 whole chipotle chili in adobo sauce
1 bay leaf
3 cups water or half water half stock
1 cup white beans, soaked and drained
1 bunch collard greens,stems removed and cut into thin strips
1 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
juice of 1 lemon

Heat a heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the oil or ghee and leek. Stir, let cook for a few minutes and then stir in the garlic and chipotle chili powder or whole chili.

Add the bay leaf, water or stock, and beans. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cover, cooking for about 1 hour or until the beans are tender.

Once the beans have cooked stir in the collards, rice, and salt and continue to cook just until the collards have softened. Just before serving, remove the bay leaf and stir in the lemon juice.

Gluten-Free, Grains, Proteins, Soups + Stews, Vegan, Vegetables

Braised White Beans & Leeks

This post is a bit overdue, but I’d like to think of it as a kind (and tasty) reminder to those of you who have yet to purchase The Sprouted Kitchen cookbook. Sara and Hugh, curators of The Sprouted Kitchen blog, are of no doubt familiar to you. I started reading their blog soon after they started and it has since remained a favorite. Sara’s approach to cooking is similar to mine, in that seasonal whole foods are pushed to the forefront and that keeping things simple and beautiful is all it takes to get people in the kitchen cooking and great food on the table.

I have so many recipes marked to try and a handful of ones I’ve already made; and not one has disappointed me yet. I decided to share this recipe from their book, not just because the thought of creamy braised beans and leeks sounded perfect for the gray and rainy weekend we had, and definitely not because I thought it was going to be easy to photograph (beans are tough!), but because of the story that came with the recipe. Sara’s inspiration comes from Italy, where the lady she worked for had a simple recipe for a pot of beans and leeks that everyone asked for. When the lady was asked what was in the famous dish her response was “it’s just leeks and beans!” This last part, that’s what had me hooked. It reminded me so much of my grandma and something I think I inherited as well.

This is what I love so much about this book. It’s not just a cookbook, it’s so much more. Sara has made a point to invite the reader in, much in the style of her blog. She makes you feel welcomed, whether you’re a foodie or just someone who loves to eat. Her recipes are simple enough for everyday, but she manages to keep it all so flavorful that you wouldn’t even think twice to serve it to guests. All of that, accompanied by her incredibly talented husband who photographed the entire book, makes this a must on my kitchen bookshelf and I can see myself reaching for it for many years to come. And has me waiting for another, just sayin’ Sara : )

Braised White Beans & Leeks / serves 6-8
Adapted from The Sprouted Kitchen: A Tastier Take on Whole Foods
I’ve written the recipe as in the book placing the changes I made for what I had on hand in parenthesis. This is just as good heated up and served for several days afterward, which I love.

1 pound dried white runner beans or cannellini beans, rinsed and picked over (I used navy beans)
3 large leeks
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 celery stalks, diced
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons herbs de Provence (made my own mix of about 1/2 teaspoon each rosemary, fennel, savory, marjoram, basil, and thyme)
1/2 to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 cup shredded mozzarella (had to exclude this at the last minuted because I thought I had mozzarella but didn’t. I added a bit more Parmesan to make up for it)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Soak the beans, uncovered, in a large bowl of cold water for at least 4 hours, or up to overnight. Drain and set aside.

Arrange a rack in the lower third of your oven and preheat to 225F.

Trim the leeks discarding the tough green tops, halve vertically, and rinse in cold water, making sure to clean out any dirt trapped between the layers. Slice into thin half circles. In a Dutch oven or ovenproof casserole over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the celery, garlic, and leeks and cook until the vegetables are softened, 3-5 minutes.

Add the beans, thyme, herbs de Provence, red pepper flakes to taste, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and a generous amount of black pepper. Stir in the vegetables broth and 1/2 cup water and bring the mixture back up to a gentle boil. Cover the pot with an ovenproof lid or cover tightly with foil. Place in the oven and cook, checking occasionally to make sure the pot is never dry, until the beans are soft throughout but not falling apart, 3 to 3 1/2 hours. If the pot seems dry, add water in 1/2 cup increments and stir once or twice. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper if necessary.

Remove the pot from the oven and turn the temperature to 500F. Sprinkle the mozzarella and Parmesan on top of the bean mixture and put the pot back in the oven, leaving the lid off. Cook until the cheese is completely melted and brown in spots, 8-10 minutes. Serve hot.

Gluten-Free, Proteins, Sides, Soups + Stews, Vegetables

Curried Tomato Sauce with Sauteed Greens & Egg Over Socca

There are moments in life when you really just need to laugh at yourself. I was in my early 20′s when I adopted this mentality because I realized embarrassing moments will and do happen and they really are funny and making light of the situation is probably the best way to go. This was put to the test around the same time and brings me to a story about eggs. Soft-boiled eggs in particular.

About 4-5 years ago, when I was still working for someone else, I had the chance to go to England and Germany to set up for a huge trade show that our company was attending. The trip was covered completely by the company and we stayed in a couple of extremely nice hotels, at least for me they were. Another girl (hi Alison!) and I shared a room with an Italian girl who was to be like our translator (although her English was only slightly better than our Italian) because we were going to be working with an entire team of Italians that the company worked with.

The morning after arriving we were supposed to meet down in the breakfast room and be introduce to one of the head coordinator men that we’d be meeting every morning. So the 3 of us shuttled downstairs and into the dining room. The buffet was incredible. Think of everything you’d ever want to eat in the morning and it was there, hot and ready for your grumbling tummy. I was kind of excited about this happening every morning.

We each grabbed a plate of food and headed over to the table where they were already sitting. We introduced ourselves to this extremely kind man, who spoke zero English and was only drinking espresso; we soon found out that none of the Italians ate breakfast, but instead preferred espresso by the gallon and maybe the occasional pastry. I looked down at my plate of croissants, fruit, and whatever else I managed to grab and thought how funny this small cultural difference was. Then I remembered seeing that they had hard boiled eggs and walked over to get one so I could get a little protein in my system since I new it was going to be a very long day. There were 3 sections, soft, medium, and hard cooked eggs. I grabbed one from what I thought was the hard-boiled bowl and placed it in one of those super cute little egg cups.

All 4 of us were sitting at the table, Alison and I talking with each other and the Italian’s to each other, when I decided to crack into my egg. As I struck the egg, I was immediately covered in runny yellow yolk! Luckily nobody else got sprayed, and as I was dabbing napkins into water and scraping the egg off my sweater I was trying very hard not to make eye contact with the Italians who, you could tell, were trying to help, but had no idea what to do either. Later I laughed about it, but seriously, I’ve never picked up another “hard-boiled” egg in a public place since.

I’ve always enjoyed eating the occasional egg, but always hard cooked; nothing could be runny or under-cooked otherwise it just grossed me out. Jump forward to around a year ago and something changed. I started to leave some of the yolk slightly under-cooked and gradually it became runnier. I enjoy eating them this way now and sometimes I wonder if I waited so long because of the slightly dramatic egg moment in my life. My husband on the other hand still will only eat them cooked all the way through, you can see his plate in the upper part of the image.

This recipe was certainly inspired by The Food Matters Cookbook, but also inspired by a pizza sauce I enjoy making and two of my favorite things, greens and socca. I love how they all came together and worked out perfectly. Joanne of Eats Well With Others chose this recipe and you can see everyone’s version here.

Curried Tomato Sauce with Sauteed Greens & Egg Over Socca / serves 4

This recipe has many steps and a long list of ingredients, but really they’re all pretty simple when broken down. You can prepare the sauce and hard-cooked eggs a day before too. I make something similar to this sauce for pizza, but instead of using Indian spices I use basil and oregano and puree the sauce at the end.

1 recipe for socca

for the sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
2 medium carrots, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch red chili flakes
pinch of salt
14oz. tomatoes with their juices or 3 cup chopped fresh

for the greens
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 big handfuls of mixed greens (kale, chard, collards, spinach), washed and cut into bite sized pieces
1 clove garlic, sliced
pinch of salt

4 medium to hard cooked eggs
cilantro, for serving

Prepare the socca as directed and cook while making the tomato sauce below. Also cook the eggs at this point too if you haven’t already pre-cooked them.

For the sauce
Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, and garlic and cook until tender, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in all the spices and salt, then pour in the tomatoes along with all their juices. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally for 30-45 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.

For the greens
Heat the oil in a heavy pan, once hot toss in the greens, garlic, and salt. Cook until the greens begin to turn a brighter green and wilt down. Remove from heat.

To assemble, place each socca on a plate, divide the tomato sauce equally and spoon over the socca. Then top with greens and an egg sliced in half and sprinkle with cilantro. Serve immediately.

Bread, Gluten-Free, Proteins, Vegetables

Smokin’ Hot Hummus + How To Cook Dried Beans

I love hummus and bean dips, they’re almost a weekly staple in our house. I usually have some kind of bean soaking and simmering away to use for the week and inevitably by the very end, if any haven’t made their way into soup, bean burgers, or salad, they get pureed into some sort of spread or dip.

I’ve made many versions, but the reason I think I’ve never posted a recipe for hummus here, is because I already feel there are so many out there. This version however, has somthing a little special about it and maybe something you’ve never tried before. It’s served hot or warm, instead of chilled. Sometimes I’ll cook a batch of chickpeas and right away use half of them to make hummus, using a little of the warm cooking water to thin out the consistency. I never really thought this was a special technique I just always liked doing it. Then when I saw this weeks Food Matters recipe I thought to myself well, what do ya know, I’m not the only one serving hummus warm! I’ve never re-heated the hummus, as Bittman suggests, but I’m sure it has the same affect as when you make it right after cooking the chickpeas.

I decided I wanted this hummus to be smoky and slightly spicy, so I added in a chipotle chile and some smoked paprika, delish; especially when served with crunchy raw veggies to offset the slight heat. The level of spiciness is up to you however, I’d start with a small amount and taste as you go, it’s easier then going the other direction.

I’d like to start something new here. I want to cover some of the basics of cooking from scratch and what I keep in my pantry, and thought there’s no better place to start than with beans. More specifically dried beans and how to cook them. It’s easy I swear, but if this is a new thing for you I can see why you might be intimidated, there’s a lot of different ways and information out there, but this is the way I like to do it.

First things first try to find a reliable place to buy your dried beans. Many grocery stores these days have a bulk section where you can find beans for a little cheaper than pre-packaged ones, but if they look like they’ve been sitting there for awhile then you’re going to end up with less quality and taste once they’ve been cooked. There are also good sources online and sometimes even your local farmers market will carry them.

Step 1: Once you have your beans, to soak or not to soak would be the next question many people seem to always ask. I personally always soak mine, mainly to reduce cooking time and because it activates the germination process, which can better aid in digestion. Place the amount you want to cook in a large glass bowl (I usually do about 2-3 cups dried), cover the beans with about 2-3 inches cool water, and let it sit overnight. You can do this step in the morning before you leave for work too. The next day they will have soaked up a lot of the water and probably be sitting right at the water level.

Step 2: Drain and place in a large heavy bottomed pot and cover again with about 2-3 inched of water.

Step 3: Bring to a boil, skimming off any foam that builds up, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer until they’ve cooked to your liking. Each bean variety has its own cooking time and even each batch of beans you may bring home will vary slightly depending on how old they are. The fresher and smaller the bean the less time it will take to cook. For this batch of chickpeas it took probably about 45 minutes total before they were cooked for me, but don’t get too hung up on cooking times. I’d say most beans that have been soaked take anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour, the best thing to do is set a timer to say 35 minutes, check them, then check at 10-15 minute intervals thereafter.

Step 4: Drain the cooked beans, taking care not to burn yourself from the hot water or steam. Depending on what you’ll be making, like in the hummus recipe below, reserve some of the cooking water.

Look at that, only 4 steps to perfectly cooked beans and most of it is inactive time. You can do this and they really do taste so much better!

Smokin’ Hot Hummus / serves 6-8
Adapted from The Food Matters Cookbook

3 cups cooked chickpeas, drained, liquid reserved
1 garlic clove
2-4 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving
juice of half a small lemon
1/2 – 1 whole chipotle chile in adobe sauce
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika, plus a pinch more for serving
salt to taste (start out with about 1/4 teaspoon and add pinches as you go)

Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor and puree until smooth. Add more cooking water or olive oil if needed to reach desired consistency and salt to taste. Spoon into a bowl, drizzle with a little olive oil and a pinch of smoked papkrika and serve warm.

To store, cover tightly and keep in the refrigerator for several days.

Gluten-Free, Proteins, Sides, Vegan

Chocolate Black Bean Truffles

By now I’m sure many of you have heard of those curious black bean brownies that popped up on many blogs a couple years or so ago, maybe you even made yourself some. I’ve made a few batches of them myself, each time trying a slightly different recipe, and I think they’re pretty good. They’re definitely not exactly like a classic brownie, but they still seem to offer a healthier fix when you get a chocolate craving. Today however, I’m not sharing a recipe for my version of the perfect black bean brownie. I’m sharing chocolate black bean truffles which, in my opinion, are even better.

Now before you skim the recipe below and think to yourself, “how can these possibly not taste like beans, especially when there’s no refined sugar or butter and they’re not baked?” Let me be the first to tell you that if you didn’t know there were beans in the recipe, you’d be hard pressed to not think they were the real thing. The magic of whirling black beans, with coconut oil and a bit of maple syrup, is that they whip themselves up into a smooth dark dough-like texture that shows no trace of the beans they once were.

Upon first bite you break through the hardened chocolate coating and slowly your teeth sink into the smooth chocolaty filling. And just like a traditional rich cream filled chocolate truffle, they feel incredibly decadent and you’ll only need one or two before your satisfied.

Chocolate Black Bean Truffles / makes 16-18 truffles

Here I’ve used beans I cooked myself. You can definitely use canned, but you may not need to add extra salt. Also, the sweetness is really going to depend on your preference. Taste the mixture before rolling into balls to see if you want more, but keep in mind that if you use a semi-sweet chocolate for the coating, it will add a bit of extra sweetness to the finished truffles.

1 cup cooked black beans, if using canned rinse and drain
2 tablespoons coconut oil
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
pinch of sea salt
2-3 tablespoons maple syrup, depending on sweetness preference
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped dark or semi-sweet chocolate

Place the beans, coconut oil, cocoa powder, salt, maple syrup, and vanilla in the bowl of a food processor. Blend everything until well combined, scraping down the sides if you need to. It should start coming together into a smooth ball. Pinch out about a tablespoon sized piece, roll into a ball and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Place in the fridge to chill for about an hour or in the freezer for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile melt the chocolate in a double boiler. When the balls have chilled pull out just a handful (you want them to stay cold, so do them in batches), carefully insert a toothpick into the center and dip in the melted chocolate to coat. I found the best method for removing them from the toothpick was with a fork. Carefully slide the fork tines under the side where the toothpick is inserted and slowly twist while pulling upward and place on a sheet of parchment.

Let chill again so the chocolate coating sets. Store truffles in the fridge.

Desserts + Sweets, Proteins, Vegan

Good Things Grow

healthy recipes & photography