Bean Salad Salsa

When a friend of mine brought our family some chips and this "salsa," I knew I had to have the recipe! Each of my kids even likes it--and they're not all fans of beans, bell peppers, or onions--so that really says a lot! Even though it's a new recipe for us, it has already made its way firmly into the Family Favorites category. I replaced the white sugar with honey, omitted the hot pepper sauce, and didn't have cannellini beans, but made no other modifications. My friend prefers to half the oils: I like it either way. The original recipe can be found at allrecipes.com.

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans (or another kind), drained and rinsed
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 (10 ounce) package frozen corn kernels
1 red onion, chopped
1/2 c. olive oil
1/2 c. red wine vinegar
2 Tb. fresh lime juice
1 Tb. lemon juice
1 Tb. honey
1 Tb. salt
1 clove crushed garlic
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 Tb. ground cumin
1/2 Tb. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. chili powder

In large bowl, combine beans, bell peppers, frozen corn, and red onion.

In small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, lime juice, lemon juice, honey, salt, garlic, cilantro, cumin, and black pepper. Add chili powder and season to taste.

Pour olive oil dressing over vegetables. Mix well. Chill thoroughly, and serve cold.

Minestrone Soup

Here is a hearty soup perfect for cold winter evenings. 

Original post March 2010:
This is one of those tasty, wholesome soups that is a meal in itself. (Most of the time I omit the meat and it's still delicious.) This recipe also works in the crockpot as long as ingredients are added in stages: beans first for a couple hours, then vegetables, then pasta last (or added at end, fully cooked).

Minestrone Soup

1.5 lbs (or less) cooked beef stew meat, lean, chopped - optional
Heaping 1/2 c. dry white beans
Heaping 1/2 c. dry great northern beans (or navy)

Cook above ingredients (following bean cooking instructions-under #3), then add the following ingredients:

3 cans beef or chicken or vegetable broth (or homemade bone broth)
2 1/2 c. water
2 medium sweet or regular onions, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped

3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 c. carrots
2 c. small zucchini
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 can Italian style tomatoes (cut with juice)
1 c. dry seashell (or other) pasta

Toppings (not shown in picture):
fresh Parmesan cheese
16 oz. can olives

Black Bean Soup

This is a newer Family Favorite that I'm re-posting from 2012. During the winter, especially, a warm, hearty soup really hits the spot on a cold evening. And I love how this one can be catered to each person, depending on which toppings he or she likes.

Original post:
The other night I made this black bean soup recipe posted on Word of Wisdom Living a little while ago. It's Skip's own recipe and I didn't modify it at all (except to omit the jalapenos and celery). You really should check out the original, with beautiful picture included. I don't remember ever having a black bean soup more delicious than this one! The spices are perfect (and I was so glad for the guidance in that area because often I am at a loss as to what other spices a recipe needs), and the result is a savory and satisfying soup that is hard to stop eating, it's so good. Plus, it's so healthful, what's not to love?!

Skip's Black Bean Soup
Yields 6 servings

1 lb. dried black beans, rinsed and drained
1 qt. homemade chicken stock
2 c. water (if beans aren’t soaked overnight)
1 bay leaf
1 carrot, finely sliced
2 Tb. olive oil
1 Jalapeno pepper, seeds removed and diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
½ bell pepper
½ onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. ground oregano
½ tsp. chili powder
½ tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. salt (or to taste, depending on salt in stock)
1 Tb. vinegar (optional)
1 lime (optional)

1. Black beans may be soaked overnight in 6 cups water and then drained, or alternately, begin with dry beans.   (See my bean cooking tip #3.) If beans weren’t soaked overnight, combine chicken stock, water, black beans, and bay leaf in a saucepan, bring to a boil, then simmer ½ hour.

2. While beans are simmering, wash and prepare vegetables. Saute jalapeno pepper in olive oil several minutes; add garlic and cook one minute more.

3. When step #1 is done, add carrots to simmering pot. After 30 minutes add sautéed jalapeno pepper and garlic, bell pepper, onion, and celery to pot. Add seasonings and stir well.

4. Simmer 1 to 1½ hours more until beans are tender but not mushy. Stir several times each hour. (If you want natural rice with the soup, this is a good time to cook the rice.)

5. Remove about half of soup from pot and puree with a blender, and then return to pot.

Adjust seasoning as needed. Add water if needed for desired consistency. 

Black bean soup may be served over rice and garnished with your choice of lime juice, sour cream, avocado, tortilla chips, chopped onions, grated cheese, parsley or cilantro. Black bean soup is pretty basic; the garnishments make it interesting. 

This recipe can be adapted to a slow cooker, or simplified by using canned black beans, canned chilies, and store-bought chicken broth if you’re running short on time.

Hummus

Hummus is one of our family's favorites and is particularly inexpensive when I make it myself--especially when I can buy sesame seeds in bulk (for example, at WinCo). I love having my kids get excited over a bean recipe!

First posted over three years ago:

I've really been on a hummus kick lately. There's just something about it that really satisfies me. (And it really does need that tahini, so don't leave it out!)

I found a good recipe for it on About.com and made it by cooking dry garbanzo beans, rather than using the canned variety, as per the recipe. A longer process, yes, but cheaper and more nutritious. And hey, I wanted a large batch, so it was perfect!

One thing that has made me so excited about hummus is that my picky little eater likes it! I have tried so many bean recipes on her and she will have nothing to do with beans. But this "dip" she loves. I love being sneaky...

1 16 oz can chickpeas or garbanzo beans (or cook 2/3 c. dry beans until tender)

1/4 c. liquid from can of chickpeas (or from pot of cooked beans)

3-5 Tb. lemon juice (depending on taste)

1 1/2 Tb. sesame seeds

olive oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp. salt

Crush garlic in garlic press. Let sit for a few minutes. (Reason.)

Heat olive oil in pan on stove top. Add sesame seeds, stir and toast until golden brown. (This is your tahini.)

Drain garbanzos and set aside liquid. 

Pour beans into bowl, pulverize with immersion blender. (Can use regular blender, but it's quite the laborious process.) Add 1/4 cup of liquid from garbanzos as you go--more if needed, until smooth.

Cook garlic on stove top until partly browned, then add to bowl of pulverized garbanzos. 

Combine remaining ingredients, blend until thoroughly mixed and smooth. Taste test and add more of anything it needs.

Enjoy with tortilla chips, crackers, or veggies!

Pioneer Stew

My family likes this stew almost as much as my mom's traditional chili, and that's really saying something! I first posted this Family Favorite two years ago. (This updated picture shows that this time I made it with stewing beef instead of ground beef.)

Original post:
Not long ago, a former roommate of mine gave me a bean recipe* that I thought sounded fantastic. So I made it and it was! Note: The ground beef could easily be eliminated and it would still be a delicious dish.

Pioneer Stew

1 1/4 c. (1/2 pound) dry pinto or kidney beans (I used both) (or 3 or 4 cans of beans)
1/2 to 1 pound ground beef
1/2 c. finely diced green pepper
1/2 c. chopped onion
one 16 oz. can whole kernel corn with juice (I used frozen mixed vegetables instead)
one 16 oz can tomatoes with juice
1/2 tsp. chili powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese (I only had mild)

Cook the beans, using package directions (and/or my tips here).

In skillet, cook ground beef, chopped onion, and green pepper until meat is browned and vegetables are tender. Drain off fat.

Add meat mixture, corn, tomatoes, chili powder, and salt to taste to beans. Simmer 20 minutes. After tasting, I always add more chili powder too, and even a bay leaf if the taste still isn't savory enough.

Combine 1 tablespoon flour with 2 tablespoons water. Stir into stew, cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in cheese.

*Recipe attributed to a cookbook put out by the Kolob Springville Utah Stake Relief Society and Home Storage Committee - June 2004.

Baked Taco Dip

I tried this dish at a recipe exchange I attended and loved it so much! Then when I made it for my family, they loved it too. It's hearty, delicious, nutritious, and filling. 

Because we didn't have tortilla chips at the time, I broiled quesadillas in the oven (till they were browned and crispy--almost like chips) and omitted cheese in the recipe. Then I cut the quesadillas into triangles with a pizza cutter.

Baked Taco Dip

1 lb. ground beef (can omit altogether)
1 15 oz. can refried beans (or make your own)
1 small can diced chiles (or parboil fresh diced chiles--about 1/4 c.)
1 tsp. homemade taco seasoning mix
1 c. sour cream
1 c. frozen corn

Cook ground meat, add remaining ingredients, heat through.

Place in oven proof pan, top with 2 c. shredded cheese.

Heat until cheese is bubbly.

Bean Salad Wraps

Last week I got to craving this dish so bad it surprised me, but when I made it, it hit the spot like nothing had for a long time. With its few ingredients married in the perfect combination, this dish is satisfyingly delicious.

Recipe source: Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, p. 83

Bean Salad Wraps

4 8-inch whole wheat (or other variety) tortillas
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 c. chopped green sweet pepper
2 Tb. snipped fresh cilantro
1/3 c. mayonnaise dressing or salad dressing
1 Tb. lime juice
Leaf lettuce

In medium bowl, mash black beans slightly. Add sweet pepper and cilantro. Stir in mayo and lime juice.

To serve, spread bean mixture evenly over tortillas. Top with lettuce leaves. Roll up tortillas.

Turkey Tortilla Casserole

We had a lot of turkey left over after a large, extended family meal, and I wanted a new turkey recipe to use some of it up. I found this one and tried it out, and it just hit the spot! I think it would also be just as good using more beans and less turkey (or none), and adding other veggies to the mix. And it's also fun because you cook it in a pie dish.

Turkey Tortilla Casserole

3 10-inch whole wheat flour tortillas

4 c. cooked turkey (or chicken) cut into 1-inch chunks

1 15-oz can black beans (or another kind), drained and rinsed (or, if using dry beans, a heaping 1/2 c. of dry beans cooks up to the amount of one can)

1 c. tomatillo salsa verde (we were out of this--so sad--and had to use red salsa instead, which was very good)

2 1/2 c. grated monterey jack or cheddar cheese

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. chile powder

1/4 c. crumbled feta or cotija cheese (optional)

garnishes: avocado, sour cream, hot sauce (or red salsa)

Heat 1 Tb. oil in skillet. Add tortilla and cook until bubbled and browned, about 1 minute on each side. Repeat with other two tortillas. (This quick fry keeps the tortillas from getting soggy while baking.) Set aside.

In large bowl mix together remaining ingredients, except for feta or cotija cheese (if using).

Grease a 9-inch round pie pan.

Lay one tortilla on bottom of pan. Cover with half the turkey mixture. Lay another tortilla on top and cover with remaining turkey mixture. Cover with last tortilla and sprinkle feta/cotija cheese on top, or cover with additional monterey jack or cheddar.

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.

Serve with desired garnishes.

$35 a Month and Other Topics

For the last day of my blog's anniversary month, I wanted to do a little review on topics I posted last year at this time, for those of you who may have joined us later in the game, or for anyone who needs a reminder (including myself):

• How a family of four can happily live on a $35/week grocery budget. (Fortunately we're not in as dire straits as we were a year ago and have a little more leeway in our grocery budget now, but the principles are still the same and I am still very frugal.) This is what provided the impetus for starting Katrina's Kitchen in the first place.
• A typical daily meal plan and a typical grocery bill. A couple of the items on this last year's grocery bill I don't buy anymore, which shows me I'm learning and improving too.
• The philosophy behind regularly making homemade 100% whole wheat bread.
• The bread recipe.
• Health reasons for regularly adding beans to your diet. (Also, under "topics" in the right hand side, click on beans for some of our favorite bean recipes.)
  
• Answers to bean FAQs (including how to cook them).
• Budget Saver Tips #1, #2, #3
  

Chili

Chili is such an excellent, nutritious comfort food for a cold day, don't you think?
My family has a Halloween meal tradition that to the best of my knowledge is now in its third generation. It's a meal we look forward to every year and which, while eating, triggers all sorts of pleasant memories for me (so I hope it is beginning to do so for my children as well). This meal includes my mom's chili, which I start craving as the weather cools anyway.

There are probably as many chili recipes out there as people who make the dish, and I have tried more than I can count. But I always go back to this traditional, classic recipe as my very favorite for southwestern style chili. (So those of you who are Cincinnati natives may not appreciate it quite the way I do. But then, I never did get to like either Skyline or Gold Star :).)

This is one of those recipes that you follow and then taste and add more spices, as needed, until it's just right.

Classic Southwestern Chili

Cook about 4 c. dry beans according to package directions and/or using my tip (#3).

When beans are cooked (about 3 hours), add other ingredients:

Brown 1 lb. ground beef, drain off grease and cook 2 onions and 1 clove garlic in same pan.
2 small cans tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes in juice
3 tsp. chili powder (or more, to taste)
4 tsp. salt (or less, to taste)
1/4 tsp. pepper (or more, to taste)

Serve with grated cheese or other toppings, as desired.

Curry Vegetables (Crock Pot Recipe!)

Thanks to my friend, Carolyn, for this delicious recipe! I heard she was making it the other day and it sounded so good I asked her for the recipe. The picture didn't turn out very well, but I love all the cheery colors of this combination, in addition to its great taste and nutrition--and that it's a crock pot recipe is a bonus. (Note: it's not spicy if you follow the directions as written, just flavorful.)

Curry Vegetables

2 cans drained and rinsed garbanzo beans
1 diced red pepper
4 tiny potatoes or 1 large sized potato (I used 3 medium potatoes)
1/2 c. diced carrots
1/2 c. diced celery
3 cloves, crushed
2 Tb. curry
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. red (cayenne) pepper
1 tsp. salt
1 can tomatoes and juice
2 c. vegetable (or chicken) broth
3/4 c. plain yogurt (or sour cream)
1 c. frozen peas (added later)

Directions:

Pour drained and rinsed garbanzo beans in to crockpot.
Cover with diced vegetables (if you have other veggies you want to use besides those listed, change things up).
Add spices.
Add tomatoes, yogurt, and broth.
Stir to mix flavors.

Cook on low for 8-10 hours. (I started it on high for an hour or so, then turned it down to low and cooked it for a total of about 4 hours, and it turned out great.)

20 minutes before serving, stir in frozen peas and turn to high heat.

Serve over hot (brown) rice.

Healthier Alternatives

Tomorrow night I will be giving a short presentation at my church on nutrition. My topic is healthier alternatives--which is much of what this whole blog is about. It was a bit difficult to condense everything I thought of to discuss, but I managed to fit onto one page what I felt were the most important things to cover (it doesn't fit quite the same here). I include it below for those who are new to my blog or those who may appreciate a refresher, complete with links to places where I talked about them (or found the information) in more detail.

COOKING WITH HEALTHIER (AND USUALLY CHEAPER) ALTERNATIVES

• Try to do most of your shopping around the perimeter of the store (or better yet, produce as much of your own food as you can). (See Michael Pollan's book In Defense of Food.)
• Cook from scratch - Get as close to possible to the natural source. Ex: Kroger’s All Natural sour cream has only cream, milk, and enzymes. Use butter instead of margarine. Even make your own spice mixes and cook desserts from scratch too.
• When you do buy prepackaged/prepared foods, check ingredients: The fewer the ingredients the better--and if you don’t know what some of them are, it’s probably better to opt for something else. (Again, see Michael Pollan.)
• Avoid MSG (monosodium glutamate). It’s added to many bottled sauces, salad dressings, canned soups, premade spice mixes, bullion, prepackaged foods, and even some sausages (not to mention many restaurant foods).
• Eat more vegetables. Try planning some dinners more around vegetable (and bean) dishes than meat dishes. This can also be cheaper.
• Limit or cut out white flour and refined grains. Bake with whole wheat flour and whole grains, including whole grain pastas and brown rice. Whole wheat flour is best ground fresh, since wheat begins losing its nutritional value (particularly its protein content) 72 hours after it is milled. You can also save a lot of money by grinding your own.
• Add more beans to your diet (preferably cooked from scratch). Ex: Substitute hummus for your vegetable or chip dip. If you do use canned beans, be sure to rinse off the sodium. Beans are super nutritious and very inexpensive. (Tips on how to get rid of much of the gas when cooking dried beans.)
• Refined sugar: Cut it down or out! Examples:

- Use healthier substitutes like honey, fruit juices, or raw sugar.

- Drink 100% juice instead of punch or soda.

- Replace fruit snacks with dried fruit.

- Instead of pancake syrup, use honey. Buy items such as peanut butter and

applesauce without sugar.

- Conscientiously check for corn syrup on labels and limit intake (there’s even some

new ketchup without it!)

Garbanzos

Remember my post a while back about my love affair with hummus? Well, I'm on another hummus kick, so I decided to find out what exactly is in garbanzo beans/chick peas. I'm sure it's the combination of everything in the hummus that give it its appeal, but I'm also just as sure that this craving of mine has a lot to do with my body needing something that's in the beans themselves. Here is what I found out (see the link for all the details, including graphs):

Garbanzo Beans/Chick Peas are -

• Low in saturated fat (2% Daily Value)
• Very low in cholesterol (0% DV)
• Very low in sodium (0% DV)--assuming we don't add a lot of salt to them
  
• High in fiber (of course) (50% DV)
• High in iron (26% DV)
• Have a glycemic load of only 17--the total target per day is 100
• Good source of protein (15 g per serving)
• Good source of copper
• Very good source of folate, the natural form of folic acid (70.5% DV)
  
• Very good source of manganese (84.5 % DV)
• Have an amino acid score of 106--a score of 100 or higher indicates a complete or high-quality protein

So, really, what's not to love about garbanzos?

Helpful Conversions

These are conversions I use all the time and thought I should pass on:

1 c. granulated sugar = 1/2 c. honey

1 c. brown sugar = 2/3 c. or so honey

1 can of beans = 1 3/4 c. cooked beans

1/3 c. dry beans = 1 c. cooked beans

heaping 1/2 c. dry beans = 1 can of beans

Spanish Rice

This is a family recipe that we enjoy. The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 lbs. hamburger, but if I use meat I only use 1 lb. It's also good with ground turkey instead, or as listed here, substitute the meat for beans.

Spanish Rice

3 c. cooked rice
1 1/2 c. cooked pinto beans
1 large chopped onion
2 cans tomato sauce
1/2 c. ketchup
prepared mustard to taste
garlic salt to taste
1 Tb. Worcestershire sauce
plenty of cheese

Mix all ingredients in pot, sprinkle cheese over top, cover, and heat until warm and cheese melted.

Ham and Lima Bean Soup

This one of my favorite bean soups and is absolutely to-die-for when made with ham bone broth. The broth is so tasty, as is, you probably won't even need to add salt!

Ham and Lima Bean Soup

Cover ham bone (trimmed of meat and fat) with water and simmer continuously in crock pot for a couple days. When marrow liquefies and bone becomes soft, you know you've successfully created a good broth.

Pour enough of this broth into another pot to make the amount of soup you want--or pour out the amount you don't want into another container for later use and cook your soup in the crock pot.

Add desired amounts of prepared dry lima beans and/or navy beans and/or great northern beans, diced onion, and any other desired vegetables.

Add diced ham just before serving time, with only enough time to heat up. (If the meat is cooked for a long time, the flavor is leached out into the soup, leaving the meat itself flavorless and chewy.)

Enjoy!

Bean Quintet

The original recipe came from my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook and I reworked it so as to use dry beans. It's a great crock pot recipe as well. (As with all beans cooked from scratch, be sure to follow my cooking guidelines (see #3) to get rid of the gas--whether you cook the beans on the stove or in the crock pot.) I have tasted many baked beans that I liked, but most are too sweet for my taste and lack that particular tang or kick that makes them satisfying. For me, this recipe provides the perfect "baked beans" taste.

Bean Quintet

Sort, rinse, and bring to a boil the following:
A heaping 1/2 c. each of 5 different types of beans (or whatever you have, in this amount). [Examples of what I have used are: kidney, pinto, black, great northern, garbanzo, lima, etc.]

Once beans are rinsed and again brought to a boil, either pour into crock pot or continue cooking on stove, adding remaining ingredients:

1 c. chopped onion (1 large)
1 clove garlic, minced (or more, if desired)
3/4 c. ketchup
1/2 c. molasses
1/8 - 1/4 c. honey (if desired)
1 Tb. prepared mustard
1 Tb. Worcestershire sauce (the "kick")

Notes:

• More of any of the last 5 ingredients can be added as desired, until it has the taste you like best.
• As with my Homemade "Refried" Beans, the trick is to be sure the beans never run too low on water, yet don't end up with too much, depending on how thick or runny you like your "baked" beans.
  

Homemade "Refried" Beans

Low in fat, this way of making pureed beans is much healthier than any canned variety and freezes very well if you make too much. Really the only trick is to monitor the water so that it never runs too low (or your beans will burn), yet in the end doesn't need any water poured off, since it is so rich in nutrients from the beans.

Homemade "Refried" Beans

2 c. dry pinto beans
1 large onion
1-2 large cloves garlic
salt to taste

Clean beans, boil in pot of water for 10 min, rinse.
Refill pot with enough water to cover beans, bring back to boil.
Boil for 1 hour.
Dice onion, crush garlic, add to pot after beans have cooked for an hour or so.
Cook another 30 min to an hour, until beans and onion soft.
Add salt to taste.
Ladle bean mixture into blender, blend until smooth.
Pour into serving bowl or spoon directly into tortillas. Makes an excellent side dish or as filling for burritos (in addition to cheese, lettuce, sour cream, salsa, etc.).

Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup
(Serves 6)
This is one of our favorites!

Heaping 1/2 c. dry black beans
2 c. chicken broth
1 c. rice (for brown rice, you'll have to use 2.5 c. broth)
1 (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes (or--even better--fresh frozen or home canned)
1 c. cubed, cooked chicken or turkey--optional (I don't even add this most of the time)
1 c. frozen whole kernel corn

Toppings: sour cream, shredded cheese, green or red salsa (if desired), tortilla chips

Rinse, sort, boil, rinse, and cook beans.
Cook rice in chicken broth in large pot. Add cooked beans, tomatoes, (chicken), and corn. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer 15 min or so and add more water and seasonings as needed. Serve with toppings.

Tip: Because the rice soaks up so much liquid even after it's cooked, this "soup" often ends up so thick we forgo the spoons and just scoop it up with the tortilla chips!

Answers to Your Bean Questions/Concerns

Why aren't dry beans used more in the American diet? I think it comes down to 3 main reasons:

1- People don't know how to fix them,
2-They think beans take too long to cook,
3-Fear of flatulence.

My answers to these problems are:

1) Check out the bean recipes I post, as well as all the many other websites with great bean recipes, including Bean Bible. There are also many crock pot bean recipes to make things even easier. So be brave, experiment, and discover what you and your family like!

2) While most beans do take an average of 1.5 hours to cook, they take very little supervision. As long as they don't run out of water, they pretty well cook themselves. (Note: Beans may also be cooked in a crockpot (and cook slower this way), just be sure to follow the tip below.)

3) If your family isn't used to eating beans at all, definitely start out slowly to allow your bodies time to adjust to the high fiber content. In addition, here is an easy way to reduce the gas in your beans: After rinsing and sorting your beans, put them in a pot with plenty of water and heat to boiling. Allow to boil 10 minutes, then drain and rinse. Much of the gas is released in this first part of cooking, so it's easy to get rid of it in this way. Refill the pot with water and dump your softened beans back in to continue cooking.