Garbanzo Curry on Couscous

Let me make one thing perfectly clear - I have never been to India. Therefore, my knowledge of Indian-spiced foods (known as "curry" in most of the English-speaking world) is second- or third-hand. I love to eat at Indian restaurants, and I love to cook from my Indian cookbook. This is an all-time favorite recipe in our home - simple, tasty, and exotic. -Jake.

Update 6/12/14: Last night I was making this dish and I tried a little variation: instead of broth (in the curry) I used tomato juice, and I added about a tablespoon of minced fresh ginger with the garlic. Both changes made for a great improvement!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 4 cups cut fresh vegetables - bell peppers, zucchini, carrots, celery, broccoli, red onion . . .
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 cups vegetable broth, divided
• 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder (and like last time, I still like McCormick brand, although you could make your own)
• 1 can (15 ounces) garbanzo beans (aka chickpeas), drained and rinsed.
• 1/3 cup golden raisins
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 3/4 cup couscous
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted

Directions

Over medium-low heat, heat oil in large saucepan. Add vegetables and sweat for 5-10 minutes, or until the veggies are slightly softened. Add garlic, cook 1 minute (until fragrant). Stir in 1 cup broth, curry powder and red pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover the simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in garbanzo beans, raisins, and salt. Cover and simmer for 2-3 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Over medium high heat, bring 1 cup of broth to a boil in a sauce pan. Stir in couscous. Remove from hear and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in cilantro and almonds with fork to fluff the couscous. To serve, spoon couscous into bowls then top with garbanzo curry.

Caribbean Bean Soup

What is a Caribbean bean? Well the most popular beans in Caribbean cooking are black beans and red beans. However, this soup isn't only about the beans; it uses several other Caribbean flavors: garlic, cumin, lime, and cilantro.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 jalapeno chilies, seeded and minced
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 2 cans chicken broth
• 2 cans black or red beans, or one pound of cooked dried beans

Toppings

• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 lime, cut into 6 wedges

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sweat the onion, carrots, jalapeno, and garlic with the salt, pepper, and cumin. Cook, stirring frequently for 10-15 minutes, until the carrot has softened (do not let the vegetables brown, turn heat to medium-low if necessary). Meanwhile, puree the beans with the chicken broth in a blender*. Add to the softened vegetable mixture. Raise heat to medium until simmering. Reduce to medium-low and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add more salt and pepper to taste and serve in soup bowls, topping with sour cream and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.

*Note: If you like the texture of whole beans in your soup, only puree half of the beans with the broth. Add the un-pureed beans to the soup as soon as you add the bean/broth mixture.

Quick and Easy Enchiladas

Enchiladas are quick, easy, and tasty. Half of the ingredients are staples that you probably already have: cheese and tortillas. The remaining ingredients are common enough as well: meat, beans, and enchilada sauce. And you only really need the sauce!

Ingredients

• 1 can (14 ounces) enchilada sauce, divided.
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 8 oz. cooked beef or pork (ground, chopped, or shredded)
• 8 oz cooked black or red beans
• 8 medium (8-inch) flour tortillas
• Nonstick spray

Note: if you don't have meat or beans, you could double up on the ingredient that you do have. The exact content of the filling doesn't really matter, and if you wanted to you could just make cheese enchiladas!

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a medium saucepan, mix the meat, beans, and 1/4 cup of the sauce over low heat, until just warmed through. Spray a medium-sized baking dish (8 or 9 inches on a side) with nonstick spray. Spread 2 ounces of the filling over 1/3 of a tortilla, near the edge. Cover with 2 tablespoons cheese and roll up tightly. Place in the baking dish and repeat with remaining tortillas, filling the baking dish as tightly as possible. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top and evenly spread the remaining sauce over it. Bake uncovered for 10-15 minutes, or until the sauce and cheese start to bubble.

Savory Bean Stew over Polenta

I love the winter because it gives me a chance to eat hearty soups and stews. Nobody wants to sweat over bean stew in July, but it's perfectly divine in January. Not only is this recipe warm and filling, it's also inexpensive and healthy - good for your post-holiday budget and waistlines! It might be January's perfect food.

Ingredients

Stew

• 1 tablespoon plain olive oil
• 1 cup of equal parts chopped onion, celery, and red/green bell peppers
• 1/2 cup dried chickpeas/garbanzo beans
• 1/2 cup dried pinto beans
• 1/2 cup black beans
• 1 can (14.5 oz) stewed tomatoes
• 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 3/4 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3/4 cup vegetable or chicken broth, divided
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• salt and black pepper

Polenta

• 3 cups water
• 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• black pepper

Directions

Cover the beans in 2-3 times their volume of water. Soak 6-8 hours (or overnight). Pour beans and water into a large saucepan and bring to a low boil. Cook for 90 minutes, or until tender. Drain and set aside.

NOTE: The black beans will dye the other beans purple! This does not affect their flavor but does make it look funny. You may want to both soak and cook the black beans separately.

Heat oil in the same saucepan over medium-low heat. Sweat chopped vegetable with a pinch of salt for 5-7 minutes, or until the veggies are soft and translucent. Stir in cooked beans, tomatoes (with juice), and herbs. Make a slurry with 1/4 cup broth and flour and stir into bean mixture. Bring to a boil and add the remaining broth. Simmer, stirring frequently, over low heat for 10 minutes. Add lemon juice and season to taste with salt and black pepper.

While the stew is simmering, prepare polenta. Bring 3 cups water to a boil and add the salt. Gradually stir in cornmeal, whisking constantly. Once all the cornmeal is integrated, reduce heat and simmer and 5 to 8 minutes or until polenta thickens and hold it's shape, but still soft. Season to taste with black pepper. Spread polenta over plate or large soup dish and top with stew.

Three Bean Stew

So I'm putting on my Seinfeld hat: What's the deal with three bean salad? Why don't we ever see other foods with three beans: Three bean burritos? Three bean baked beans? Three bean hummus? If three beans is good for salad, we must make it good for other things too - like stew! I love bean stew. Normally you see soups and stews with only one kind of bean: canellini (minestrone), pinto (chili), red (jambalaya). Well here we have it: Three Bean Stew. The base recipe is vegetarian, but you could add grilled and sliced sausage (like kielbasa), bacon bits, or ham (practically any pork product!) if you wanted some extra meaty goodness.

Ingredients

• 2/3 of a cup each of dried pinto beans, red beans, and garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• 8 cups of water (use filtered if your tap water tastes funny)
• 2-4 cups leftover vegetable parts (celery and bell pepper tops, carrot sticks, onion slices, parsley stems, or other aromatic veggies, see note below), roughly chopped
• 4-6 garlic cloves, smashed
• 2 bay leaves
• kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup each of onion, celery, carrot, and red bell pepper, cut into a large dice
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice (from half a lemon)

Directions

Soak the beans in the water overnight. Make sure that as the beans soak up the water, there is enough to keep them fully submerged at all times. Do not let the beans soak for more than 24 hours or they will start to become mushy and flavorless.

Put the leftover veggies, bay leaves, and garlic in a cotton stuffing bag. Put the veggie bag, beans (with their soaking water), and 2 tablespoons kosher salt together in a stock pot. Bring to a boil and then simmer, covered, for 1-2 hours, or until the beans are cooked, adding more water as necessary to keep them covered. (They will not be a mushy as canned beans. They should have a pleasant toothiness when cooked correctly, but they will not be crunchy.) Remove the veggie bag and discard (the veggies, that is, not the bag - it can be washed and reused). Drain the beans in a colander, catching the cooking broth in a bowl. Reserve the beans and broth for later.

Heat the olive oil in the stock pot over medium heat. Sweat the remaining diced veggies with a heavy pinch of kosher salt for 3-5 minutes, or until the carrot starts to soften but is still a little crunchy (do not brown the veggies - turn the heat down to medium low if necessary to avoid frying or sauteeing). Using a fine mesh strainer, sift the flour over the veggies, stirring to evenly coat them. Continue to cook over medium-low heat until the flour starts to brown, another 3-5 minutes. Slowly pour in all but 1/2 cup of the broth, stirring constantly. Stir in the thyme, sage, and pepper. Add all but 1/4 cup of the beans and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, blend together the reserved beans and broth in a blender or food processor and pour the mixture back into the stew (you can skip this step and just pour all the broth and beans into the stew if a thinner consistency is desired). Season with more salt and pepper to taste, add the lemon juice, and simmer for another 3-5 minutes, until the stew reaches a desired thickness (it will thicken slightly as it cools). Remove from heat and serve over rice with hot sauce on the side.

Note

Cooking the beans with the leftover veggie parts basically turns the bean cooking liquid into veggie broth, saving you from having to buy some and using up a bunch of vegetables you were probably going to throw away. If you don't have any leftover veggies (for example, you gave them all to your potbellied pig), you could add 1-2 cups of vegetable broth to the soaking liquid before boiling the beans, as well as using additional broth to top off the beans if too much liquid cooked into the beans or evaporated. Back to ingredients.

Greens, White Beans and Barley Soup

This is a nice summer soup for when you have lots of fresh vegetables and greens that need to be cooked up. It's not too thick, although you could mash the beans with a potato masher prior to putting them in if you wanted something more hearty for winter time.

Ingredients

• ½ pound carrots, peeled
• 2 tablespoons, olive oil
• 1½ cups chopped onions
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1½ cups sliced mushrooms
• 6 cups vegetable stock
• 2 cups cooked barley
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 can (16 oz.) Great Northern Beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1½ pounds collard greens, washed, stemmed and chopped
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• Hot pepper sauce
• Red or Yellow bell pepper strips

Directions

Cut carrots lengthwise into quarters, then crosswise into ¼ inch pieces. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmery. Add carrots, onions, and kosher salt. Sweat until slightly softened, 3-5 minutes. Add mushrooms and sweat for another 4-5 minutes, until tender. Add garlic and sweat for 30-60 seconds, until fragrant.

Increase heat to high. Add vegetable stock, cooked barley, beans, bay leaves, sugar, and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Add greens and simmer for another 10 minutes. Remove bay leaves and discard. Stir in vinegar and season with pepper sauce, fresh ground black pepper, and garnish with bell pepper strips.

Baked Beans

I'm going to a barbecue today, and I need to bring a dish to share. I think baked beans is the best BBQ side dish ever, and in case anyone asks me for the recipe, I figured I could put it here!

Ingredients

• 1 pound Great Northern beans, picked over to remove stones and bad beans
• 1 pound bacon, chopped
  
• 1 onion, chopped
  
• 2 jalapenos, chopped (remove the ribs for milder flavor)
  
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 cans vegetable broth
  
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons salt

Directions

Soak the beans overnight (no more than 12 hours) in a non-reactive bowl in plenty of water (enough to cover the beans by several inches).

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Drain the beans, reserving the leftover soaking water. Add enough broth to the soaking water to make a total of 4 cups of liquid, set aside. Cook bacon, onion, and jalapenos in a large dutch oven over medium heat until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste, molasses, and brown sugar. Stir to combine and cook for 30 seconds. Add the beans and water/broth mixture and bring to a boil on high heat. Add the salt and peppers, stir, cover, and bake in the oven for 6-8 hours, until the beans are tender.

Italian Sausage and White Bean Soup

Why go out and get the all you can eat soup and breadsticks at a well-known Italian restaurant chain when you can make a soup that tastes just as good for a fraction of the cost at home? All you have to do is buy some ready-made breadstick dough (and bake them!) and you've got a great Italian meal.
Ingredients

• 8 ounces hot (or mild) Italian sausage, casings removed and broken up into small pieces
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 1 can (14 ounces) chicken broth
• 1 can (14 ounces) white beans (undrained)
• 2 cups baby spinach leaves or chopped kale (I prefer the kale)
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
• 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese (topping)

Directions

Cook sausage, onion, bell pepper, and carrot in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until the sausage is no longer pink. Add chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium and cook 10 minutes, or until the carrots start to soften. Add the canned white beans along with their canning liquid. Bring to a simmer and add spinach or kale. The spinach will wilt rather quickly (just a couple of minutes) but if using kale, simmer for another 5-10 minutes, or untill the kale is as cooked as you like it. Remove from heat and stir in the basil. Pour into serving bowls and top with cheese.

We leave the Parmesan cheese off the 3A's 

Burritos

So Monday's post will make a lot of meat and beans. So many, you'll want to count on it for two meals (if you have a small family). These burritos require very little work and taste really good!

Ingredients

• 2 cups leftover Pork Chili Verde from Monday (1/5/09)
• 2 cups cooked white rice
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 flour tortillas, warmed in the microwave
• Mexican blend shredded cheese
• Sour Cream
• Shredded Lettuce

Directions

Mix together rice, lime, oil, and salt in a bowl. On each tortilla, place rice, meat/beans, cheese, lettuce, and sour cream. Roll into burritos.

Chile Verde with Beans

The nice thing about this recipe is that it can be used with almost any kind of pork you have around. Shoulder and rib cuts work very well, but you could probably use loin or sirloin cuts or chops. Bones and other connective tissue in the meat will add moisture, body and flavor.

Ingredients

• 3-4 pounds country style pork ribs (see note above about using other cuts)
• 1 pound dried beans (great northern, pinto, or black all work well), soaked overnight and drained (check for bad beans or rocks first!)
• 6-8 cups water
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cans (4 ounces each) diced green chiles
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons oregano

Directions

Place all ingredients except pork and water in a slow cooker. Stir to evenly distrubute spices. Add pork, keeping the pieces evenly distributed and surrounded by beans (as much as possible - this might be difficult in a smaller slow-cooker). Add enough water to cover everything by an inch or two. Put on lid and cook on high for 8-10 hours. Check every couple of hours to ensure the food stays covered with water, adding hot water as needed to keep everything submerged.