Daily Unadventures in Cooking » Beans

Shrimp and Black Bean Quinoa Protein Bowl Recipe

katerina — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:34:46 +0000

Wanna lose some of that holiday jiggle? I suggest big rice bowls packed full of whole grains, leafy greens and lean meats. This shrimp and black bean recipe has protein-packed quinoa along with spinach, tomatoes, avocado and peppers. To add fragrance and flavour I used the shrimp shells to make a quick stock which I folded into the quinoa.

Although, this black bean quinoa bowl is full of wholesome, real food, you may be looking to further reduce the calories and fat, if so try swapping the olive oil for a cooking spray. Don’t omit the avocado though, the warm avocado combined with the tomato and shrimp is worth every calorie.

White Bean, Squash and Kale Soup Recipe

katerina — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 11:11:57 +0000

This white bean, squash and kale soup is made to bridge the sunny May weather to the rainy and dreary June. Not only will it warm you down to your baby toes, but with all the rain we have had it will help you to use up any excess leafy greens from your garden.

The chili pepper gives a subtle spice to the whole soup. If you don’t like spice omit the chili, but try adding some fresh herbs instead as the vegetarian soup will be lacking without some extra kick. This soup’s flavors are even better the next day or a few hours later.

White Bean, Squash and Kale Soup Recipe
(serves 4)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
salt and pepper
1 dried Thai chili
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup cooked cannellini beans (or 1 small can)
1 cup cooked acorn squash (diced and roasted,
you can follow the instructions here)
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 large tomato, cored and diced
4 cups packed kale leaves, stems removed and roughly chopped

If you haven’t roasted your squash yet, do that first. Then put a large sauce pan or soup pot on the stove on medium low heat. Add olive oil and onions along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Sweat onions, stirring regularly for 5 minutes or until they start to soften. Add garlic and chili flakes and continue sweating for another 3 minutes. Then add beans, squash, stock and the tomato and bring to a low simmer. Add kale and cook for 15 minutes. Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary. Serve with crusty bread.

Chana Masala Recipe

katerina — Mon, 03 May 2010 12:42:32 +0000

Thinking too much about this recipe and it’s merits frustrates me.

When I was young, I was vegetarian and hated curry, which to me meant all Indian food. What a waste. Of all the diets in the world, the Indian culture contains some of the most varied vegetarian recipes. Hinduism encourages a vegetarian lifestyle, and though it is left up to the individual, many Hindu’s are vegetarian. Today, throughout India and it’s many regional cuisines vegetarian dishes are frequent and varied.

I remember eating many fettucine alfredos in my vegetarian days. Restaurant menus were always short on options and despite being a pasta addict, I was never enthusiastic about the gluey looking pastas I chowed down on. Aromatics and spices like ginger, garlic, onions, cumin, coriander, turmeric and cardamom in Indian cooking make every dish taste unique. Mint, cilantro and fresh chilies fleck the dishes with hints of green. So different than those bland, plate-shaped fettucine dishes.

Now that I have embraced curry and other Indian flavours I am attempting to make some classic recipes, of which this Chana Masala, or Channa Masala, is one. Chana, Hindi for chickpea, masala simply translates to chickpeas with a spicy mixture. While researching this recipe I found the common ingredients to be chickpeas and tomatoes with generous amounts of garlic, ginger, onions, and garam masala.

So I urge you, if you are a vegetarian out there who is hesitant about curries, give this Chana Masala or chickpea curry recipe a try. Make it a feel meal and serve it with some sweet and sour okra. Just don’t use your spouse’s coffee grinder to make garam masala — they hate that.

Ribollita Recipe (Cabbage and Bean Soup)

katerina — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 14:05:09 +0000

Anything which is considered peasant food I seem to love. It seems silly that things like lamb shanks and short ribs were once considered undesirable cuts of meat, but it is true. This sort of comfort food is so delicious, but generally fairly heavy. Well, ribollita, this classic Tuscan peasant soup, is a truly healthy comfort food.

The common base between all the many versions of ribollita is beans, a cabbage and stale bread. I used savoy cabbage since I was able to find some beautiful local stuff, but the original recipe calls for a black kale which would give the soup a lovely contrasting colour I think.

Ribollita Recipe
(serves 6)
Adapted from Jamie Oliver

2 cups dried cannelini beans
1 small potato, peeled
1 tomato, squashed
a bay leaf
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 small onions, finely diced
3 stalks celery, small dice
2 medium carrots, small dice
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon ground fennel
1/4 teaspoon dried chilies
1 large can whole tomatoes, with juices
1 small head savoy cabbage, thinly sliced
1 large cup, stale bread
salt and pepper
nice olive oil as garnish (optional)

Soak the beans over night and discard water. (You can substitute canned beans or fresh beans as well but you will need to modify the steps accordingly.) Cover the beans with water and add the bay leaf, potato and tomato. Simmer lightly until beans are cooked and set aside, reserving 2 cups of cooking liquid but discarding bay, tomato and potato.

In a large soup pot heat oil and sweat onions, celery, carrots and garlic along with the fennel and chilies. Sweat until nice and soft but not browned, about 20 minutes. Add tomatoes and bring to a gentle simmer. Add beans with 1/2 of their cooking liquid. Moisten the stale bread with the remaining liquid and add the bread to the soup as well as the cabbage. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 30 minutes stirring regularly. It should be thick but moist, you can add the remaining liquid or not if desired. Add salt and pepper to season. Serve hot and drizzled with olive oil.

Black Bean and Ham Soup Recipe

katerina — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:02:00 +0000

Cooking with dried beans takes more time, but it produces a lovely texture in your beans rather than the mush that can result from canned beans – not to mention it’s cheaper! This is an easy soup made from black beans and a smoked ham hock. The spices bring out the richness in the beans and by blending some of the soup the texture is thick and pulpy. Like many stewy dishes this is even better the next day.

The black bean and ham soup recipe is very adaptable to different methods and substitutions. You could easily make this soup in a crockpot and since there are no tomatoes or other acidic components the beans will cook properly with little intervention. Instead of using a ham hock, you can also try this with leftover ham, and if you are in a rush canned beans.

Easy Cassoulet Recipe with lots of Vegetables

katerina — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:49:00 +0000

Fresh, simple, and delicious, this cassoulet recipe tastes very real. The fresh vegetables retain their colour and flavour and the dried beans cook up deliciously as they are simmered with the meat. I can only imagine how amazing it would be with homemade stock and duck leg confit, as this was done with ingredients I could easily find.

I remember the first time I saw this Mark Bittman recipe in his Food Matters book. This is the book he wrote that explains his philosophy of eating vegan until Dinner. The book itself contains quite a few recipes that sound good which are either vegan, vegetarian, or more frequently emphasize vegetables as the main ingredient. Personally, I found the book to be a watered down, or more nicely simplified, Michael Pollan philosophy. However, I do generally buy into this thinking and moreover like his recipes.

This particular recipe is an interpretation of a cassoulet, a stewy French dish which focuses on dried beans and an assortment of meats. Although Bittman includes a version of this recipe using canned beans, I chose to use dried and was glad I did. I also added rosemary and mushrooms. If you are making this cassoulet recipe on a weeknight do choose the canned bean version.

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Easy Cassoulet Recipe with lots of Vegetables
(serves 4-6)
Adapted from Food Matters

3 tablespoons olive oil
Use 1lb of meat sausages, duck breast or leg confit, or bone-in pork chops (I used 1 bone in pork chop, one sausage.)
1/2 lb dried cannelini beans
2-4 cups chicken stock
2 small onions, small dice
2 medium zucchini, small dice
6 cremini mushrooms, small dice
3 small carrots, small dice
2 stalks celery, small dice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large can of whole tomatoes
2 bay leaves
handful of fresh thyme sprigs
1 sprig fresh rosemary
salt and pepper

In a large dutch oven heat oil to medium and add meat, cook until well browned on all sides. Add beans and enough stock to cover. Cover with a lid and bring to a light simmer. Cook for 60 minutes.

Heat a large skillet to medium low, add oil, all chopped vegetables and a pinch of salt. Sweat for 5 minutes then add herbs and tomatoes as well as some pepper. Bring to a simmer and add to the beans. Continue cooking beans and meat until beans are tender. It should be about 30-90 minutes depending on the age of the beans. Remove bay leaves and any herb stalks. Remove meat to a cutting board. Trim off any bones, chop into pieces and add back to stew. Taste and correct for seasoning.

Similar Recipes

Squash, Chickpea & Red Lentil Stew

Beef Bourgignon

Black Bean and Beef Chili Stew

Sausage, Greens, and White Bean Pasta Recipe

katerina — Sun, 24 May 2009 05:15:00 +0000

I love the combination of white beans, kale and sausage in soups and pasta. But…. it isn’t necessarily the most wholesome meal so I tried to scale it back a little bit by using turkey sausage, whole wheat pasta and reduced fat Parmesan (but still the good stuff). Some recipes do not like this treatment and some like it just fine. Luckily this turned out really well, so well, that I ate two portions. Typical. It’s not always about the skinny jeans.

You can make this recipe either way: if you want it a little richer, add a few pats of butter instead of pasta water and choose pork sausages.

Sausage, Greens and White Bean Sauce
(serves 2-4)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 sausages, casing removed
1 teaspoon dried chiles
4 cups mixed greens such as kale and chard, stems removed and roughly chopped
1 can white beans such as navy, cannelini or white northern, rinsed
1/4 cup water or chicken stock
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
salt and pepper

Over medium heat saute the onion until soft. Add sausage breaking into pieces as well as chiles. Continue cooking until browned stirring as needed. Add chicken stock, greens and beans and cover. Cook for about 5 minutes or until greens are wilted. Stir to cook evenly. If it is dry add a bit more stock or some pasta water. Add cheese, freshly ground pepper and pasta and toss. Taste and correct or seasoning.

Slow Cooker Vegetable Soup with Black Eyed Peas Recipe

katerina — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 20:16:00 +0000

We have been together for a year now and I think it’s serious. You have your faults (like being a pain to clean), and you aren’t in as good of shape as when we met (hello large crack in the plastic, and chip in the ceramic insert) but we love each other amidst both of our imperfections. I guess I am saying it first, I love you slow cooker.

This week I learned that it can make vegetable soup and not turn it to mush, even after many many hours. I have been trying to eat less meat lately so a vegetarian soup on another cold day is a really good option. Plus, hello cheap! This batch made two dinners and 4 lunches. Very economical.

Slow Cooker Vegetable Soup with Black Eyed Peas
(makes ~6 servings)

1 small red onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 yellow pepper, chopped
1/2C chopped carrots
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 dozen green onions, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1/2 head of green cabbage, shredded
any leftover vegetables (I had some mushrooms)
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1L chicken or vegetable stock
1t salt
healthy amount of fresh pepper
1C water
2t oregano
3 fresh rosemary sprigs
1t hot chili flakes
1 1/2C cooked or 1 can rinsed black eyed peas

Combine all ingredients except peas in slow cooker and cook for 6-8 hours. Within the last 2 hours before you are ready to serve add the peas. Taste and correct for seasoning and remove rosemary sprigs. Serve.

Note: Because of the acidity in the tomatoes you can probably put the peas in earlier but I only put mine in about 2 hours before, so I haven’t tried it.

Similar Recipes:
Red Lentil and Yam Curry
White Bean Chili *Slow Cooker*
Cassoulet with lots of Vegetables

Black Eyed Pea Veggie Burgers Recipe

katerina — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 10:54:00 +0000

I have been wanting to make veggie burgers for long time and even more so after my successful falafel attempt (10 months, seriously?). I had leftover cooked black eyed peas in the fridge so this seemed like the perfect time. This recipe was inspired by Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian as well as some random Googles I made on my way home.

I would make these again in a heartbeat, they were fantastic, especially served with some jalapenos and yam fries. Yum!

Black Eyed Pea Veggie Burgers
(makes 4 patties)
Adapted from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian

Turn on your oven to 425F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment and spray with cooking spray. In a food processor combine:

2 cups black eyed peas, soaking liquid reserved.
1/2 cup oats
4 chopped green onions
1 egg
1/2 cup cooked broccoli
1 teaspoon chili powder
salt and pepper
a few splashes Worcestershire

Pulse until combined. Take a look at it and if it is too wet (doesn’t pull away from the sides) add some more oats – I added another 1/4 cup. If it looks too dry (won’t form a ball) try adding a bit of the liquid from the beans, olive oil or water. Form into 4 equal balls and shape into patties. Place on prepared sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes, flip and bake for another 10. Smother with ketchup and enjoy.

Black Bean and Turkey Chili Recipe

katerina — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 09:47:00 +0000

I made this chili last week as the beginnings of my post-Christmas detox. Anybody else craving simple, light, healthy food yet? In actual fact, I made this between Christmas and New Years and am trying to start my detox over since it didn’t really stick. (In case you are curious in this house detoxing means only one dessert, only one large glass of wine and something healthy for dinner with lots of vegetables! I don’t mean a liquid only diet or a cabbage soup for a week.)

Rachael Ray’s recipes aren’t known for their healthfulness but I found this recipe for Uptown Down-Home Chili really good and healthy by making a few changes which are below. I actually found this recipe in Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats–A Year of Deliciously Different Dinners (A 30-Minute Meal Cookbook) but it is also posted on the food network website. It is so much harder to find healthy winter comfort food then healthy summer food! (See my tea mug behind the bowl? Desperately trying to keep warm here.)

Black Bean and Turkey Chili (serves 6)

2T extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 lb. ground turkey
1 lb. ground chicken breast
2 T grill seasoning
½lb mushrooms, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 ribs celery, chopped
1 large red pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T Worcestershire sauce
3 canned chipotle peppers, chopped
1 T ground cumin
1 bottle beer
1 (15oz) can black beans, drained
1 (15oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 C chicken stock
3 T fresh thyme leaves
3 T cheddar, shredded for garnish
2 T chopped cilantro, for garnish
3 T plain yogourt, for garnish

Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add 1T olive oil, the meat and grill seasoning. Use a fork to crumble the meat together and brown it evenly. Should take about 5 minutes. Remove the meat to a plate and add the other tablespoon of oil. Add the mushrooms and begin to brown for a few minutes. Once they start to soften push them to the outside of the pot and add the onions, celery peppers and garlic. Sweat until soft and then mix all together. Return meat to the pan and add Worcestershire, cumin, chipotle and stir. Then add beer and simmer while you deglaze (scrape up all the bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon). When the beer has reduced by half add the beans, tomatoes stock and thyme and simmer for ten minutes. Season to taste. Serve topped with shredded cheese, yogourt and cilantro.