White Bean, Ham and Corn Soup

My entire family really liked this, which tends to be a rare occasion these days. 3 out of 4 I can do, but 4 out of 4? Quite a victory. I served it with bread and butter.

Crockpot White Bean and Ham Soup

2 c cooked white beans

1 c frozen corn

1/2 - 3/4 c diced ham - used mostly for flavor

2 carrots, diced

1/2 onion, diced

2 c chicken broth - I used the broth from this post

1 potato, cubed

1 c water

Mix all in crockpot and cook on high 2-3 hours

Black Eyed Pea Stew with Rice

Perfect for New Years Day - gotta eat those peas to ensure a good year!

Ingredients
2 cups fresh black-eyed peas
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup finely chopped yellow onion
8 ounces turkey sausage halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cups vegetable or chicken broth

2 cups water

1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 (28-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes
3 cups chopped fresh kale

cooked brown rice

Directions
1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion to pan; cook 3 minutes or until tender. Add sausage; cook 4 minutes or until lightly browned.

2. Stir in broth; bring to a simmer, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Stir in peas, salt, peppers, and bay leaves. Cover and simmer 45 - 60 minutes or until peas begin to soften.

3. Uncover and cook 15 minutes or until liquid begins to thicken.

4. Just before serving, stir in vinegar, tomatoes, and mustard greens; simmer 10 minutes or until peas are tender, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaves.

5. Serve over brown rice.

It's really good with cornbread.

Tuscan White Bean and Tomato Stew

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 cups diced onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1 Tbsp fresh rosemary

1 tsp each dried thyme and sage

28 oz diced tomatoes (I use 1 can salted and one can unsalted)

3 cups cooked white beans

10 oz fresh baby spinach

12 oz cooked pasta (I used a blend of leftover bags, this time was orzo and elbows)

Directions:

1. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil over medium high heat, until onions begin to brown.

2. Add herbs and saute for 1 minute.

3. Add diced tomatoes and beans and bring to a boil. Add more water if you like your soup a little thinner. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.

4. Add spinach and cook until spinach wilts.

5. Stir in pasta and serve.

Ratings:

4 thumbs up - both kids and both adults.

Mediterranean Chickpea Salad

Good on it's own or as a sandwich filling in a pita or bread.

Ingredients:
1 c whole milk Greek yogurt
2 Tb lemon juice
1/2 t cumin
1 chopped red bell pepper
1/4 c chopped onion
1/4 c chopped cilantro
3 c cooked chickpeas

Directions
1. Mix all ingredients together and chill for at least an hour.
2. Enjoy!

Black Bean Tortilla Bake

Slightly modified this recipe. I assembled it in the morning before work and then baked it when I got home. Worked out great and everyone loved it.

Ingredients

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 c chopped onion

1/2 c chopped red or green bell pepper

1/2 c chopped green onion

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 8oz can tomato sauce

2 cups black beans, rinsed (if using canned)

1/4 c cilantro

1 cup shredded cheese

8-12 corn tortillas

Directions (make ahead):

1. Saute garlic, onions, peppers, cumin and chili powder over medium heat until tender.

2. Add tomato sauce and cook 5 minutes.

3. Remove from heat and stir in beans, cilantro and salt/pepper to taste.

4. Spray a 9in square or 1 qt baking dish with cooking spray

5. Layer tortillas, filling and cheese. Repeat twice.

6. Top with cheese.

7. Cover and refrigerate.

8. When ready to bake, remove from fridge for 30 minutes and bake, covered, for 20 minutes and uncovered for 10 minutes.

Black Bean Pizza

Ingredients:

1 pizza crust (I use this one, but do it in the bread machine)

1 can black beans (or 1-1.5 cups cooked black beans)

1 diced tomato

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

0.5 tsp cumin

0.5 tsp oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Toppings:

Cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream

Directions:

1. Make pizza crust

2. Cook black beans, tomato, cilantro, cumin and oregano to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer 10-15 minutes.

3. Puree bean and tomato mixture

4. Spread bean mixture over pizza crust, top with cheese and bake at 425 for 8-10 minutes, or until cheese is browning

5. Remove from oven and let cool a bit.

6. Top with shredded lettuce and tomatoes.

Quick Black-Bean Tortilla Soup

I threw this together last Sunday before church and let it stay warm in the crockpot until we got home.

Ingredients
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 can black beans, drained
1 can diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn
1 can broth (or water)
handful of chopped cilantro (to taste)

Directions:
1. Saute onion, garlic and bell pepper in oil until fragrant.
2. Add all other ingredients and bring to a boil
3. Simmer 10-15 minutes

Serve with tortilla chips and sour cream.

Black Bean and Barley Chili

This is one of my all time favorite recipes. I've modified it from Cooking Light. It's great for large gatherings where there will be a mix of vegetarians and meat eaters since it's a vegetarian recipe that doesn't really taste like a vegetarian recipe.

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles
2/3 cup pearled barley
1/2 cup water
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can vegetable broth

Preparation
1. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and bell pepper; sauté 3 minutes.
2. Add chili powder and next 4 ingredients (chili powder through green chiles); cook 1 minute. 3. Stir in barley and next 4 ingredients (barley through broth); bring to a boil.
4. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes or until barley is tender.

Good served with chopped cilantro, avocado, sour cream and cheese.

Black-eyed Peas and Tomatoes

Perfect for New Years Day!

Ingredients
2 cups dried black-eyed peas (1 bag)
1 tablespoon oil
3/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
8 ounces turkey kielbasa, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (optional, but adds a lot of flavor)
4 cups broth
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (leave out if you have a spice sensitive kid....)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 (28-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes
1 (10-ounce) bag prewashed greens (I used spinach)
Brown Rice

Preparation
1. Sort and wash peas; set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion to pan; cook 3 minutes or until tender. Add sausage; cook 4 minutes or until lightly browned.
3. Stir in broth; bring to a simmer, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Stir in peas, salt, peppers, and bay leaves. Cover and simmer 45 minutes or until peas begin to soften. Uncover and cook 15 minutes or until liquid begins to thicken.
4. Stir in vinegar, tomatoes, and mustard greens; simmer 10 minutes or until peas are tender, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaves.
5. Serve over rice

Pinto Beans

One of the best recipes for beans that I've come across

2 Tb oil
1 c chopped onion
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large jalapeno, cut lengthwise in half
1 Tb oregano
1 tsp cumin
8.5 cups water
1lb dried pinto beans, rinsed and soaked
1 Tb packed brown sugar
1 tsp salt


1. Saute onion in oil for 3 min (until translucent)
2. Add garlic, jalapeno, oregano and cumin and saute 1 min.
3. Add water and beans and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer 1 hour.
5. Discard jalapeno. Add sugar and salt to beans.
6. Simmer uncovered until most of liquid has evaporated and beans are tender, about 1 hour.

Delicious served with rice and a side of jalapeno cornbread.

Quinoa with Salsa and Black Beans

This has become one of our weekly staples. Quick, easy and oh-so-tasty.

2 Tb olive oil
1 c dry quinoa
1 c salsa
2 c water
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1. Heat the oil and brown the quinoa.
2. Mix in salsa and water and bring to a boil. Add beans, cover and simmer for 20 min or until quinoa is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.

Black Beans and Brown Rice

Ingredients
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 c celery, chopped
1-2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can black beans, undrained

1/2 c vegetable broth (or water)
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste


Add olive oil to pan and preheat over medium high heat. Saute bell pepper, onion, celery and garlic until tender. Add beans, broth, vinegar, cumin, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve over brown rice.