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Posts Tagged ‘beans’

Main Dishes,Soup

January 20, 2011

Black Bean Tomato Soup
Posted by betsyjo

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This was so good that I wanted to post it right away!  I’ve made at least two other black bean soups, and this blows them both out of the water.  It’s from The Kitchen Sink Recipes, which I started reading a few months ago, and her recipes always look delicious!

I used my immersion blender (thanks, Mom!) to blend this, but I didn’t totally puree it.  Yummy!  (By the way, the chipotle powder makes this spicy.  Remember, you can always add more! :))

Black Bean Tomato Soup

2 center-cut bacon slices, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion (about 1 small)
1/4 cup chopped celery
1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5-ounce) can tomatoes, undrained
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth (or homemade)
Garnishes: sour cream, slivered scallions, lime wedges, cilantro leaves, tortilla chips

Cook bacon in a large saucepan over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, reserving 1 teaspoon drippings in pan; set bacon aside.

Add onion and celery to pan; cook 5 minutes or until celery is tender. Stir in 2 teaspoons cumin, chile powder, and garlic; cook 1 minute. Stir in bacon, pepper, beans, tomatoes, and broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.

Place half of bean mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Pour into a large bowl. Repeat procedure with remaining bean mixture; process until smooth.

Serve with the garnishes.

Main Dishes,Soup,Vegetarian

January 10, 2011

White Bean and Chard Stew
Posted by Chammer

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Stolen 100% from Smitten Kitchen.  This dish is fantastic and vegetarian.  I made bread last week, so we toasted it up in the oven with some garlic and had poached eggs on top.  So good.

1 pound Swiss chard (can also swap kale, spinach or another green), ribs and stems removed and cleaned
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup (5 1/4 ounces) chopped carrots
1 cup (5 ounces) chopped celery
1 cup (4 1/4 ounces) chopped shallots, about 4 medium
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup dry white wine
2 15-ounce cans (or about 3 3/4 cups) white beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups (or more to taste) vegetable broth
1 cup pureed tomatoes (from a can/carton/your jarred summer supply)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

Toasted bread slices, poached eggs (tutorial), chopped herbs such as tarragon, parsley or chives or grated Parmesan or Romano to serve (optional)

Bring medium pot of salted water to boil. Cook chard (or any heavier green; no need to precook baby spinach) for one minute, then drain and squeeze out as much extra water as possible. Coarsely chop chard.

Wipe out medium pot to dry it, and heat olive oil over medium. Add carrots, celery, shallots and garlic and saute for 15 minutes. Barber warns not to brown them but I didn’t mind a light golden color on them. Add wine (scraping up any bits that have stuck to the pot) and cook it until it reduced by three-fourths. Add beans, broth, tomatoes, a few pinches of salt, freshly ground black pepper, thyme and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes. Add chard and cook for 5 minutes more. Remove thyme and bay leaf. Add more broth if you’d like a thinner stew and adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Serve as is drizzled with sherry vinegar. Or you can ladle the stew over thick piece of toasted country bread or baguette that has been rubbed lightly with half a clove of garlic, top that with a poached egg and a few drops of sherry vinegar and/or some grated cheese.

Main Dishes,Vegetarian

December 6, 2010

Okra & Chickpea Tagine
Posted by Chammer

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This came from Eatingwell.com.  Served it with rice.

  • 1 pound fresh or frozen okra, stem ends trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 10 sprigs fresh cilantro, plus more leaves for garnish
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 red bell pepper, finely diced
  • 1 medium onion, finely diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 3 plum tomatoes, diced, or 1 cup drained canned diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon harissa, (see Ingredient Note) or hot sauce, or to taste

Directions:

  1. Place a large bowl of ice water next to the stove. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add okra and cook for 2 minutes. Transfer the okra with a slotted spoon to the ice water. Drain.
  2. Tie cilantro sprigs together with kitchen string.
  3. Heat oil in a tagine dish set over a heat diffuser or a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper. Cook, stirring, until soft, 2 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl with a slotted spoon.
  4. Add onion, garlic, ginger and pepper to the pan. Cook, stirring, until the onion is soft, 3 to 6 minutes. Mix in tomatoes, broth, cumin, the okra, cilantro sprigs and half the bell pepper. Reduce heat to medium; partially cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the okra is soft, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in chickpeas and salt; cook for 4 minutes. Remove from the heat; discard the cilantro sprigs. Stir in harissa (or hot sauce). Serve sprinkled with the remaining bell pepper and cilantro leaves, if desired.

Main Dishes,Seafood

November 10, 2010

Baked Fish with Chorizo & White Beans
Posted by Chammer

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Mmmm…fish. Okay, so not my favorite food. However, I went to a fish market where I could literally see the ocean from their back window (though it was night when I was there, so not really). This was a fantastic fish recipe! And of course, I’m sure the fresh fish did not hurt at all (pretty sure it was caught the same day I bought it…yesterday!). Mmmm…

(recipe courtesy EatingWell.com)
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 ounces Spanish chorizo or turkey kielbasa, diced
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup dry white wine, divided
1 15-ounce can great northern beans, rinsed
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 1/4 pounds white fish, cut into 4 pieces
Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preparation
Preheat oven to 425°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shallot, chorizo (or kielbasa) and thyme and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and 1/4 cup wine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes are broken down and the wine is almost evaporated, 2 to 4 minutes. Stir in beans and 1/4 teaspoon salt and remove from the heat.
Sprinkle fish with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper; place in the prepared baking dish. Top each piece of fish with equal amounts of the tomato mixture (about 1/2 cup per fillet). Pour the remaining 1/4 cup wine into the pan and cover the pan with foil. Bake until the fish is just cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve the fish with the sauce spooned over the top.

Main Dishes,Vegetarian

March 16, 2010

Hearty Chickpea Ragout
Posted by Mama

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Dad made this over the weekend. The beans he used needed to be soaked overnight or at least soaked for 6-8 hours in hot water. After cooking the whole pot for about 1 1/2 additional hours the beans were less al dente!

1 1/2 C. dried chickpeas (or 2 cups canned, drained chickpeas)

2 T. olive oil

1 med. onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

1/2  t. thyme leaves

1/2 bunch kale, thicker stems removed and discarded, leaves coarsely choppe3d

Salt and pepper to taste

2 red bell peppers, cored and cut into 1/2 in. thick strips

2 T. red wine vinegar

2 C. tomato puree (sauce)

2 C. chicken, beef or vegetable broth

1/2 C. pearl barley, rinsed

Grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese, to taste

If using dried chickpeas, soak in cold water to cover for 4 to 6 hours. (See note above.)

In a medium-size pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onion, garlic and thyme. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and golden, about 10 minutes. Add the kale, stirring to coat it with the oil. Season the mixture with salt and pepper and cook for 10 minutes, until kale is somewhat softened. Stir in the red peppers, increase the heat to high, and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and cook over high heat, stirring frequently, until the liquid is almost completely evaporated. Add the tomato puree and the stock or broth and bring to a boil.

Once the liquid boils, add barley and soaked, drained chickpeas. (Do not add canned chickpeas at this point). Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and let the mixture simmer for about 30 minutes. If using canned chickpeas, stir them into the mixture and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for another 10 to 15 minutes, checking the tenderness of the barley and the chickpeas, both of which should be al dente. Ladle the ragout into warmed soup bowls and top each serving with grated cheese if desired.

Serves 8.