FUSION: Savory Beans

An adapted recipe from The Allergy Self-Help Cookbook. Serve these beans over rice, and you will be happy.

4 TBSP olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
2 large ribs celery, thinly sliced
4 carrots, thinly sliced
2 TBSP Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
4 tsp dried basil
2 tsp dried oregano
4 cloves garlic, crushed
dash of ground red pepper
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
4 cups (or two 15-oz cans) cooked kidney beans (or pinto beans)
4 TBSP water
2 cups chopped tomatoes

1. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, and carrots and cook for 12 minutes or until tender.
2. Stir in the Bragg’s, basil, oregano, garlic, red pepper, and 1/2 cup of the parsley.
3. Add the beans, water, and tomatoes. Cover and cook for 10 minutes or until heated through. Top with remaining parsley and cook for 2 more minutes. Serve!

NORTH AMERICAN: Taco Salad

With an abundance of end-of-summer tomatoes and homemade ranch dressing, I decided to find a way to make a taco salad, something I haven’t eaten in a long, long time.

2 heads of romaine lettuce
4 tomatoes
1 onion
1 green pepper
1 1/2 cups frozen corn (thawed)
2 cups kidney beans
8 ounces of ranch dressing (or substitute)
1 packet of taco seasoning mix
1 tsp lime juice
1 avocado
13 1/2 ounce bag of tortilla chips

1. Chop lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and green pepper. Mix together with corn and kidney beans.
2. Mix ranch dressing with lime juice and taco seasoning mix. Add to the vegetables.
3. Smash the chips into bite-size pieces. Add the chips and the chopped avocado just before you’re ready to eat.

You can’t save the leftovers, so make only as much as you can eat.

FUSION: Miso Chili

1 onion, chopped

½ cup water

red or green pepper, seeded and chopped

½ tsp ground black pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ TBSP dried oregano

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

2 tsp chili powder

1 ½ cups kidney beans

chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

1 cup cooked brown rice or quinoa

14 oz can stewed tomatoes

2 TBSP miso

1. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, pepper, and garlic, cooking until softened.
2. Add tomatoes, beans, grains, and dried seasoning.
3. Dilute miso in ½ cup water and add to saucepan. Simmer 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and garnish in individual bowls with cilantro.

From a tofu/soyfoods cookbook

AMERICAN SOUTHWEST: South of-the-Border Sandwich Spread

From The Allergy Self-Help Cookbook by Marjorie Hurt Jones

While Jeff and I were watching Lars and the Real Girl the other night, we kept going back for more of this spread and toast. I didn’t have any parsley, so I just doubled the celery leaves. Also, I used a combination of pinto beans and red beans with onions and garlic that I had cooked last week.

2 cups cooked pinto or kidney beans
1/4 cup tomato paste or ketchup
1/4 cup minced parsley
1/4 cup minced celery leaves
1/4 cup finely chopped onions
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp mild or hot chili powder
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

In a bowl, mash the beans with a fork. Stir in the tomato paste or ketchup, parsley, celery, onions, salt, chili powder, and cayenne. Adjust seasonings to taste. It’s best if it’s made a few hours ahead to allow the flavors to blend fully.

Dip Variation: Add 2 to 4 TBSP water until a dip consistency is reached.

MEXICAN: Taco Filling

From Simply in Season, a cookbook I got last Christmas from Ten Thousand Villages. The book is written by Mary Beth Lind and Cathleen Hockman-Wert.

1 pound ground meat or 2 cups kidney beans (cooked)
¾ cup onion, chopped
½ cup green pepper, chopped
1 carrot, shredded
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 TBSP fresh cilantro, or 1 tsp dried
1 TBSP fresh parsley, or 1 tsp dried
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp lime juice
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp salt
Dash of chipotle pepper or other hot chili pepper
¾ cup cooked rice

1. In a large frypan, sauté the meat, onions, green peppers, and carrot until the onions are clear and the meat is browned. If using beans, drain them, reserving the liquid, and set aside. Do not cook them with the onions, etc.
2. Add the garlic, cilantro, parsley, chili powder, lime juice, cumin, salt, and hot pepper. Sauté until the garlic is cooked. If using beans, add to the mixture with enough liquid so that it can simmer without getting dried out. If using meat, add liquid if needed so that it can stew a little, allowing flavors to blend.
3. Add the rice and stir well. Use mixture to top tortilla chips or to fill taco shells or tortillas. Garnish with any of the following: grated sharp cheese, chopped tomatoes, chopped onions, sliced jalapeno peppers, olives, shredded lettuce or spinach, fresh cilantro, chopped avocado, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, or plain yogurt.

ITALIAN: Pasta e Fagioli

Hey, Kayla and Lisa, this is what we ate this weekend. Well, one of the things we ate this weekend.

from Easy Beans by Trish Ross

3 TBSP olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 19oz-can diced tomatoes
½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup cooked kidney beans
1 cup penne or fettuccine pasta

1. In a medium saucepan, sauté the garlic in oil over medium heat for two minutes. Add the tomatoes, parsley, basil, and oregano. Simmer for fifteen minutes, breaking up the tomatoes.
2. Add the beans and simmer for five minutes. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired.
3. Cook the pasta according to package directions. Keep it warm.
4. Place the warm pasta in a heated bowl. Cover it with sauce. Toss well.

PUERTO RICAN: Rice and Beans

Here’s a recipe I think I found on Recipezaar. We are eating this for lunch today. We never have leftovers of Puerto Rican Rice and Beans. If you make your own seasoning blends, you can be sure they’re free of all those pesky allergens.

1 16 oz.-can kidney beans
4 oz. tomato sauce
¼ tsp salt
1 envelope Goya Sazon con Achiote seasoning (or ¼ cup or 2 ice cubes of homemade sazon—see recipe below)
1 ½ TBSP of Goya Sofrito seasoning (or homemade sofrito—see recipe below. If frozen, use one ice cube)
½ tsp garlic powder
1 small cooked potato, cubed
1 ½ cups uncooked rice
2 ½ cups water
1 TBSP oil
½ tsp salt

In a large heavy pot, with a tight fitting lid, put the 2 and ½ cups of water, tablespoon of oil, and ½ tsp of salt. Bring it to a boil and stir in the rice.

Bring the rice to a boil again over medium high heat. Stir it, and boil for a full minute. Then put the lid on and reduce the heat to medium low.

Cook for 20 minutes without lifting the lid. After those twenty minutes or so, take off the lid and, with a large spoon, begin lifting the rice from the bottom and bring it to the top. If the rice is not quite cooked, put the lid back on for another 10 minutes and check again.

When the rice is done, put the lid back on and reduce the heat to low for 5-10 minutes. Then turn off the heat.

In a medium saucepan, mix the can of beans, tomato sauce, salt, sazon, sofrito, garlic powder, and cubed cooked potato. Cook it over medium heat while stirring occasionally until the mixture is thickened and hot.

Eat!