Smoky Black Bean Soup & Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

Has it really been last summer since any of us wrote on this recipe blog?!  Have I got something yummy and perfect for these winter days to share with you!

A friend gave me Fine Cooking's One-Pot Meals magazine from 2011.  She said it had recipes that were too fancy for her to want to try.  I've been looking at them for a couple weeks now, looking forward to the day when I have ingredients to try some of the more scrumptious looking ones.  Coq Au Vin  with a spin anyone?

Last night I was looking at it again and realized there was one recipe I could do with ingredients we already had on hand.  Smoky Black Bean Soup.  I didn't have all the ingredients, but knew it was doable with some improvisation.  Totally yum.  While it did not pass my four year old's taste test, due in large part because he refused to even take a taste, it passed our taste tests with flying colors.  I do think that the average child who is willing to try a new food would like it and not find it too spicy.  It's full of flavor, very savory, and reminds us why slow cooking is such a great idea.

Grace gave me a delectable gluten free biscuit recipe very much like what you find at Red Lobster.  Tonight I made the recipe without using the gluten free mix, and it was still just as yummy.  These biscuits heat up well as leftovers in loosely wrapped foil package in the oven.  Store any leftovers in the frig.

Here's my version of Fine Cooking's Smoky Black Bean Soup:

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups Dried Black Beans, picked over
1 T. Oil
1 Small Onion, cut into 1/4 inch dice
2 Leeks, white and light green parts, chopped and rinsed well, about 2 cups (I only had a cup.)
2 Medium Ribs Celery, cut into 1/4 inch dice
3 Carrots, cut into 1/4 inch dice
1 Ham Bone with a bit of meat
6 cups Water
3 Bay Leaves
2 tsp. Dried Thyme
1 tsp. Herbamare Salt (You could just use Kosher Salt.  The Herbamare is infused with herbs.)
1 28 oz. can Crushed Tomatoes
5-6 Dashes Hot Sauce (I used Frank's Original.)
1 T. Maple Syrup
Optional Sour Cream/Plain Yogurt for Garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. The night before, soak the beans in 6 cups of cool water after they have been thoroughly rinsed.

2. The next morning, rinse the beans well and set aside. (Or if you need more time, rinse them and put them in a second soaking of water for a few more hours.)

3. In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat and add the onion, leeks, celery, and carrots.  Cook, stirring often, until the veggies are soft and beginning to brown a bit.  This should take about 10 minutes.

4. Add the drained beans, ham bone, 6 cups of water, bay leaves, thyme, and salt to the pot.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a low simmer, cover, and cook for 2 - 2.5 hours.  If the beans are tender at this point, remove the ham bone and bay leaves.  If they aren't, continue cooking a bit more.  Put the ham bone on a plate to cool so you can strip off some of the meat.

5. Puree about three cups of the soup mixture in a blender and return to Dutch oven with the rest of the soup.

6. Add the crushed tomatoes, hot sauce, and maple syrup.  Stir to combine.

7. The meat on the ham bone should be falling-off tender at this point.  Add whatever amount you prefer to the pot and stir in.  Cook about 15 more minutes to let flavors meld.  Serve with biscuits and the sour cream or plain yogurt for garnish, if you prefer.

8. You'll have enough to serve 4-6 people, or plenty to freeze for a later meal.


Here's a non-gluten free, slightly tweaked version of Grace's Garlic Cheddar Biscuits:

INGREDIENTS:
1 c. Trader Joe's Multi-Grain Baking Mix
1/3 cup Milk
1/4 cup Oil
1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Mix all ingredients with a fork.  Using a large cookie or muffin scoop, drop onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

2. Bake for 12 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Makes about 7 good-sized biscuits.

3. Thank your lucky stars that you know Grace.

***If you need the GF version, Grace uses Pamela's Pancake Mix.  And it's quite yum.***

Lentil Fare for Kork

Okay, Kork, awhile ago you asked for recipes using beans or lentils. I use them all the time, but kept forgetting to post. So now I'm making time to post...a new recipe tried just tonight. So that means it still needs tweaking, yet it's good enough to enjoy as-is now. If you like Indian food, this is a wonderful, flavorful combination of Indian and Iranian food. I scoured the internet for chicken dhansak recipes (my favorite thing to get when we eat at Indian restaurants), finding variety after variety that differed greatly in both ingredients and method. This is the one I am going with until my dream cookbook arrives. It is actually a combination of three different recipes. I made it in the crock pot so that we'd have dinner ready when we got back from a medical appointment in Vancouver, mainly so my hungry self wouldn't beg my husband to take us out for dinner. End result? Who needs to go out when food at home can be this good?

My only warning...you must have a good variety of spices in your kitchen. If not, you'll need to build up slowly. I only had to buy a couple, since I've slowly been adding to my collection. I currently use mainly ground spices, but you can use whole ones if you have a mortar and pestle.

Here goes....

INGREDIENTS:
1 large yam or sweet potato, peeled and cubed
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in small cubes
1 c. red split lentils
1 c. brown or green lentils
1/4 c. split peas
1 T. sunflower oil or any groundnut oil
1 red onion, chopped in small pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced fine
2 T. fresh ginger, minced fine (I buy fresh ginger on sale and store it in a freezer bag in our deep freeze so it's there whenever I need it without necessitating a trip to the grocery)
2 T. Tamarind paste (I had Tamarind preserves from Guadelupe and used that instead)
5-6 dried red chillies (DanPak has some basic red chillies you can easily find.)
1 tsp. Turmeric
2 tsp. Cumin
1 tsp. Coriander
1/4 tsp. Cloves (ground, or 2 whole cloves otherwise)
2 tsp. Garam Masala
1/2 tsp. Cardamom
1 Cinnamon stick, broken in 2 or 3 pieces
1 tsp. Demerara sugar (a dark brown sugar)
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Black Pepper
2 T. Malt Vinegar (I confess that I used another type since I didn't have that one in my pantry.)
1 small can diced tomatoes in liquid (maybe 1.5 c. size)
3 c. boiling chicken stock
2 T. Cilantro, chopped fresh
Rice
Naan Bread

Instructions:
1. In chicken stock, boil green/brown lentils and split peas for a few minutes. (do NOT add the red lentils to this!) Drain the lentils, reserving the stock.

2. Put sweet potato, chicken pieces, split peas and both types of lentils in crock pot and stir well.

3. Heat oil in separate pan and saute onion, garlic, and ginger for a 3 minutes over medium heat. Stir in dried chillies and dried spices and cook another minute.

4. Add sugar, tomatoes with their juices, vinegar, and chicken stock and bring to a boil for 3 minutes. Then pour carefully over chicken mixture in crock pot.

5. Stir; cover; and cook on low 6-7 hours. At the 6 hour mark, check liquid level. You will most likely have a thick mixture and will want to add about 2 cups of water and cook a few minutes longer. You want to have a slightly soupy mixture for the Naan bread to having something to soak up. The reason you don't add the water at the beginning is because it is easier to achieve a desired consistency by adding more water than trying to deal with something that is too soupy from the beginning.

6. Ladle into a large serving bowl, taking care to scoop out cinnamon pieces (which will have uncurled into woody rectangles) and red chillies. Sprinkle freshly chopped cilantro on top. Serve over rice with Naan bread on the side. (We cheated and bought rice when we picked up hot Naan bread and Samosas at the local Indian cafe on the way home, but normally we'd use brown Basmati rice.)

*We found this not too spicy at all for our toddler. The flavors will intensify the following day and meld even more. This served two, plus leftovers for both of us to have lunch, and enough to freeze a dinner's worth when we have Indian night with friends in a couple of weeks. If you want to adjust the heat of the spice more, you could add green chillies, or 1/4-1/2 tsp. of hot chili powder.

Mmmmm-Possible Chicken Pot Pie

This is one of those recipes my mom used to make when she was working full-time that tasted as though it was made and slaved over for hours...

Ingredients:
1 2/3 C frozen mixed veggies - thawed and drained (frozen don't get quite as mushy when the pie is done)
1 C cooked chicken, cut or shredded
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 C Bisquick (or other baking mix - I make my own)
1/2 C milk
1 Egg

Directions:

Heat oven to 400 (425 for high altitude). Mix veggies, chicken & soup in 9" pie plate. Stir baking mix, egg and milk together and pour over chicken mixture. Bake for 30 minutes.

Once this is made, it can be frozen, and then just defrosted and re-heated in the oven.

Chicken Delicious

This is my mom's best "Care" recipe. She often makes it when she is taking meals to folks that are down with surgery etc, but it is so easy, we eat it about once a month around our house!

Ingredients:
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts rinsed and patted dry. (I use a mix of breasts, and leg/thigh for juicier results)
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can Cream of Chicken or Celery soup
salt & pepper to taste
Paprika
1 Tbsp lemon juice

Directions:
Put chicken in crock pot, and cover with other ingredients. Cook on low in your 6 - 8 hours. Serve with rice, noodles, biscuits, dumplings and a cooked veggie or salad.

This recipe can be made ahead, doubled, tripled etc.

Chili

This is for Zann - hoping this will help as the Little Person's imminent revival rapidly approaches...

Prep Time : 25 minutes
Cook Time: At least one hour

Ingredients:
1 lb of ground meat (I use beef, but you can use turkey if you'd like)
Large can of Kuner's Chili Beans In Sauce (your flavor/temp choice)
Large can of Tomato Sauce
4 ounce Tomato paste
Salt
Pepper
Chili Powder

Directions:
In large skillet, brown ground meat, season with salt and pepper to taste. Drain well. In large stockpot, combine Chili Beans, Tomato Paste and Sauce with one can of water for each can of tomato product. Add meat. Season with about 3 Tbsp of Chili Powder. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for at least one hour, stirring frequently to avoid sticking.

This recipe can be doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled, depending on the size of your stockpot. Simply ladle into your freezer container/bag, seal tightly and freeze. You can then defrost it just enough to dump the contents into your crock-pot, and heat through.

We eat this with tortillas, rice, tortilla chips, or corn bread/muffins. I often top it with shredded cheese, sour cream, and some times chopped onion. No ice cream here, sorry Farmie! hee hee...

Freezer Chicken Pot Pies

This came out of a Cook's Country Magazine. You definitely have to freeze these for a few days before you bake them. They are really soupy when you make them but thicken up while frozen and then when baked.



Freezer Chicken Pot Pies



1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper
2Tbls. veggie oil
5 1/2 c. low-sodium chicken broth
2 Tbls. unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped fine
3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 celery rib, chopped fine
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. milk
2 tsp. minced fresh thyme or 1 tsp dry
2 Tbls lemon juice
1 (15 oz.) boxes Pillsbury ready to roll pie crust
1 large egg, beaten, plus 1 large egg, beaten, for baking
1 1/2 c. frozen peas



1. To make ahead: Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 Tbls. oil in lg dutch oven over high heat until just smoking. Cook chicken until well browned, about 2 1/2 minutes per side. Add broth and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat until cooked through, 6-8 minutes. Transfer chicken to large plate and strain broth into bowl.



2. Melt butter with remaining 1 Tbls. oil in now empty dutch oven over med-high heat. Cook onion, carrots, celery and 1/4 tsp. salt until lightly browned and softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, add flour, and cook 1 minute. Whisk in reserved broth, milk, and thyme and simmer until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.



3. Meanwhile, using 2 forks, shred chicken into bite-sized pieces. Off heat, add chicken and lemon juice to sauce and season with salt and pepper. Transfer filling to medium bowl and cool until just warm. cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled, about 1 hour.



4. Unwrap and unroll pie crusts onto lightly floured surface. Glue 2 crusts together using 1 beaten egg. Do this again with remaining two crusts. Cut out 6 pastry toppings(I use the small disposable aluminum rectangle pans and just use the top as a template for your crusts) Stir frozen peas into cold filling and divide mixture among six 2-cup disposable aluminum loaf pans. Top with pastry and use fork to seal edges. Using paring knife, make 3 steam vents in each crust. Tightly wrap each loaf pan in 2 layers of plastic wrap and 1 layer of foil. Freeze for up to 2 months.



5. When ready to serve: Adjust oven to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Unwrap frozen pot pies and arrange on rimmed baking sheet. Brush crusts with egg, cover with foil, and bake 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until crusts are golden brown, about 35 minutes. Let pot pies rest 10 minutes before serving.

Freezer Cooking

Here is a link to something I've used: 30 Day Gourmet I have the Freezer Cooking Manual and it was a life saver when my boys were little. I still use techniques I learned from it. Like: browning ground beef, pork, chicken or turkey ahead and freezing. Marinating the meat in the freezer(put your meat-chicken, pork or beef-in your freezer container with the marinade and freeze it that way. Then while it defrosts it marinades and all you have to do is 1. remember to take it out of the freezer and 2. cook it up). I also will chop up onion and peppers and freeze those as well. Great for soups or sauces. Hope this helps.

Picadillo

This is one of my favorite recipes. It came from a cookbook published by a fantastic restaurant in Buffalo Gap, TX: http://www.periniranch.com/. Some of my favorite recipes come from their cookbook. I highly recommend it. I have made my own ranch dressing from scratch, fantastic chicken fried steak, incredible cream gravy, and many, many more things from this book. It's the most-used and most-loved cookbook in my house. The following recipe is one I modified:

It is fantastic stuff! I make a big batch and then we have it in regular tacos, put it in our Queso, and wrap it up with eggs and cheese in a tortilla for a great breakfast taco...

Here's my modified version:

2 pounds lean ground beef
1 white onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, pressed

Brown these together in a large frying pan on medium-low heat, then add:

1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1 bell or sweet pepper, chopped

Stir those around, then add:

1 cup beef broth with 2 Tbsp flour mixed in

If the broth doesn't cover the meat mixture, add more until it just barely covers.

Cover and simmer on low for 10 minutes, then add:

1 white potato, peeled and cut into a 1/2 inch dice
2 whole jalapenos for flavor

Cover and simmer for another 10 - 15 minutes.*

*I typically remove the lid and let the liquid simmer off and evaporate for another 20 minutes or so.

Mmmmm!

Tator Tot Casserole

This was a favorite when my kids were younger and it was cheap too. It freezes well and can be reheated in the oven or microwave.

1 lb of lean ground beef
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can (fill soup can) of milk
1/2 bag of frozen tator tots
1/2 bag of frozen peas
3 oz of cheese (optional)

Brown ground beef and drain. Combine soup and milk, mix thoroughly. In a 13x9 pan mix ground beef, soup mixture, tator tots and frozen peas. Sprinkle cheese on top (Optional) Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes. Remove from oven and let set for 5 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Almond Candy

This recipe was from a neighbor of my Grandmas in the 1960's who was from Europe. Gram made these every Christmas for us and for the last 4 years we've (mom and I) have been making them now.

In a bowl Mix together with your hands works best.

• 2 cups coconut
• 1 cube of butter
• 4 cups nut meats chopped medium fine. (I use almonds..One year I did use walnuts for a different flavor)

Next add

• 7 cups of powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla (may need to add more depending on your preference)
• 1 can of sweetened condensed milk

Thoroughly mix with your hands. Take mixture and roll into small balls and place onto wax paper in rows.

NEXT:

On the stovetop, heat a double broiler with a Block of Parafin Wax and 12 oz of chocolate chips (I've also used peanut butter chips and butterscotch chips) together. Thoroughly mix well.

Use a toothpick or some use a nail and dip premade balls into chocolate and place back on wax paper to harden.

Freezes Well. Place in a tin lined with wax or parchment paper, stack and place wax or parchment paper over the top before placing tin lid on. These were made for Temera (Farm Fairy) and Bruno last Christmas. See Link

Henry David's Favorite Squash Soup

***I found a recipe for squash soup in the Canadian Reader's Digest, tweaked it to suit the contents of my pantry, and out came a thick soup that Henry David adores. I like it so much that I don't have to drown it in cheese and crackers, which is my usual reaction to most soups. This freezes well, so it's an easy thing to make in the fall and use up all year long. The way I make it is totally healthy too, so you can feel free to eat that chocolate bar afterward if you like.

Ingredients:
Olive oil
1 Yellow Onion, roughly chopped
3 Cloves Garlic, roughly minced
2 T. Freshly Grated Gingerroot
1/2 to 3/4 tsp. Ground Cumin
1 Butternut Squash (about six cups), peeled and cubed
2.5 c. Vegetable Broth (recipe on that included in notes)
4 Carrots, peeled and chopped into 2" pieces
Juice of 1 Orange (fresh is best here)
Juice of 1 Lemon (fresh is best here)
1 tsp. Grated Orange Zest
Salt (kosher & regular table salt)
Black Pepper

Kitchenware Needed:
*Steamer pan with lid
*Skillet
*Food Processor
*Good vegetable peeler (I like the Good Grips model.)
*Knives & Cutting Board
*Hand Juicer & Strainer
*Crockpot

Instructions:
1. Peel and cut squash into 2x2 chunks. Place in steamer pan, sprinkle with a bit of salt, and cover. Cook until pieces are easily pierced with a fork. Do this in batches until all squash is cooked, and place already cooked squash in a bowl until all is cooked. (It takes me two batches, and they each take about 10-12 minutes.)

2. Peel and cut carrots. Place them in small saucepan filled with 2.5 cups of water. Heat over medium-high heat until pieces are easily pierced with a fork. (I cook this the whole time I'm doing all the squash.) It is VERY IMPORTANT to reserve the water from this once the carrots are cooked. I'll explain why in a bit.

3. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onions and garlic. Cook and stir until onions begin to soften, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in gingerroot and cook for another 30 seconds or so.

4. Add squash and carrots to onion mixture and stir. Transfer in small batches to food processor. Process until completely smooth. Empty each batch into crockpot, and begin again until all batches of veggies are processed smooth.

5. Stir in cumin, orange juice, lemon juice, grated orange zest, about 1/2 tsp. of salt, and 1/2 tsp. black pepper to mixture in crock pot. (I strain the juice to capture any small seeds. Leave crockpot off at this point.)

6. Let's use the carrot water to make the vegetable broth. Roughly chop up three ribs of celery, one zucchini, and one orange pepper, and add to water. Sprinkle in about 1 tsp. kosher salt and a little pepper. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 15 minutes. (I usually get this going while I'm in the middle of step four.) Get a strainer handy. Pour broth through the strainer into the crockpot, making sure all the veggies go into the strainer and only the broth goes into the crockpot. Toss the veggies in the compost pile or the trash. Stir crockpot mixture until well-combined.

7. Cook on low for 1 to 2 hours. Serve with whatever you would like. Makes about 2.5 quarts. (Last night we each had a big bowl, plus I filled two quart-sized containers for the freezer.)

Each serving is about 100 calories, has less than 2 g. of fat, about 3 g. of protein, 20 g. carbohydrate, and about 3 g. fiber. It is yummy and healthy. Believe that from someone who was afraid of squash and cooked carrots until her 30's. It really is that good.

Casserole Freezing Tips

I was thinking about our various situations, and the things we all may be doing, and thought this might help some of you, if you're not already doing it!

Again, from the mouth of my mother!

We would always take out all of our 13x9 pans, line them plastic cling wrap, and then with enough foil to be able to fold over and seal(or just with foil, your call), then make a multiple batch (depending on how many pans you have - we had 4), and split the ingredients equally among the pans. Once they were full, we'd fold over the foil and seal, then write on it what it was, and the cooking instructions, and put all the extras into the freezer. After they were frozen ( 8 - 12 hours ), we'd simply turn over the pan, and have a 13x9 casserole all wrapped up, ready to be cooked at a later date! This would then free up the pan for use another time, or to do another batch of a different casserole!

You can now get the 2 gallon and bigger zip top plastic bags, which provide an even better and longer lasting protection. You can simply slip your frozen, foil covered casserole into the bag, write on the bag, and stand or stack them up.

When you're ready to use, simply take the frozen casserole out, pop it into the pan still in the foil, and bake according to your directions! The greatest part in my mind??? The easy clean up after dinner that night! The foil means the pan may just need to be rinsed out, not scrubbed!

Chicken Noodle Casserole

This is a recipe my mom stumbled over in a magazine ages ago, that we've morphed according to our own family's appetites and time commitments. It doesn't need much in the way of side dishes, unless you want a salad, or some applesauce. It can be frozen before baking, and makes great leftovers for lunch or dinner, as long as you can reheat it!


Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes
Serves: 4 or more

Ingredients:

8 oz egg noodles
2 C cooked, shredded chicken*
1 medium onion, diced
1 16 oz bag frozen mixed veggies (peas, carrots, green beans is a good mix)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 C shredded cheese
1 C bread crumbs
butter

Pre-Heat oven to 350. In a large pot, cook noodles, drain. While the water is coming to a boil for the noodles, and they're cooking, in a large bowl, mix together ingredients 2 - 6 and set aside. After the noodles are drained, mix those into the bowl. Gracefully dump the contents of your bowl into a 13 x 9 casserole, cover with foil, and pop into the oven for 45 minutes. After 40 minutes or so, melt a couple TBSP of butter, and mix into the bread crumbs. (They should be somewhat moist, so they will sort of clump together.) Remove the foil from the casserole, sprinkle the bread crumbs over top, and put back into the oven UNCOVERED for 15 minutes, or until the bread crumbs are golden.

* the chicken can be replaced with the canned corned beef, or drained tuna. I've never used ground beef or stew meat, but would probably change the celery soup for mushroom if I were to use beef.

Fresh or frozen & a few other questions

Qm suggested (and I agree) that we tell if our recipes can be frozen or if the must be made fresh. It might be good to put that on a lable for your posts.

Also, if you have a web site you frequent for cooking tips, let me know and I can add a link list to our side bar.

Happy cooking!

Chili

Prep Time : 30 minutes
Cook Time : 2 hours or more to your taste
Serves : this was a double batch for our family of 7, but you'll know how much your family eats...so cut in half or double as you need!

Ingredients:
2 lbs Ground beef, browned and drained
Onion Powder
salt
pepper
Gebhardt's Chili Powder (available at my Safeway)
2 31 oz cans Kuner's Chili Beans (your choice on heat level)
2 30 oz cans of Tomato Puree
2 4 oz cans Tomato Paste

Instructions:
In a large stockpot, combine the Puree and Paste adding one can of water for each can of tomato product. Add beans, with juice, and beef. Add anywhere from 2 - 6 Tbsp of the chili powder (according to your heat level). Add salt, pepper and onion powder to taste (I add anywhere from 1-2 Tbsp each depending on my mood). Bring it to a boil, turn it down and let it simmer for at least one hour. The longer this chili cooks, the better it tastes...in fact, it tastes even better the next day!!!

Serving Suggestions:
Simply enjoy with your favorite chili fixin's