Sometimes the CSA produce we get pushes me to learn something new, as did the bag of shelled, fresh black eyed peas.  I wasn’t quite sure what to do with them and internet searches didn’t yield much information.  The best information I found was a comment somewhere that fresh beans can take longer to cook than dried beans.

So, I set off to cook these beans with my fingers crossed that Joe would have something that at least resembled dinner.

They were so good that I was almost full from ‘tasting’ them so I could ‘adjust the seasoning if necessary’ before Joe got home from work.  The difference between dried and fresh beans is like the difference between dried and fresh blueberries.  There’s no comparison.

Not only do they taste fresh but they’re not as starchy.  This also means that the broth isn’t as thick – at least mine wasn’t.  No worries, though.  I strained the beans, put the broth back in my CrockPot, mashed a few serving spoons full of beans into the broth, cranked it up to high, and let it simmer with the lid off until the broth reduced a bit.

Where to get fresh beans?

Sources tell me that you can find them at the Farmer’s Markets and some specialty food stores in the summer.  I haven’t seen any at the stores yet.  If you’ve spotted some, I’d love to know where.

We pick up our next CSA share on Saturday…keeping my fingers crossed for more fresh black-eyed peas.

For other great summer produce recipes visit:

• Lamb Stuffed 8 Ball Squash from Tasty Eats at Home
• Lemony Green Beans from Kalyn’s Kitchen
• Sweet & Spicy Cherry Salsa from Aubree Cherie
• Raw Kale Salad from Healthy Green Kitchen
• Fruit Smoothie Popsicles from Modern Comfort Food

Reminder…

Win a copy of Diane Eblin’s new e-book, The Gluten-Free Diner.  It’s filled with dairy-free, gluten-free recipes for the entire family. Enter here!

This is linked to Gluten-Free Wednesdays.

Have you cooked anything new lately?

Printer-friendly recipe

Slow Cooked Fresh Black Eyed Peas & Tomatoes
serves 2 – 3 as a main dish, 4 as a side

1 – 2 slices of bacon, cut into 1/2 inch strips
1/2 medium onion, sliced
1 clove of garlic, minced on a microplane
1 1/2 medium tomatoes, peeled & diced
2 cups fresh, shelled black eyed peas
1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken stock
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Heat a medium, nonstick pan over medium heat.  Add bacon and cook until crispy.  Drain on a paper towel, scraping as much grease from the pan as you can.  Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the onion into the pan and sautee until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic and cook for another minute until fragrant. Scrape into a 4 quart Crock-Pot.

Add bacon, tomatoes, black eyed peas, and chicken stock to Crock Pot.  Cover and cook on high for 4 – 6 hours or until beans are tender. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.  (I didn’t add any salt – it was salty enough for me with the chicken stock and bacon.)

If broth is too thin for your liking, drain cooked beans and put broth back into CrockPot.  Cover, with heat on high, until broth starts to simmer.  Uncover and let simmer until desired consistency is reached.  Add beans back in, heat through, and serve.

© Amy Green for Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, 2010. | Permalink | 20 comments | Add to del.icio.us

I love richly flavored black beans served in Mexican restaurants.  Now you can make them at home with only six ingredients and minimal effort.

Whenever I post about beans one person inevitably mentions avoiding them due to digestive issues.  I learned from Ali at The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen that this is usually caused by a lack of fiber intake. This was true for me.  Increasing my fiber intake solved any unwanted digestive problems.

Cooking Beans

We’ve been eating more beans lately.  I was insistent on mastering bean cooking in the pressure cooker.  Pound after pound, my best efforts yielded a blown-out mushy paste.  Meatballs, chicken, and soups are no challenge at all.  But me, beans, and a pressure cooker seem to be a recipe for disaster.

A painful surrender culminated in my red enameled cast iron dutch oven simmering away with black beans and aromatics.  Needing no attention, I sat down with a stack of text books.  Before long I was surrounded by warmth and comfort. Smiling, I was reminded that sometimes letting go is the best solution.

Uses and Leftovers

The latest batch of black beans has been wholly enjoyed with cilantro-lime marinated pork one night and as breakfast burritos with eggs the next.  I’ll finish them off for lunch today with some quinoa accompanied by jicama and cucumber salad.

Health Benefits

Beans in general are a good source of fiber, which can help lower cholesterol and stabilize blood sugar.  Black beans in particular are quite nutrient dense.  Named one of the world’s healthiest foods, they’re also a good source of folate, iron, magnesium, and when combined with a whole grain make a complete protein.

A Fun Side Note

On Sunday, I finally met my good friend, Alta from Tasty Eats at Home, along with Natalie from Natalie’s Killer Cuisine and Karol, The Dallas Gourmet Food Examiner.  Alta and I started a group called the Dallas Food Bloggers – she graciously gave me credit for the idea on her blog but the truth is that she was able to connect the dots between all the different bloggers.  There would be no Dallas Food Bloggers without her.

Alta took all the pics so instead of trying to top her fabulous post, I decided to just send you her way.

School has been wild – it’s final exam week for some classes, midterms for others.  Couple that with volunteer events and cater-outs…I’m happily exhausted.  Missing my blog and the interaction has spurred me toward hope for some sort of balance.  I do have culinary school stories to share in the coming weeks.

Reminder – I’m hosting Go Ahead Honey, It’s Gluten Free! this month and it’s all about Guiltless Pleasures. Read about how to submit your post here. You don’t have to be a gluten-free blogger to participate – so please share a gluten-free dish with us.

Printer-friendly recipe

Restaurant Style Black Beans
serves 6 – 8

1 pound dry black beans, rinsed and picked over
1 medium onion, diced small
4 cloves garlic, grated on a microplane
2 tablespoons cilantro
2 – 3 teaspoons salt, or to taste

Rinse and sort beans.  Cover beans with filtered water, making sure water is 2 inches higher than the beans, and soak overnight or for 6 hours.

Drain beans and place into a large sauce pot or dutch oven. Cover with filtered water, making sure water is once inch higher than the beans.  Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.  Skim any foam off the top as it rises.  Once there is no more foam, add the onion and garlic.  Let beans simmer for 45 mintues or until they start to soften.  Add cilantro and 1 to 2 teaspoons of salt.

Continue cooking for another 30 to 45 minutes until beans are very soft but still intact and the broth has thickened.  Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Serve as desired.  Refrigerate or freeze leftovers.  When reheating, add water to if needed to get the right consistency.

© Amy Green for Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, 2010. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us

Give-away closed. 10/18/09

Sweet potatoes, brown rice, and quinoa are all wonderful but sometimes I get tired of them and want a delicious alternative.  Last winter I started using white beans as a side dish.  The great thing about white beans is that you can dress them up or dress them down and they go with so many different main courses.  They’re cheap, too. I prefer to cook my own beans because I can flavor them how I want.  I like to throw in a carrot, some celery, onions, garlic, and fresh thyme.  Reduce the cooking liquid by half and you’ll have a flavorful broth to use in soups.  Canned beans always work beautifully in a pinch, though.

I love this white bean gratin because it takes simple white beans and elevates them to an almost elegant status.  The top gets crispy while the beans inside are warm and soft. And, better yet, it’s naturally sugar-free and gluten-free.  I put my Slightly Indulgent spin on them.  Most gratins are full of lots of cheese, sometimes heavy cream, and bread crumbs.  My version is full of great flavor and texture but a little bit healthier.  I hope you enjoy it.

Printer-friendly recipe

Individual White Bean Gratin
makes 4 (6 ounce) gratins

For the beans:
2 ½ cups cooked white beans, divided
1 cup cooking liquid or liquid from the canned beans
½ teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper (or to taste)

For the topping:
¼ cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon brown rice bread crumbs
1 small garlic clove, grated on a microplane
1 tablespoon good quality extra virgin olive oil

For garnish: (optional)
2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Place 2 cups of the beans in a medium bowl.  Put the remaining beans in a 4 cup glass measuring cup.  Add the cooking liquid or liquid from canned beans and vinegar.  Use an immersion blender to puree the beans and liquid.  Taste and adjust seasoning.  Pour puree over beans and gently stir to coat.  Divide beans between the gratin dishes.

In a separate bowl, combine parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, and garlic. Drizzle olive oil over mixture and, using a fork, cut the oil into the bread crumb mixture.  Divide topping evenly between gratins and sprinkle on top, about 1 tablespoon each.

Place gratins on a sheet pan and bake for 20 – 25 minutes, until bubbly around the outside.  Garnish with parsley if desired and serve hot.

Variation:  You can easily put this all in one baking dish if you don’t have individual gratin dishes.

Featured Blogger – Trish from Gluten-Free in Salt Lake City

Trish's Blueberry Sour Cream Muffins

Trish has been sharing fabulous recipes since the very first week of Slightly Indulgent Mondays.  I’ve come to look forward to her creations – each one unique with her own special touch.  Her thoughts on living gluten-free:

Someday, we’ll invite our friends to my fantasy world – a bright kitchen in a historic arts and crafts house, the counter piled with gluten free deliciousness. A pizza night, where the boy and his posse come bursting through the door with big grins (grins that don’t seem to match their 30-something builds), and we share an evening of laughter, over good food. This is a beautiful tradition that unites people, and I feel that those who eat gluten free need not be excluded from this kind of joy. Of course, this is a few years off – after school finishes, jobs (that pay a living wage) are secured, and we tie the knot.

I fell in love with someone who was loving, inspiring, warm, and kind. This process of healing has helped his tired soul find some new life, and it has brought our world into full color. I find that I cook a lot of “man food” – comfort foods, grilled meats, and a circus full of muffin flavors. Cooking and baking, with the new twist of being gluten free, despite its challenges, has brought us both a lot of healing.

This Week’s Give-Away: Le Creuset Mini-Gratin Dishes

See the mini-gratin dish I used?  This week I’m giving away two of them courtesy of Accent Furnitre.  I love them because they can go in your freezer, microwave, oven, and under the broiler. The individual gratins add a special touch to any meal.

Enter to win by:

• linking up
• leaving a comment
• tweet about the give-away and leave a comment
• link back from your blog and leave a comment

The give-away will be open until Sunday at 8 pm.

Please make sure to link to your post instead of your homepage AND include a link back to this post so your readers can join in, too.

Powered by… Mister Linky’s Magical Widgets.

© Amy Green for Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, 2009. | Permalink | 51 comments | Add to del.icio.us

**A couple matters of ‘business’ – first, today is the second day of Fall Festival 2009 and is being hosted at Monica at Daily Dwelling. All participants are eligible to win The Creative Family by Amanda Blake Soule.  Make sure to link your post about what you do for fall fun.  I, of course, cook.

I’m also guest blogging at Smockity Frocks today – a fabulous Mexican CrockPot Chicken Posole Stew.  It’s easy on your budget and takes almost no time to prepare.  You’ll only find this version at Smockity  Frocks, though, so head over there and let me know what you think.

Joe and I recently discovered one of Dallas’ hidden treasures – Penny at Squeezepenny Sustainable Farms and her Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program.  She has built a network among the local farmers (within 60 – 105 miles) and brings just picked, organic produce to families all over Dallas on a weekly or bi-weekly basis.  Penny is passionate about sustainable farming and quality produce – which shows in each share we’ve received.

But it doesn’t stop there.  When you stop by to pick up your produce, you’ll find Penny educating her CSA members on all aspects of her products, including storage, ideas for preparation, and detailed information on all of the producers.  If you ask her a question and she doesn’t know the answer, she will find it for you.  I have been toying with the idea of starting a real garden – this year’s attempt was a huge flop.  I talked to Penny about it and she sent me a detailed e-mail about what to plant during certain times of the year, the best methods for getting started, and even brought me a packet of information about organic gardening. And, she has a Quality Guarantee – in the rare case you have something spoil quickly she’ll replace it – no questions asked.

I probably don’t have to say this, but it’s so apparent that Penny loves her CSA members and treats each of them like family. (She even reads my blog!  On Saturday she told me how much she liked my Butternut Squash Orange Spice Cake.  I don’t know where she finds the time.)

If you anywhere near Dallas, you should go to Penny’s website now and look around.  Joining Squeezepenny’s CSA has been fabulous for our family.  It’s so affordable – I could never buy the same quality produce at the grocery store for less.  For those of you in smaller cities with CSA’s that deliver, Dallas is just too big for it to be a viable option.  Penny works with her members and offers several locations for pick-up at a variety of times.

Needless to say, I’ve been having a blast with all of the fall produce I’ve been getting from Penny.   The first thing I did was make roasted pattypan squash paired with a chickpea salad that I adapted from Chocolate & Zucchini, which was divine.  The pattypan squash was buttery and meaty, which was perfect with the nutty chickpeas.  I have been craving it since I ate the last of the leftovers!

Another favorite of mine are Penny’s organic pears.  My dad owned a farm in southern Ohio and we used to camp there on the weekends.  There was a big pear tree on one of the hills, and we’d walk over there just to eat the pears.  One bite of Penny’s pears and I was back on that hill, in the bright sun and fresh air eating freshly picked, juicy pears with my dad and my sisters.  It’s funny – I’ve been eating pears for years and it was Penny’s pears that sparked that memory.  Some things just don’t get any better than fresh, naturally grown produce.

This post is linked to Tasty Tuesdays at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam.

What produce are you loving this fall?  Let’s talk about it.

Printer-friendly recipe

Roasted Pattypan Squash and Chickpea Salad
serves 2 as a main dish, 4 as a side
adapted from Chocolate & Zucchini

For the pattypan squash:
4 – 6 small pattypan squash
olive oil to coat, about 2 – 4 tablespoons
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

For the chickpea salad:
2 cups of cooked chickpeas, or one 15 oz. can drained & rinsed
2 – 4 tablespoons good quality olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, or to taste
8 chive stems
¼ cup packed cilantro
8 large mint leaves
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
¼ cup good quality olive oil
3 ounces of your choice of greens – baby spinach, arugula, chopped leaf lettuce

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.  Cut off both ends of the pattypan squashes and cut them into 8 sections.  Place the sections in a large baking dish in a single layer, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and toss to coat. Roast for 30 minutes, until cooked through and browned in places. Let cool.

While the pattypan squash is roasting, place salt, pepper, chives, cilantro, mint, capers, and lemon juice of the bowl of a mini-chopper.  Pulse a few times to chop the herbs.  With the mini-chopper on, drizzle olive oil through the top until it reaches the desired consistency.  (Use less or more olive oil depending on your taste.)  If you don’t have a mini-chopper, chop the herbs and capers by hand, then place in a bowl and whisk in lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Toss the chickpeas with the dressing in a small bowl, cover, and refrigerate. Serve chickpeas on a bed of greens with the cooled pattypan squash.

© Amy Green for Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, 2009. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us