Category Archives: Beans

Whole Food Plant-Based Recipes using beans

Pressure Cooker Beans with Flavor!

I love my pressure cooker. Instead of hours to cook beans it take just a few minutes. But as much as I love the convenience I have a big complaint about the taste. Toooooo bland!

According to the “experts” you are NOT supposed to add salt of herbs to the pot when you pressure cook beans. This means that you end up cooking them in plan old water with a little oil to keep the foam down. When they come out they taste like very plain, very boring beans; no real flavor. I have added garlic, garlic powder, onions and onion powder to the water. That helped a little – but really only a little. (more…)

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Vegan Mujadara–Lentils, Rice and Onions

lentilsIt is sooo cold! Like a lot of people we are enduring a major cold snap. All I have wanted to do for the last week is curl up in front of the fire, read and eat hot heavy food. Never mind salad, exercise or actually trying to think.

I have been craving lentils. Don’t know if it is the protein or the iron my body wants, but whatever it is, I have been fixated on lentils. There is nothing quite like lentil soup on a cold day. But I can’t live by soup alone, so decided to make a lentil and rice dish. It is a loosely Middle Eastern dish called Mujadara that is satisfying and extremely simple to make.  (more…)

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Vegetarian Boston Baked Beans

bostonbakedbeansOur long warm fall has turned into a long (or so it seems) cold winter. Not a lot of rain, snow or cloudy skies, but still very cold. At least for me!

After holiday excesses we spent most of last week juicing and drinking smoothies to try and detox a little. After a week of that I was really ready for some bulky, tasty and very hot food. Baked beans seemed like just the thing. Threw a batch together and stuck them in the oven. (more…)

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Banzo Salad Sandwich Filling

Well, I ended up with a whole lot of Nutonnaise that I needed to find a way to use. In the “olden” days I would have made egg salad sandwiches. . . but when you don’t eat eggs, then what?

I looked around on the internet and through my cookbooks. I kept running across “vegan tuna salad.” Every time I saw it I wrinkled my nose. The smell of tuna makes my stomach roll, so the idea was a lot less than appealing. I didn’t think it was a great alternative. Besides, since I have never tasted tuna, I would have no basis for evaluating if it really tastes anything like tuna. (more…)

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Left-over Peppers

S6300927After the salsa making extravaganza there were still a bunch of peppers left over. We had Anaheim’s, Banana, Racoco and Jalapenos just sitting here. I stood in the kitchen contemplating alternatives. I knew I wanted to use them while they were still fresh, but how?

The obvious place to start was sautéing everything. Sautéed peppers and onions make a great side dish, but then what?? I stood in front of the pantry hoping for inspiration. And then it happened – my eyes landed on a can of garbanzos. (more…)

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Getting Enough Protein?

When people find out that I am a vegetarian, the most usual question is — One of the things I am most often asked is, “How do you get enough protein??” I have been answering this question for over 40 years. My basic answer hasn’t changed a lot, but my thought process and information base has.

When I was in my 20, 30s and 40s I would tell people it was easy, but that the “tricky” part was making sure you got complete protein. The way to do that was to combine grains and nuts with legumes. I would assure them that if you just paid attention, you would be “fine”. That you don’t really need that much protein anyway. (more…)

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Home Again! And Tacos in a Hurry!

imageWe had a great time in New Orleans, but were very glad to get home. No place like it!

We got in late, tired and very hungry – bad combination! The fridge was bare and all the frozen entrees would take at least 20 minutes to thaw.  Fortunately we have canned food in the pantry and a garden to raid. (more…)

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Eating on the Road

We are heading to New Orleans – timing being everything! The trip has started me thinking about what we are going to eat. Airport and airplane food (if you can even get it) are slim pickings! TSA rules limit the liquid you can take and living on protein bars and caffeine seems like a bad option!

We leave here at 7:00 am and get to New Orleans at 5pm, which when you adjust for time means that we will be traveling 8 hours. No matter what we eat for breakfast before we leave we are going to want to eat twice before we get a chance to sit down to real food. I have been racking my little brain trying to figure out what to take. (more…)

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Succotash by Any Other Name

Growing up, I was an easy kid to feed. I’d pretty much eat anything. There were only 3 foods I objected to – green peas, lima beans and dried powdered milk. So it follows that I really disliked succotash which my Mom considered a special treat. I wondered (and continue to wonder) why anyone would ruin good corn with lima beans.

Every now and then I have to go through the fridge and try to think of inventive ways to use the food. One day I made a mixture of corn, black beans, onion, green pepper and tomatoes. To my great consternation, David called it succotash. That started a heated discussion (argument) about the definition of Succotash. As much as it pains me to admit it, turns out David was right. (more…)

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EASY Killer Chili

We very often have chili is our fridge. It heats quickly, is satisfying and full of protein. We eat it as traditional chili in a bowl topped with extra onions (and cheese), over rice or with cornbread.  We use it in our breakfast “omelets,” or as a mid-afternoon snack.  For me, there is nothing more comforting on a cold rainy night than a big bowl of piping hot, spicy chili.

Best of all it is a quick and easy dish to make.  From the time I walk into the kitchen until I have cleaned up and am ready to leave is about 20 minutes.  Admittedly, the cooking takes hours, but not prep. And finally, the smell of the cooking chili is it’s own special treat! (more…)

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