I thought that we had made all of the various enchilada recipes from the Dish of the Day and Vegetable of the Day cookbooks. But it turns out that I'd missed one! This one involves a simple filling of black beans and kale (spinach in the original recipe) with a bit of cheese and some homemade salsa verde to bring it all together.

Personally, I felt like the sauce could have used a bit more kick. I would be tempted to add some jalapeños and/or finger chilies next time. But the kids seemed to enjoy it this way, so that's good at least.

I'm glad that I tried doing the sauce from scratch for these. It was nice. That said, if you're looking for a way to streamline the recipe, I wouldn't hesitate to use store-bought salsa verde in place of the homemade.

Kale and Black Bean Enchiladas

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

Sauce

• 12 tomatillos, husked and halved
• 3 poblanos, halved and seeded
• 1 jalapeño, halved and seeded (optional)
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 1 large onion, quartered
• 1 c. fresh cilantro
• salt and pepper, taste

OR

• ~1L store-bought salsa verde

Enchiladas

• 2 Tbsp. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 small red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 1 tsp. dhania-jeera masala
• ~300g frozen chopped kale or spinach
• 2 cans (~400mL each) black beans (or 1 1/2 c. dried black beans, cooked), drained and rinsed
• 1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 250g Monterey Jack (or pepper jack) cheese, shredded and divided
• 1 medium tortillas¹
• 1-2 avocadoes, sliced

Directions

1. Preheat the broiler (on high if it has multiple settings).
2. Place the tomatillos and chilies, cut-side-down, on a baking sheet and broil until slightly charred and softened (8-10 minutes).
3. Transfer tomatillos, chilies, onion, garlic, and cilantro to a blender and purée.
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
5. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
6. Heat oil over medium heat.
7. Add onion and bell pepper and cook until softened (~5 minutes).
8. Add the cumin and masala and cook for another minute or two.
9. Add the frozen greens and cook until thawed.
10. Remove from heat and stir in the beans, cilantro, half the cheese (~1 c.), and 3/4 c. of the sauce.
11. Spoon ~1/2 c. of sauce into the bottom of a 23x33cm (9x13") baking dish.
12. Put ~1/2 c. of filling in the centre of each tortilla, roll up into a tube, and place seam-side-down into the prepared baking dish.
13. Once all of the tortillas have been filled and placed in the baking dish, pour the rest of the sauce over them.
14. Sprinkle with remaining cheese, cover with foil, and bake at 180°C (350°F) for 30 minutes.
15. Remove foil and continue baking for another 10 minutes.
16. Serve topped with avocado and seasoned to taste with salt and pepper.

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¹ The recipe calls for flour tortillas and that's what I used this time, but I actually think that corn tortillas would have been better here. They just didn't have any when I went to the grocery store and I didn't feel up to making my own from scratch this time. The flour tortillas were fine. I just think that corn ones tend to work especially well for enchiladas. ^Back

Breakfast Burritos (Breakfast Bible)

I've been meaning to make these for a while. But I really wanted to try to do them with ground chicken and sweet potato rather than the chorizo and russet potatoes called for in the recipe. But, in the end, I didn't end up going with either of those combinations. TF had a hankering for breakfast sausage. And I had a few red potatoes that needed to be used up. So I made it with those instead. I do think the red potatoes were a little too waxy for this dish though. So next time I'd either go with the russets or try it with sweets.

I do think that it would have been nice with a few greens and maybe a bit of sour cream. And we also added a bit of mild cheddar and swapped out the guac for plain avocado. (Mostly because cheese is delicious and because I had an avocado that needed to be used up and didn't feel like making guacamole this morning.) Overall though, it worked out pretty well. It's a forgiving recipe that allows for a lot of variation and experimentation.

Breakfast Burritos

Slightly adapted from The Breakfast Bible by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
• 2 russet potatoes, grated
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 190g sausage (chorizo, breakfast, or chicken), casings removed
• 8 large eggs
• 1/4 c. milk
• 4-6 large flour tortillas, warm
• 1 c. cooked black beans, warm
• 1/2 c. shredded cheddar or pepper jack cheese
• 1/2 c. guacamole or avocado
• 1/2 c. salsa or pico de gallo
• 1/4 c. sour cream (optional)
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Directions

1. Heat 1 Tbsp. of the oil over medium heat.
2. Wring grated potato out as best you can using paper towels or a clean tea towel.
3. Add potatoes and pat into an even layer. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with remaining 1/2 Tbsp. of oil.
4. Cook until underside is crisp (~6 minutes).
5. Flip and cook until the other side is crisp as well (~6 minutes longer). Transfer to a plate and set aside.
6. Add sausage to pan and cook until done (5-6 minutes). Transfer to a plate and set aside.
7. Beat eggs with milk and season with salt and pepper.
8. Drain off all but ~1 tsp. of fat from the pan, reduce heat to medium-low and pour in eggs.
9. Cook until bottom beings to set 1-2 minutes, then stir.
10. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until eggs are set.
11. Place a few scrambled eggs, some beans, potatoes, sausage, cheese, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, and cilantro (if using) in the centre of each tortilla.
12. Fold up top and bottom edges and then roll to form a burrito.

I haven't been feeling up to much cooking lately, so I've been making a lot of simple soups and salads. I had a bunch of chicken left over from making a soup earlier and spinach left over from the green smoothie bowls, so I decided to combine that into this salad. There were even a few corn tortillas left over in the fridge that I was able to fry up into tostadas, so it worked out quite well all 'round!

The one thing that I did not have was cherry tomatoes, so I opted to mix in a few tinned diced tomatoes instead. I'm honestly pretty happy with how this worked out. Although I was a bit short of greens and I think it probably could've used a bit of cheese. I think a bit of cheddar would have been a really nice complement to all the other elements.

Chicken Tostada Salad

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 2 limes
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1/8 tsp. peppercorns, ground
• 1/3 c. olive oil
• 1 (470g) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 c. corn kernels
• 2 c. cherry tomatoes, halved (or 2 c. canned diced tomatoes)
• 1 jalapeño or poblano chile, minced
• 1 head romaine or leafe lettuce (or equivalent amount of spinach), torn into bite-sized pieces
• 300-350g cooked chicken, shredded
• 1 c. grated cheddar (optional)
• 1 avocado, peeled and sliced
• 1/4-1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 2-4 green onions, sliced (optional)
• 4 tostadas

Directions

1. Zest and juice the limes.
2. Combine the lime juice, zest, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.
3. Slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking vigorously.
4. Add the beans, corn, tomatoes, and chile and toss to combine. Let stand for 5-10 minutes.
5. Add the lettuce, chicken, and cheese.
6. Top with avocado, cilantro, green onions, and cheese (if using).
7. Serve with tostadas on the side.

Huevos Rancheros (The Breakfast Bible version)

I know I've made a few different versions of huevos rancheros ("farmer's eggs") before and there's at least one recipe for them already posted on this blog. But, as noted, I can be a bit of a completionist sometimes and there was a different recipe for them in one of my breakfast cookbooks, so of course I had to give that a try as well.

This is actually quite different from what I think of as typical huevos rancheros. Rather than making a saucy bean-and-tomato stew (possibly with peppers and other veggies mixed in) and poaching the eggs in the stew, these eggs are fried and then topped with a puréed tomato sauce and beans. (Ideally black beans, but I already had a tin of chickpeas opened, so I just used a few of them for this rendition.) You still get a lot of the same elements, they're just combined in a different way.

Huevos Rancheros

Slightly adapted from The Breakfast Bible by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp. canola oil (or bacon grease), divided
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small (~400mL) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 c. tomato sauce
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 chipotle in adobo + 1/2 tsp. adobo sauce
• 8 corn tortillas
• 8 large eggs
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 c. cooked black beans, warmed
• 1/2 c. crumbled queso fresco or feta¹
• 1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Heat 1 Tbsp. of the oil over medium heat.
2. Add the onion and jalapeño and cook for ~2 minutes.
3. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two.
4. Remove from heat and transfer to blender.
5. Add the tomatoes, chili powder, chipotle, and adobo sauce and purée until smooth.
6. Pour the sauce back into the pot and bring to a boil.
7. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened slightly (~30 minutes).
8. Meanwhile, heat 1 Tbsp. of the remaining oil over medium heat.
9. Add a tortilla and cook until warmed through and slightly crisped on the outside, flipping once. Repeat with remaining tortillas, adding more oil as necessary. Transfer the tortillas to a plate as they come of the the pan and keep warm.
10. Once the tortillas have all been warmed, begin cooking the eggs. Fry sunny side up, over easy, or however you'd prefer using any remaining oil (if any) to cook them and seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.
11. Place an egg on each tortilla, top with a generous portion of sauce and a few of the warmed beans.
12. Top each egg with ~1 Tbsp. each of cheese and cilantro.
13. Serve as is or add a bit of avocado, sour cream, and/or thinly sliced radish if desired.

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¹ I didn't have any feta (or queso fresco), so I just used a bit of grated mild cheddar for this version. Feta would have been great, but the cheddar still worked well. ^Back

This is a very simple dish of savory cornmeal-buttermilk pancakes topped with lightly spiced black beans. They're pretty plain on their own, but still taste lovely and are really excellent when topped with some salsa and sour cream. I'm sure guacamole, radishes, and green onions would also go great. As would a bit of cheddar cheese.

I served these as a filling, leguminous side-dish to accompany some vegetable enchiladas. A very nice meal!

Cornmeal Pancakes with Black Beans

Slightly adapted from Vegetable of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

Beans

• 1 (470mL) can black beans, drained
• 1 tsp. chopped fresh oregano
• 1 tsp. chili powder

Pancakes

• 2/3 c. cornmeal
• 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 1 c. buttermilk
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 c. frozen corn, thawed

Assembly

Use as many or as few toppings as you'd like. All are optional, but salsa is strongly recommended.

• salsa (red or green)
• sour cream
• chopped fresh cilantro
• chopped fresh oregano
• green onion, thinly sliced
• radishes, thinly sliced
• sliced avocado and/or guacamole
• grated cheddar

Directions

1. Combine the beans, oregano, and chili powder and warm over low heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through.
2. Meanwhile, combine the cornmeal, flour, chili powder, salt, and pepper; sift in the baking soda; and mix well.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the butter with the buttermilk and eggs.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk to combine.
5. Stir in the corn.
6. Heat a griddle or tawa over medium heat and lightly grease or oil it.
7. Make pancakes using ~1/4 c. of batter for each one and cook until golden on both sides.
8. Serve the pancakes topped with black beans.
9. Garnish with salsa and whatever other toppings you desire.

These were surprisingly tasty! I wasn't expecting much from a filling made up predominantly of zucchini and corn. Especially since the dish seemed to rely entirely on store-bought salsa for its seasoning. But it actually produced really nice results. A bit lacking in protein maybe, but there were certainly no issues with the flavour!

If I were doing this again, I might try swapping out half of the zucchini for some black beans, just to make it a little more filling and nutritionally balanced. But overall, it was very good.

Vegetable Enchiladas

Adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 zucchini
• 1 (400mL) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 c. frozen corn
• 1 onion, quartered and sliced
• 1 c. grated cheddar cheese
• 2 (~400mL) jars salsa verde, divided
• 12 corn tortillas (20cm/8" size)
• 1 c. grated Monterey jack¹
• 1/4 c. sour cream
• 1 green onion, chopped
• 1/2 tsp. lime zest
• 1/8 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 avocado, divided
• 2-4 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F).
2. Quarter the zucchini lengthwise and slice crosswise.
3. Combine the zucchini, beans, corn, onion, and cheddar and mix well.
4. Wrap the tortillas in a tea towel or tortilla warmer and microwave until softened (30-60 seconds).
5. Pour 1 jar of salsa into a 23x33cm (9x13") baking dish.
6. Place a warm tortilla on your work surface and put 2-3 Tbsp. of filling down the middle of it, then roll up and place seam-side-down in the prepared baking dish.
7. Assemble remaining enchiladas in the same way.
8. Pour remaining jar of salsa over the enchiladas and top with Monterey jack.
9. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.
10. Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes.
11. Meanwhile, combine the sour cream, green onion, lime zest, salt, and half the avocado and mix very well, mashing the avocado as you stir.
12. Slice the remaining half avocado.
13. Serve the enchiladas topped with avocado slices, sour cream mixture, and cilantro (if using).
14. Radishes and tomato salsa/salsa roja also make good toppings.

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¹ I ended up swapping out the Monterey jack for 125g of sliced Swiss cheese instead, which worked reasonably well. More cheddar would also be acceptable in place of the jack. ^Back

This came together gratifyingly quickly. The longest part was pressure-cooking the beans, but that gave me time to dismantle the chicken and mise-en-place all the ingredients.

Quick Green Chicken Chili

Cook's Country August/September 2018 (recipe card)

Ingredients

• 1.5 C mixed dry black and great northern beans
• 6C half-strength chicken or vegetable stock (or 6C water + 1 stock cube)
• 2 tsp (~0.5L worth) Better than Bouillon stock concentrate or equivalent
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• ¾ tsp pepper, ground
• 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tsp cumin, ground
• 1 C premade green salsa
• 1 grocery store roast chicken, skinned and shredded
• ½ C fresh cilantro, chopped
• Yoghurt and hot sauce (for serving)

Directions

1. Add beans and stock to pressure cooker. Pressure cook high for 40 minutes.
2. Depressurize and drain beans, reserving 1L of cooking water. If you have less than 1L, top up with tap water.
3. Stir stock concentrate into the bean water; set aside.
4. Heat oil in a dutch oven over medium heat.
5. Add onion and pepper and cook until translucent and softened, ~5 minutes.
6. Stir in garlic and cumin and cook until fragrant, ~1 minute.
7. Stir in beans, bean water, and salsa. Increase heat to medium high and bring to a boil.
8. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer 10 minutes.
9. Mash some of the beans against the side of the pot for thickness, if desired.
10. Stir in chicken and cilantro and cook until warmed through, ~2 minutes.
11. Serve with yoghurt and hot sauce; we found that this tomatillo-based sauce worked nicely.

I needed an easy dinner to throw together earlier this week and this chili mac recipe fit the bill. The original was written for ground beef, macaroni, and pinto beans, but suggested experimenting with different meats. I opted to replace the ground beef with ground chicken and also swapped out the macaroni with whole wheat rotini and I ended up using black beans instead of pinto beans.

The end result was okay, but slightly bland. Adding some of the leftover pulled pork really helped perk it up. I also think adding some cilantro and a few more spices would have been helpful.

Chili Mac

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil (or bacon grease)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
• 450g ground chicken
• 1 Tbsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds, bruised
• 1 tsp. dhania-jeera masala¹
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1 small (400mL) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (540mL) can pinto beans (or black beans), drained
• 4 c. chicken broth²
• 250g macaroni (or other short pasta)³
• ~1 c. grated cheese (preferably a mix of cheddar and Monterey Jack)
• 2-3 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Heat oil over medium-high heat.
2. Add onion and cook until softened (5-6 minutes).
3. Add the garlic and jalapeño and cook for another minute or two.
4. Add the chicken and cook, stirring and breaking it up until cooked through (5-6 minutes).
5. Stir in the chili powder, cumin, dhania-jeera masala, oregano, and pepper and cook for another 30-60 seconds.
6. Add the tomato, beans, and broth and bring to a boil.
7. Add macaroni and reduce heat to medium.
8. Cook until pasta is done (7-8 minutes or according to package directions).
9. Stir in half the cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.
10. Top with green onions, cilantro, and remaining cheese and serve.

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¹ The original recipe just called for 1/2 Tbsp. of cumin, which is how I made it this time. Having tasted it now though, I think I'd make it with a mix of cumin and dhania-jeera masala next time. ^Back
2 The original recipe called for 4 c. chicken broth, but since I was using a commercial broth concentrate, I was worried that would make it too salty, so I ended up using 3 c. of broth + 1 c. of water. Next time though, I think I'd just use the full 4 c. of broth. ^Back
3 The original recipe called for 220g macaroni. I didn't have macaroni, so I used 220g of whole wheat rotini instead. I found that the final dish was a bit too soupy for my liking. Next time I might try using a bit more pasta to see if that helps balance things out. ^Back

This ended up being squash-tortilla soup rather than pumpkin-tortilla, but it still worked out very well and everyone enjoyed it a lot.

Pumpkin-Tortilla Soup

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 3 large corn tortillas (or 6 small ones)
• 2 Tbsp. oil, divided
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
• 1/2 Tbsp. cumin seeds, crushed
• 1/2 tsp. dhania-jeera masala
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 400mL diced tomatoes¹
• ~2 c. cooked black beans
• 3 c. chicken or vegetable stock
• 3 c. cubed, peeled pumpkin (or delicata squash)
• ~1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 avocado, diced (optional)
• 2-3 radishes, sliced (optional)
• 2-3 green onions, sliced (optional)
• 1/2 c. crumbled feta and/or shredded Monterey Jack (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat to 230°C (450°F).
2. Cut the tortillas in half and then crosswise into strips.
3. Toss the tortilla strips with 1 Tbsp. of the oil.
4. Spread the tortilla pieces on a baking sheet and bake at 230°C (450°F) -- preferably on convection/fan setting) -- for ~5 minutes.
5. Flip/turn the pieces and return to oven for 2-3 minutes longer. Set aside.
6. Heat the remaining 1 Tbsp. of oil over medium heat.
7. Add the onion and cook until softened (~5 minutes).
8. Add the garlic and jalapeño and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
9. Add the cumin, masala, and oregano and cook for another minute or so.
10. Add the tomatoes, black beans, stock, and pumpkin and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
11. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until pumpkin is tender (~15 minutes).
12. Top with tortilla pieces and fresh cilantro.
13. Optionally garnish wiht avocado, radish, green onion, and/or cheese and serve.

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¹ I was all out of diced tomatoes, so I ended up using crushed instead. ^Back

Huevos Rancheros (Breakfast Bible Version)

This is a very different take on huevos rancheros than my usual approach. It has a lot of the same elements: tomato sauce, beans, eggs, tortillas, cheese. But each one takes a different form than I'm used to. The tomato sauce is smooth rather than chunky and contains no bell peppers. The beans are kept separate from everything else. The eggs are fried rather than poached in the sauce. The tortillas are corn rather than wheat. And the cheese is queso fresco (or feta) rather than cheddar.

I'm not sure which recipe is more "authentic". That may not even be a meaningful question to ask. Maybe it's neither. Maybe it's both and the differences just reflect regional variations. Regardless of origin or "authenticity", they're both tasty. I think I like the results produced by this recipe better. But the Jamie Oliver version is easier and allows for a one-pan preparation. So, I guess which one wins out depends on how effort-full you're feeling.

The original recipe calls for a mix of diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. I didn't have any tomato sauce on hand and didn't feel like making any from scratch, so I just sort of faked it with tomato paste and spices. I figured it would work out fine since you just end up cooking and reducing the sauce afterward anyway. And, indeed, it produced delicious results!

NB: Two things should be noted about the photo above. The first is that I forgot to add the cheese and cilantro before taking this photo, so just try to imagine it with some extra toppings on. The second is that I could only find teeny, tiny corn tortillas at the grocery store, so the proportions here are a little off. Buy (or make) larger tortillas if you can. It will make your breakfast much easier to eat!

Huevos Rancheros

Slightly adapted from The Breakfast Bible by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. corn (or other neutral) oil, divided
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
• 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp. coriander seeds
• 1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp. dried minced garlic
• 1/4 tsp. dried minced onion
• 1 small can (~400mL) diced tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 1 chipotle in adobo + 1/2 tsp. sauce
• ~2 c. cooked black beans, warmed
• 8 corn tortillas
• 8 large eggs
• 1/2 c. crumbled queso fresco or feta
• ~1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Heat 2 tsp. of the oil over medium heat.
2. Add the onion, garlic, and jalape&ntile;o and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables have acquired a little colour.
3. Push the onion mixture to the side of the pan and add the tomato paste in the middle. Cook for a minute or two.
4. Add the cumin, coriander, Italian seasoning, and dried oregano and cook, stirring often, for another 30-60 seconds.
5. Transfer to a blender along with diced tomatoes, salt, pepper, chili powder, chipotle, and its sauce and purée.
6. Return sauce to pan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
7. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened (20-30 minutes).
8. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 95°C (200°F) and place some ovenproof plates in the oven to warm up.
9. Heat the remaining 1 tsp. of oil over medium heat.
10. Warm the tortillas in the pan, one at a time, cooking for ~30 seconds per side until warmed through and slightly crisp on the outside while remaining pliable overall.
11. Place one or two tortillas on each plate.
12. Fry the eggs, four at a time, in the now-empty pan (adding a little more oil if necessary). Season to taste with additional salt and pepper.
13. Place an egg on top of each tortilla.
14. Top with sauce, garnish with cheese and cilantro, and serve with beans on the side.

I only had a tiny fraction of the amount of avocado that I was supposed to for this recipe, so imagine these patties topped with a lot more guac/avocado mash than they are in the photos. Also, the recipe as written just calls for mashing up the avocado with a bit of tomato, lime juice, and salt. This is fine, but I wanted to gussy it up a bit (especially since I had so much less than I was supposed to), so I opted to add some fried garlic, cilantro, and ground Kashmiri chilies.¹

The patties themselves were also relatively simple: just some onion, cumin, oregano, and jalapeño mashed up with some beans with a bit of egg and panko to bind it. This seemed a bit bland to me, so I added some garlic and a bit of adobo sauce from some chipotles in adobo. I also replaced some of the cumin with dhania-jeera masala to add another layer of flavour. I didn't add any black pepper this time, but I feel like that wouldn't've gone amiss either. There's room to play around with the seasonings a bit.

Black Bean Patties

Adapted from Healthy Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

Patties

• scant 2 c. cooked black beans
• 1 Tbsp. garlic oil, divided (home-made or store-bought)
• 1/2 onion, minced
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 1 tsp. dhania-jeera masala
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. adobo sauce from chipotles in adobo
• 1 large egg
• 6 Tbsp. panko breadcrumbs

Topping

• 1 avocado
• 1 roma tomato, seeded and diced
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 tsp. dhania-jeera masala
• 1/2 tsp. balti masala (optional)
• 1 tsp. minced fried garlic (from garlic oil or store-bought)
• 1/4 tsp. ground Kashmiri chilies
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 tsp. lime zest (optional)
• ~1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
• ~1/4 c. salsa verde, Envy sauce, or cilantro-mint chutney

Directions

1. Mash the beans and set aside.
2. Heat 1/2 Tbsp. of the oil over medium heat.
3. Add the onion, garlic, and jalapeño and cook until soft (3-5 minutes).
4. Stir in the cumin, masala, pepper, oregano, and salt and cook for another minute or so.
5. Add the onion mixture to the mashed beans along with the adobo sauce and stir to combine.
6. Mix in the egg and the breadcrumbs.
7. Shape into patties. You should get 4-8 patties depending on how big you want them.
8. Heat the remaining oil over medium heat.
9. Add the patties to the pan and cook until heated through and browned on both sides (5-6 minutes per side).
10. Meanwhile, mash the avocado and mix in the tomato, lime juice, masala(s), fried garlic, Kashmiri chilies, cilantro, salt, and lime zest (if using).
11. Serve the patties topped with the avocado mixture, yogurt/sour cream, and salsa/Envy/chutney.

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¹ I feel like I added one or two other things as well, but I can't remember what they were now. That said, I think a little balti masala and/or dhania-jeera masala would go nicely in this. Use whatever you feel best fits the vibe. ^Back

We have a surfeit of eggs right now, so I've been continuing to keep the egg train rolling for breakfast. And I selected this recipe in particular because I had a bunch of tomato-avocado relish left over from making my breakfast tacos a few days ago.

Eggs with Black Beans and Chipotle Peppers

Slightly adapted from The Good Egg by Marie Simmons

Ingredients

• 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper¹, chopped
• 1 fresh jalapeño, seeded and minced (optional)
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 4 c. cooked black beans
• 1 Tbsp. minced chipotles in adobo
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 4-8 large eggs
• 1/2 c. grated Monterey Jack or mild cheddar cheese
• 1/2 c. (or more) tomato-avocado salsa
• 4-8 large flour tortillas², warmed

Directions

1. Heat the oil over medium heat.
2. Add the onions and peppers and cook, stirring often, until the onions are golden (~10 minutes).
3. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two.
4. Stir in the cumin and cook for ~30 seconds.
5. Add the beans, chipotles, and a little salt and pepper, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 5 minutes.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Maybe 1/8 tsp. each to start. But if the beans were cooked without salt, then you will likely need to add a bit more at this point.)
7. Make some wells in the bean mixture. You will probably only have room to cook 4 eggs at a time, but you can repeat the process a second time if you would like a higher egg:bean ratio.
8. Break an egg into a small dish and carefully pour it into one of the wells. Repeat until you've filled all the wells.
9. Sprinkle each egg with 1-2 Tbsp. of grated cheese.
10. Increase heat to medium, cover, and cook for 5-8 minutes.
11. Scoop the eggs out onto plates with as many accompanying beans as desired and top each with a couple tablespoons of the salsa.
12. The eggs and beans may be served either in the tortillas or with the tortillas on the side.

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¹ The original recipe called for 1/3 c. each chopped red and green bell pepper. I don't generally keep green bell peppers on hand because I don't really like them, so I just used a whole red bell pepper and then tossed in a minced jalapeño (with the seeds and pith removed) for a bit of colour and variety. ^Back
2 Store-bought tortillas are fine, but I was all out so I ended up making my own. They're not that difficult, they just require a little advanced planning as the dough needs to rest for 30 minutes before shaping and cooking. ^Back

Congrí (Cuban Black Beans and Rice)

I had initially intended to follow the Cook's Country recipe for black beans and rice. But their version was meant to be a quick method using canned black beans and I didn't have any of those on hand. I thought about trying to adapt it but, in the end, I decided that I'd rather just look up an entirely different recipe onilne.

I stuck pretty close to the recipe I selected. Although I did halve all the quantities. And then halved the oil again (just to try to trim a few calories). And I used brown rice instead of the parboiled called for because long-grain brown is our default rice. And, since I didn't have any chorizo (or bacon or salted pork belly or smoked ham hocks or any of the various other pork products called for), I chopped up half a block of smoked tofu and tossed that in instead. Definitely not as rich and meaty as the pork would've been but, if nothing else, it made for a convenient way to use up the tofu.

And, of course, as is almost traditional for me at this point, I forgot to add the cilantro at the end. Oh well... it'll be good on the leftovers.

Congrí

Slightly adapted from Food52

Ingredients

• 225g dried black beans
• 6 c. water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1 onion¹, chopped
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 dry Spanish chorizo sausage², chopped
• 2 c. long-grain brown rice
• 1/2 Tbsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 1/2 Tbsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper, ground
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/16 tsp. ground turmeric
• chicken stock, as needed
• salt, to taste
• 1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Combine beans, water, and bay leaf and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for ~90 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium heat.
4. Add bell pepper and onion and cook for 3-4 minutes.
5. Add garlic and cook for another minute.
6. Add chorizo and cook for 2-3 minutes.
7. Add rice and cook for another couple of minutes.
8. Add cumin, garlic powder, pepper, salt, oregano, and turmeric and cook for 30-60 seconds longer.
9. Remove from heat and set aside until beans are done. (It's okay if the beans are still a bit firm after the initial 90 minutes of cooking, they will get cooked more with the rice.)
10. Once the beans are cooked enough to eat, but still somewhat firm, remove from heat.
11. Pour off and measure the bean cooking water. If you're using homemade stock (or if you didn't need to add much stock to your bean water), then you may want to add a bit of extra salt to your liquid. I added ~1/2 tsp. to mine.
12. Add enough chicken stock to the water to bring the volume up to 4 c.
13. Add the beans and the bean liquid to the rice mixture.
14. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
15. Cover and reduce heat to low.
16. Cook, covered, for ~30 minutes.
17. Remove from heat and stir the rice.
18. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes.
19. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve!

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¹ I was fresh out of bell peppers, so I actually omitted both the bell pepper and the onion and put in 2 c. of frozen "spaghetti mix" instead. It's a combination of red and green bell pepper, onion, carrot, and celery. That gave me the pepper and onion that I needed and I figured that the addition of a bit of carrot and celery wouldn't hurt. ^Back
2 As noted above, I didn't have any pork products available, so I used smoked tofu instead. The Cook's Country recipe called for salted pork belly as the meaty component. And I saw others that called for bacon and one that incorporated smoked ham hocks. So... the takeaway seems to be use something meaty, salty, and preferably involving pork; smoke optional. ^Back

This Hello Fresh recipe was a quick build. Symbol and I both liked it; the Kidlet liked it so much that she had it for lunch several days in a row!

Black Bean & Corn Stew

Hello Fresh

Ingredients

• 30mL (2 tbsp) oil
• 740mL (3 C) black beans, tinned, with their juice
• 30mL (2 tbsp) enchilada spice blend
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 360mL (1½ C) vegetable broth
• 2.5mL (½ tsp) sugar
• 2 bell peppers, diced
• 480mL (2 C) tomato salsa
• 250g corn kernels
• ~120mL cilantro, chopped
• ~120mL (½ C) guacamole
• 1 lime, wedged
• tortilla chips or toasted pita wedges, for serving

Directions

1. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat.
2. Add the oil, beans (with their tinning liquid), enchilada spice blend, garlic salt, and black pepper to taste.
3. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium, and cook until heated through and beans soften slightly, ~4-5 minutes.
4. Carefully mash most of the beans, leaving some whole.
5. Add broth, sugar, cilantro, corn, and peppers.
6. Simmer until peppers are tender, 8-10 minutes.
7. Garnish with guacamole and lime squeezings. Serve with tortilla chips.

It's been a while since I've made anything out of our Cook's Country magazines and I was feeling at a bit of a loss for dinner inspiration, so I figured maybe it was time to browse the recipe list again. This chili looked easy and tasty and I already had most of the ingredients on hand, so it seemed ideal. Not least of all because it would let us use up a little more ground beef, which we have in abundance at the moment.

The original recipe involved cooking the rice in the skillet and then keeping it warm in individual serving bowls while you cook the chili in the same skillet you used for the rice. I appreciate that this avoids dirtying a second cooking vessel. But I wasn't crazy about cooking the two components sequentially and bringing the oven into the mix, so I opted to use the InstantPot for the rice and let it do its thing while TF helped me put together the chili.

Skillet Chili Bowls

Slightly adapted from Cook's Country October/November 2020

Ingredients

• 1/2 c. sour cream
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro, divided
• 2 tsp. grated lime zest, divided
• 2-3 Tbsp. lime juice, divided
• 450g ground beef (preferably 90% lean)
• 2 Tbsp. water
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 tsp. coarse sea salt¹, divided
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1 c. long-grain brown rice
• 1 Tbsp. bacon fat
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 chipotle in adobo, minced
• 450mL tomato sauce
• 2 c. cooked black beans²
• 1 c. frozen corn
• grated Cheddar, to serve (optional)
• pickled jalapeños, to serve (optional)

Directions

1. Combine sour cream, 2 Tbsp. of the cilantro, 1 tsp. of the lime zest, and half the lemon juice and mix well. Set aside and chill until ready to use.
2. Mix beef with the water, baking soda, 1/4 tsp. of the salt, and pepper and let rest for 20-30 minutes.
3. Cook the rice by your preferred method with 1/2 tsp. of the salt.³
4. Once the rice is done, stir in the remaining lime zest, lime juice, and cilantro.
5. Melt the bacon grease over medium heat.
6. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook for ~7 minutes.
7. Add the beef and cook for another 6-7 minutes.
8. Add cumin, garlic, and chipotle and cook for 1 minute.
9. Add tomato sauce, beans, and corn and cook for 5 more minutes.
10. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
11. Serve chili over rice and topped with Cheddar, jalapeños, and/or crema (the cilantro-lime sour cream mixture).

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¹ The original recipe called for a whopping 2 tsp. of salt! 1/4 tsp. in the beef, 1/4 tsp. in the crema, 1/2 tsp. in the rice, and 1 tsp. added to the chili in the last 5 minutes of cooking. That seemed like way too much to me. Especially since we were using tinned beans and tinned tomato sauce (both of which the recipe specifically calls for). If you are cooking your own beans from scratch and making your own tomato sauce, then you might find you need to add a little salt at the end of cooking, but taste it first! ^Back
2 I forgot to get my beans cooking ahead of time, so we didn't have any black beans ready to hand for the chili. My second and third choice would've been kidney or pinto beans, but we didn't have any of those pre=cooked either. I ended up tossing in a tin of cannellini (white kidney) beans. They actually worked pretty well! Although I do think it would've been even better with black beans. ^Back
3 For me this means a 1:1 ratio of rice and water in the InstantPot on high pressure for 18 minutes (for long-grain brown rice) with a 10-minute natural release. ^Back

This claims to be a chili recipe. While it does involve beans and tomatoes and chilies, it also involves a three-nut paste and the overall effect is much closer to a korma than any chili I've ever had. Thus, I am deciding that it's really a mislabeled korma after all. Either way, it's very good. I served it with some fried rice and a simple bottle gourd squash curry.

Three-Bean Korma

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1/4 c. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 6-8 cloves garlic, minced
• 2-4 fresh green Thai, finger, or jalapeño chilies, chopped
• 1 (400mL) can diced tomatoes
• 1-2 tsp. ground Kashmiri chilies (or 1 part cayenne + 3 parts paprika)
• 1 tsp. sweet paprika (optional)
• 2 tsp. Dhania-Jeera Masala
• 1/2 Tbsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 3 c. water, divided
• 1/2 c. raw pine nuts
• 1/2 c. raw cashew nuts
• 1/2 c. raw pistachio nuts
• scant 2 c. cooked pinto beans
• scant 2 c. cooked kidney beans
• scant 2 c. cooked black beans
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Heat oil over medium heat.
2. Add onion, celery, carrot, grlic, and fresh chilies and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes, ground chilies, paprika (if using), masala, salt, and turmeric.
4. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for ~5 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, pour 1/4 c. of the water into a blender followed by all of the nuts and purée.
6. Add the nut paste to the tomato mixture.
7. Pour the remaining water into the blender and whizz it round to wash out the blender. Add this nutty water to the pot as well.
8. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.
9. Reduce heat to medium-low, coer, and smmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.
10. Reduce heat to low and cook for another 15 minutes.
11. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

It's been a while since we did Hello Fresh, but symbol and I have both been kind of discombobulated lately and deemed it a good idea for this week. The Kidlet picked this one out of the box and it was a hit; she said that it was "spicy, but I can handle it, and I actually like the feeling of the spicy in my mouth"! Maybe her spicy resistance has leveled up?

Black Bean Enchiladas

Hello Fresh

Ingredients

• 4 scallions, sliced, whites and greens separated
• 3+3 cloves garlic, minced and divided
• 2 tbsp enchilada seasoning
• 1½ C jasmine rice
• zest of 2 limes
• 2 yellow onions, chopped
• 4 tbsp mexican seasoning
• 740mL tinned black beans, with their liquid
• juice of 1 lime
• 12 6" flour tortillas
• 2 C tomato salsa
• 2 C grated mozzarella cheese
• 12 tbsp guacamole

Directions

1. Set instant pot to sautée. Add 2 tbsp oil, scallion whites, half the garlic, rice, and enchilada seasoning. Cook until fragrant, 2-3 minutes.
2. Add 1½ C water, cover, and pressure cook as normal for rice (4 minutes + 10 minute cooldown for white jasmine rice).
3. When rice is done, fluff it and stir in scallion greens and lime zest.
4. Meanwhile, heat 4 tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
5. Add onions and remaining garlic and cook until onion is softened and turning golden.
6. Add mexican seasoning and black pepper and cook until fragrant, 30-60s.
7. Stir in lime juice and black beans (with their liquid), bring to a boil, and simer, stirring occasionally, until liquid reduces and beans soften.
8. Remove from heat and mash beans with a potato masher.
9. Divide beans between tortillas.
10. Roll tortillas into tubes and place, seam down, into a lightly oiled 9×13" baking pan.
11. Pour over salsa.
12. Top with cheese.
13. Broil on middle rack 5-6 minutes, until cheese and edges of tortillas are browned.
14. Serve with guacamole and lime wedges.

I was looking for something easy and tasty to make for dinner last night. I figured I'd end up making some sort of legume curry. I stumbled across this TexMex-looking recipe in the "contemporary curries" section though and figured I'd give it a go.

I had to make a few substitutions, but managed to stick mostly to the recipe. I used whole wheat flour torillas instead of corn ones. And I baked one large stack in a pie plate rather than doing several smaller ones on a baking dish. I also ended up using crumbled tofu in place of the ground turkey. I cooked it with a bit of stock, soy sauce, and ghee to give it a flavour boost. And I had to use a mix of guajillo and California chilies since I didn't have enough guajillos on hand. And, of course, I halved the salt as usual. Everything else stayed the same.

The recipe didn't call for garlic, but I would be inclined to add some next time. TF also felt like the sauce could've used a little boost. It had a nice gentle heat and beautiful colour with some good smoky flavour, but I don't think it was as well-rounded as she'd hoped. I'm wondering if adding just a touch of amchoor or apple cider vinegar would help with that.

Indian Spiced Taco Pie

Adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

Sauce

• 12 dried guajillo chilies, stems removed
• 3 c. boiling water
• 2 tsp. dabeli masala
• 3/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. amchoor or 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar (optional)

Filling

• 2 Tbsp. canola oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 450g thawed frozen tofu, pressed and crumbled
• 1/4 c. stock (chicken, beef, vegetable, or mushroom)
• 1/2 tsp. light soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. ghee
• 2 c. cooked black beans
• 2 tsp. dabeli masala
• salt, to taste¹
• 1-2 fresh or frozen green Thai chilies, chopped

Assembly

• 3 large (25-30cm/10-12") tortillas
• shredded cheese
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 scallion/green onion, chopped (optional)

Directions

Sauce

1. Place dried chilies in a bowl with the boiling water. Use a pot or similar to weigh the chilies down so they stay submerged. Set aside for 20 minutes.
2. Reserving the soaking liquid, remove the chilies from the water and place them in a blender.
3. Pour 1/2 c. of the soaking liquid into the blender and purée.
4. Place a fine mesh seive over a pot and pour the puréed mixture into the seive. Stir and mash it around to force as much through the seive as possible.
5. Swish out the blender with the remaining soaking liquid and pour this through the seive as well, ~1/2 c. at a time. Being sure to stir as mash to continue working material through the seive.
6. Once all the liquids have gone through the seive, discard the pulp and bring the sauce in the pot to a boil.
7. Stir in dabeli masala, salt, and amchoor/vinegar (if using).
8. Remove from heat and set aside.

Filling

1. Heat oil over medium heat.
2. Add onion, garlic, tofu, stock, and soy sauce and cook for ~10 minutes.
3. Add ghee to pan and cook for another 5-10 minutes.
4. Add the beans, dabeli masala, salt, and chilies and cook for another 5 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and set aside.

Assembly

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
2. Grease a 23cm (9") deep dish pie plate.
3. Place a tortilla in the bottom of the pie plate.
4. Scoop some of the filling onto the tortilla and spread it into an even layer.
5. Top with cilantro and cheese.
6. Place a second tortilla on top and repeat the layers of filling, cilantro, and cheese. (You will have some filling left over.)
7. Place a final tortilla on top of the pie. (Trim the edges to make it slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the pie plate if necessary.)
8. Ladel ~1 1/2 c. of sauce over the pie and top with a bit more cheese.
9. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 10 minutes.
10. Sprinkle with cilantro and green onion (if using).
11. Serve with rice and/or salad.
12. If desired, make a second pie with the leftover filling and some more tortillas and cheese.

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¹ Iyer's version of the recipe uses turkey rather than tofu and doesn't call for the stock or soy sauce. He calls for 1 tsp. of coarse sea salt. I swapped in tofu, but used homemade stock with very little salt, so I opted to add 1/2 tsp. of salt to my filling. If you're using commercial stock, you may wish to reduce the salt further. ^Back

Feijoada (Goan-Style)

The main contenders for dinner tonight were either hotpot or curry. TF was more in the mood for curry, so that's what we opted for, and I'm really glad we did! This curry was so good! Everyone loved it. The sausage and beans work really well together and the vinegar, chilies, and garlic combine to give it wonderful, savoury-sour, mouthwatering flavour. I'm slightly regretting not making a double batch!

Photo goes here.

Feijoada

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1/4 c. malt vinegar
• 4-5 cloves garlic¹ (or 1/4 c. garlic paste)
• 4 dried guajillo chilies²
• 2-4 dried red Thai, cayenne, or arbol chilies³
• 2 slices fresh ginger (or 1 1/2 Tbsp. ginger paste)
• 2 Tbsp. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1 large onion, halved and sliced
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 c. water
• 1-2 c. cooked black-eyed peas⁴
• 1-2 c. cooked kidney beans
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 450g pork⁵ sausage (chorizo is ideal), cut crosswise 1cm thick
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Combine vinegar, garlic, both kinds of chilies, and ginger in a blender and puree.
2. Heat oil over medium heat.
3. Add cumin seeds and sizzle for 10-20 seconds.
4. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes.
5. Add the pureed mixture and simmer, uncovered, for another 5 minutes.
6. Add tomato and turmeric and cook, uncovered, for 5 more minutes.
7. Add water, both kinds of beans, salt, and sausage and bring to a boil.
8. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until sausage is cooked through (~15 minutes).
9. Sprinkle with cilantro.
10. Serve over rice.

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¹ Since I was working with a previously prepared guajillo chili sauce rather than whole chilies, I opted to swap in garlic paste and ginger paste for the fresh garlic and ginger in order to eliminate the necessity for the blender. I used ~1/4 c. of garlic paste and 1 1/2 Tbsp. of ginger paste. ^Back
2 I had some leftover guajillo chili sauce from an earlier recipe, so I just used that in place of the dried chilies. I used ~6 Tbsp. of sauce. ^Back
3 I left out the spicier arbol chilies entirely both because I didn't want to have to bust out the blender and because I figured using only the much milder guajillo chilies would be more to the Kidlet's taste anyway. This proved to be the right call; she loved it! ^Back
4 I didn't have any black-eyed peas so I swapped in a cup of cooked black turtle beans instead. ^Back
5 This recipe can easily be made vegetarian/vegan by swapping in plant-based sausages for the pork ones. ^Back

When I think of adding things to bread dough, I have to admit that beans aren't generally my first thought. Fruit, nuts, seeds? Sure! Potatoes? Yes! Eggs, honey, milk, yogurt, etc.? Of course! Cheese, zucchini, herbs, even meat? I can dig it. Beans? Not my first pick. I wasn't sure what dumping a bunch of mashed black beans into my dough would do to it. Would the gluten be disrupted? Would it make it heavy? Dense? Wet? All of the above?! But it turns out that black bean bread is amazing and magical and wonderful! It tastes delicious, it rises beautifully, it has a rich dark colour, and it keeps incredibly well. It's now one of my favourite breads. And the raisins are just the icing on the already wonderful cake! Perfection.

Black Bean Raisin Bread

From the Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book

Ingredients

• 1 c. uncooked black turtle beans
• 2 c. liquid from cooking the beans
• 1/4 c. molasses
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 4 tsp. active dry yeast¹
• 1/4 c. warm water
• 750g hard (strong/high grade/bread) whole wheat flour
• 1 Tbsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 c. raisins, steamed or soaked for 5-10 minutes and drained

Directions

1. Cook the beans and drain, reserving the cooking liquid.
2. Add or pour off water as needed to bring the measurement to 2 c.
3. Mash beans with potato masher or combine with cooking liquid and blend with electric blender or food processor.
4. Add molasses and oil to bean mixture and allow to cool slightly. (It should be somewhere around 35-40°C.)
5. Dissolve yeast in 1/4 c. warm water and let stand for ~10 minutes.
6. Mix flour and salt in a bowl.
7. Make a well in the centre of the flour and pour in the bean mixture and the yeast mixture.
8. Gradually incorporate the flour into the liquids, working from the centre outward.
9. Knead dough very well (20-40 minutes depending on your technique).
10. Add the raisins toward the end of kneading.
11. Shape dough into a ball, place in bowl, cover, and let rise for ~1 hour. Poke dough with a wet finger to test if it's done. If the hole doesn't fill in at all, it's ready. (If it sighs and/or sinks back, it's gone past the ideal point to knock it back.)
12. Knock the dough back by pressing it flat. Knead it a few strokes if you wish, but not too much!
13. Shape it into a smooth ball again and return it to the covered bowl to rise again. This rise may go slightly faster. (Depending on the temperature of your room, of course.)
14. Use the same finger poke to test doneness. Once ready, knock the dough back again.
15. Divide it into two equal portions and round each one. Cover and let rest for 10-15 minutes.
16. Shape each portion into a loaf as desired. (Hearth loaves or pan loaves.)
17. Cover and let rise for 30-45 minutes. (The finger poke test should have it filling in slightly/slowly.)
18. DO NOT slash the crust!
19. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for ~1 hour.

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¹ If you're using "instant" yeast, reduce the amount by 25%. (ie. Use 1 Tbsp. rather than 4 tsp.) You may also mix the yeast in with the dry ingredients rather than hydrating it first. ^Back