Bean Advice from Shanna

To go along with a recent post/ class I taught at church here is some advice from my good friend Shanna. She is awesome and gracious to share her knowledge. If you attended the class, below is the info we reviewed.

Guest Post: Shanna's Bean Tips and Recipes

Beans are really easy to cook with and they add a lot of texture, flavor, and bulk (they keep you satisfied longer) to recipes.  The hardest thing is to plan far enough ahead to have them ready when you need them, assuming you are using dried beans.  Most beans need to be soaked for 4-12 hrs, drained, and then placed in more water to cook for 1-2 hrs. There are instructions on the packages I find it easiest to soak them overnight, then set them to cook while getting ready in the morning.  I put the cooked beans in the refrigerator to use when I get home that night to cook dinner.  Beans from a can work well too if you don't want to start from scratch, but they do have sodium in them as a preservative. Here are some of my favorite recipes (my family doesn't always like them, but I do!):

Black bean salsa
1 cup cooked black beans
1 tablespoon of liquid from cooked beans
2 tablespoons of lime juice
1/3 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 cup diced onion
1 chopped chili pepper
1/2 cup cooked corn
1/2 cup avocado
2 cups chopped tomatoes
Mix all ingredients and chill for 4 hrs.

Instant Refried Beans
3 cups dry beans
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon dried minced onion
cayenne pepper to taste
Grind beans to a flour consistency, add remaining ingredients and store in an air tight container.

To use- 3/4 cup of bean mix
           2 1/2 cups boiling water
mix with a wire whisk in a saucepan, bring to a boil, and simmer on low for 4-5 min.  This works great for camping trips!

Minestrone Soup
1 onion chopped
1 potato chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 tsp. oil
fry until onion and potato are golden brown
add:
2 cups water
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp basil
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste
boil for 15 min.
add:
1 zucchini sliced
2 cups kidney beans
1 cup canned tomatoes (I prefer to use fresh chopped tomatoes)
1 cup pasta
boil 15 min. and serve

Moist Cocoa-Lentil Cake
2 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup lentils
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup oil (3/4 cup applesauce and 1/4 cup oil works great too!)
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 1/2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt

Bring water to a boil, add salt and lentils.  Simmer, covered for 40 min. (this can be done in advance)  Drain lentils, reserving 1/4 cup of the liquid.  Puree lentils and liquid in a blender.  Mix in a bowl, oil, sugar, and eggs.  Beat for 2 minutes.  Add puree, and vanilla fold in.  Then add remaining ingredients, beating for 2 minutes.  Pour into a greased cake pan.  Bake at 350* for 30-35 minutes.

My all time favorite place for beans is chili, but most people have a recipe they really like already.
I also like to add beans to my tacos, salads, soups and pureed in any tomato based sauce, like spaghetti sauce.  (I sneak pureed vegetables in that way too!)

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