No Beans about it.

..at least that was my mentality from about birth until my latest trip to San Antonio.  I didn't get much exposure to beans, and when I did.. it looked like this:

 [Picture via Veg*n Cooking and Other Random Musings]

That's not to knock on their version of refriend beans (which actually looks pretty good pre-mash), but this is not really my cup of tea.  I can be somewhat of a texture person when it comes to food.. and this is not the best texture to me.  Maybe it's a mind over matter thing?

But then I tried charro beans (frijoles).  Pinto beans cooked with bacon, onions, peppers, and chiles.  They served this in Texas instead of the refried beans at many of the TexMex joints we went to... and it was absolutely delicious.

 [picture via Don Cuevas]

So now that I know the reason I don't eat beans is just in the way they're cooked.. I'm looking forward to trying this new recipe this weekend.  I'm trying to eat healthier nowadays (and JP doesn't eat meat) so this might be the perfect fit for both of us.

Experiment:  Vegetarian Frijoles Borrachos (Drunken Beans) adapted from Aaron Sanchez

Let's try this in the slow cooker!

Materials:
1lb dried pinto beans
3.5 cups of water (or about 2 inches above the beans when placed in the COLD pot)
1 handful of frozen diced white onion
2 scoops of minced garlic
2 bay leaves
1 scoop dried oregano
1 bottle dark beer
Salt/pepper to taste


Method:
In the (cold) crock pot, put the beans + water, and cook on high for 3 hours.
Turn heat to low, add the rest of the ingredients and let it all simmer until you're ready to eat.


Probs not the best meal to cook during the workday, but for the weekends, 3 hours is perfect for running errands.  I'll let ya'll know how it tastes (and looks!).


Do ya'll have any great bean recipes I should try??

Experimenting with Balsamic

I don't know what it is about it, but I am obsessed with it. After reading a few of my essential foodie blogs and having them mention this staple of mine.. I started getting a craving for it.

So here's my Balsamic Vin Experiment:

Purpose -- I needed to eat some healthy protein AND have green on my plate.. all while having some balsamic throughout. Love love the stuff.

Materials:
1lb frozen chicken cutlets (found in the freezer -- months old, but still good!)
1 fresh medium yellow onion
Minced garlic (canned)
Salad -- the iceberg, romaine mixes tend to last longer in the fridge than the spring mix..
Balsamic Vinegar
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Oregano
Salt/Pepper

Method:
Balsamic Onions
Chop up the onions into large chunks and put them in a ziploc bag.
Add a good heaping portion of balsamic vinegar -- enough to cover
A few scoops of minced garlic
Marinate it in the fridge for about 45 minutes.
About 20 minutes before you want to cook them.. take them out of the fridge and preheat the oven to 450F.
Pour everything that is in the bag into a non-stick pan.
Bake them for about 20-25 minutes until they're tender with a fork (if they start browning quick, just put some foil on it).

Balsamic Chicken
Defrost the chicken for a bit (not all the way since you're going to marinate them).
Put them in a ziploc bag.
Add some balsamic vinegar, a few scoops of garlic, oregano, salt/pepper..
Marinate for about 20-30 minutes. Since some of it will still be kinda frozen, you can just leave it out on the counter and it will finish thawing while it marinates.
I used my cast iron grill pan and pulled out the chicken pieces from the marinade and grilled them at medium heat for about 10 minutes or so until they were done. (If you pour the marinade on the grill pan, it makes for a really hard clean up on the cast iron.. esp since you can't/shouldn't use soap.)

Salad
Easy. A handful or two of salad plus the dressing.

This may seem like a little balsamic overload to some of ya'll.. but I was craving it. on everything.

and this was really delicious and super simple. It was perfect marinating time too, so I could set it up and then go walk Cooper!
salt/pepper

Poor and Hungry Experiment with Chorizo

So this isn't a surprise to a lot of ya'll, but I am a meat-eater. Most of what I eat is beige. I'm trying to do better, but this week is not one of them. I'm poor and want something to fill my belly without being incredibly unhealthy.

What I came up with was straight out of freezer leftovers. I absolutely adore my little slowcooker, and Monday morning I was hit with some inspiration while trying to hunt down some waffles from the freezer. Here's what it was:

Materials:
-1 lb frozen chorizo -- bulk. from last years CSA (I miss all the fresh meat straight off the farm)
-a few handfuls of frozen sweet roasted corn (Trader Joe's has some banging version)
-a few handfuls of mexican cheese
-a cup and another quick pour of milk
-frozen onions chopped (in the frozen food section -- these are CHEAP and quick)
-salt/pepper as you like it

Method:
-warm up the CrockPot (warm food goes in a warm crockpot, cold foods in a cold one.. important!)
-brown the chorizo (defrost first in my case) and add to the pot
-saute the onions and add to the pot
-add the rest of it and cook on low for about 8 hours (or on high if you want it in about 3 or 4 hours)

What's great about it? Besides being meaty? It's a very versatile addition to different foods.


I could eat breakfast burritos for every meal. Eggs are cheap, and I adore salsa. Just add the chorizo dish to the eggs while you're cooking it (if you add it to the tacos separately, it gets messy. trust.), warm the tortillas, add salsa.. and voila!


It's also really to use as a meat sauce. In the morning, I cooked a good amount of (whole wheat) spaghetti, scoop a few spoonfuls of the chorizo on top in your take-to-work container and add a sloshing of pasta sauce (bonus for tomato chunks).. and you've got a quick and delicious lunch at work.

So far, I've had 2 breakfast burrito dinners and 2 meatsauce pasta lunches.. and I barely spent anything. Cheap. Delicious.

Conclusion? This dish is a winner. And I'm having burritos for dinner.. heyohhh.