A FRIDGE FULL OF FOOD...

Give Peas a Chance: Split Pea & Sausage Soup

 

Brain:  "Are you pondering what I'm pondering?"

Pinky:  "I think so, Brain, but if we give peas a chance, won't the carrots get jealous?"

 

I've always thought that split pea soup couldn't be split pea soup without chunks of ham in it until the other day when I had no ham in the freezer but did have a roll of light country (sage) sausage.  I may never use ham again!  The sausage and all of its seasonings added a depth of well-roundedness to the soup that the ham just doesn't quite make.  Viva la sausage!

 

Mexican Villa Fake-out: Home-made Burrito Enchilada-Style

 

Let's start with a HUGE Thank You to Jamie D who read my original post about our hometown Mexican Villa and sent me a taste-alike recipe from the 'net for The Villa's enchilada sauce. Like Springfield-style Cashew Chicken, The Villa is a Springfield original, it's ours, and we're wild about it!

Using Jamie's sauce I created our own Burritos Enchilada-Style last night and we loved them. In a private email Jamie had said "When the chili seasoning hits the sauce your nose will know it's The Villa."  Yup, sooooooooo true!  Not that we won't be ordering from the restaurant itself anymore but it is a nice home-style meal as well that I got a huge kick out of creating. It will be fun to make it for friends or family sometime and see if I can fake them out.

Feijoida is Good by itself but Better with a Friend

 

Invited to lunch yesterday by my friend Teril, I was served a Portuguese treat I'd never had or made before:  Feijoida, a thick multi-meat stew that her husband, Stan, had brought back a love for from his LDS mission to Brazil. Americanizing it slightly, Teril's version is very close to what he ate in Brazil. Originally, Feijoida was a stew created by the African slaves brought to Portugal and all of its colonies, including Brazil.  The stew primarily consisted of black, white, or pinto beans (depending on the country and region), simmered in large clay pots along with a mix of cast off meats available to the slaves:  beef tongue and pig ears, tails, and feet. Thankfully, the stew Teril fed me was made from beef chuck roast, smoked sausage, and bacon.  I hope. More modernly, the stew is served over rice and may be accompanied by additional smoked sausages, kale or collard greens, hot sauce, and sometimes deep fried bananas.

Warm Winter Soup: Navy Bean and Ham

 

I've been trying to keep homemade soups in the fridge this winter for something nutritious to snack on or grab for work lunches and bean soups are my favorite.  Even though I happily eat them all year round, they embody winter cooking for me. I love how meaty and hearty they are, while knowing that they're absolutely good for me on every level from the fiber to the vitamins to the protein.  One of the ways I've changed my cooking style of bean soups, though, is to pump up the vegetable volume. I used to use veggies as seasoning and now I usually have as many onions, peppers, carrots mixed in as beans.  I love the way they fill out the taste and cook down along with the bean starch for that porridge consistency, sort of thick bowls of warmth on a gray day.

Crockpot Chili Stew

I was looking for a crockpot meal yesterday so I wouldn't have to spend much time in the kitchen and was trying to use up some ground beef and vegetables from the fridge, and beans and seasoning packets from the pantry when I came up with this idea, sort of a cross between chili and stew using ground beef, pinto beans, our CSA veggies, and a few potatoes.  Seasoned like chili it was a little "lighter" than chili but a little "heavier" than vegetable soup.  Gene and I both liked it; we'll be making it again, more often as cooler weather moves in. 

Homemade Refried Anasazi Beans

The menu theme for niece Jordan and nephew Isaac's birthday party last week was Tex-Mex, with build-your-own taco bar, refried beans, white queso & chips, 7 Layer Dip, and then the snack food cake for dessert.  One of my adventures for the party was making refried beans from scratch.

I learned some interesting things in my research. Although most people do "fry" or recook the cooked beans in a skillet in lard, shortening, or oil, smashing them down as they go, the term "refried" is actually a mistranslation of Spanish "refritos" meaning "well fried", the "re" in Spanish meaning "well", not "again, like in English.  Also, with more research, I found out that the point of frying isn't to make anything crispy, it's not about being fried at all.  The point is to mix some fat into the beans to create a creamier texture and mouth feel.

Keeping all of that in mind, I created a healthier refried bean recipe that got rave reviews at the party and, even better, from Gene who (isn't a huge legume fan) asked me to prepare them this way more often because he liked them so much. 

On a delicate note, I chose the anasazi beans not only for the slightly sweeter taste than pintos but also because they have less of what generally produces, ahem, odorousness in folks after consuming.  Listen, I knew I'd be hanging out with these people all afternoon.  I may be many things but I am not a stupid woman. 

For more information on the Anasazi beans, please click here: Anasazi Beans

Split Pea Soup with Ham to Warm You Through and Through

Mmmm.....nothing like soup in the winter to warm you up! This one from Whole Foods Market is easy to make and the house smells delicous all afternoon as the soup simmers in the crockpot.

Healthy Snacking: Roasted Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

We all like to snack. It's just part of being human. And bored.  Or happy.  Or hungry.  When it comes to snacking we have a lot of choices but most times it comes down to a choice between something not good for us:  chips, candy, etc. or something good for us like raw veggies.  Here's another fast, simple, and delcious alternative to the vending machine:  roasted chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans).  Packed with protein and flavor, they're versatile and portable.  I'm taking most of this batch with me to work tonight to share.

Did You Eat Your New Year's Day Black-eyed Peas? Cowboy Caviar

I love traditions and so for years I've tried to be a good little New Year's girl and eat my black-eyed peas but the truth is I don't really like 'em.  Until now. I finally found a recipe that I feel like enhances the taste so that I'm willing to down them not only on New Year's Day but on other days of the year as well.

The recipe is called Cowboy Caviar and there are a million variations. This is mine. I tailored the idea of a cold bean salad to accommodate my personal tastes and to incorporate some of my new eating principles.  There are beans, veggies, and olive oil, a trifecta of good for the body and a treat for the tastebuds.  I served this as a side dish on New Year's Eve but we also played around with it as a salsa-type appetizer eaten with tortilla chips, and I mixed some with some cooked brown rice I had in the fridge that I'll be taking in my lunch box at times this year as an entree and eating for lunch on New Year's Day today.  Yummy and versatile.

Did You Eat Your New Year's Day Black-eyed Peas? Cowboy Caviar

I love traditions and so for years I've tried to be a good little New Year's girl and eat my black-eyed peas but the truth is I don't really like 'em.  Until now. I finally found a recipe that I feel like enhances the taste so that I'm willing to down them not only on New Year's Day but on other days of the year as well.

The recipe is called Cowboy Caviar and there are a million variations. This is mine. I tailored the idea of a cold bean salad to accommodate my personal tastes and to incorporate some of my new eating principles.  There are beans, veggies, and olive oil, a trifecta of good for the body and a treat for the tastebuds.  I served this as a side dish on New Year's Eve but we also played around with it as a salsa-type appetizer eaten with tortilla chips, and I mixed some with some cooked brown rice I had in the fridge that I'll be taking in my lunch box at times this year as an entree and eating for lunch on New Year's Day today.  Yummy and versatile.