Broth and Beans and Other Good Things....

Simple Dinners Are the Best came about as a Facebook page that I developed about a year ago, while working full time and juggling household responsibilities as a single mom. I wanted to share my ideas for good, clean eating without a lot of fuss.

Now that I'm unemployed, I have more time for cooking, but I still want meals that are simple to make.  Stretching the food dollar is more of a consideration, too. So making things in advance, from scratch, makes total sense.

This is where cooking in stages really comes in handy. Take refried beans, for example - the staple of an outstanding burrito, enchilada or plate of nachos. When I was working, I just bought the organic refried beans in the can, and that was fine. But dried beans cost WAY less. Yes, it takes more hours to prepare dried beans from scratch, but the result tastes far & away better than canned beans. It doesn't have to take up that much more time either, if you prepare them in stages.

Here's how:

BEANS

2 cups of dried beans (*organic* pinto, cranberry or black beans; other beans can be cooked the same way, but these three lend themselves best to refried beans)

6 - 8 cups of water

Rinse the dried beans and sort. This means you need to look for any little stones or other inedible bits that might be mixed in with the beans. Put the beans and the water in a large kettle and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 or 15 minutes, then turn off the heat. Let the beans soak anywhere from 4 hours to overnight.

Drain off the soaking water, and add 6 to 8 cups of fresh water, one teaspoon of salt, and 2 or 3 large bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer on low for 4 hours or more. Top off with more water as it cooks off, just to keep the beans covered. Stir periodically, check for tenderness. Once the beans are tender, turn off the heat and let stand until cool.

The last time I made this, I let the beans sit covered on the stove for about 36 hours....just busy and forgot about them. They were fine! Anyway, once they're cool, you can pack them into a couple of quart or pint containers and freeze. When it's time to use them, take them out, thaw, drain and use in your favorite dish.....such as REFRIED BEANS:

Drain the beans, reserving the liquid. Add about 1/4 cup of olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt to a heavy skillet. Over medium heat, add the beans. Carefully - so as not to create an accident - use a potato masher to squash the beans, then scoop and stir constantly with a spatula until the beans start to become more creamy. Add a little of the liquid at a time, to keep a smooth consistency. Add a little more oil, too. Crush 3 fat cloves of garlic and add that to the mix. Salt and pepper to taste. Keep stirring, and adding liquid to achieve a nice, creamy consistency. If the beans are too firm to yield a smooth texture, let them cool, then throw the mix into the food processor and blend. Usually, pinto beans work best for refried beans because they're soft; but cranberry beans and black beans work well too, however you may want to use the food processor for those.

Variations are endless - you could cook the beans with sausage or pork fat, or any variety of seasonings. Refried beans are traditionally made with lard, but I love the lightness of olive oil. Believe me, when you use homemade refried beans for a burrito, or a dip, you WILL be able to taste the difference.

Next time: BROTH