Wednesday, October 12, 2011

The Grocery Game: Day 3

Beans, beans, beans.

I decided I'd tack on a second day of discussion about the beans, first, because I needed to prep some pintos for chili later this week; and because if I'm going to prep one batch, I might as well prep three.

Honest.


Three.

This is a common sight at my house.  The more dried beans I've cooked and frozen, the simpler and easier my life is at some harried juncture down the road.

It's the equivalent of the pre-prepared items we [used to] pay an arm and a leg for.  No preservatives.  No heavy processing.  And best of all?  I'm not paying anyone for a tin can, nor filler liquid!

Pass me the bean bags, please . . .


This morning began very similar to yesterday, therefore, I put a pan of beans on each burner, quick boiled them each for two minutes, lidded them and walked away.  When I returned, hours later, the pre-soak segment of their life was officially over, and I could continue.

Each pot of beans had a specific purpose.  These pintos?


The whole lot of 'em were becoming chili beans.


 Darn good ones, too.

The garbanzos?


A hummus future for at least 2 cups worth, maybe four; and one 2 cup bag for whatever rolls my way.



 A roasting?  Or maybe a soup addition?  :)

The Blacks?


There was no doubt the Blacks were headed for supper tonight.


Also 2 cups to the freezer for an additive over salad.  Yum, yum, yum!  :)

Let's discuss why beans are so important to your diet, since we've already discovered why they impact your wallet.

Beans are chock full of dietary fiber - which produces not only good digestion, but the sensation of fullness and satiate, all while burning fat for a living!  Wonderful minerals such as iron, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus and thiamine . . . all vital to a healthy functioning body.

Toss beans with rice?  You've a perfect protein, guaranteed to stick to your ribs!

Why fill up with empty calories?  Why pay exorbitant prices for empty calories?  Buy beans, dried, in bulk if possible, and begin to transition your way into better health.

I can hear you asking now.  How on earth do I manage all three burners, and keep everything straight?  

Well, first of all, as I said, if I'm going to do one, I might as well do multiples.  This type of day flows best when I've a focused task, such as loads of laundry, or admin that has me sitting at the table.  Not a busy, moving about much kind of day, where it might be easy to mis-manage the time.  Once you've mastered one day of doing it, you'll continually find it easier and easier to accomplish each subsequent time. (Of course, if all else fails, pull out Mr. Old Trusty and Mr. New and Shiny Crockpot, and let them work for you!)  :)

When each bean was fully cooked to a tender bite, they began to transform into their final product.  You'll find the recipe's on today's document.  I also roasted two red peppers and put Lime Rice in the rice cooker.  Here's how that all played out:





This batch of Red Pepper Hummus will feed us for lunch tomorrow, plus snacks through the week.  One pepper went into the hummus directly, the second - into the freezer for a future batch.

The Lime Rice became the base for the Spicy Black Beans, which was tonight's supper:




All this delicious goodness, plus, store for the freezer:




Time for some tally work, eh?  :)

The Spicy Black Beans:


4 cups cooked Black Beans:  .80
2 cups homemade Chicken Broth (made previously, don't have a tally, I'll use $1)
1 jalepeno from the garden:  free
1 med onion .33
1 clove garlic .05


Lime Rice


1 cup rice:  .25
2 cups homemade Chicken Broth: $1
1 lime:  .20
clinatro:  .10


Total:  3.73

This meal fed 3 adults and two toddlers, with leftovers which went into the freezer for a future date.

For breakfast we did the egg and grapefruit juice trick, so 1.31 there.  I ended up not eating  a lunch, while the KBoyz had a PB&J.  I usually can't skip a meal, but today it happened.  I dunno.  Apples are always a 'yes' snack - and the boys at at least two each.  With the 5 lb bags at 98 cents each and filled to the brim?  I'm sure they were a pretty [cheap] penny.  I'll do the math on that later.    :)

So are you ready for delicious?  Here is your passport:

Spicy Black Beans, Lime Rice, City Cricket's Super Salsa, Chili Beans, Roasted Red Pepper Hummus:  The Grocery Game:  Day 3

Enjoy!

Tomorrow,  you'll see me pull out the veggies with a vengeance!  Don't miss it!





8 comments:

Luke said...

This is VERY interesting. I'm not sure I could convert us to that many beans. Well, some of us could convert, but some.....we'll leave that alone.

I am intrigued by the bean thing though. I always have hummus in the house. Always. I make it from canned beans. Once I tried doing my own chick peas and it was a big fat FAIL. I think I overcooked the beans, not sure if that is possible, but it is the only thing I can figure. Here is my question though, can I freeze hummus?

Christine said...

Eeegads. I did not realize my son was logged in when I commented. Please know that he cares nothing for hummus, I want to know all about freezing beans, not he. (oh the joy of sharing a computer with everyone I live with!)

Stephanie C said...

Mmm, roasted red pepper in hummus! Never thought of that before. :o)

Unknown said...

LOL! . . .and Luke was so ARTICULATE, Christine! LOL

Truth be told, I've never frozen the hummus, but only because it keeps well - well enough for us to go through it without a long term need for a freeze. However, I'd 100% be game to try it! At the price of homemade, it would be worth the experiment.

I do have varying degrees of success with the smoothness of my home prepared hummus, which is a slight bummer to me, but the flavor is there, and that is most important, next to the protein level and vitamin/mineral mix benefit. Oh, and minuscule calories! :)

Now I'm pondering if I omitted the lemon when I typed out my recipe? I'll go back and check . . .

Stephanie, it IS Yum!! :

Cricket said...

Ok- forget the hummus ;)- I've got that nailed down- I want more info on how you might flavor the garbanzo beans aside from sea salt. Do they get crunchy?

Ok- wait about the hummus- I love the idea of roasted red pepper hummus! Off to eat some of my hummus now, in fact. :)

And tomorrow- I'm making your one pot meal. :)

Cricket said...

And...did you by chance toss some cilantro in with the lime rice? Looks like perhaps you did...

Unknown said...

I want to see *your* hummus recipe, Cricket! Does it differ much from mine?

The garbanzo seasonings vary greatly at our house, in part because we haven't found a 'favorite' yet. So, chili-lime; another cumin/chili pepper/mexican dusting; a chex mix seasoning made from scratch; simply soy sauce; etc. I wish I had a specific favorite, but thankfully, the salted ones are delicious enough that one doesn't need a recipe for anything fancier.

As to the crunch factor, yes . .. and no. If you've ever had Corn Nuts? They do not get that hard/crunchy. They have a crunchy outside and a tender middle. Shrinkage is the key indicator, followed by the browning. The smaller they are (without burning) the crunchier they are.

Yes, cilantro in the rice. Did I forget to note that? LOL

Cricket said...

Yes- you forgot to note the cilantro- but I have a nose for cilantro- so I figured it out. :) Love that stuff!

I'll send you my hummus recipe tomorrow. As for the chick peas- cool- I like crunch, but can't do as crunchy as corn nuts....though at camp as a kid I'd keep others awake in the cabin as I'd munch on them. Oops!

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