Pressure Canning Beans

Canned pinto beans

In January, I was busy with my pressure canner, bottling beans. I bottled pinto beans and black beans. I still have the canner on my stove top, and plan to bottle some carrots today or tomorrow. It is nice to have beans on hand. It is so economical to bottle your own. I store beans in #10 cans in my food storage pantry, which I get from my local LDS (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) cannery. You can get information on how to order here. I get 25# of beans, and then put them into #10 cans. Pinto beans cost me about $0.74/pound. When you include the cost of the can, lid and oxy pack, the cost is closer to $1/pound. However, I can store the beans for at least 5-6 years, and they cook up great.

For Christmas, "Santa" bought me a Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker. This is such a great tool for cooking beans. I have a stove top pressure cooker, a Fagor to be exact. That being said, I love being able to set the electric pressure cooker and walk away to do other things. I can saute some diced onion in the Cuisinart first, add the beans and water, then set it to cook. The beans come out perfect!

I always soak my beans overnight, or for 8 hours before cooking them. Beans are pretty dirty, so rinsing and soaking are a must. After cooking them, I bottle them up with the hot fluid in the pot, and pressure can them. I have an All American 921 and love it. Check the Ball Blue Book for times and PSI.

Another method for bottling beans is to rinse and soak the beans overnight. Put them into the canning bottles, and pour boiling water over the beans to the 1" mark. Wipe the rims, put the lid on and hand tighten the ring.



Chili with Sweet Potatoes

I decided that today would be a great day to make chili. There are lots of recipes out there that use canned pumpkin. However, I'm using canned sweet potatoes in the recipe, mainly because I need to use it up. Canned food does go bad. I try to rotate my food storage every year, especially the canned items. The great thing about chili is that it is so easy. I just get my crock pot out, and start dumping the canned items in. I do add diced onion, garlic and seasonings. Today I added some things from my freezer as well. Here is what I added. You can add cooked ground beef if desired. We're not big meat eaters, so this will work fine for us.

15 oz. can kidney beans (rinsed)
15 oz. can small white beans
2 c. pinto beans (from freezer)
2 cans Rotel diced tomatoes with green chili
1 large can sweet potatoes (rinsed)
2 tsp cumin
1-2 tsp chili powder
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 c. cooked whole grain cereal (from freezer)

It's cooking away on low. I'll make some cornbread in my cast iron frying pan and serve them with some cheese, chopped green onions and sour cream.

Scrambled Eggs with Homemade Refried Beans and Jalepeno Yogurt Dip

My new favorite breakfast is scrambled eggs with my homemade "refried" beans. I put the refried in quotations because they are actually cooked in a crockpot or pressure cooker. You can find the recipe, here. You can leave the bacon out of the recipe, and it is still dynamite! Serve just those two items with sliced tomatoes or salsa, and you'll love it. However, my new favorite Costco item is Skotidakis Mild Jalapeno Greek Yogurt Dip. And no, I didn't get compensated to say that (I wish!). Two tablespoons of dip are 50 calories, and it is the perfect addition to this breakfast. I use it as a vegetable dip as well.

Homemade Refried Bean and Jalapeno Greek Yogurt Dip

I use one whole egg and two whites for the eggs for 100 calories, the beans are approximately 150 calories for a 1/2 c. and 2 tablespoons of yogurt dip is 50 calories. Tomato slices aren't worth counting. For just 300 calories, you are filled up until well past lunch time. Add an orange or other fruit to boost the vitamin level. If I had fresh sprouts that were ready, I would add those for negligible calories too. I've chopped up romaine lettuce and added that to the plate in the past.

Black Bean and Corn Salsa

I posted this recipe back in November of 2008, but I make it so often, I thought it was time to revisit it! Besides, I was able to harvest some green onions from my garden to include in the recipe.

After chopping up all of the ingredients, and giving it a good stir, here is a close-up picture.

It is great as a dip or as a side dish. I served it along with my sirloin tip roast and mashed potatoes on Easter Sunday, and it was a hit!

Pinto Beans with Garlic

I had some pinto beans in the freezer, left over from a batch I made earlier this year. A last minute dinner dish was in order, so I did a quick google search, and came up with this recipe for Pinto Beans and Garlic from About.com. I made the following changes to the recipe:

• I added 1 extra chopped celery stalk


• Used canned diced tomatoes instead of paste


• 1 tsp of chili powder. The chili powder I have is from The Spice House, and it has a nice kick to it. We like our chili mild, so a teaspoon did the trick.


• I also added 3/4 c. water.

The result was a nice chunky bean dip! I served it with rice, scoopable tortilla chips and grated cheese. The verdict: a delicious, easy meal to prepare. It is a great vegetarian recipe, and a good way to use those beans in your food storage!

Here is the recipe the way I made it:

3-4 cups of cooked pinto beans

1 onion, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

2 carrots, grated

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1/2 tsp basil

3 cloves garlic

1/4 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp celery seed

1 tsp chili powder

1 can diced tomatoes

olive oil

dash pepper

Begin by adding a tablespoon or two of olive oil to a large pot. Saute the onion, pepper, and celery until onions are translucent. Add the the remaining ingredients, and simmer. Stir frequently on medium-low heat until beans are soft and beginning to break down. Serve with rice. Chips and cheese optional, but they really add to the meal.

Lentil Chili from Whole Foods

I got this recipe from Whole Foods. You can find the recipe originally posted here.

picture courtesy of Whole Foods.com



Serves 8

This simple vegetarian chili recipe uses lentils instead of beans. Brown lentils work best as they will hold their shape even when tender after cooking. Serve over brown rice or with whole-grain hearth bread.

Ingredients

8 cups low-sodium vegetable broth, divided
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 teaspoons salt-free chili powder
1 (16-ounce) package brown lentils (about 2 1/4 cups lentils)
2 (15-ounce) cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Method

Bring 3/4 cup broth to a simmer in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper and garlic and cook about 8 minutes or until onion is translucent and pepper is tender. Stir in chili powder and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add lentils, tomatoes and remaining 7 1/4 cups broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, 30 minutes or until lentils are almost tender. Uncover and cook 10 minutes longer. Stir in cilantro and serve.

Results

This was really good. We had nothing in the way of leftovers. None. It was that good. I did make some substitutions. Since I had already cooked up a bunch of lentils for another recipe, I used about 4 cups of pre-cooked lentils, and some chicken broth to make the correct consistency. I added the other ingredients, but only added 2 tsp of chili powder. I think it is better to start with a little, test for taste, then add a little more when it comes to chili powder. I bought my chili powder from The Spice House, along with many of my other spices. They are fantastic spices! My sister-in-law had given us a gift certificate for Christmas 2009.

I served this with some corn bread, and shrimp sauteed in olive oil, garlic and spices. A delicious dinner that everyone enjoyed.

Pureed Cannellini Beans Can Be Substituted for Shortening in Brownies

Pureed Cannellini Beans Can Be Substituted for Shortening in Brownies I'm putting together my notes for a class on using beans, and I thought I'd share this reference from  Journal of the American Dietetic Association (JADA).

This is a good thing to know when it comes to using your food storage. Another tip is to cook up some beans in advance, and put them in your freezer or bottle them. When you need them for a recipe, you will have them ready to use.

Crock Pot Refried Beans Recipe

This recipe comes from some friends of mine, the Cochrans, and it is easy to make. It makes quite a bit of refried beans, so do adjust the recipe if you don't have a big crock pot.

Ingredients:

6 c. pinto beans
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 TBSP salt
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (you can omit or use a vegetarian product)

I already cooked up the bacon for the broccoli salad we had for dinner (see previous post).

I've got plenty of pinto beans in my food storage. These beans should last about 25 years if unopened. I intend to rotate my storage. As I use up a few cans, I'll just drypack more, or you can purchase them by the case from any LDS dry pack cannery. You can even have them shipped to you, go to Provident Living for more information.

Measure out 6 cups of beans into a bowl. Don't put them into the crock pot until they have been sorted and rinsed. I use a small white bowl or paper plate to sort the beans. I pour about 1/3 c. at a time into the bowl and look for any rocks, discolored or shriveled beans. In the picture below, notice the 2 little rocks in the middle of the beans. Take these out.

In 6 cups of beans, here is what I pulled out.... you sure don't want to bite into a rock, so take care when you sort.

After sorting, make sure that you rinse the beans before putting into the crock pot. Rinsing is critical, because there is dust and dirt that you want to rinse off.....don't want that in you food! After rinsing a few times, pour the beans into the crock pot, and cover with water. I added the rest of the ingredients, and stirred. Make sure the beans are always covered with water; check them every couple of hours. Cooking time is 12-24 hours, depending on how old the beans are.

I could use my pressure cooker and just be done with the process, but not everyone has a pressure cooker. I'll be using the refried beans to make a layered bean dip for tomorrow. It is Super Bowl Sunday, so we will have some chips and bean dips, even though we won't be watching the game!

Saucy Beef, Black Bean and Corn Burritos

Here is the yummy grub I made in the previous post. I wanted to show you how you can get two different meals from this. If you have any of this leftover, and you want another way to use it, keep reading!

Using burrito size tortillas, cut foil pieces larger than the tortilla and place the tortilla in the middle of the foil.

Put one scoop or ladle of mixture into the center of the tortilla.

Roll up the tortilla, first tucking the bottom up, then rolling. I leave the top open.

Wrap the foil around the burrito. After that, place in the freezer until you want to use them. I usually just take the foil off and put the burrito on a microwave safe dish, cover with waxed paper and microwave for 2 minutes on high if frozen.

My sons love burritos and it is a good way to not have leftovers! Enjoy!

Saucy Beef, Black Beans and Corn

In the previous post, I showed you how to make soup base out of some leftovers from the refrigerator. Now that you have disguised the leftovers, you can use them without any hassle from your family, hahaha!

Before we get to the soup base, here is a picture of one of my favorite kitchen tools. It is from pampered chef (no, I am not a dealer, lol). I don't know what they call it, but it is for cooking/breaking up ground beef while cooking it. I love this thing!

So, into my large frying pan goes a pound of ground beef. Cook it up and instead of using a spatula, use the pampered chef tool. You'll love it, I promise!

While that is cooking, dice up an onion (glad I saved it and didn't use it in my soup base earlier!). This is another favorite kitchen tool. I am not kidding, I must use this dicer thing 3 times a week.

Dump the diced onions into the browning ground beef. Once beef is cooked and onions are translucent, you can go to the next step.

Add the following ingredients:

1 can black beans, drained

1 can corn, drained

1 can rotelle diced tomatoes with green chilies

1 small can diced green chilies

1 can Campbell's Fiesta Nacho Cheese soup

1 c. of leftover cream soup base (from my previous post)


Add all ingredients, stir and simmer on low-medium until cooked through. I cooked up some cornbread at the same time and served it over the cornbread for a delicious meal. Perfect with a tall glass of milk. Just to let you know, you can substitute the tomatoes for whatever you have on hand. Plain diced tomatoes will work just fine.

If you were at all concerned about how you would use that soup base, you can see that it is easy to tuck it into a saucy recipe. Use it in casseroles, stews, soups.

This is just one way to use this up. If you have any of this left over, then see my next post where I am using the extra to make burritos!

Black Bean Corn Salsa from your food storage

Having great recipes is the best way to use items from your food storage. My feeling is that when you have fresh ingredients available to add to your storage items, family members get used to eating those items. If and when the fresh ingredients aren't available, you can still use the basic recipe, excluding the fresh, and your family will still eat the dish. Black Bean Corn Salsa is a recipe that allows you to be flexible in the ingredients you add. Here are the basic ingredients to this really yummy recipe:

1 can black beans, drained, rinsed and drained again
1 can corn, drained
1 package Good Seasonings Italian Dressing
Canola Oil
Vinegar
2 avocado, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped
cilantro, 1/2 bunch, chopped
Mix all ingredients together and make up the Italian dressing according to package directions, and pour over the salsa. Gently mix together. Chill for an hour if you can.

I put the food storage items first on the ingredient list. These are the backbone to the recipe. The fresh ingredients are negotiable. For example, I found the avocados on sale at my local Smith's, I only had one tomato on hand and I used 1/2 bunch green onions. I didn't have any cilantro on hand. You could chop up celery or red bell pepper and add it to the mix. If you had nothing else, you could add drained, canned diced tomatoes.

This is delicious as a side dish (serve it with chicken and rice, or BBQ beef and another salad) or you will have it all gone if you serve it with corn chips. You will love this recipe because it is really delicious, but it is also very versatile. I hope that you'll try it and post a comment!

Parmesan-White Bean Dip

Today I am sharing this great bean recipe with you. It comes from a little cookbook by Betty Crocker called "quick and healthy". This is really delicious and makes a nice spread for a piece of toast or on crackers or with vegetables as a dip. Here are the ingredients:

1 TBSP olive oil
2 garlic cloves
2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 - 19 oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 c. chicken broth or white wine
1 TBSP parsley flakes
1 c. shredded parmesan cheese

After you pluck the rosemary stems from your plant (I have a huge rosemary bush by my front door), pull the leaves down off of the stem...the leaves look like this below when you finish...

Next, chop the garlic and rosemary, and saute them in the olive oil on medium -high.

Stir constantly until the garlic is light brown. Don't burn the garlic, it will become bitter. The picture below is about right.
Next, add the beans and chicken broth, and mash them as the mixture cooks.
When it gets to looking like cooked oatmeal, add the parsley. You can add fresh parsley if you have it....I didn't. Use 2 TBSP if using fresh.

After that is stirred in, add the parmesan cheese. A note here, I always look for fresh grated parmesan on sale. It saves me money, and I just put it in the freezer until I need it. It isn't hard to measure it from the frozen state.
Stir in the cheese and heat until melted. Isn't this looking yummy!
OK, I am a black olive fan. I happened to have a small can of chopped olives (why? who knows, I found it in the pantry!) so I added a couple of tablespoons to the dip.
There it is, ready to serve! You can serve this with raw veges, whole wheat crackers, pita or bagel chips. This makes a nice vegetarian spread for wheat toast. This is a dip that you want to serve warm-hot.
Calorie count for this is 125 kcals with 4 gm dietary fiber for 2 rounded Tablespoons.

For food storage purposes, you really can have all of the ingredients on hand, either in the pantry or the freezer. Fresh herbs are best, but you can have dried on hand in the spice cupboard.