How-To Use Your Pantry Staples: Canned Beans

  Perhaps you plan ahead more than I do for meals and have the patience for soaking dried beans. I do have some stashed in the back of the cupboard, but in general, I don't know what I'm making for dinner until people start complaining that they're hungry (okay, sometimes that's constantly, so really I have no excuse). But whether you use dried or canned, beans of any type are a common pantry item. 
  Beans are a wonderful source of plant-based protein. They have tons of fiber too, along with important minerals. A can of beans can make a pile of greens and grains into a hearty meal.

  When I was a kid, the only things I liked about being forced to attend church were the coffee hours and the potluck suppers. My mother never enjoyed cooking. There were two dishes that she alternated between for our family's contribution: meatloaf or bean salad.
  Her bean salad is the only meal I can think of from my childhood that she ever made that I use as an adult. My childhood dinners often consisted of whatever my father requested, or when he wasn't home, some raw fruits, vegetables, and nuts on a plate.
  Oh what I would give for that now! This not shopping for groceries every couple of days business is tough on the morale. Another two months before local CSA produce is ready. But what we do have plenty of is beans.

  Not only is bean salad appropriate for potlucks, it makes a great one-dish meal or filling side dish. It is cooling on a hot summer day. Best of all, it's QUICK. Open the cans, rinse, dump, add a few more things, mix, (chill if you want), eat. Use whatever beans you have... it can be a 13 bean salad if you wish! If you want to omit the mayo and use a bit of extra vinegar instead, then it can also be low-fat. Onion can stand in for scallion and celery can be optional.

  Over the weekend I made bean salad and soba noodles (with a frozen mustard green, edamame, & red pepper mix) for a beach picnic. Very satisfying.

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Four Bean Main Dish Salad

1 can chick peas
1 can cannellini beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can cut green beans (or equivalent frozen thawed or steamed fresh)
1 rib celery, chopped
1/4 cup chopped green onion
3/4 cup mayonnaise (I love grapeseed Vegenaise)
1 T. vinegar (red wine vinegar works well)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 pepper
1/2 tsp. dried dill (or 2 tsp. fresh)

Rinse beans. Place everything in a large bowl and mix.
Looks nice served over fresh salad greens.

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How-To Use Your Pantry Staples: Dried Split Peas

  Welcome back! With some extra time on my hands and encouragement from some vegan friends of old, I am going to share some new & past recipes and chat about the challenges many of us are facing during the covid-19 pandemic.

  At the end of January, I stocked my freezers full of homemade soups, most using my own recipes or whatever I had on hand. I was about to have reconstructive surgery and I knew I would be relying on others a lot (a.k.a. plan ahead, because I won't be satisfied).
  With a dozen different soups, three or four containers of each, my recovery went quite smoothly. I just passed the 8 week mark (6-8 weeks projected recovery time, yet I am not allowed to swim for 3 months, sigh).

  A few weeks into my post-op hibernation, scary reports began to emerge from Wuhan, China. My best friend from high school lives in Beijing with his wife, and I found myself checking his posts daily, looking for insider evidence of what was unfolding. Once the virus began to devastate Italy, I grabbed my oldest son and hit HMart and India Market and re-stocked the kitchen plus enough pantry items to last at least a month. (I didn't panic-buy toilet paper, and I had a few travel bottles of hand sanitizer which I decided would be enough.) Here we are, at the end of March, 2 weeks after the last of my childrens' schools closed to help stop the spread of the novel coronavirus.

  Most people are staying home, cooking for themselves, and practicing social distancing. I am happy to say that we're continuing to eat well, and have not had a repeat meal yet!
  Normally, I post frequently on Instagram, but during these heavy times, I think blogging is therapeutic. Instead of sharing a #menumonday post from a local restaurant, I am going to share some old favorites, some pulled from my former food/bento blog, along with some new ideas, made with pantry staples and foods with a longer shelf life.
  It's spring, technically, when nature begins to renew itself. Peas can be sown directly in the ground by now. Yet it's still cold, rainy, and a perfect time to curl up with a warm bowl of hearty soup. In the summer, a thinner, brighter pea soup is refreshing, but for now, let's keep it comfortable!

Simple Split Pea Soup

1 onion, chopped
2 leeks, washed and chopped (or more onion)
2 T. olive oil
1 tsp. liquid smoke (or a poblano pepper)
1 tsp. salt
1 carrot, chopped
2/3 cup dried split peas
1 medium potato, chopped
2 cups vegetable stock
3 cups water
1 cup frozen peas
pepper to taste

Combine first 6 ingredients in a pot over medium-low heat, cooking until onions & leeks are soft.
Add split peas, potato, vegetable stock and 2 cups of the water. Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 1-2 hours, until split peas are softened.
Add frozen peas, remaining 1 cup water, and fresh black pepper to taste. Cook 10 more minutes.
Turn off heat. Blend until creamy but lumpy using an immersion blender or food processor, or a few seconds in a blender or Vitamix.