It’s hard to find someone who doesn’t like bacon, and it can be a very versatile ingredient, fitting into every course of a meal and breakfast, lunch and dinner to boot. You can also cook it in a variety of ways – in the microwave, on the stovetop, on the grill or in the oven. In the New York Times, Mark Bittman has put together 25 easy and fantastic ways that you can use bacon in various dishes and ways. Check it out!
Category Archives: Beans
Hit the Spot With Spicy Sausage Lentil Soup
The weather is supposed to turn decidedly colder here in New York tomorrow and stay that way for at least the few days after that, meaning it creeps even closer to actually being winter here and makes the idea of soups and stews even more palatable than before. I have already been getting my arsenal of recipes ready to make soups and stews this winter and have a bunch i want to try, but I decided to start out with this particular recipe that I found mainly because I had a lot of Italian sausage in the freezer and a bag of lentils that I was trying to figure out what to do with. I came across this recipe from Todd Wilbur as a Top Secret recipe and a version of Carrabba’s spicy sausage lentil soup. I have never had this particular soup at Cararabba’s and I have only been to a Carrabba’s once in my life so I don’t know much about them, but this soup sounded pretty good and easy to make, so I gave it a shot. This recipe makes a large portion, and I’ll show the original recipe here, but I cut this recipe in half to make it for my family.
Spicy Sausage Lentil Soup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup minced onion
3/4 cup grated and minced carrot
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 pound uncooked hot Italian sausage
2 ounces diced ham
7 cups water
5 cups chicken broth
1 pound dry lentils
1 tomato, diced
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon minced fresh basil
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
In a Dutch oven or large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat until the oil is shimmering. Add the onion, carrot, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are fragrant, about 3 minutes. Remove the Italian sausage from its casing and add it to the pan. Saute the sausage for about 8 minutes, stirring it often. Break up the sausage into bite-size bits as it cooks with a wooden spoon or spatula. Add the diced ham, stir to combine with the other ingredients in the pot and cook the mixture for an additional minute.
Add the water, chicken broth, lentils, tomato, white wine vinegar, basil, parsley, bay leaves, salt, pepper, thyme, oregano and red pepper flakes and stir to combine the ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer the soup for about 1 hour, until the lentils are tender. Serve the soup in cups or bowls.
It’s a pretty basic recipe that gives you some great flavors. I love lentil soup on its own but adding the sausage to it added some great flavor and spice. You can use a ham steam for the ham or if you don’t have that I think deli ham would suffice or just leave out the ham altogether if you like. This makes a lot of soup, even after I cut the recipe in half for the three of us there was a lot leftover, which is okay with me because it makes a great lunch alternative for this time of year. It is simple with great chunks of sausage to go along with the lentils, vegetables and herbs and it gets a little kick from the hot sausage and the pepper flakes.
That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
Fall Soups and Stews – Photo Gallery | SAVEUR
Fall Soups and Stews – Photo Gallery | SAVEUR.
It is definitely that time of year when my attention (and perhaps yours) turns to warm, comforting meals like soups and stews. These make great tasting, nourishing meals that are perfect for you to make any time, like on the weekend to get ready to have for lunches or dinner during the week. Saveur Magazine has put together 60 soup and stew recipes so you can try just about anything that you like. Check it out!
Sweet and Simple for a Monday – Sausage and Bean Dutch Oven Stew
I don’t know about you, but for me Monday is the busiest day of the week. even though I work from home, the bulk of my assignments come in over the weekends or on Monday so I spend most of the day doing research and writing, trying to get as much done as I can. this often means that Monday tends to be a leftover day or one where we have made something for dinner the night before and can cook it quickly and easily Monday night. this recipe for today could really fit into either of those categories. It is easy enough to do with leftovers right on the spot or you could put it all together the day before and simply heat it up for a great meal. The idea for the recipe comes from MyRecipes.com, but I did change it a little bit to fit my needs since their original version is designed to be cooked when you are camping and cooking over an open flame. I changed it slightly to fit into a nice, home-cooked meal of an easy sausage and bean Dutch oven stew.
Sausage and Bean Dutch-Oven Stew
2 cans (15.5-ounce size) each cannellini beans and chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1/2 orange bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 poblano chile or jalapeno, seeded and sliced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 1/2 pounds cooked Italian sausages, cut into 1-inch chunks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
In a Dutch oven set over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and heat until it is shimmering. Add in the red pepper, yellow pepper, orange pepper, poblano or jalapeno and the onions and saute until the vegetables have just softened, stirring occasionally, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and heat until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. add the cannellini beans and chickpeas, the rosemary and the Italian sausage pieces, along with 3/4 cup of water, and stir until the mixture is incorporated. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce the heat until the stew is simmering. Cover the pot and continue cooking until the sausages swell and all of the vegetables are cooked through, checking the pot every 10 minutes and adding more water if the stew gets dry, until it has cooked for about 30 to 40 minutes. Season the stew with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle the top with the oregano before serving.
It is very simple and quite tasty. The sausage and beans go very nicely together and the peppers and onions help round it out with the poblano giving it just a hint of heat, which is nice. I think this would be even better with kielbasa or a smoked sausage instead of the Italian sausage, but it all works really well together and gives you a nice one pot meal in under an hour that does not take a lot of work. If you have leftover Italian sausage they are perfect for this meal (which is what I did) but if you don’t you can cook some up quickly before putting them in with the other ingredients. I really liked the beans used in the recipe, but you could use other beans if you prefer them as well.
That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
From Butternut Squash to Faux Pho, Soups to Make This Season – Bon Appétit
From Butternut Squash to Faux Pho, Soups to Make This Season – Bon Appétit. As the fall weather gets closer and closer I start to think more about making some, warm,comforting meals for dinner. This very often includes making an array of different types of soup that are perfect for the season and are great for dinners, lunches and leftovers. Bon Appetit has put together 31 soups that are great for this time of year. Take a look at the recipes and find your favorite one to try. Check it out!
Take a Turn at Turkey Black Bean Chili
Very often when I make chili I only use ground turkey to do it. We like the flavor of the chili and there is less fat and grease to deal with during the cooking process. I was looking for a recipe that would be just a little bit different from the standard recipe I have been using for years for chili when I cam across this one at myrecipes.com. There are just some slight differences in this recipe from the one I normally use, but you can adapt this recipe to make it as hot or as mild as you would like.
Turkey Black Bean Chili
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 yellow or orange bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 poblano chile, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground turkey
2 cans (28 ounces each) diced tomatoes
2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons tomato paste
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons agave nectar or 2 teaspoons sugar
Juice of 1 lime
Kosher salt
Shredded cheddar cheese (optional)
Sour cream (optional)
Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until the oil is shimmering. Saute the onion, bell pepper, poblano chile and the garlic, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the ground turkey, increase the heat to high and cook, stirring often and breaking the meat into chunks until the meat is no longer pink, about 4 to 5 minutes.
Stir in the diced tomatoes, the black beans, tomato paste, chili powder, ground cumin and the agave nectar or sugar. Bring the chili to a boil, stirring often. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover, stirring occasionally, and cook until all the flavors are blended, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir in the lime juice. Check the seasonings and add kosher salt if desired or necessary. Serve the chili with shredded cheese and sour cream.
This recipe carries a little more heat to it than the one I had made in the past, thanks to the poblano pepper, but I really liked it and so did Michelle, who is the real chili lover in our family. You can always leave out the poblano if you prefer to have it a little milder. I used the sugar instead of the agave nectar because that is what I had on hand and it did help to cut down the acidity of the tomatoes. The lime juice really adds to the dish as well. I also seasoned the ground turkey before putting it in the chili with some Montreal chicken seasoning for some extra flavor because I find that ground turkey alone can be kind of bland, even in chili, but you can always season it in another manner if you choose or not at all and I think you will still get pretty good flavor out of this recipe. Of course, the flavor gets even better after a day or two and it has been great for lunches or even just as a snack with some tortilla chips.
That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
A Quick Weeknight Meal – Garlic Shrimp and White Beans
As much as I love shrimp, the prices of it lately have been pretty high so I have not been able to get it very often. Even the price of frozen shrimp has been a bit much at the supermarket, so when I saw some on sale at the fish market lately and saw it was gulf shrimp I decided to make the splurge and get some to have for dinner. Instead of just making the standard fried shrimp or shrimp scampi, I wanted to try something a little different and something that was not going to be very labor intensive to make it perfect for an easy weeknight meal that can be done in just a few minutes. I found this recipe from Bon Appetit for garlic shrimp and white beans and it sounded perfect and included everything I had on hand already, with the exception of the chiles de arbol, which I left out and substituted some chili powder instead.
Garlic Shrimp and White Beans
6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 garlic cloves, minced, divided
2 dried chiles de arbol
1 bay leaf
1 1/4 cups chopped tomato
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 15-ounce cans white beans (such as cannellini), rinsed and drained
1 cup chicken broth
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Grilled bread (optional)
Preheat the broiler. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large, heavy, ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add 1 garlic clove, the chiles de arbol, and the bay leaf, and cook, stirring constantly, just until the mixture is fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes. Do not allow the garlic to burn. Add the chopped tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring and smashing the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon, until the tomatoes are completely broken down, about 5 minutes.
Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until the tomato paste is a deep red and caramelized, about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the white beans and the chicken broth. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook until the juices are slightly reduced and thickened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper.
Combine the remaining 2 garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the shrimp and the smoked paprika in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper and toss the mixture to evenly coat all of the shrimp. Scatter the shrimp over the bean mixture in an even layer.
Broil until the shrimp are golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over he shrimp and the beans. Garnish the dish with the chopped parsley and serve with grilled bread, if desired.
While the grilled bread sounded really good, I didn’t have any on hand that day so I simply served the shrimp as it was. All of the flavors melded nicely together and the beans and the shrimp had a great taste from the garlic, chili powder and paprika. The tomatoes added a nice touch to the whole dish and having some bread to dip in to sop up the juices would have been a nice touch. The whole meal can be put together in under 30 minutes, so it is perfect for one of those busy weeknights when you need something fast to cook.
That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
Food That Stays Good Longer Than You’ll Be Around | Kitchen Daily
Food That Stays Good Longer Than You’ll Be Around | Kitchen Daily.
It always helps to know the expiration date of items that you store in your pantry and I go through everything ever few months just to check things and use items that may be nearing their expiring date. However, there are a number of things that when you store them correctly can last you for years, making them good items to have on hand all of the time to use whenever you really want them. Kitchen Daily has put together this list of 11 items that can last for a very long time, some even indefinitely when stored right. Check it out!
Loving the Cold Lentil Salad with Cucumbers and Olives
Lentils are one of my favorites when it comes to beans. They are so versatile and add such great taste and texture to a wide variety of dishes. Of course, lentil soup is always a good choice, but I also like to make lentil salads. Lentil salad is a great summertime dish because you can serve them warm, room temperature or cold and they still taste great. I came across this recipe from The Kitchn not that long ago for a simple cold lentil salad with cucumbers and olives to give it a bit of a Mediterranean flair. you can make this one pretty quickly and it goes well with all kinds of dishes.
Cold Lentil Salad with Cucumbers and Olives
2 cups lentils
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 bay leaves
1/2 tablespoon whole grain mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 medium cucumbers, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cup pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped
3/4 cup loosely packed fresh mint, roughly chopped
1 cup ricotta or feta cheese (optional)
Combine the lentils, smashed garlic and the bay leaves in a large pot and cover the ingredients with water by 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the lentils are just tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the water and remove the smashed garlic cloves and the bay leaves and discard them. Refrigerate the lentils until they are cold, at least 30 minutes to 1 hour.
While the lentils are chilling, make the vinaigrette for the salad. In a small bowl, whisk together the whole grain mustard, the salt and the sherry vinegar. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking the mixture constantly as you add the oil, until the dressing has emulsified.
Combine the chilled lentils, the cucumbers, the Kalamata olives and the mint in a large bowl. Pour the vinaigrette over the lentil salad and toss everything to evenly coat all of the ingredients. Dot the top of the salad with ricotta or feta cheese, if using, just before you serve the salad.
That’s all there is to this salad and it tastes great. I love the mix of the cucumbers, olives and lentils and the vinaigrette has great flavor to it thanks to the mustard and the sherry vinegar. I have found that the salad actually gets better in flavor over a couple of days, though if you are going to add the mint to it you should add just enough to what you are serving so it does not go limp when you store it and lose some of its flavor. I did not use the cheese on my salad as I didn’t have either kind on hand, but I think the feta would add a nice touch to the overall flavor of the dish.
That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
Make This Simple Summer Side – Black Bean Salad with Mango, Cilantro and Lime
Summer meals, whether you are cooking them out on the grill, in the kitchen or not cooking at all and trying to keep things cool and light, call for some easy side dishes that taste great. Sure coleslaw and potato salad are always great standbys, but I have found myself recently trying to make more use of different beans in my main dishes and side dishes. Beans are a great source of fiber and protein and can go really well with a lot of the summer vegetables and fruit that you find available right now. I came across this really easy recipe from the Cooking Channel for a black bean salad with mango, cilantro and lime and it sounded so easy and refreshing that I just knew I had to give it a try one night.
Black Bean Salad with Mango, Cilantro and Lime
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 small ripe mango, peeled and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
1/2 yellow, orange or red bell pepper, cut into a small dice
1 (14.5-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 small jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, minced
1 small red onion, cut into a small dice
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
In a small mixing bowl, combine the apple cider vinegar, the lime juice, the honey and the ground cumin. Slowly whisk in the canola or vegetable oil until it is well incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Mix the diced mango, diced bell pepper, black beans, minced jalapeno pepper and the diced red onion together in a large bowl. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the ingredients and toss everything together until it is combined. Season the salad with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish the dish with the cilantro and serve.
I loved he freshness of this salad with the vinaigrette. The lime juice really made it all pop together, but to me the mixof the black beans, jalapeno, red onion and the mango are what really make this work. You get such a great medley of flavors with the freshness of the mango combined with the bite of the onion and the jalapeno that it all seems to go really well together. This salad works well as a side dish to just about any type of chicken, pork or beef dish and could even stand on its own as a vegetarian meal if you wanted it to. I served it as a side to some pulled pork tacos I made (which I ill be posting the recipe for tomorrow) and it was fantastic on the side or right on the tacos themselves. I think it would also work great with quesadillas or burritos.
That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
onedadskitchen 