15 Bean Soup with Bacon

Lately we have been trying to eat more beans as main dishes (they're supposed to be so good for you and your heart and all that) and I have to admit I have been having a hard time finding good main dish recipes. Beans (in America, anyway) are usually served as a side dish, and more often than not are slathered in barbecue sauce and brown sugar. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, but it's not exactly main course fare! If we're eating beans for dinner, I want the recipe to be hearty and satisfying, not sugary. Thankfully, this recipe is both hearty and satisfying, and it has become one of our family favorites. And of course as an added perk, beans are incredibly inexpensive - You can feed an army for less than $1 a person, as the saying goes!

It may seem like this recipe takes FOREVER to make (soaking the beans overnight, boiling the beans, simmering the soup), but it actually requires very little actual working time - I would say maybe 15 minutes total, just to saute the bacon and the onions.

Ingredients
1 lb bag 15 bean stew bean mix
1/2 lb sliced bacon
1 quart stock (I use beef, but chicken is great too)
1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced or passed through a garlic press
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
kosher salt
cracked black pepper
optional: cayenne pepper to taste, white or brown rice for serving over


1. Remove the beans from the packaging, and place in a large pot. Discard that little packet of MSG (it's bad for you!) Fill the pot with cold water, covering the beans by at least 2 inches (I didn't do this last time, and my exposed beans sprouted. Lesson learned!). Let sit at least 6 hours or overnight (you can do this in the morning or the night before. More soaking doesn't hurt!). Rinse the beans in cold water, until the water runs clear. Cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Boil beans for about 2 hours, skimming off an scum from the surface of the water. When beans are tender and soft when pierced with a fork, they are done. Remove from heat, and pour off any excess water ( I never seem to have any - mine often turns to soup all on it's own when the small beans disintegrate. If this is the case, just reduce the amount of stock you use to 2 cups).

2. Dice bacon strips into a small dice. In a large, heavy bottomed sauce pan, saute bacon over medium heat until very crisp and golden, about 15 minutes (if it's soft at all, it get's mushy and chewy in the soup), being careful not to burn it. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, and place diced onion and garlic in the left-over bacon grease. Saute until softened and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add stock, diced tomatoes, beans, bacon, parsley, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper. Bring to a boil, and simmer 60 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cayenne pepper to taste, and correct seasonings if it needs more salt or pepper. Serve on it's own, or with a little dollop of sour cream. Also great over rice!

Best Ever Turkey Burger with Spicy Chipotle Mayo

Gentle reader,

(can I call you that? Are we good enough friends that I can call you that? Because I really want to. Pretty please?)

I have a terrible confession to make. I have been sitting on a big stack of my most favorite recipes, and most of them are not on this blog. I KNOW, RIGHT?? What kind of food blogger doesn't post their best material? Lame ones, that's who. (Bad, bad blogger. Minus one gold star for me).

In my defense, I really, really care about these recipes, because I LOVE them. I want you to love them as much as I do. So if I feel like it's not perfect (and is it ever perfect? like, ever?), I don't want to post it. If the pictures are mediocre, I won't post it. If it didn't come out exactly right this time, NO POST. Are you sensing a theme here?

It's just that I love these recipes so much, and I want you to love them too. I want to make you fall in love with chipotle turkey burgers, black bean chili, and pumpkin roulade cake the way my family has. I want you to be able to make them for your family and friends over and over again. I want them to be your favorite family recipes too.

However.

That's not really going to happen if I never post the recipes, is it? So here you go: This is my family's favorite turkey burger recipe! It's not perfect. The pictures could be better. There could be a lot more of them. I could have written a better and more convincing arguments for just how good it is. But honestly? I'd rather just get it out there, imperfections and all.

So this is for you, gentle reader. I hope you try it, and I hope you like it as much as we do.

Best Ever Turkey Burger with Spicy Chipotle Mayo
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2009
serves 4

If you are going to make this recipe, you have to make it with the mayo at least once. Even if you don't really like mayo, please try it! It really takes what is a good burger to a whole new level. You can find chipotle chilis in the hispanic section if your grocery store, or at ethnic or specialty markets.

Ingredients
1.5 lbs ground turkey
1 small red onion, minced
1/4 cup minced cilantro
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
kosher salt
black pepper
----------------------------
8 thin slices Swiss cheese
4 sesame seed buns
4 lettuce leaves
8 slices bacon
4 dill pickles slices
---------------------------
1/2 cup good quality mayo, like hellman's or best (NOT miracle whip)
1/4 cup sour cream
1 canned chipotle chili
1 teaspoon adobo sauce

1. In a medium bowl, mix together ground turkey, minced onion, minced cilantro, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper, and shape into 4 patties. Grill over medium heat until cooked through, or bake in the oven 15 - 20 minutes until cooked through. Add slices of Swiss cheese at the end of the cooking time, and let melt over the burgers (YUM).

2. Meanwhile, puree mayo, sour cream, chipotle chili and adobo sauce until smooth. If you like, you can adjust how much chili to put in based on your tastes, but I think this amount is just right.

3. Toast buns. Build your burger: I recommend trying it with all the ingredients before you mess with it - all the flavors really do work together beautifully. Spread mayo on one of the buns. Layer together lettuce, patty, dill pickles, and bacon. Enjoy!

The Little Owl's Italian Meatballs: for Sandwiches, Spaghetti, Sliders, Whatever!

This is, quite possibly, the best meatball recipe ever. Ever. EVER! Um, see that all caps? I must really mean it. BEST EVER, EVER, EVER. EVER! Ok, ok, I don't know for certain if this is the best meatball recipe ever due to the simple fact that I haven't tried every meatball recipe in the whole wide world, but this one is pretty darn good. In fact, this recipe is now the recipe I measure all other meatballs by. It's tasty, folks.

In my experience, meatballs are usually a disappointment. Salty and tough, or mushy and bland, meatballs tend to be the ugly stepsister at the party. You can dress them up in fancy sauces all you want, but the awful is still there underneath. Most of the time, I just avoid meatballs altogether.

But this recipe is different. It's a revelation. It's a foretaste of the Kingdom of Heaven. I think the secret to why this recipe tastes so amazing is the trio of meats. The first time, I only used two kinds, and I thought this recipe was ok. The second time, all I used was one, and they were a major dissapointment. But the third time, the third time being a charm, I followed the recipe to the letter, and behold, a choir of Angels appeared as I took my first bite, and a light shone from heaven, and I was rewarded with meatballs from the Italian section of the celestial city. I was, in short, in meatball paradise. Are you persuaded yet? Will you try them? Will you?




In case you are wondering, this recipe did not descend directly from heaven, written on a golden scroll. It came through a much more mundane source: my local library. Every week I've been trying to get the baby out of the house, and we go the the library every Tuesday. They have an ongoing book sale at the Huntington Beach library, and I've become somewhat, er, addicted, to cheap books and magazines. Can you believe I bought a first edition of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking for only 50 cents? The treasures that are buried there! It's hard to limit myself to only $5, and only once a week.

One of my favorite things to buy is back issues of home and cooking magazines, and I have amassed quite a collection of Martha Stewart Living and Bon Appetit. This particular recipe was the cover of the September 2007 issue of Bon Appetit, and it's pulled from a little restaurant in New York called "The Little Owl." If I ever make it to New York, and to the Little Owl (you know, if Little Lord Thunder Thighs ever lets me out of the house again), I'll do my best to kiss the cook on behalf of everyone in the whole wide world.




The Little Owl's Italian Meatballs: Just About the Best Meatball Recipe EVER

At The Little Owl, these are served as sliders, but you don't have to eat them that way. They are great with spaghetti, and they make a mean meatball sandwich as well (or so Nate tells me). And honestly? They are pretty darn good all by themselves.

This also includes a recipe for sauce to go along with the meatballs if you want to make sliders or a meatball sandwich. If you want to make the sauce, make it first, before the meatballs, because it needs a good 20 minutes or so of simmering, and it can cook away by itself while you are making the meatballs.



For the Meatballs
vegetable oil for frying
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 lb ground pork
1/2 lb ground veal
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan, Pecorino, or Romano Cheese
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 cup fresh, fine bread crumbs
(I just take a piece of gluten-free bread, rip it up into pieces, and them give the pieces a whirl in the blender. You can use Panko if you want, but you need the crumbs to be moist, so be sure to rehydrate them with 1/2 a cup of water when you mix them into the meat).

If you want to make a meatball sandwich: For the Sauce
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh basil, packed (use 2-3 tablespoons dried if fresh is not available. Maybe 1 tablespoon of Oregano too).
1 + 1/2 teaspoons fennel seeds (so essential! Don't skip!)
3 cans fire-roasted, diced tomatoes (14.5oz each)



In a medium bowl, combine 1/2 lb ground beef, 1/2 lb ground pork, and 1/2 lb ground veal.




Add 1 large egg and the yolk of 1 large egg.




Then add 1/2 cup fine fresh bread crumbs (These are easy to make, just take a piece or two of bread, gluten free or not, tear it into pieces, and give it a whirl in the blender. So easy, by baby could do it. Blindfolded.) If you opt to use panko, be sure to also add about 1/4 cup of water to the mixture to moisten it, so your meatballs don't come out crunchy.




Now for 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan/Romano cheese...




... and 1/3 cup finely chopped italian parsley.




And FINALLY (home stretch!), 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper.




Now mix it all up together... until it is mixed. Do it with your hands. You know you want to.




Form the mixture into balls.



Heat oil in a heavy bottomed skillet (cast-iron is great!). Cook meatball in batches, turning every 4-5 minutes, until meatballs are brown all over. Serve in the manner of your choosing. Enjoy!



For the Sauce/ Meatball Sandwich

In a heavy bottomed pot or skillet (I like to use my enamel cast iron Stew pot) saute onions, garlic, and fennel seeds until onions are softened and beginning to brown, 5-10 minutes.

Add tomatoes and their liquid to the onions, as well as basil/oregano. Reduce heat and let simmer about 20 minutes, until sauce has thickened. Puree in a food processor until smooth, but not TOO smooth. We wouldn't want it to be a beverage :)

Return to pan, and simmer Meatballs in sauce 5-10 minutes.


Mm... tasty looking, yes?




Lay some arugula on a toasted bun.




Top with meatballs. But we're not done!




Add some more sauce. You'll be glad you did.




Oh, and don't forget the cheese. Never, ever forget the cheese. Forgetting the cheese makes baby Jesus cry.




This is my favorite part. Enjoy!

Juicy Tender Oven Roasted Barbecue Baby Back Ribs

(I am so excited that everyone LOVES this recipe so much! If you are looking for more great dinner recipes, make sure to check out my oven roasted chicken, grilled salmon with cucumber mango salsa, or these amazing pulled pork sandwiches!)


When Nate and I first got married, we lived in what was, quite possibly, the smallest apartment ever. Oh sure, the complex was well maintained and the management was nice, but the apartment itself was the size of a wallet, and the kitchen was so small that if Nate tried to wash a dish while I was stirring a pot we'd be rubbing our buns together in a backwards tango the whole time. There was so little space that I had to put a cutting board over the sink to have any prep space, and my crock pot lived permanently on the stove over a back burner. Which is how I accidentally set it on fire, by the way. Useful tip: Don't store anything flammable on top of a gas stove. You will set it on fire eventually. Really. I promise.

Anyway.




Of course there was nowhere in that teeny tiny apartment to put a grill. And although the apartment complex technically had a one, it took a fair stretch of the imagination to call the rusted lump of metal by the pool a "grill." I turned it on once and a sad little lick of flame flickered at the bottom of the grate, like a lone little candle. Hardly enough heat to melt some butter, let alone sear a steak.

All that is to say, some people, people like me, just don't have access to a grill. And the good news is, if you want to make some finger lickin', lip smackin' good ribs, you don't need one! In fact, when I make ribs, I still make them this way, even though I now live in a place with it's own backyard and a grill to boot. And honestly, it's mostly just because I am lazy. This way is SO easy. When I don't feel like fussing with charcoal and lighters and all the hoopla that goes with grilling, I'm glad I can throw this together in about 1.5 minutes, stick it in the oven, and forget about it. It makes for a great weekday barbecue and requires only a fraction of the work necessary to make ribs on a grill. I mean, it doesn't even get any dishes dirty. Also? Pork ribs are so cheap in the summer! Even thought I bought the *most* expensive type of ribs at my ghetto grocery store, this meal still only cost... $5.

So make 'em already!

Juicy Tender Oven Roasted Barbecue Baby Back Ribs
(try saying that 10 times fast!)

This recipe feeds two people, but is easily doubled or tripled or quadrupled or whatever. I always estimate 1 rack of ribs for 2 people - of course, that is because we always serve this with sides like potato salad or slaw. It's easy to double by just adding more racks of ribs to the foil packets.



Ingredients
1 rack baby back pork ribs (or other kinds, but baby back ribs are the most tender)
kosher salt
cracked black pepper
Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce, or similar





Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place 1 rack of baby back pork ribs on a large piece of foil.




Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and cracked black pepper. Place fat side up on the foil.




Cover ribs with a second piece of foil and fold each edge tightly so moisture is sealed in. Bake in preheated over for 1 hour.




Remove ribs from oven and unwrap foil.




Brush with Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce, or similar and place fat side down. Return ribs to oven, foil still open. Cook 20 minutes.




Brush with barbecue sauce again, cut, and serve.

Enjoy!    

Summer Pulled Pork Sandwiches - A Recipe for Yum

Today was a No Good, Horrible, Rotten, Very Bad Day. For baby James, that is. If you are new here, baby James has Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), which is fancy-pants for very-bad-heartburn-that-makes-Baby-James-cry-all-day-long. He's on medication for it... but it doesn't work. I know, I know. We're going to get a different medication, but that doesn't mean that today was full of rainbows and ponies and fun. In fact, by 10am, I knew I was going to spend the rest of the day sitting on the couch, jiggling an unhappy baby who insisted in poking out his lower lip and looking irresistibly cute and sad (and periodically screaming) all day long.





I've learned that when it's one of THOSE days, the no-good, horrible, rotten, very bad days, it's best to just roll with it. It's no use trying to resist, and thinking about all the things I should get done is just frustrating. If I've got plans for a big fancy dinner recipe, they're canceled. Which is why pulled pork sandwiches are SO awesome.

Wait... pulled pork sandwiches? Aren't those difficult and time consuming? Not even! I've always been intimidated of making pulled pork because it looked hard... and like a lot of work. All day kind of work. Now I know they are easy-peasy. Slather a pork butt (hehe.... Oh, I'm sorry, was that childish?) with a spice rub, bake, and shred. That's it! The slathering and the shredding are honestly so easy my 3 month old kid could do it.

I like this recipe because I can throw this together in a pinch, I don't have to bother with it all day long, and when it's done we have something fantastic to eat. So if you're having a no-good, horrible, rotten, very bad day, or even if you are just having a busy day where you need to get stuff done, this recipe is fantastic. It packs a lot of punch in the taste department, it has a big "wow" factor, and... am I forgetting anything? Oh yeah! It tastes amazing.







Summer Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living, June 2009

The only downside to this recipe (if that's even possible) is that the pork butt has to cook all day, and is places where it's hot... you might not want to turn your oven on in the middle of the day. No fear! This is a spectacular do ahead recipe. Do the baking the evening before when it's cool out. Then all you need to do on barbecue day is serve. Easy peasy.

Obviously, the buns in the pictures are onion wheat buns (gluten!) that Nate has been enjoying. I've been eating my pulled pork sandwiches on gluten-free bread, which, while tasty, is rather less photogenic.

By the way, a pork "butt" isn't what it sounds like (::snicker:: Oh, I'm so immature). It's actually a shoulder cut. It's quite flavorful and it is mega-cheap. I bought mine for $1 a lb, though I am sure prices vary by location. It's quite a fatty cut, but the fat renders out in the long cooking (yet another reason to bake this in the oven instead of stew it in the crock pot).


ingredients
5lb pork butt roast
1/2 cup dijon mustard
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup coarse salt
2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 garlic cloves
2 cups water
2 - 3 cups Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce (Or some storebought sauce... pansy. Just kidding. Kinda.)
8 sandwich buns
2 cups thinly sliced green cabbage (for serving)


method


Finely mince 3 garlic cloves, and place in a medium bowl.



Add 1/2 cup dijon mustard to the bowl.



Add 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar...



... and 1/4 cup coarse salt...



...add in 2 teaspoons smoked paprika (wow! gorgeous!)...



... 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, my personal favorite...



... and finally, 2 tablespoons coarsely ground pepper.



Mix it all together...



... place your 5 lb pork butt on a roasting rack...



... and slather with the spice paste.



Add 2 cups water to the bottom of the roasting pan. Cover securely with tinfoil. Let sit for at least 1 hour to absorb spice paste, or up to over night (or longer!).



Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cook, basting hourly, for about 6 hours, until pork is tender and pulls apart easily. Remove from oven and let cool.



Shred pork (with your fingers or with two forks), and toss with 2-3 cups barbecue sauce.



Serve atop a toasted onion bun with sliced cabbage.

Enjoy!

Warm white bean salad with asparagus, feta, and bacon

Have you ever opened the fridge only to find the empty shelves staring back at you, the sad neon light blinking reproachfully? Most nights, that's my signal to pick up the phone and make a hasty call for some pad thai. Usually by the time I get to the point where I'm poking my nose in the fridge, it's too late for dinner creativity anyway, much less concocting something edible out or this and that, mad scientist fashion.

On the other hand, sometimes the grocery money is spent, the slush fund is spent, and it's too late at night to make a call for pad thai anyway. Which is how this salad was born. And may I say that it's crazy good? Maybe I should play mad scientist for often. Because really, this salad is one happy accident, and it's staying in my recipe book FOREVER.

One of the nice things about this "salad" is that it's so hearty: it really is a meal in and of itself, and it makes a great lunch. I also love the fresh asparagus. After a long winter (haha! I know, I know, I can hardly complain about "winter") of potatoes and rice and cheese and meat, it's so nice to eat something fresh and new.

Sometimes I put tomatoes in this... and sometimes I don't. Usually, this time of year, I don't. All the tomatoes you can get are mealy and white and totally disgusting. However, I had a box of them from Mexico, and they were really ripe and sweet, so... I put them in. They were delicious, by the way.



Beck's Favorite White Bean Salad with Asparagus, Feta, and Bacon

Feeds 2 for lunch, or up to 6 as an appetizer

There are three things that really "make" this salad. The first is the dressing. Without the dressing, this is not a salad, just a bowl of beans and asparagus. The other two things are the bacon and the feta cheese. They play off of each-other, and the beans, and the asparagus, and everything else. The whole really is greater than a sum of the parts. Please don't skip the bacon. Nate would be sad.

Ingredients
• 1 can white beans packed in water, thoroughly rinsed in a colander
• 1 bunch fresh asparagus, ends trimmed
• 1/3 cup black beluga lentils (they have these at Trader Joe's pre-cooked, I imagine they probably have them at Whole foods and regular markets as well)
• 2 strips bacon, cooked until crispy, drained on a paper towel, and chopped
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved (but if they're not in season and you can't get them, just skip them, OR maybe use sun-dried tomatoes, those are good too)
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese (I like sun-dried tomato flavor)
• 1 tbs white balsamic vinegar, or white wine vinegar
• 3 tbs virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt
• cracked black pepper



Bring a pot of water to a boil. Chop asparagus into 1" pieces, and blanch in the boiling water until just tender and bright green, about 4 minutes. Drain in a colander.


Combine rinsed beans, black beluga lentils, bacon pieces, asparagus, feta, and tomatoes in a large bowl.


In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, some black pepper, and a pinch of salt, until salt is dissolved. One tablespoon at a time, add olive oil, whisking constantly, until all is combined. Add a little more oil or vinegar as necessary, until it tastes delicious and you want to drink the whole bowl. Pour over the bean mixture. Toss to combine. Enjoy!