Braised Black Beans with Potatoes

When we first moved in together (and it became clear that I was the more comfortable in the kitchen), the vegetarian assured me that he would never expect me to have dinner on the table waiting for him when he got home. And he's been wonderfully true to his word! In fact, some of our happiest memories have been cooking together.

But these days I've been getting home first most nights. And with the vegetarian leaving the house at sunrise five days a week, dinner gets pushed earlier and earlier. Not to mention the fact that winter braises take longer to cook than a quick summer salad! And so one night last week when I knew that I'd be home first, I pulled several ingredients out of our cupboards and refrigerator (along with some fresh potatoes) and made these black beans. I also made some cornbread so that, when the vegetarian came home, it smelled like baking. As Cher said in Clueless, "Whenever a boy comes, you should always have something baking." Serve with a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. Bon appetit!

We shared this post with Gluten Free Fridays. Head on over and check out all the other great entries!

Braised Black Beans with Potatoes

• 1 can (2 cups) black beans, cooked
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 cremini mushrooms
• 2 bell peppers, chopped
• 1 cup Cabernet Sauvignon
• 1 cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
• 1 tablespoon Cajun spice mix
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 yellow onions, sliced
• 22 red-skinned potatoes, halved
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

Rinse beans in a colander and drain well.

In a heavy pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms and peppers and cook 5 minutes, until fragrant. Add beans, Cabernet, broth, Cajun spice mix and salt. Stir well, lower heat to medium-low, cover and cook 15 minutes, until beans are soft.

Add onions and potatoes. Replace cover and cook 15 minutes, until potatoes are tender. Partially remove lid and cook another 10 minutes until everything is soft. Season with pepper. Enjoy!

Links:

• Braised Beef with Potatoes from Southern Food and Recipes
• Green Beans with New Potatoes from Food Network
• Potato, Kale, and White Bean Hash from Beard and Bonnet
• Chicken Chili with White Beans, Sweet Potato and Lime from Gluten-Free Goddess
• Potato Veggie Burgers from Vegetarian Food
• Slow Cooker Green Beans, Ham and Potatoes from Allrecipes

Cranberry Bean Meatballs with Garlic and Allspice

When I was stuck at the airport in Burbank, trying to get home to the vegetarian after Hurricane Sandy,  I stopped into a 24-hour bar to get some dinner before my red-eye. It was the only place still open at the airport and I figured I could get a salad. But once I looked at the menu, the one thing that kept jumping out at me was spaghetti with meatballs. It wasn't gluten-free and it was overly rich and not very good but it was comforting, warming and perfect.

Since then, I've been thinking about how I can recreate spaghetti and meatballs for our gluten-free and vegetarian kitchen. The spaghetti part is the easiest -- we've become big fans of quinoa spaghetti and I'm (almost) starting to prefer it to some "regular" spaghetti. But meatballs? Neither of us likes using fake meat (although the idea of crumbled veggie burgers is one we still may try) and, anyway, I wanted these to be just as good (or better) than their meat counterparts -- not merely a substitute.


I made these with 2 cans of cranberry beans that I drained well and ground in the food processor. Unfortunately, they were softer than I had hoped and the food processor reduced them to more of a puree than a crumble. So next time I would use a harder bean (perhaps cannellini). So, even though these didn't stay together as well as we would have liked, the flavors were delicious. Serve over pasta with the Nero d'Avola you used in the sauce. Enjoy!

Cranberry Bean Meatballs with Garlic and Allspice
inspired by MyRecipes.com

"Meatballs"

• 4 carrots, shredded
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup cornflake crumbs
• 1 rice cake, crushed
• 1 tablespoon Italian parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon basil, finely chopped
• zest of 1 lemon, grated
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice, ground
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 14-oz cans cranberry beans, drained and ground in a food processor
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Sauce:

• 1 28-ounce can fire roasted whole tomatoes
• 3 yellow onions, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup Nero d'Avola
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 tablespoon basil, chopped
• 1 tablespoon Italian parsley, finely chopped

In a large bowl, mix together carrots, salt, cornflake crumbs, crushed rice cake, parsley, basil, lemon zest, allspice, chili powder, black pepper, cranberry beans and garlic. Using your hands, mix until very well combined. Shape into ping-pong sized "meatballs", packing them tightly together.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and heat until it moves like water in the pan. Add "meatballs" and cook 1-2 minutes each side, until browned.

Add tomatoes, onions and garlic and cook 2 minutes. Add carrot, celery, red pepper flakes, Nero d'Avola, kosher salt and black pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, 6 minutes. Remove from heat and serve, garnished with basil and Italian parsley. Bon appetit!

Links:

• Pork Meatballs with Garlic and Allspice from MyRecipes.com
• Garlic Meatballs with Red Potatoes & Yellow Wax Beans from The Realistic Nutritionist
• Black Bean "Meatball" Hoagie from Beard and Bonnet
• Quick Italian Sausage for Soups, Meatballs, and Sauces from Netplaces
• Two Bean Veggie "Meatballs" from Jinxy Knows Best
• Slow-Cooker Spaghetti and Meatballs from CooksRecipes.com

Pinto Bean Picadillo

The way I see it, there are three ways to cook vegetarian: 1) you ignore that meat ever existed and just come up with your own dishes that only use the ingredients you eat; 2) you find meat recipes and substitute the meat with mock meat; or 3) you find meat recipes and adapt them for your kitchen. Not surprisingly, options one and three are the ones I follow in my kitchen. While I'm sure there are wonderful mock meat products out there, I like my food to taste like itself -- not pretend to be something it isn't. I also have the luxury that, if I'm really dying for some meat, I'll eat it.

But before we get into a political discussion about why people eat vegetarian, let me tell you about this Pinto Bean Picadillo. I first heard about Picadillo last month when the New York Times Dining & Wine Section posted a recipe for Party Picadillo. It was a one-pot dish (and, with the addition of rice, a complete meal). Moreover, they described Picadillo as a "versatile, richly seasoned ground-meat dish from Latin America" and, well, I was hooked. I'd already started making out my grocery list when I realized "wait, if I make this, what will the vegetarian have for dinner?" The ground beef is added too early in the recipe for it to be easy to take out and, moreover, so much of its flavor depends on everything melding together. So I bookmarked the recipe (maybe when we have company for dinner and I make enough sides to satisfy him?) and forgot about it.

Luckily, in search of inspiration, I stumbled on it again. And this time I thought -- let's vegetarianize it! So out went the beef and in went some pinto beans. To reinforce their flavor, I added in some safflower oil and white onions. Finally, because pinto beans are more delicately flavored than ground beef, I upped all the spices. Serve over plain brown rice for a complete protein. Enjoy with a glass of Merlot, followed by a slice of Banana Sour Cream Bread. Bon appetit!

Pinto Bean Picadillo
inspired by The New York Times

• 3 (15-oz.) cans pinto beans, drained
• 1 cup Merlot
• 1/4 cup safflower oil
• 2 white onions, chopped
• 2 green bell peppers, cored and chopped
• 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup Mission olives, pitted and sliced
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon cumin, ground
• 1/2 cup tomato paste
• 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup blanched almonds, sliced
• brown basmati rice, cooked

In a bowl, mix pinto beans and Merlot together well. Let sit so the flavors can meld. Meanwhile, heat oil in a very large pan over low heat. Add onions, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers and garlic and gently saute until softened, about 10 minutes. Stir in olives and raisins, increase heat to medium and add bean and Merlot mixture, including all the liquid that wasn't absorbed. Toss everything together and let cook 10 minutes.

Stir in oregano, cumin, tomato paste, kosher salt and cayenne pepper. Lower heat back to low and cook, covered, 30 minutes. (This is a really good time to make your rice if you haven't already done so).

Top with almonds and serve warm over rice. Serves 6.

Links to other pinto bean delicacies:

• Dad's Pinto Beans from Two Recipes
• Pinto Bean Dip from Crunchy Savings
• Pinto Beans and Yellow Squashes with Green Dressing from Scandi Foodie
• Sticky Baked Lentils & Pinto Beans from Everybody Likes Sandwiches
• Arlie's Pinto Beans from Red, White & Grew