Category Archives: Beans

Grandma Elva’s Baked Raisin Pudding

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Grandma Elva always had a crew to cook for, and she usually had little or no notice about the number of mouths she would be feeding each day. This never stopped her from whipping up delicious desserts to accompany any meal! Her Baked Raisin Pudding is a well-loved dish filled with raisins, sauce, and a whole lot of memories. Continue reading →

Morning Muffins

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It took me a long time to think of a name for these babies. I love them because they add carrots (and Vitamin A) into my food storage. The kids helped me with finding a name. We went from “Two Fuits and a Veggie,” to “Can I just have another?” Okay, the latter was not really a name suggestion, but an uninterested child. We finally picked one and decided as long as the muffin is good, who cares what the name is? Continue reading →

Mini Raspberry Vanilla Cakes

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My friend, Jane, made the most delicious cake that she would cut in half and fill with jam. This recipe was inspired by her! To me, the texture (due to the beans) is between regular cake and angel food cake. I think it’s especially delicious topped with a pudding-cream filling and fresh strawberries (in non-emergency times, of course) In emergencies we’ll just have to make due with jam and buttercream frosting! –Mellyn Continue reading →

African Chicken Peanut Soup

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–Adapted from a Cooking Light recipe shared with us by Debbie C.

I’m just amazed at how versatile basic ingredients can be! By changing a few of the spices, basic beans and rice become something reminiscent of African cuisine?! I wasn’t sure how the kiddos would react to this one. Surprisingly, both Picky Boy and Little Girl ate it without complaining! Continue reading →

Peanut Butter Bars

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–From Kristen K.

Perfect for picnics and potlucks, these peanut butter bars are sure to please! Kristen used to bring them to all of our big gatherings and whenever our family makes them now, we think of her.
I couldn’t resist playing with the recipe just a little. I had good results cutting back the sugar and replacing some of the butter with (surprise!) beans. With the sweet, creamy frosting on top, my family didn’t even notice! –Mellyn

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Baked No-Bake Cookies

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Delicious bar cookies, filled with oatmeal!

 Peanut Butter — crunchy or creamy –it’s one of my favorite things! Whether we’re eating it by the spoonful, slathering it on our sandwiches or enjoying it in a main dish or dessert, we just can’t seem to get enough. This week I’ll share a smattering of our favorite standbys, in addition to some new recipes we came up with especially for peanut butter week!

Ooey gooey chocolately…that’s how I’d describe this bar cookie! It’s kind of a cross between a granola bar and a no-bake cookie. –Mellyn Continue reading →

Ugly Beef Stew

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I won’t lie to you –this beef stew is pretty ugly. Ugly enough that I sized the picture down, hoping I wouldn’t scare you away with it! But looks can be deceiving! It’s actually quite tasty, and if you have folks in your house who won’t touch a pinto bean, they may just go for this!  –Mellyn  P.S. 2 family reviews follow the recipe below!

Yield: About 8 cups

  • ½ cup pinto bean flour (if you’d like to use kidney beans, click here first and look for my entry dated November 1, 2011!)
  • 4 cups water
  •  1 Tbsp onion powder
  • ¼ tsp thyme
  • 4 tsp beef bouillon
  • ½ cup dehydrated carrots
  • 1/3 cup rice, uncooked**
  • 1 can green beans
  • 3 cups additional water
  • 1 or 2 13-ounce cans beef (optional…I didn’t use it)
  1.  Whisk bean flour into water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  2.  Add onion, thyme, bouillon, carrots, rice, green beans, beef (if desired) and additional water.
  3.  Return to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or until rice and carrots are soft.

**If you want to add rice that’s already cooked, add about 1 cup at the end. You could also leave out the rice and add cooked wheat berries, lentils, barley, quinoa or any other quick-cooking grain.

Anne said, “Nobody suspected it was a bean base. I added an extra can of pinto beans that were blended up to thicken it, and a tablespoon of wheat flour for the same reason. We like ours really thick. I also added extra bouillon, about a tablespoon, but that’s probably because I added extra beans. DH complained about the rice instead of our usual potatoes, but our 3-year old had two bowls full; everybody else ate one bowl without complaining. So I would definitely add it to my list of dinners to make, switch it out for my old beef stew and make it with potatoes instead.”

Amy said, “The texture was normal with the ground beans, it didn’t bother us at all. We still thought it was a little beef brothy but that is something we can play around with ourselves. It wasn’t our favorite (made us think, yes this is a food storage meal), but it would be a good option when you needed to eat food storage meals.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Green Beans with “Meatballs” and Gravy

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Canned green beans are a staple in my food storage pantry. They heat up quickly on the stove top or in the microwave and add some fiber, Vitamin A and variety to my storage. Our family chooses to use fresh veggies most of the time, but canned green beans are still easy to rotate. I just add a bowl to the table to be eaten alongside our steamed carrots or salad. I also really like them cold –straight from the can.

In my opinion, these tasty “meatballs” are nothing short of miraculous! I was astonished at the taste and actually prefer them to real meatballs. We tried them in several different sauces that we’ll share over the next few months, but this easy white “gravy” was an immediate hit! Picky Boy, who has texture issues, didn’t love them, but the rest of the kids gobbled them up! Give them a try on your family and let me know how it goes! –Mellyn Yield: 44 meatballs

  • 3 cups cooked pinto beans
  • 3 cups cooked white rice
  • 2 tablespoons onion powder
  • 5 teaspoons beef bouillon
  • 1/4 cup oil
  • 1 10.5-ounce can cream of mushroom soup
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 15-ounce cans green beans (to serve on the side!)
  1. Mash pinto beans using a fork or potato masher.
  2. Add cooked rice, onion powder and beef bouillon.
  3. Mix well and shape into meatballs. I use a medium cookie scoop.
  4. Heat oil and add meatballs. Turn until all sides are golden brown.
  5. Remove from oil and place on a paper towel to soak up any excess.
  6. Combine cream of mushroom soup and milk, and bring to a simmer.
  7. Add meatballs, and let them simmer in the gravy for 5-10 minutes.
  8. Serve with green beans on the side.

 

 

 

Simple Red Beans and Rice

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This recipe comes from sweet Megan. She was born and raised a true Southern. This classic is so good we just had to have the recipe. We think of her each time we make it. Megan’s recipe called for 1 lb. of smoke sausage. I only simplified it to make it is easier on food storage, but when I have sausage available I surely throw it in, though the flavor here is still good and desirable without.

  • 2 cups Dry Navy Beans
  • 2 cups Dry Kidney Beans
  • 8 cups water
  • 2 Tablespoons Tony’s Charcheres Seasoning**
  • 2 Tablespoons Dehydrated Onion, or 1/2 large onion chopped
  • 3 cups Rice
  • 6 cups Boiling Water
Mix beans, 8 cups water, seasoning, and onion in large crockpot and cook on High for 8-10 hours.* Before serving, mash some of the beans with spoon to thicken the liquid (add water if it’s too thick). Cook rice with boiling water according to package directions.
serve over rice.
*If you soak the beans overnight in the crockpot with the 8 cups of water, you can add the rest of the ingredients in the morning and cook on high for 4-5 hours.
**I found this seasoning at Walmart.  It comes in a green canister and is about the size and style of a small grated parmesan cheese container.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

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This recipe is adapted from one I received at a “kitchen” wedding shower. It has always been one of our favorites! It tastes best if you make it the day before; giving the flavors more time to blend. You can also dress it up by keeping the tortillas whole and rolling the chicken mixture into enchiladas. If you do this, I’d recommend reserving about 1/2 of the soup mixture and adding chicken to the other half. Fill your tortillas with the chicken mixture and pour the reserved “soup” mixture over the top before baking.

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Rich Navy Bean Soup

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This recipe came together after I saw a picture of a white navy bean soup with corn in it. Creamy and delicious, this hearty soup makes a super satisfying lunch or dinner. Try it with real bacon bits sprinkled on top, too! –Mellyn

Yield: 7 cups

  • 3 tablespoons white bean flour*
  • 1/4 cup flour — (optional, add it if you’d like a thicker soup)
  • 2 tablespoons dry milk powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 Tablespoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 1/2 cups water
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 2 15-ounce cans white beans, drained and rinsed — or 1 cup of dry beans cooked to yield about 3 cups beans
  • 1 15-ounce can corn, undrained
  • 1 4-ounce can diced green chiles
  • 1/3 cup parmesan cheese
  • 1 7.6-ounce can table cream
  1. Whisk bean flour, flour, dry milk powder, garlic, onion, salt and pepper into water until smooth.
  2. Bring to a boil. Boil and stir for 1-2 minutes.
  3. Add cumin, white beans, corn and diced green chiles and heat until near boiling.
  4. Stir in parmesan cheese and table cream. Heat until dissolved and warm, but DON’T boil it or the cream will curdle!
*I can’t guarantee a good substitution for this since I’ve never made it any other way, but you could try 3/4 cup canned navy beans blended with liquid or try 4 tablespoons of butter and whisk the flour into it until it’s bubbly, adding the other dry ingredients after the 2 1/2 cups of water.