Beans, Beans...the magical fruit! The more you eat...the more you....

A few months ago, three large bags of dry beans appeared in my pantry closet. After closely inspecting them with disgust, I discovered the bags consisted of chick peas, lentils, and red beans. Matt had officially decided that we would incorporate beans into our diet….cuz well, they’re apparently chalked full of proteins and necessary nutrients. Bleh.

I put it off for a long time….and ignored his pleas to attempt to try to make something with these beans. He officially got tired of waiting and took it upon himself to try a recipe with the dried chick peas. Much to my surprise, they were actually edible…and quite good. The next day, I went to work and my quad-buddy, told me that she ate beans all the time…cuz well, they’re chalked full of proteins and very good for you.

For some reason, when SHE said it, it sparked my interest. I went around the office asking for recipes for red beans. Since a lot of my co-workers are Hispanic, they had lots of recipes for red beans…since it’s staple food for them. But, most of them suggested re-fried beans with canned beans. No one knew anything about DRIED beans.

So, I decided I was going to take on the challenge and figure out how in the world to make red beans and rice with dried beans. I soaked them for a day and half…and the dumb beans still weren’t tender. I cut up onions, bell pepper, and chunks of ham…threw it all in a crock pot overnight…and they STLL weren’t tender. Matt suggested we boil the whole concoction on the stove for a while…so we did that…for 45 minutes and the beans finally softened. I threw it back in the crockpot and they’ve been cooking with all the rest of the goodies all day long.

I’m anxious to see what it looks like once I get home. And, if it’s any good…I’ll share the recipe in the next blog. Here’s to hopin’ it turns out good cuz if not, I haven’t a clue as to what I’m going to do with the rest of this 3 pound bag of dried red beans!