Butternut Squash and Red Bean Stew

I really wanted to post a few vegan recipes during Lent this year, but I’m guess I’m just going to have to admit I'm a slacker during Lent. I have been cooking plenty of delicious vegan recipes, but I just haven’t been photographing them or blogging them. Maybe someday!

I'll just have to be satisfied with posting this recipe for Butternut Squash and Red Bean Stew along with the Vegan Muffelatta Sandwich I posted last month to represent my Lenten vegan cooking this year.

Butternut Squash and Red Bean Stew is another delicious recipe adapted from Bean by Bean Cookbook by Crescent Drangonwagon. The flavors in this stew are rich and filling. You won’t even miss the meat. Les and I enjoyed Butternut Squash and Red Bean Stew for dinner one night, and then I packed it for lunch all week, and it got better with age.

Butternut Squash and Red Bean Stew 
Adapted from Bean by Bean Cookbook by Crescent Dragonwagon
Printable Recipe
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 medium yellow onions, chopped
2 serrano peppers, seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can unsweetened coconut milk (regular or light)
2 teaspoons agave nectar
1 Roasted Butternut Squash (recipe follows)

Heat the canola oil in a Dutch oven and add the onions and cook until the onions are translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the Serrano pepper, turmeric, cumin, coriander, smoked paprika and 1 teaspoon kosher salt and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Lower the heat and add the beans, tomatoes, coconut milk, agave nectar and roasted butternut squash. Heat for about 10 minutes or until the mixture has thickened slightly, stirring occasionally. Serve with brown rice, and garnish with chopped fresh cilantro and sliced green onions.  

Roasted Butternut Squash 
1 (1½ - 2 lb) Butternut Squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1 inch cubes
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the butternut squash in a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle with cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, salt and pepper. Drizzle the squash with olive and bake until the squash is golden brown and tender, about 15 minutes.

Beef and Bean Chili

My friend Barb moved to Nashville over the summer, and she recently sent a picture of the trees in her backyard with their vibrant hues of red and yellow. My backyard is full of trees that don’t turn color in the fall, so I have to look for other signs of the changing of the season.  Well, we have turned our clocks back and turned the house heater on, so I know it’s fall. 

During the first week of the time change, I’m always in a panic to get dinner on the table when I get home from work.  I guess I get into a rush thinking it is almost time for bed.  I rushed dinner so much on Monday night, we were finished and the dishes were done by 6:15pm!  I hardly knew what to do with myself for the rest of the evening! 

Once we change the clocks, I know I have to change what I plan for dinner.  I can no longer ask Les to barbeque on a weeknight (our backyard is too dark to barbeque in the winter), so I have to have some other dinner standbys.  And, nothing says fall to me like a pot of chili. 

I love to have a pot of this chili ready for a weeknight meal.  This recipe is easy to put together.  I will cook this chili on a weeknight if I have some time, but I am more likely to make it on the weekend and heat it up for a quick weeknight meal.  I usually serve this tasty chili with tortilla chips, shredded cheese, and chopped onions, but I will also whip up a batch of cornbread to go with it.  This chili is low fat with lots of fiber, so I love to have leftovers to take with me for lunch during the week.

Beef and Bean Chili
Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Magazine March 1990
Printable Recipe
1 pound lean ground beef
2 large onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground red pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 14 ½ oz cans low sodium dark red kidney beans (do not drain the beans)
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
1 14 ½ oz can fire roasted tomatoes
1 8 oz can diced green chili peppers

In a large pot, brown the ground beef and onion until the meat is tender and the onion is soft, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Stir in the chili powder, oregano, salt, red pepper and black pepper, and heat for another minute.  Add the undrained kidney beans, tomatoes, and green chili peppers, and bring to a boil.  Cook uncovered for 1½ hours, or until the chili is dark in color and the desired consistency.  Makes 12 1-cup servings.

Three-Bean Salad

Hello!  I’m back!  Wow it has been a crazy couple of weeks (fun, but crazy).  We’ve had Mother’s day, my wedding anniversary, and my birthday in the last couple of weeks.  Throw in my daughter performing in a youth theater production and my son’s school’s Festival, and I’ve hardly had time to eat much less cook.  We’ve had too much take-out, and when I have cooked, it’s been simple pasta dishes.  I did make dinner a few times this week, so I’m hoping to change the trend.

Oh, and along with everything else, I’ve recently acquired a stalker.  I know.  Nice, huh?  My friends warned me this might happen once I started blogging, but I pooh-poohed them.  Who would stalk me?   Beach Ball Bill, that’s who. 

My daughter brought home Beach Ball Bill from the Festival, and almost immediately he became my stalker.  He peers around the corner when I’m cooking.  He will suddenly appear on my dresser when I’m in my room folding laundry.   Every time I turn around he is there.  The kids think it’s funny, but when he peers at me with his beady eyes, I’m a little freaked out.  I can only hope he will spring a leak soon!

What are you doing for Memorial Day?  If you are having a barbeque, you should make this simple Three-Bean Salad.  I know what you’re thinking, “Three-Bean Salad?  Really?”  This Three-Bean Salad is fresh and refreshing.  The tarragon is a great addition to an old recipe, and using haricot vert instead of canned green beans really makes this salad special.  I loved the tarragon in the salad, but not everyone likes tarragon (including my daughter and son), so if you or someone you’re cooking for doesn’t like tarragon, then I recommend you use thyme instead.

Three-Bean Salad
Printable Recipe
3 tablespoons olive oil
The juice of one lemon
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 shallot, minced
2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
1 14 oz can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 14 oz can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 lb haricot vert (French green beans)

In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, sherry vinegar, salt and pepper.  Stir in the shallots and tarragon.  In another small bowl mix together the garbanzo beans, kidney beans, and the vinaigrette, set aside.

In a large steamer set over boiling water, steam the haricot vert until crisp tender, about 4 to 6 minutes.  Immediately immerse the cooked beans into ice water to cool.  Drain the beans and pat dry with a paper towel.  Layer the haricot vert on a platter and top with the kidney bean mixture.  Serve.