Simple Bean Spread
This is a simple recipe for a bean topping that is great with toast or crackers. Almost any kind of bean can be used in this way and if you use chic peas and a little tahini this is also a basic guideline for making hummus. The ingredients list is very simple:
- cooked beans (or canned) drained.
- Olive oil
- Lemon (or vinegar)
- Salt
- Finely minced fresh raw garlic
- Fresh chopped parsley or other fresh soft herbs (mint, chives, cilantro, etc)
- Pepper, chili flake or other spices (cumin, coriander, paprika…keep it simple)
How much of each ingredient you add depends on your own personal taste and how much you want to make, and whether you are using cooked or canned beans. Canned beans usually contain a fair amount of salt, whereas home cooked beans contain only that which you add so you need less salt when using canned beans than home cooked. Canned beans will be plenty soft, but if you are using beans cooked from dry make sure they are well cooked and soft. Pour your beans into a bowl. add in a bit of minced raw garlic. Raw garlic has a great spicy taste to it, but it’s strong, so add a little then taste to see if you need more. Add in your herbs and drizzle generously with olive oil. Drizzle some fresh lemon juice in. as with the garlic, you want the lemon to add a fresh bite to the beans, but too much can be abrasive. Start light then adjust. Season with salt and pepper. Taste the spread to determine if you need extra of any of the ingredients. Beans respond well to generous amounts of olive oil. Don’t be shy with the oil when making a spread like this. You can also salt this spread generously to taste too (unless you have medical reasons not to). Beans are delicious when well oiled and salted. Trust you taste buds and serve when it tastes good, Enjoy.
Note: this spread can also be made in a food processor for a creamier texture. Just blend it all up and adjust for taste the same way.
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- Beans in a bowl
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- Mash ‘em
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- Mince Garlic
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- add to beans
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- Mince herbs
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- add to beans
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- add olive oil
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- add lemon
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- Salt beans
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- Add some pepper or spices
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- Mix it all up and adjust to taste
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- serve it on toast or crackers
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- Bean spread on toast with a poached egg
about Cooking dry beans
BEANS! Hearty and versatile, they’re good in soups, beans and eggs make good breakfast and fresh herbs make a simple and delicious bean salad. Dry beans taste better than the ones out of the can and aren’t difficult to cook but there are a few variables.
White Bean bruschetta with a poached egg.
When you cook with dry beans it’s almost always a good idea to soak the beans in water before cooking. The exception to this is small beans like lentils and split-peas which can be cooked from dry in 30-45 minutes. You don’t have to soak beans to cook them, but most beans will take 2-3 hours to cook unsoaked, whereas soaked they take about 45 minutes.
Dry beans should be soaked over night for maximum water absorption. To soak your beans, fill a plastic container or large bowl just under half way with dry beans then fill the container the rest of the way to the top with water. Beans will swell over twice their size while soaking so it’s important not to overfill your container. If you soak beans in a glass jar they’ll swell and get jammed up in the jar, which is why I recommend plastic or a bowl.
When soaking the beans you can leave them out at room temperature and they will be fine, but after a day or two they can ferment. I once soaked some beans with the intention of cooking them and ended up getting caught up and the beans fermented on my counter. Since then I have always soaked beans in the refrigerator. That way if you want to cook beans sometime over the course of a week, but don’t really care which day it is you can just leave the beans to soak in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook them. It’s not possible to over soak dry beans.
When you’re ready to cook them, drain the water off the beans, put them in a pot, cover them with plenty of fresh water, bring just to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until soft (about 45 minutes to an hour depending on the bean). If you’re making soup you can add the soaked beans right to your soup base and simmer them in water or stock. There is some debate as to whether beans should be salted during or after cooking. I heard that it is generally best not to salt beans until after they have cooked because it can affect their texture. I have not noticed a significant difference either way as long as the beans are cooked until they are tender, so just do what feels right. Beans are good and they can really please all people and aren’t affected by seasonality. So buy dry beans, save money and eat well.
Note: It is true that beans can give you gas. their gassy quality comes from a type of carbohydrate that exists in beans. soaking the beans and discarding the soaking liquid curbs this a little bit, but the best way to avoid gas is to make sure the beans are fully cooked and tender. this breaks down the carbohydrate so they are more easily digested. the firmer the beans are the harder they will be to digest.
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- Soak your Beans
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- Drain off soaking water
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- Add fresh water to the beans
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- Bring to a boil
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- Cover, reduce heat, simmer
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- When beans are tender, drain of cooking liquid. The water can be kept if you want to use it to make a soup.
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- Rinse the beans with some cold water to stop the cooking if you want to store the beans for later use.
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- Cooked Beans!
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- Bean and herb salad
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- Bean Bruschetta with a poachd egg
Bean and herb salad
Bean salads make a good quick lunch or light dinner and they travel well. Plain cooked beans have a pretty dry texture so they drink up a lot of oil. Cold beans with olive oil and salt are delicious and a good
bean salad is wonderful for anyone at any time. This is a simple salad you can make pretty much any time of year. if you have some cooked off beans you can use them, otherwise canned beans will work fine. Here’s a list of ingredients:
- cooked beans
- olive oil
- lemon (vinegar will work too)
- salt
- soft herbs of your choice (parsley, basil, chives, mint, fennel, dill…)
- shaved shallot or onion (as thin as you can slice them)
- Pepper
If your beans are in liquid give them a light rinse and drain them. Put them in a bowl for mixing and drizzle generously with oil. add a squeeze of fresh lemon and a bit of the minced shallot/onion. Salt to taste. How much of what you use depends on your own taste and how much you are making. mix the beans, taste and add more of anything you think it might need more of. Try to give it enough oil to give the beans a creamy texture, enough lemon to make it snap without being astringent and enough salt to make it taste good. Beans need more salt than they appear to, trust your taste buds when salting and note that canned beans contain much more salt than ones you cook at home. When you are happy with the dressing, fold in your fresh herbs, chopped or whole, pepper and serve. It will keep a few days. It can sit out for a bit too, the beans will be a little better at room temperature than refrigerator cold.
This salad is great in its simplicity, but you can vary it pretty easily by adding other things too. Try it with peppers, roasted vegetables, salami, fresh sweet corn, brown rice, cucumbers, grated cheese, fresh tomatoes, avocado, shaved fresh fennel, smoked fish, leftover chicken… just about anything you can think of. Enjoy.
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- olive oil
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- Fresh lemon
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- shave onion
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- Salt!
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- Mix
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- Taste. Adjust if necessary
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- Add herbs
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- Fresh pepper
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- Serve!
Back from hiatus
About a year ago I had to put Learning Life From Scratch on hold. I got a job running a kitchen. It was a great experience but after 50+ hours a week in a kitchen I just couldn’t get it together to come home and write about more cooking. I’ve recently taken a new job now with more reasonable hours and have finally had a chance to start writing and working on my blog again. I’m going to keep writing and working towards more scratch cooking and fresh eating for all people. In the time I have spent away from writing I did manage to learn quite a bit about how to cure meat, how to turn juice into wine and quite a bit about Celiac disease and allergies in general. You’ll see plenty of new ideas and instructions coming over the next few weeks. Its good to be back. Keep cooking and talking about food, it is a huge part of our futures.
Alex
