Black Bean Brownies

I have all these luscious beans in my freezer, and I am looking for some new ways to cook them. While I am still an omnivore, I am working on becoming a 3/4 time vegetarian. :)

So, the brownies. I am also looking for some healthy recipes to start sticking in lunch boxes, and brownies fit the bill. This recipe comes courtesy of The Happy Herbivore:


Makes 9 squares

Ingredients:
15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 bananas
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup cocoa
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup quick/instant oats

a few drops mint extract *optional
1/4 cup raw sugar **optional
chocolate chips *optional
chopped walnuts *optional

** if you’re bananas are really ripe (browning) you probably won’t need the extra sugar; I suggest making the batter without it, then taste testing it to see if you need to add more sugar.

Directions:
1. Preheat 350F
2. Combine all ingredients, except oats, in a food processor or blender
3. Blend until smooth, scraping sides as needed
4. Stir in the oats
5. Pour into a greased 8×8 in pan
6. Bake approx 30 minutes, toothpick test
7. Allow to completely cool before slicing

** if you find these brownies are too soft or too fudgy, add another 1/4 cup oats or flour

I will be freezing these so I can pull them out and put them in lunches. I have to freeze them or they won't last for lunches. So there you go. A recipe that uses beans from the freezer, and then gets stored in the freezer!

*Update - these brownies have a very marked banana taste. They weren't as fudgy as I was expecting, and I am a bit disappointed. However, the kiddo loves the banana taste and is thrilled that they will be in his lunch box. I will start experimenting with more recipes and when I come across an excellent one, I will share.

Roasted Garlic White Bean Soup

This soup is absolutely wonderful. It is full of flavor from the roasted garlic, plus it is quick and easy--remember the beans are already cooked in the freezer!

Ingredients

• 2 cans or 2 pkgs of your frozen white beans
• 2 T olive oil, plus some for brushing garlic
• 12 cloves garlic, approximately 1 bulb or head of garlic
  
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 2 medium potatoes, chopped
• 1 large sprig rosemary, chopped
• 1 T chopped fresh thyme
• 5 cups water or broth
• salt, to taste
• parsley and red pepper flakes, to garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Cook the beans if using dried.

2. Break apart (but don't peel) the garlic. Brush with olive oil and roast in an oven or over a stove until black. Remove cloves from the skins, and set aside.

3. Combine onion, carrots, potatoes, rosemary, thyme, water and cooked beans in a large pot. Bring to boil, and cook for about 20 minutes.

4. Add cooked beans, and simmer for another 5-10 minutes.

5. Remove soup from heat. Using a standard blender or an immersion blender, puree 2/3 of your soup along with the garlic cloves.

6. Combine blended portion with chunky portion and salt to taste.

7. Garnish with parsley and red pepper, if desired, and serve.

You can also freeze this soup. A tip I heard recently is to line your soup bowls with plastic wrap and put a serving of soup in the bowl. Put in the freezer until frozen, then pop out the frozen soup and wrap completely with the plastic wrap. You could also freeze in reusable plastic containers. Enjoy!

Beans--Yep, they are gourmet!

Yesterday I cooked 2 pounds of white beans in the crockpot so that I would have beans in the freezer ready for meals. It costs so much less then buying cans, plus I control what is in them!

Ingredients

• dry beans of your choice (I used white--and I will do black tomorrow)
• water

Directions

1. Pour the beans into a colander and rinse. Pick out any beans that are broken or that look shriveled and yucky.

2. Pour in crockpot and cover with at least an inch of water.

3. Soak overnight. In the morning, drain the beans and rinse well.

4. Dump back into your rinsed out crockpot and cover.

5. Add enough water to cover the beans plus an extra inch of water. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

6. Cool and separate into sandwich bags--1 to 1 1/4 cups equals about 1 can. Make sure you squeeze the air out. Place sandwich bags flat in the freezer and flash freeze. Once they are frozen, store the beans in a gallon ziploc freezer bag. Use when needed.

That's it! So easy, and you have just saved so much money. My 2 lb bag of beans cost $2.89. I got 12 bags of cooked beans. At a cost of $.99 per can, I saved $8.99. And I have a lot of room in my pantry because I don't have all those cans!