I'm cooking beans this morning. A big pot. Then, I have them to lean on for menu plans. They can last a week or more depending on if I freeze some or not. Also, if they get frozen, they don't have to be eaten every day, but can spread out over three weeks.
There are many more options for using beans than the five I have listed here. But these are fun and can feed a crowd pretty well. (I'm the type that has a weekly menu. If we have guests, I just make more of what I was planning to serve. I don't go shopping to make something special.)
When I originally put this recipe on the menu, I thought I was crazy. This is a really busy week for our household, and I was unsure that I would have the time to make them. However, my parents ended up being at my house at 2 o'clock this afternoon (with none of us having had lunch), and I needed to get something prepared. I had nothing else in my head that worked for the four of us; so, I cracked open my September 2010 Parents Magazine and got started. I did the burger part while my mom dealt with the veggies.
Recipe for Black Bean Burgers
1 can black beans, drained
1 medium onion, quartered
1/2-3/4 cup oats (rolled, like "Old-Fashioned")
1 T chili powder
Salt, if necessary
Dash of Pepper, if desired
1 egg
Combine all ingredients (starting with just 1/2 cup oats) in a food processor and pulse until chunky, but not pureed. (I did mine in batches as I have a mini one. If too wet, add more oats. If too dry, add water, broth, or my favorite--tomato juice!. Let rest about 20 minutes according to recipe. Think I only waited about 10. Mold into patties on a griddle set at 350. You can also do this on the stove. Grease the pan if necessary.
Last week at work went better than I had planned, but there was enough going on that I really appreciated the light dinner ideas I has scheduled during last week's post. The only change I made was to have Mexican Pizza on Friday night instead of the Egg Fu Yung, which means I have at least one meal already planned for this coming week! It's kind of like a roll-over.
For a detailed list of the planned menu for April 12, please see this previous post. Everything went smoothly until I realized I had mozzarella that was about to expire and tomatoes that didn't look good either. Thursday night, Paul had a foot race, and I worked late and spent a couple hours with my family. So, we didn't eat dinner at home at all on Thursday night and had homemade pizza with a focus on fresh tomato sauce for Friday night.
Every Thursday morning, I sit down at my desk and spend five minutes or so searching for the week's great buys at Publix. Publix's weekly sales go from Thursday morning to Wednesday night. So, I learned to plan my weekly shopping trips accordingly. This week, I almost missed the message that said Morningstar Farms frozen vegetarian products were on sale for 50% off.
