I wanted to cook something for everyone who would be home that night, but I was tired after a long day of running around, and the last thing I wanted to do was hop in the car and go out for groceries. This is when one's culinary skill is tested: what can you make with what you've got in the house?
There had been several cans of beans and peas in the pantry for months. I don't know if someone bought them for a food pantry and never delivered them or if they were the collected leftovers from some retreat. But I was tired of seeing them in there and put together a plan to turn them into something delicious. A can of peas is nothing special on its own, but with the combined magic of oil, garlic, bacon...mmmmm.
I don't have any photos to share, so you'll have to use your imagination. But I've learned when working with beans, though filling and satisfying, they need some help in the flavor department. A basic beginning to any bean based soup is a combination of oil, some sort of cured pork product (think bacon, sandwich ham, smoked ham, sausage), thyme, basil, carrots, celery, onions, garlic, a cube of chicken boullion, salt and a lot of black pepper. Once you get all that going, simmering the vegetables down to a nice soft consistency, you can add the beans. If you are using dry beans, of course soaking them and cooking them first would be necessary. But since I was cleaning out the pantry I used the cans I had on hand: cannelini, peas, limas, black. I drained all of them first, using the liquid as needed to make a soup. I warmed all the beans in the oil and vegetable mixture, to spread all the flavors around evenly. I added the liquid from the beans a little at a time, and some water. And then as I was finishing up, it seemed the soup wasn't quite thick enough. I thought about blending half the soup to create a thick consistency, but I saw a lonely can of refried pinto beans at the back of the shelf. In the pot and give it a good stirring. Instantly perfect consistency! I made some cornbread and we had a very veggie meal.
This made a pretty huge pot of soup, so it was great for lunches, etc. To me, it always feels good to clean out the pantry. I like to wait until I've made use of almost everything in the house before I go shopping again. That way, I know we are eating everything I buy and nothing is going to waste.
A couple of photos are always a good idea on a blog...even if they have nothing to do with the entry! So, here's what else we did while home on this little break from PR:
I really enjoyed my fall garden...
