Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Slow Cooker Black Beans

Slow Cooker Black Beans

Hello my wonderful darlings!
Today I am sharing with you my recipe for slow cooker black beans. As a vegetarian, I find the majority of my protein diet to be infiltrated by an army of legumes with sergeant commander major black bean.
That being said, these wonderful creatures make their way into at least 3 dinners a 2 lunches a week depending on my schedule. After scouring store after store for canned black beans in my budget I came up greatly disappointed with a poor selection full of sodium and BHA.
Yum.
So I dived head first into the world of purchasing dry beans with little to no knowledge on how to actually cook said beans. Let the adventures begin!
After tons of research and even more trial and error I found this wonderful way to make enough beans for my human household of one to last through all my wonderful cravings.
To begin split the bag of beans in half. Yes half. As the only human and therefore only individual allowed to consume beans (sorry pup) I noticed half of a one pound bag is ample enough for me to eat before going rancid so there are no sad trips to the trash of forgotten leftovers. Also for this slow cooker recipe you will need…a slow cooker
Lets Begin!

Ingredients:
½ pound dry black beans
3 cups water
¼ large onion
1 clove garlic
A few sprigs of oregano, parsley, and cilantro

Start by giving your dry little legumes a quick rinse and sort out any stones peels or other undesirables. Next pour them in to you slow cooker.
Then, chop (roughly) the onion and garlic to release oils of flavors and add to the beans.
Next, pour in the 3 cups of water and top with the fresh (or dry) herbs.
Stir up and let sit for 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low
Enjoy!
These beans create a delicious sauce perfect  for black bean soup, over rice, succotash, whatever your heart desires. The fresh herbs bring out the depth of the black beans without adding too much flavor to prevent a wonderful marriage in any savory or spicy dish (I haven’t tried sweet but if you have a recipe share away!) Feel free to double the recipe to fit the serving size of a typical family unit just double everything but the time.
Be sure to check the beans periodically to stir and prevent from burning. Also check the beans 30 minutes prior to being done to see if the skins start to peel back if so, they are completely ready for munching!
Enjoy your legumes!

Comment below if you have any tasty black bean recipes to share or your favorite way to nibble this delicousness. Also stay tune for more black bean recipes as I will be documenting most everything I cook this month!
A special shout out goes to Lindsey Johnson of Café JohnSonia for inspiring this recipe with their way to prepare dry black beans!
http://cafejohnsonia.com/2013/02/how-to-slow-cooker-black-beans.html



Monday, November 11, 2013

This is Halloween

Double bubble boil and trouble! 
This post is a wonderful recap of a spooky Halloween 2013!

TO begin we must all have the perfect costume: 

This year I was inspired by the deliciously creepy Saw movies and decided to go as the game puppet with this wonderful make up!

The make up was super easy: A thick, dark, eyeliner, Bright red lips, and the use of a basic cream make up pallet to add the white circles, gray shading, and a red spiral. To finish the puppet effect, simply draw two straight lines from the corners of your mouth down to your chin to create a drop mouth!
The costume was easy to put together, a black blazer, dress pants, white button up, and a DIY red bowtie!


The next must have for any Hallows Eve is a perfectly carved pumpkin to keep away the evil ghouls that lurk in the night. I like to take a different type of spin here and instead of the usual angry face, I carve more recognizable figures. 


You may recognize him as the ever popular, never succeeding villain of Powerpuff Girls. 
Yes indeed it is Mojo JoJo!

Animated pumpkin carving is insanely easy for even the most unskilled, you can find a template design online, draw your own, or even use acoloring book page! Simple trace the image onto the pumpkin and carve away!


Lastly I bring to you a tasty use for all of the spilled pumpkin guts you're likely to encounter:
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
For this treat you will need:
-Pumpkin Seeds
-Sea Salt
-Water
-A stove (with oven)

The process is rather simple:
Begin by cleaning the gooey stringy stuff off the seeds and rinse them in cold water

Next, allow the seeds to boil in a pot of water mixed with a dash of salt for 10 minutes

Finally, Preheat your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit,
Bake for 10 minutes,
Flip
Bake for an additional 10 minutes
Add a sprinkle more of salt
Let cool, and enjoy!


From all of us here at Elfin, we wish you a happy, haunted Halloween. Share your favorite pictures and projects below!!

And always, Keep your tea nice and Autumn-like 
Cheers.

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Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Straight From The Merciful Fruit Gods

Hello my lovelies!

Today I will be sharing with you a delicious recipe for 

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread!

Sounds pretty amazing right? Just wait until you smell the pure bliss that is this fruitful dessert. (ha fruit pun)

The inspiration for this treat hit me like a blast of a fresh snowball or the floor after slipping on a peel...anywho the actual story is as follows:

There I was...munching a few stolen chocolate chips, and out of nowhere there they were..
Dun Dun Duuunnnnn
My bananas have gone brown..not like the delicious caramel or even chai tea warm brown, a mushy, vulgar excuse for the happy, perky fruit that once was. 
Dropping to my knees, I demanded the gods of fruit to spare such young specimens as what not their fault I forgot to eat them at an earlier time. 
But thankfully, the gods of all things fruity took pity on my pleas and delivered with a small puff of pink smoke a recipe to end all recipes: Banana Heaven. 

To save your mushy fruit from the torture of Hades here's what you will need:

3-4 (very) ripe bananas 
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup (or more :] ) semisweet chocolate chips

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: a pinch of salt is equal to 1/8 teaspoon

For my health conscious tea party guests you may substitute for the following:

1 cup sugar (bananas are sweet, try 1/2 cup Natural Applesauce
1 egg (vegan egg substitute anyone??)

Pinch of salt (Brings out the savory but if your blood pressure is too high cut back on the savory and chew slowly)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (lets use whole grain or even rice flour for my gluten free darlings)

1 cup of semisweet chocolate chips (honey if you didn't have a sweet-tooth you wouldn't be reading this but thumbs up for raw cocoa!) 

DRINK FOR THOUGHT: A craving for chocolate is typically due to your body needing more magnesium.

Do the Banana Mash (yes Halloween just ended):
Whether your are blending the old-fashioned way, or the healthy less guilt way the same process entails

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 Celsius)

Mash your bananas like the sinners they are!

Mix the butter into the banana goo

Add the sugar, egg, and vanilla. Mix that mess!

Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the yellow mush and stir

Finally add your chips (chocolate not Dill Pickle *shutters) into the flour so that they do not sink to the bottom

Mix it up!

Finally pour the banana guts into a buttered loaf pan (or a fun shapedcake pan I'm curious)

Bake for 1 hour

PULL THE LEVER!!!!!!!

Cool, Slice, Serve!

I do so apologize for the lack of pictures in this post as I mashed my poor bananas with my hands and did not feel like trying to get that out of my phone case, but these instructions (I hope) shall lead us all to banana salvation

If you make this recipe share your experience, especially if you use dill pickle flavored chips or a shaped cake pan...seriously I want to know what happens. 

As always my dears keep your tea seeped and your crumpets toasty.
Cheers.


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