Louisiana Bean Stew

I made this last night and it was a hit. Leftovers should freeze well.

Louisiana Bean Stew

4 cups vegetable stock
1/2 onion, chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 carrot, chopped fine
1 rib celery, chopped fine
1/3 cup uncooked brown rice
1 tsp. sea salt
1/2 cup salsa

Simmer for 1/2 hour. Add:

1 - 14 oz. can diced tomatoes
3 - 14 oz. cans beans (your choice - I used red kidney beans, be sure to read ingredients)
1 cup frozen sliced okra
2 cups chopped fresh spinach, or 1/2 box frozen

Simmer for 1/2 hour more.

I'm not sure how much this makes...I made this up in an attempt to copy a dish I had recently. I would guess it would serve 6 as a main meal.

Nutty Broccoli Salad

I ran across this recipe the other night looking for something to do with chickpeas. It was really good - reminded me of that broccoli salad that's full of mayo and sugar! Mom and I loved that salad. I think she would have liked this, too. I don't think Dad loved it, but then sometimes he finds raw veggies hard to chew and I think it was more because of that. I used the broccoli slaw to make it easier to chew but it would be cheaper to just use chopped broccoli.

Nutty Broccoli Salad

Serves: 6-8

4 cups	chopped or shredded broccoli
1 can	chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup	raw almonds, chopped
1/4 cup	raisins
1/4 cup	onions, chopped
1/3 cup	oil
1/3 cup	vinegar / lemon juice (I used half each)
3 tbsp	soy sauce

• Mix together broccoli, chickpeas, almonds, raisins and onions.

• In a separate bowl, whisk oil, vinegar and soy sauce.

• Pour dressing over salad.

• Serve.

Vegetable broth

One of the most obvious useful items in any kitchen is broth. "No problem", I told myself. You can find canned vegetable broth in any store! ...until I read the labels. Maybe they're out there, but not in my store - they were all filled with additives including high fructose corn syrup and MSG. So, I set out to make my own.

It's really very simple. We already save chicken bones in a large Ziploc in the freezer to make chicken broth. I started a new bag to toss veggie scraps into. All veggies get washed before I peel them. Peelings and other scraps go into the bag. When I want to make broth, I empty it into a large pot - no need to even thaw it first. Cover with water, bring to a boil, reduce heat. Cover and simmer for.....awhile! I usually go a couple of hours at least. It can be ready a lot sooner, but I like the added richness of slow simmering. Add salt and seasonings to your taste. Be careful with pre mixed seasonings, which often contain added ingredients like sugar and MSG. Ick.

Strain and it's ready to use. You can add more water if needed. You won't believe the taste difference, even watered down!

We like to freeze it into ice cube trays. Once frozen, empty them into another container. I don't like to use plastics because of the BPA. For more info on that, you can Google it but I wrote about it in this entry of my other blog. I still don't know what the facts are on Ziploc bags, so I use them because I have yet to find a good alternative. Glass jars are a decent alternative to the larger containers. Then when we're cooking, we can grab one or more cubes to toss in with the dish.

There is so much you can do with broth, besides making soup or stews. It's really great to have it close at hand!