Back, not that long ago, my freezer was stocked full of pork chops, chickens, steaks, and ground beef. It’s hard to believe it’s only been a year and half since we started our big food and health change. I decided last September, actually on September 17th, that I was done with beef and pork. This came after watching the documentary Food, Inc. After watching the movie, I could never go back to eating cow and pig. Anyways….

My freezer is now very different. It is full of flours of various kinds, frozen vegetables and fruits, and now frozen beans. This was so easy, I don’t know why I hadn’t done it before!

This recipe is to replace canned beans in a recipe by using dried beans. I have trouble finding the “no-salt added” beans, so this is a great thing to have on hand.

Recipe:

Night before: soak dried beans of choice. Do  not use lentils or peas (they will get too soft and are easy to cook up in a recipe).

Next morning: rinse beans and remove any stones or bad beans. Pour beans in the Crockpot  and fill with water until the water line is about 2 inches above beans. Cook beans on low for 6-8 hours.

When beans are soft, let cool. Fill freezer bags with 1.5 cups of beans and some liquid. Be sure to use good freezer bags. If it broke open…um, that could be a mess. Freeze until you need them in a recipe. Let beans defrost before using them in a recipe.

Get creative with you beans

• Go Italian! Add garlic, basil, and oregano or Italian seasoning to your bean bags.
• Mexican-food flare! Add cumin, cilantro, and crushed red pepper to your bean bags.
• Shawn’s favorite stand-by: ROSEMARY!

I’m sure there are more ideas to add to your bean bags for quick seasoning. Just be sure to label if you add anything
Enjoy!
Kelly