From: The Daily Bean, by Suzanne Caciola White

• 8 ounces fusilli pasta
• 1 bunch asparagus
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 red onions, thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 cup Chicken-less broth
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 15 ounces beans (cannellini or butter beans)
• 2 large tomatoes
• pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Cook the pasta in lightly salted, boiling water for 11 minutes.  Add the asparagus and cook for another 3 minutes.  Drain into a colander.
2. While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large skillet.  Add the onions and the sugar and cook, stirring for about 10 minutes or until the onions are browned.  Add the garlic, broth, and wine.  Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add beans, tomatoes, and a pinch of salt and toss the mixture with the pasta and Parmesan cheese and freshly ground pepper.
   

Adapted from www.allrecipes.com

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 30 ounces black beans, rinsed, drained, and mashed
• 2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 cup salsa

Preparation

1. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion, garlic, and bell pepper; cook until tender. Stir in mashed beans. Add the cornmeal. Mix in cumin, paprika, cayenne, chili powder, and salsa. Cover, and cook 5 minutes.

Adapted from http://eatdrinkbetter.com

• 15 ounces white (canellini) beans
• 1 cup fresh spinach, chopped and steamed
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch, mixed with equal part water
• 1/2 cup pine nuts
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon Thyme
• A pinch of salt
• A pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Combine all of your wet ingredients, mash slightly with a fork and set aside. In a food processor, grind up all of your dry ingredients until they all resemble breadcrumbs. Mix the dry in with the wet ingredients. Now for the fun part: dig your hands in and mash everything up. Form the mixture into 3 or 4 patties, depending how big you like them.
2. Coat your skillet with cooking oil and put the heat on high. Cook your patties two at a time, for about 3-6 minutes, depending how hot your oil is (and how “well done” you like them). Flip with a spatula and repeat on the other side. Once they’re nice and dark brown, set them aside on a paper towel to cool.
3. Serve on a whole wheat bun or in a pita.  If you like, you can spread warm marinara sauce on the bun.
   

From www.101cookbooks.com

• 2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• fine grain sea salt
• 1 small onion or a couple shallots, sliced
• 1 cup chickpeas
• 8 ounces extra-firm tofu
• 1 cup of chopped kale
• 2 small zucchini, chopped
• zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon

Preparation

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil In a large skillet over medium-high heat and stir in a big pinch of salt, the onion, and chickpeas. Saute until the chickpeas are deeply golden and crusty. Stir in the tofu and cook just until the tofu is heated through, just a minute or so. Stir in the kale and cook for one minute more.
   
2. Remove everything from the skillet onto a large plate and set aside. In the same skillet heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, add the zucchini and saute until it starts to take on a bit of color, two or three minutes. Add the chickpea mixture back to the skillet, and remove from heat. Stir in the lemon juice and zest, taste, and season with a bit more salt if needed.
   
3. Turn out onto a platter and serve family style.

From Grandma Joan (sh'e also provided information and serving suggestions)

• 1 container low sodium salsa/or 1 can low sodium diced tomatoes
• 1 onion/or one bunch green onions, chopped
• A lot of celery, chopped
• 5-7 kinds of beans, canned or frozen
• 2 handfuls of nuts
  

Preparation

1. Take a medium to large bowl and dump in a container of salsa or a can of diced tomatoes.
2. Cut up onions (green ones are especially yummy) and a lot of celery cut up in “squares”  Dump into bowl. (Celery is rumored to be the only food that burns more calories to digest than the calories it actually has.)
3. Pick out 5 or 7 or so types of beans either canned or frozen. (I look for cans that say 50% less sodium. I put them in a colander and rinse out the liquid and a lot more sodium.  I usually use frozen baby lima beans, Edamamie (soy) beans and green peas because you can buy a smaller amount at a time and the Edamamie beans are kind of expensive, but important because they are a complete protein.) Cook for a few minutes, drain and throw into the mix.
4. You can also add nuts (Yummy!   I like walnuts, but cashews are unbelievably delicious in there. Of course look for no salt added.)
   
5. This is already delicious, but you can add to the mix or individually add to your serving, raspberry vinaigrette (my favorite) or balsamic vinegar.

½ cup is a good serving size for me, but I always want more.  Any fresh veggies can of course be cut up and added. Also cranberries, blueberries or cut up mandarin oranges.

This concoction keeps well for several days in the fridge.

Green salad: Toss some in a green salad.

Soup: make a liquid of Vegetable broth, a little bit of golden cream of mushroom soup, water and a little bit of vinegar, or you could add more of the salsa or canned tomato.

Put it in a bowl and heat in the microwave. You could add pasta, rice or croutons. I haven’t done this yet, but you could make a casserole with pasta or rice added. You can take it to work or school in a small plastic container.

Bon appetite!

From www.eatingwell.com

• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 1/4 cup plus 1/3 cup plain dry breadcrumbs, divided
• 2 cups finely chopped tomatoes
• 2 scallions, sliced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon chili powder, hot if desired, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 avocado, diced

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Mash black beans and cumin with a fork in a large bowl until no whole beans remain. Stir in corn and 1/4 cup breadcrumbs. Combine tomatoes, scallions, cilantro, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder and salt in a medium bowl. Stir 1 cup of the tomato mixture into the black bean mixture.
3. Mix the remaining 1/3 cup breadcrumbs, oil and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon chili powder in a small bowl until the breadcrumbs are coated with oil. Divide the bean mixture into 8 scant 1/2-cup balls. Lightly press each bean ball into the breadcrumb mixture, turning to coat. Place on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Bake the croquettes until heated through and the breadcrumbs are golden brown, about 20 minutes. Stir avocado into the remaining tomato mixture. Serve the salsa with the croquettes.

Adapted from www.eatingwell.com

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 20 ounces prepared whole-wheat pizza dough, thawed if frozen
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh oregano, or 2 teaspoons dried
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 15-ounce can white beans, rinsed (Eden Organic Cannelloni Beans)
• 3 tablespoons water
• 2 teaspoons white-wine vinegar
• 2 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 1 cup finely shredded smoked Gouda, or Provolone cheese
• 2 tablespoons pepitas, (pumpkin seeds), optional

Preparation

1. Place oven rack in the lowest position; preheat to 450°F. Coat a large non-insulated baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Combine oil, onion and salt in a medium saucepan. Cover and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the onion is softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, uncover and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft and golden, 5 to 8 minutes more.
3. Meanwhile, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to the size of the baking sheet. Transfer to the baking sheet. Bake until puffed and lightly crisped on the bottom, 8 to 10 minutes.
4. Stir oregano and pepper into the onion. Transfer half the onion to a small bowl. Add beans to the remaining onion; cook over medium heat, stirring often, until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the bean mixture to a food processor, add water and vinegar and pulse until a coarse paste forms.
5. Spread the bean paste over the pizza crust. Top with the reserved onion, tomatoes, cheese and pepitas, if using. Bake on the bottom rack until the crust is crispy and golden and the cheese is melted, 11 to 13 minutes. Slice and serve.

Adapted from the book: The Ethical Gourmet, by Jay Weinstein

• 1/4 pound dried pinto beans, washed
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 large white onion, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 6tablespoons olive oil

Preparation

1. Bring the beans and 5 cups of water to a boil in a large pot, add the salt, half of the chopped onion, and the vegetable oil.  Lower the flame and simmer 2-3 hours, until very tender, skimming occasionally and adding water if necessary to keep the beans brothy.  Cool the beans in their liquid.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat; cook the remaining cup of onion until translucent.  Add the beans with their cooking liquid 1 cup at a time, mashing with a wooden spoon over high heat.
   

I'll take credit for throwing this together

•  2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
  
• 15 oz. black beans, with liquid
  
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoons tahini
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preparation

1. Throw it all in a blender/food processor and process until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed to make sure everything gets chopped.
   

Adapted from the book: The Daily Bean, by Suzanne Caciola White

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 4 cups vegetable broth (Pacific Naturals Organic Vegetable Broth)
• 2 cups water
• 8 oz. rotini pasta
• 5 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cup pastina pasta
• 1 15 oz, can cannellini beans
• grated parmesan cheese, to taste

Preparation

1. In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium heat.  Add celery, carrots, onion, garlic, parsley, and rosemary.  Saute, stirring, until vegetables are soft, about 4-5 minutes.
2. Add the broth and water to the vegetables and bring to a boil.  Add the rotini pasta and cook for 6 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes, pastina, and beans and cook until soup is thickened, about 7-8 minutes.
4. Have the grated cheese available for sprinkling on top of each serving, to taste.