Slow Cooker Black Beans

This week I made a big pot of black beans.  My favorite dinner of all time is black beans and yellow rice (believe it or not), but as I've recently been trying a healthier diet, I realized I need to cut back on the amount of sodium I consume.  Typically I'd use canned beans and pre-packaged yellow rice, both of which have an enormous sodium content, so I was sad to have to cut those out of my options for a "healthy" dinner.  But then, I read Lisa Leake's post on making refried beans from scratch (which are really good, by the way).  I got excited as I realized that I could modify this recipe to make my own black beans from scratch and freeze any leftovers to have an easy meal later without using canned beans.  So, here it is, ladies and gents! Make your own black beans instead of using the canned stuff!

Slow Cooker Black Beans


You will need:

• 2 cups dry black beans
• 1 medium onion, peeled and halved
• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 hot pepper, halved, or 1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (optional)
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt, or 1 teaspoon of table salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
• 3 teaspoons cumin (can adjust to taste)
• 6 cups water

Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker.  Cook on high for about 6 hours.  Drain off unwanted fluid, and remove onion pieces if desired.  Enjoy!

That's it! Super easy.  Instead of serving the beans over yellow rice, I cooked up some brown rice, using homemade chicken broth instead of water for a richer taste, but still less sodium than using store-bought broth.  Feel free to add whatever toppings you think would go with black beans.  I like to top this dish with tomato, cheese and homemade "sour cream" (very thick yogurt).  These beans would also be good in a burrito, soup, omelet, and any other recipe that calls for canned black beans.  Enjoy your beans with less sodium!

All dressed up and ready to eat!

How to Make Yogurt

So this week's post has turned from a Foodie Friday post to a Foodie Saturday due to a long and tiring (but very fun!) trip out of town yesterday.  I'm thinking next week will also have a Foodie Saturday, too, since I will be making the 6-hour drive home next Friday.....It's a shame, too, since I don't think Foodie Saturday has the same ring to it as Foodie Friday.  However, the recipe will be just as wonderful, I promise.

For this week, I'd like to share how I make yogurt at home in my crock pot.  I've made different variations of yogurt, but the basic recipe is from Stephanie O'Dea's post on her website about slow cooker recipes.  (I recommend checking out her other recipes, too!)  Here is the basic recipe for yogurt, followed by some texture and flavor variations I've tried.

You will need:

• 1/2 gallon of milk: I typically use whole, but since figuring out how to make Greek yogurt (below), I think I will switch to 2%.
• 1/2 cup of cultured yogurt: either store-bought or from a previous homemade batch
• A thick towel or a blanket (Or two regular towels. That's what I use ;) )
• Your handy dandy slow cooker

1. Pour the milk into the slow cooker and set on low for 2 hours.
2. Turn off slow cooker and let sit for 3 hours (to allow the milk to cool off a bit).
3. This is the most labor intensive step. Ready?? Okay. Remove about 2 cups of warm milk from the slow cooker; put it in a separate bowl.  Add the 1/2 cup of yogurt to the 2 cups of milk and stir until smooth. Add this mixture to the remaining milk in the slow cooker.
4. Cover the crock with the towel(s) or blanket to insulate.  Let sit for about 8 hours. (Try not to let it sit longer than 10 hours, because this will allow too much whey to separate from the yogurt. This is not a problem, however, if you intend on making Greek yogurt.)

After 8 hours of allowing the cultures to grow, you will have delicious yogurt in your slow cooker that is ready to go in the fridge!  There are a variety of ways to eat this yummy treat.  Here are a few:

1. Fruity yogurt: Mix in fresh or frozen fruit.  If you use frozen fruit, I would recommend using a food processor or immersion blender to mix the frozen pieces into the yogurt, so you don't bite into a freezing, hard piece of fruit.  Above is a picture from the first time I made yogurt at home, complete with fresh strawberries. Yum! 
2. Dessert yogurt: Mix chocolate or caramel ice cream syrup into your yogurt, or drizzle it on top if you want to be fancy.
3. Vanilla varieties: Mix in honey and a splash of vanilla extract.  Or you can make vanilla yogurt from the start by adding 1/3 cup of sugar and 2 tablespoons of vanilla extract to the milk in step 1 of the basic recipe.
4. Go Greek:  Make the basic recipe, then strain off the whey.  The best way to do this is by placing a basket shaped coffee filter in a colander which is placed over a bowl or container deep enough to hold all the whey that is drained off.  (See my Greek yogurt set-up below.)  Put the yogurt into the coffee filter and place the whole contraption in the fridge overnight.  Lo and behold, the next morning you will have thick Greek-style yogurt!!  It is great for eating plain or flavored, or it can be used in other recipes as a cooking creme, a oil (especially in some baking recipes), or in the place of sour cream.  And don't throw out that whey! It can be used in other recipes as well for a boost of protein. Some recipes that can use whey include soup (in the broth) and smoothies.

There are probably so many other ways to enjoy this homemade delight!  If you know of any yogurt ideas, please feel free to share them here!  Until next week, fellow food lovers....