Pita Chips

We did a salad bar night again for supper today. At the store, picking up a few items, I saw a bag of delicious but rather pricey pita chips that would go splendidly with the roasted pine nut hummus I had in my grocery cart. Hmm...next to the pita chips were bags of pita bread for a mere $1.50.  So, I decided to make pita chips at home.

Google churned out a number of options. I looked at the top two, and picked one that had more ratings than the first in the list of choices.

I skipped the chervil (didn't have it) and used garlic powder and salt.  For the first batch I peeled the layers of the pita pockets apart, so they were thinner and crunchier. The second batch I left the layers intact, so they were both crunchy and a bit chewy. Both were tasty.

Pita Chips from www.allrecipes.com

Pita Chips

Rated: Submitted By: Dawn Photo By: hmstarr Prep Time: 10 Minutes Cook Time: 7 Minutes Ready In: 17 Minutes Servings: 24

"These fresh-from-the-oven triangles--pre-brushed with olive oil and herbs--have a warm and crunchy warm snap that you just can't get from a store bought bag."

INGREDIENTS:

12 pita bread pockets 1/2 cup olive oil 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon garlic salt 1/2 teaspoon dried basil 1 teaspoon dried chervil

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2.	Cut each pita bread into 8 triangles. Place triangles on lined cookie sheet.
3.	In a small bowl, combine the oil, pepper, salt, basil and chervil. Brush each triangle with oil mixture.
4.	Bake in the preheated oven for about 7 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy. Watch carefully, as they tend to burn easily!

Black Bean Soup with Chipotle Chiles - no soak - in the crockpot!

The day Britta invited me to post on this blog (with a few other friends) I started a post on lentils...and then got strep throat, and insomnia, and then moved to NYC, etc. You get the picture!  For some reason my very simple lentil recipe has languished as a "draft."  So, I'm finally back on the wagon, and excited to post!

This is one of my favorite recipes. I found it on Epicurious when I bought a crockpot a year or so ago.  It's wonderful because you don't have to soak the dried beans or prepare them in any way (other than sorting and rinsing) before adding them to the crockpot.  Now, to be up front, if you aren't accustomed to eating beans fairly frequently, this lack of soaking could prove to be a bit, er, of a surprise to your system.  Many people agree that soaking, then draining the soaking water, prior to cooking with dried legumes helps to make the legumes easier to digest. So, it's your call!


Hopefully said introduction doesn't spoil the amazingly appetizing nature of this soup. 

Black Bean Soup with Chipotle Chiles 

Bon Appétit | March 2004

A dollop of yogurt adds a creamy richness and cuts the heat of the chiles. Yield: Makes 6 main-course servings 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 medium-size red onions, chopped 1 medium-size red bell pepper, chopped 1 medium-size green bell pepper, chopped 4 garlic cloves, minced 4 teaspoons ground cumin 1 16-ounce package dried black beans 1 tablespoon chopped canned chipotle chiles* 7 cups hot water 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt 1/2 cup chopped seeded plum tomatoes 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro Heat olive oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and both bell peppers and sauté until beginning to brown, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cumin; stir 1 minute. Transfer mixture to 6-quart slow cooker. Add beans and chipotles, then 7 cups hot water. Cover and cook on high until beans are very tender, about 6 hours. Transfer 2 cups bean mixture to blender; puree until smooth. Return puree to remaining soup in slow cooker. Stir in lime juice, salt, and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls. Spoon dollop of yogurt into each bowl. Sprinkle with tomatoes and cilantro and serve. *Chipotle chiles canned in a spicy tomato sauce, sometimes called adobo, are available at Latin American markets and many supermarkets. Test-kitchen tip: Add richness to slow-cooker soups by using a mixture of half broth and half water instead of only water. Per serving: calories, 314; total fat, 4 g; saturated fat, 1 g; cholesterol, 1 mg; fiber, 18 g Nutritional analysis provided by Bon Appétit

Nikki's notes: 


You can skip the blending if you prefer a chunkier bean soup with a thin broth.
Also, I love the adobo style canned chipotle chiles that I've used for this. But, I rarely use them for anything other than this recipe. So, after I use one or two for this soup I lay them flat in a gallon-sized ziploc bag in the freezer (so they won't all freeze into one lump). Then, each time I cook with them I just pull however many I want out of the bag and chop them (while they are still frozen) on a cutting board. They chop extremely easily, and then I don't have to worry about them getting old-tasting in the fridge.

As you can imagine, this soup lends itself well to many different side dishes and toppings. Corn bread, salad, sour cream or yogurt, cilantro, tomatoes (as noted above), grated cheese, etc. It's also wonderful as is - with no extra add-ins. (And it's vegan that way!)

Black Bean Burgers

This one is always a favorite, and can be vegan AND delicious.


Black Bean Burgers

1 19-ounce can black beans (I have never found a can this size, I usually just use the normally commercially available size and make 3 burgers)
1 4-ounce can diced mild chilies
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2 garlic cloves
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced (I actually don't put this in)
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
4 pita pockets


In colander, drain beans and chilies together. Rinse with cold water, shake the colander and let it drain in the sink for a few minutes. In a medium bowl, combine the beans and chilies with 2 Tbsp of the cornmeal and the onion, cilantro, lime juice, garlic, jalapeno, cumin and a pinch of salt. With a potato masher, mash the mixture until about half the beans are crushed. Form into 4 three-inch patties. Add the remaining cornmeal to a small bowl, then press both sides of burgers into the cornmeal until well coated.

In a nonstick pan over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot but not smoking. Add the burgers and cook until crisp on one side, about 2 minutes. Turn and cook on the other side until crips and warm all the way through, about 3-5 min.

Cut off the top third of the pita pockets and spread sour cream inside if desired. With a spatula, carefully place a bean burger inside each pita. Spead the salsa on top of each burger; if desired, garnish with lettuce, fresh cilantro or tomato (I like to do avocado slices and salsa and sour cream only, very good).

Enjoy!