Tuesday, May 3, 2011

A New Technique/Tex Mex Crock Pot Beans/Cornbread

Wow! Guys! Have you ever made and "egg," out of flax seed and water? I had heard of this before, but hadn't tried it until last night. It was amazing! You bring 6 tablespoons of water to a boil, add 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed or flax seed meal, reduce heat to med-low and whisk with a fork until it forms an "egg." It was crazy! It was like pushing an uncooked egg around in my pan. Wow! I'm not sure whether it is intended to act as a binder or a leavener in recipes... I am guessing binder though. I used it to make a cornbread recipe we had with dinner last night, and the bread turned out wonderfully. I was so pleased! Sometimes vegan baking is so... meh... you know? This just tasted like yummy cornbread. Enough gab. Here's what we had for dinner last night:

Tex Mex Crock Pot Beans: (from Betty Crocker Easy Everyday Vegetarian Cookbook)

1 pound dried pinto beans (2 cups) sorted and rinsed
1 large onion, chopped (1 cup... I think it totally needs it all if not a bit more)
2-4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 jalepeno, seeded and minced
6 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon chili powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

High Heat 7-9 hours. (If you soak the beans overnight before cooking you can reduce the time. I also think you need to keep an eye on the water level. We usually have to add a bit more and reduce the heat.)

Cornbread original recipe HERE

2 tablespoons ground flax seed
6 tablespoons water
1 cup whole grain flour (I used a combo whole wheat and spelt)
1 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup "milk," (we used rice)
1/4 cup canola oil

Boil water. Add flax. Simmer on med-low till thickened. Set aside. Combine dry. Pour in milk, oil, and flax "egg." Stir until combined. Bake at 425 degrees in prepared 8 inch baking dish 20-25 min.

We ate this classic beans and cornbread meal with tons and tons of steamed asparagus with mrs. dash lemon pepper. Yummy!

4 comments:

  1. Definitely trying this flax egg thing! Also, one of the recipes that are on my docket is a vegan sour cream that they say is fantastic... I know your love of Sour Cream, Ash, so I'll keep you posted!

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  2. I am trying it too! I have heard how to do it, but have never tried, nor have I actually talked to someone who has! I am so glad that it worked. It will be fun to try in other recipes as well! Thanks Ash!

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  3. Okay, question for you, Ashlee. Cory has reflux really bad and can't do spicy foods very good. Are the tex mex crock pot beans pretty spicy? Do you think it would taste ok if I just put a little bit of chili powder in and omitted the jalapeno?

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  4. Actually... it's very mild in flavor to begin with. I was thinking the next time I make it I was going to try and spice it up a bit! I think it needs some kind of tomato... sauce? diced? something. You could totally leave out the jalepeno, but it's really not that powerful. Although, I don't have the acid reflux thing, so I don't know!

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