Today I cooked black beans, following Sergio’s Black Beans recipe. Except for cutting the onion and stirring every ½ hour it was essentially labor-free. For the price of one can of black beans, my one-pound package yielded the equivalent of 4 cans of black beans (about 7 - 8 cups of cooked beans.) The point is that you get $3 off the batch, if you’re comparing it to canned beans. One can is about $1.00 – one pound of beans about the same price. The difference is that the dried beans make about 4 times more.

You don’t need to be rich or poor to benefit from the little powerhouses that beans are. If you’re like an average American, and are not eating very many legumes, start working on creating a new habit. Your goal of moving toward the Mediterranean-style of eating will be taking a big leap forward.

Ingredients:

2 cups onion, chopped
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups red pepper, chopped
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 cups cooked brown rice
3 cups cooked black beans or canned
15 ounce can of tomatoes (I used no added salt), diced
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
2 tablespoons sweetener of your choice
¼ cup red wine vinegar

Fresh lime wedges, if desired

Directions:

Sauté the onions, pepper flakes, cumin and oregano and red peppers in the oil. Add the remaining ingredients, except limes, and cook for about 10 minutes. Serve with lime wedge.

Cover washed and sorted black beans with water - see Sergio's recipe above.

Add the onion.

Cook until tender.

Saute the onions and red pepper flakes.

Add the chopped pepper and seasoning.

Add the cooked beans, rice and tomatoes.

Simmer for about 10 minutes until thoroughly heated.

Serve with a wedge of lime - as a side dish or main course.