Pasta w/ White Beans & Olives

Finally recipe of the month about beans! I have loved getting to taste new things and especially the goodies from our bean month meeting. I hope it has helped you all find some new ideas and got you thinking about using up your beans! :)

4 oz. whole wheat pasta
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 14 oz. can of white beans
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 ripe tomatoes, diced
2 tbsp. oil-cured black olives
1/4 cup sliced fresh basil
freshly ground pepper to taste
2 tbsp. grated romano cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add beans and garlic, cooking while stirring frequently until the beans are just heated through, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and add tomatoes, olives, basil and pepper. Stir gently to combine. Serve beans over pasta topped with cheese.

Sweet Potato Enchiladas

The great recipes from the bean meeting keep on coming! :) Thank you Sister Gibson for so many fabulous ideas!

1 lb. potatoes (sweet or russet)
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. ketchup
1 can black beans
14 oz. green chilis
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
12 corn tortillas
1 large can green enchilada sauce

In a bowl, toss diced potatoes together with cumin, chili powder, salt and ketchup. Cook 25 minutes at 400 degrees. Then combine the beans, chilis and cilantro in a bowl with the potatoes. Spread some of the green enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Fill each tortilla with 1/4 cup of the bean/potato mix with a little cheese in each one. Roll it up and place in a pan. Top with remaining sauce and cheese. Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Grocery Deals 3/28 - 4/3

I will be out of town next week, so no grocery deals, but LOTS of great recipes set up to post! :) This week there are TONS of great deals this week! I usually try to buy a couple hams, since they come in handy for so many recipes. LOTS to stock up on at King Sooper's! Enjoy the deals and Happy Easter!

King Soopers'
Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts - $1.99
Avocados - $0.88
Colorado Proud Milk - $1.97 a gallon
1 dozen large eggs - $1
King Soopers' Bread & Buns - $1
Kroger or Birds Eye Frozen Vegetables - $1
Dole Pineapple - $1
Kroger Sour Cream or Dip - $1
1 lb. baby carrots - $1
Oscar Mayer Bologna/Lunchables - $1
Colgate Toothpaste/Toothbrushes - $1
Ivory Body Wash - $1Lever 200 Soap (2 bars) - $1
Navel Oranges - $0.99/lb.

Buy 4, Save $4 (prices shown are *after* savings)
Charmin - $6.49
Tide - $5.49
Buy 4, Get $1 coupon back at the end (must be in quantities of four)
Gatorade/G2 - $1
Hunts' Pasta Sauce - $1
American Beauty Pasta - $1
Chef Boyardee Pasta - $1
7-Up Soft Drinks - $1

Albertson's
Albertsons' Shank Portion Smoked Ham - $0.99/lb.
Albertsons Spiral sliced Half Ham - $1.99/lb.
Naval Oranges - $0.99/lb.
Jet-Puffed Marshmallows - $1
Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix - $0.50
Jet Puffed Marshmallow Creme - $1

Safeway
Gala or Red Delicious Apples - $0.99/lb.

Black Bean Brownies

Such a great recipe from Sister Gibson's home, and the best part is it's gluten-free!

1 can black beans
3 eggs
3 tbsp. oil
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 pinch of salt
tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. instant coffee (optional)
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth (except the chocolate chips), then pour in a greased 8x8 or 9x9 pan. Bake at 350 for about 30 - 40 minutes. Absolutely delish!

Tortilla and Black Bean Pie

Another fabulous recipe from Sister Gibson! Enjoy! :)

(4) 10 inch tortillas
1 tbsp. oil
1 large onion, diced
1 japaleno chile, minced **I personally wear gloves whenever dealing with japalenos'**
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. cumin
salt and pepper
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups cold water
10 oz. frozen white corn
4 scallions, thinly sliced
2 1/2 cups cheese

Preheat oven to 400. Trim the tortillas to fit a 9 inch spring form pan. Heat the oil in a skillet and add the onion, jalapeno, garlic and cumin. Season with salt and pepper. Cook 5-7 minutes until soft. Add the beans and water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 8-10 minutes until liquid is almost evaporated. Stir in corn and scallions then remove from the heat. Season with salt and pepper. Layer in pan alternating with cheese. Bake 20 - 25 minutes. Unmold the pie and sprinkle with scallions before serving.

Black Bean Soup

A really fun recipe from Sister Gibson's home, and I heard Sister Cochran raving about it during the event! :)

2 cans Bush's Seasoned Recipe Black Beans, undrained
1 can chicken broth
1/2 cup salsa
1 tbsp. chili powder
sour cream (optional)
shredded cheese (optional)
cilantro (optional)

Mash one can of beans with potato masher or in a blender. Pour both cans of beans into a medium sauce pan Add chicken broth, salsa and chili powder. Bring to a boil. If desired tip with sour cream, shredded cheese, onion or cilantro.

Crock Pot Chicken Burrito Soup

This has been on my *to-make* list for a while - guess this week's the week!

Chicken Burrito Soup

Baked Chimichangas

Sister Gibson had these at her home and they were SOOOOO yummy! Definitely on my favorites list! :)

Flour Tortillas (white or wheat)
Butter or Olive Oil
1 cup cooked shredded chicken (optional)
2 cups black beans
1 cup corn
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 cup diced red, yellow or orange bell peppers
1 cup salsa
1-2 tsp. cumin
salt & pepper
cheese

Saute onions and peppers in olive oil or butter until limp. Add cumin than all other ingredients - except tortillas and cheese. Season to taste with salt, pepper and more cumin if desired. Fill tortillas with mixture and cheese. Roll with both ends closed and place seam side down in 9x13 pan. Brush tops with olive oil or butter. Bake at 400 for 25 minutes. When serving top with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cilantro, avocado, etc.

Crock Pot Summer Chicken Chili

Summer Chicken Chili - deals to meals - love this site, she's so inspirational!

Ezekial Bread

Loved this recipe for Ezekial Bread - and it uses up those lentils that I have absolutely no idea how to use up! :)

Friday Night = Pizza Night

We have lots of fun traditions that I try (and sometimes succeed) to have in our home. Friday night is pizza & a movie night with the kids. So, I thought this taco pizza was a fun twist on the same ol' cheese pizza!

Taco Pizza

Cowboy Caviar Salad

A fun break from hot dinners is a fun salad!

Cowboy Caviar Salad

Beans, Beans, Beans Meeting!

Our monthly meeting was such a great learning opportunity thanks to Sister Gibson! :) For the hand out we used these links here for information (bean classes thru the self-reliant sisters):

Self-Reliant Sisters Info on Beans

Grocery Deals 3/21 to 3/27

Besides the Oreos (chocolate is a *necessary* item in my 3 month supply), there isn't really anything I plan on stocking up sales wise, but I could use some more beans in my food storage (hint, hint - the stock up item of the month), so that's what I plan on stocking up on! :)

King Soopers’
Chicken Drumsticks or Thighs - 0.98/lb.
Ragu Pasta Sauce - $1 (jar varities last a bit longer & it includes the white sauce)
Powerade/Powerade Zero - $0.59 each
King Soopers Buns & Bread - $1
Roma Tomatoes - $0.79/lb.
Red Onions - $0.79/lb.
Cantaloupe or Honeydew Melons - $0.49/lb.

Buy 10, Save $5
Lays’ or Doritos - $1.99
Nabisco Snack Crackers - $1.99
Oreo Cookies - $2.49
Vitamin water - $0.50
Pepsi Soft Drinks - $0.99
Capri Suns - $1.79
Pringles - $1.15

Albertsons
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts - $1.99/lb.
Yoplait Yogurt - $0.60 (save $1 if you buy 10)
Bar-S Meat Franks - $1
Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggies - $1
Fresh Naval Oranges - $0.99/lb.
Roma Tomatoes - $0.79/lb.
Hass Avocados - $0.79 each
Yellow Onions - $0.49/lb.
Jalapeno Peppers - $0.99/lb.

Buy any 10, Pay $0.80 each
Knorr Rice or Pasta Side Dishes
Blue Bonnet Margarine
Chef Boyardee Pasta (good item for 72 hour kits)
Rosarita Refried Beans

Buy 5, Save $5
Ritz Crackers - $1.99
Oreo Cookies - $1.99
Wheat Thins - $1.99

Buy 10, Save $5
Best Foods Mayonnaise - $2.49
Ragu Pasta Sauce - $0.99
Wish-Bone Salad Dressing - $1.49 each
Propel Fitness Water - $0.50
Gatorade or G2 Sports Drink - $0.89
Pepperidge Farm Goldfish - $1
Vitamin water/Smart water - $1
Capri Sun Juice Drink - $1.99
Ocean Spray 100% Juice - $1.99
Gladware Containers - $1.99
　

Safeway
Naval Oranges - $0.77/lb.
Safeway Bread or Buns - $0.99
Francisco Rinaldi Pasta Sauce - $0.99 each
7-UP varieties - $0.99
Bar S Jumbo Hot Dog Franks - $0.99
Crisp Celery - $0.99/lb.
Roma Tomatoes - $0.99/lb.
Avocados - $0.99
Peeled Baby Cut Carrots - $0.99
Crisp Cucumbers - $0.99

Food Network Recipes

I found a TON of recipes on the food network too!

• Red Beans & Rice (Emeril)
• White Bean Chili (Paula Deen)
• Corn & Black Bean Salad (Giada)
• Pasta e Fagioli (Rachel Ray)
• Mango Black Bean and Tomato Salad (Neely's)

Lentil Soup

Breaking it up a bit from the black beans/pinto beans rut. This lentil soup is so yum!

Southwestern Egg Rolls

Another family favorite! I usually triple or quadruple the recipe and freeze the extras to have on hand for yummy lunches and unexpected dinner needs.

Southwestern Egg Rolls

Black Bean Burgers

I've seen this idea around a lot and plan on trying it out this week on the kids!

Black Bean Burgers

Food Storage Made Easy

16 different bean recipes posted on this site

Personally, I thought that Pantry Jambalaya sounded the most fun!

The best chili I've ever had!

The fabulous Miss Paula Deen *definitely* comes thru with this great chili recipe and serves them on cornmeal waffles! I added a TON of extra diced tomatoes (I drain all the juice from them though to not make the chili too watery) to cut down on the calories and made them with about 1/3 of the meat she suggests. One other idea is to REALLY cut down on the spices, she isn't joking when she calls the recipe spicy! My kids won't eat it unless I cut all the spices down to a1/3 of her recommendations. But this chili is a hands down favorite in our home!

Cornmeal Waffles with Spicy Chili

Hurst Bean Blog

Oh my goodness! An entire blog devoted to tons of delish looking bean recipes! Definitely bookmarking this to look up more inspiration!

I Dare You to Eat It

I love this site, and her simple recipes and thoughts regarding food storage. Her book is fabulous and a definite must have on my list of food storage books!

Bean Burritos
Black Bean Brownies - these are fun to make with the kids. Definitely a different texture, but still delish!

There are tons of other recipes as well, check them out!

Self-Reliant Sisters Recipes

Mexican Pinto Beans & Tortillas (complete with a explanatory video!) - These are some of my favorite way to have our beans - absolutely delish!

Here is another posting with TONS of great recipes as well!

Zanni's Black Eyed Pea Dip

As soon as I saw this recipe I couldn't stop thinking about it until I tried it! I did use dry beans instead of canned, but my husband has brought it up over & over again hoping I'll make it again soon!!!

Zannie's Black Eyed Pea Dip

March Challenges

Just wanted to make sure you all knew about the challenge for this month (thru the General Conference weekend), to gather together your food for your 72 hour kits and to keep putting aside $10 - $15 each paycheck in small bills in your 72 hour kits (think about money needs for gas, hotels, etc. in that worst case scenario)!
For the money a few different gals asked me how much to put aside and that really is a personal decision. Some sites I read said they were just putting aside enough to get gas and hotels to family where they could stay. Others mention 2 weeks of hotels.
Consider what you personally feel like and keep working on putting aside that money each payday. If you've been doing it the last 3 paychecks you could already have $45 saved, it adds up quick! :)
As for the food itself, I heard from a lot of people how they make sure to rotate their food out each General Conference, so with just a few weeks left until then it seemed like the perfect time to work on it! :) There are a lot of links and ideas on this blog if you are trying to think of how to put it together.
A few pointers though that I found when I was researching:

1. Think about weight. Especially with the younger ones, they can't carry much, so we are making lots of different choices regarding simple things like even storing food that needs a can openers vs. food that has a simple pop-top lid. It may not sound like much weight, but it can really add up fast eliminating or adding those items.
2. Thinking back to Katrina & the infamous Super Dome - I'm not planning on bringing any kind of heat source in my food storage. Sure hot cocoa would be nice, but not necessary and if they are packing us all into crazy conditions like that, I don't want to bring attention to ourselves and our steaming hot soups/drinks. - Sounds extreme, but 72 hour kits in their essence are for those extreme moments when you are literally evacuating your home.
3. Don't pack minty gum, it makes everything taste like the mint.
4. One site said she was only packing foods she knew her 2/3 year old could open. Again going back to Katrina and the Japan Tsunami, some families got seperated, and I want my children to be able to feed themselves in a worst case scenario.
5. Look at the salt ratios on things, a lot of foods that are easy to store are VERY high in salt and will only make the people more thirsty.
6. While you want to prepare for the worst case scenarios, you need to look over & over again at the weight of the food and also what will you do with the garbage afterwards?
7. This post is from a class we had in our previous ward. The guy really minimalized what they had and food choices as well. A lot of people try to pack every thing they could possibly want food wise in their packs, just remember that the weight will matter in that worst case scenario. So try to minimalize as much as possible.

Here is the link for all our food ideas & posts!

Food Ideas & A Pepsi Stove Top!

A few years ago we had a guy come show us his 72 hour kit and explain his choices behind it in my last ward. He figured out what weight was realistic for each child to actually carry and adjusted their choices for the packs accordingly. Another amazing thing he did was make his own Pepsi Stove Tops!!! Really inexpensive and very light weight. I really liked the idea!

Here's the link to his pack along with helpful pictures & links!

Grocery Deals 3/07 - 3/13

Not anything that I plan on attempting to stock up on this week. So, I am instead putting my grocery money towards stocking up on some chicken from Sam's Club ($1.97/lb.) and also on karo syrup for my long term food storage ($1.50 for 16 oz. at Wal-Mart). Happy Shopping everyone! :)

King Soopers’
Naval Oranges (8 lb. bag) - $4.99
Asparagus - $1.29/lb.
Colorado Proud Milk - $1.97/ gallon
King Soopers’ Buns & Bread - $1
Yoplait Yogurt (go-gurts) - $1.99
King Soopers’ Chicken Drumsticks, Thighs or Whole Chickens -
$0.98/lb.

Albertsons
Russet Potatoes (5 lb.bag) - $1.49
Ocean Spray Juice Cocktail - $2
Albertson’s Yogurt - $0.50 each
Anjou, Bosc or Red Anjou Pears - $0.99/lb.
Onions - $0.99/lb.
Avocados - $0.69 each
Minneolas ( 3 lb. bag) - $1.99
Red Grapefruit - $0.50 each
Colgate Toothpaste & Toothbrushes - $1 each
Buy $20, Save $5 on the next trip (25% savings)
Oreos - $2.99 (same price as Wal-Mart, but you get 25% back)
Powerade or Powerade Zero Sports Drinks - $1
Fuze - $1
Vitaminwater - $1
Planters Peanuts - $3.99 (I think this is an okay deal)

72 Hour Food Kit #5

Last set of posts about food ideas.

This link has some great ideas and thoughts about food choices.

I liked her ideas of using a food bucket, different than anything else I've seen, but fun!

A fun printable with exact lists of what they used.

72 Hour Food Kit #4

I loved these notes and tips from About-dot-com. Just a few more tips & ideas to help you get started!

72 Hour Food Kits Pros/Cons

The fabulous self-reliant sisters have a TON of great links. Here's the link to their full set of posts. And more specifically, one for the pros and cons of different food choices. THANKS LISA!!!

72 hour food Kit #2

I like this blog. Lots of great ideas found on this blog! Prepared LDS Family shows her simple, ziploc bagged kits and reasons behind the food she picked. Here's the link to her plan.

Milk Jug 72 hour food

We've been researching a lot of ideas and plan on posting TONS of ideas the next week or so to help you get started! This first one I thought this was an interesting idea. Using a milk jug for your 72 hour kit! They even included a great video to help guide you during it all!

Here's the link to the site.