A Quick Dinner

What a beautiful presentation! Have you ever created a meal for 2 & compared the two plates? Which one looked better? Clearly many of us need to remember to treat ourselves as well as we treat others & I'll admit, I am speaking from experience. :)

So our left-overs (or food available in the cupboard) included organic cans of 3-blend beans, garbanzo beans, fire-roasted tomatoes & tomato paste (we didn't use the paste), 2 sweet onions (we used 1), & a half box of baby portobella mushrooms. 

In addition I had brought over 2 soy rolls (vegetarian hot dogs) & health-food creme soda. Caroll had never tried either, so I was excited to share. I also brought over an Ezekiel sprouted grain tortilla & hummus. I figured my friend could whip up a quick soup, since she's an amazing impromptu cook & we could chat.  

I thought I had remembered everything, but alas, I forgot the vegetable broth. As a substitute she added a low-sodium can of V8 juice. Can you imagine why they would put 600 grams (milligrams?) of sodium in each can? Also, she added the juice of 1 whole lime & even threw in the skins. I had never heard of adding lime to bean stew before, as I usually add a sprinkle of fructose to balance the acidity, but I truly enjoyed the splash of island flavor. 

Always & I mean always rinse your beans well, whether they're from cans or beans you've soaked & cooked yourself. You will save on tummy aches! 

Now when Caroll brought out this pan, red lights went on! I thought for sure it was aluminum, but she assured me it was old, but steel. She said this pot melts down chocolate perfectly. I do not like using aluminium for 2 reasons:

1. The pores in the metal open up & expand during heat & contract during cooling actually capturing bacteria within its walls.

2. I read & heard enough times that cooking with aluminum adds to your chances of Alzheimers.   

We didn't even shed a tear...

She sauteed the onions in a spray of olive oil she had. 

Mushrooms, salt, pepper & Italian seasoning were added. 

& here comes the lime!

This cooked down to a very tasty winter meal - I hope you try it some cold winter night. By the way, I think adding cubed zuchinni would have added additional flavor too.