Corn Bread-topped Frijoles

Here’s another slow-cooker recipe I have tried. Toby doesn’t care for corn bread, but I just keep making it, hoping I will eventually win him over. Nope. I think this recipe turned out OK, but I didn’t absolutely love it. The corn bread turned out kind of sweet, which I liked. I did end up cooking it about 10-15 minutes longer than it calls for (I read the comments online about this dish, and a lot of people had to cook it longer because of the corn bread not being done). Mine burned around the edges. There was a lot of this left over, and then I didn’t eat the leftovers for lunch the next day. Oh well.

rating: 6.5

Corn Bread-topped Frijoles
(Healthy Cooking, Dec./Jan. 2012)
prep: 20 min.
cook: 3 hours
serves 8
Ingredients:

1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 can (16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (I omitted)

Corn bread topping:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 tablespoon sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1-1/4 cups fat-free milk (I used Silk Lite Plain soymilk)
1 can (8-1/4 ounces) cream-style corn
3 tablespoons canola oil

Directions:

In a large skillet, saute onion and green pepper in oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Transfer to a greased 5-qt. slow cooker.
Stir in the beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, chili powder, pepper and pepper sauce. Cover and cook on high for 1 hour.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt. Combine the eggs, milk, corn and oil; add to dry ingredients and mix well. Spoon evenly over bean mixture.
Cover and cook on high 2 hours longer or until a toothpick inserted near the center of corn bread comes out clean.

 

Slow-cooker Sweet Potato and Lentil Soup

I bought a slow-cooker a couple of weeks ago (they were on sale for $20 at Wegman’s!), and just last night finally got around to using it. It was really nice just throwing a few ingredients in a pot and leaving it alone for 8 hours! I was very anxious to taste this soup, and I have to say, I was disappointed. It was very bland and tasted low-calorie. Toby said “You know what this soup needs? Flavor.” I agreed. It wasn’t so bad that I threw the leftovers away, though. I will be eating those for the next couple of lunches. Dang.

rating: 6

Slow-cooker Sweet Potato and Lentil Soup
(Food Network magazine)

Total time needed: 8 hours, 25 min.
prep time: 25 min.
cook time: 8 hours

serves 4

Ingredients:

1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
3 medium carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3 stalks celery, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 leeks, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (white and light green parts only)
3/4 cup dried yellow or red lentils
1 4-inch piece ginger, peeled and finely grated
1 teaspoon curry powder
Kosher salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
Juice of 1/2 lemon, plus lemon wedges for serving (optional)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (I omitted)

Directions:

Combine the sweet potato, carrots, celery, leeks, lentils, ginger, 3/4 teaspoon curry powder and 1 teaspoon salt in a 4-to-6-quart slow cooker. Add 6 cups water and stir, then cover and cook on low, undisturbed, 8 hours.

Stir the soup vigorously with a whisk to make a rough puree. Thin with hot water, if desired.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon curry powder and cook until the curry powder is slightly toasted, about 1 minute. Stir the curry mixture into the soup and add the lemon juice, cilantro, and salt to taste. Serve with lemon wedges.

Per serving: Calories 257