With the weather getting chilly and Summer memories fading fast, pharm it’s time to get ready for Fall. This means pulling out the sweaters and light jackets. Getting blankets and comforters out from the top shelf of the linen closet. Watching leave turn colors. Dusting off that slow cooker. Washing the stock pots and digging up those wonderful fall recipes, store or discovering new ones.
Here at House of Zeta it may take us a little time to get used to fall, healing as we tend to be spring and summer people. But once we do, we go all out. Slow cooking pork shoulders or roasts. Baking lasagna’s and sweet pies. Making lots of soups and stocks. Roasting root vegetables as they become available. We start to discover our kitchens again and just like old friends it feels like time never passes.
With the days getting shorter and the nights longer, the farmers markets will have less and less to choose from. The farmers will start to head back upstate and buckle down. The weather will start to turn even colder as the days go by. And we will find ourselves indoors more often, which can only mean one thing. It’s time to enjoy what warm days are left, to grab that mulled wine and simmer it while you slow cook the night away.
- 1 Lb bag of black beans
- 4-5 cloves of garlic
- 1 medium onion
- 1-2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of pepper
- 4-6 cups water
- Sort beans to get out rocks or other debris
- Soaking them over night or not is up to you
- If you soak them, discard liquid the next day and cook with new water
- If you don't, then give them a good rinse before cooking
- Place beans in slow cooker
- Chop onion
- Chop garlic
- Combine beans, onions, garlic, bay leaves, salt and pepper in slow cooker
- Add 4 cups of water
- If it covers the beans by ½ inch, don't add more
- If not, add till you get ½ inch of water above the beans
- Cover and cook for about 4-6 hours on low setting, or until done.
- If beans don't seem to be cooking quick enough turn cooker on high for a couple hours
- Keep an eye on water level.
- It's better to add if needed, then to have to much.
- Also if you want, half way through you can add a ham hock or bacon for smokey flavor
