Cold Weather equals Brown Beans with Cubed Ham AND Corn Muffins -Gluten-Free Option

As soon as it begins to get cold,  I begin thinking about how long before Spring. Actually December and January tend to be the coldest months.  Or maybe by February, it just doesn’t seem so cold

Remember that song intro “I’m a little bit country…”.  Well, I am cooking Country!


It took me a while to create a really good gluten-free corn muffin.  Now, I modify by what extra ingredients I want to add. This version comes out very light and fluffy, almost like a cake muffin. I posted my first version on Better Recipes: Gluten Free Corn Muffins. I have a holiday themed corn muffin: Holiday Corn Muffins GF and a spicy corn muffin: Spicy Salsa Corn Muffins.  The Spicy corn muffins can use red or green salsa.  I have used Cilantro and regular red in the mild to medium range.

Corn muffins and a pot of brown beans go hand in hand for weekend dinner.  It can be hard for  “empty nesters” to cook a small amount of beans, so most often too much gets cooked. 

Canned beans are great in a pinch, but that pot of real cooked beans has the best taste.  I always cook more than can be eaten in a few meals, so some gets frozen for later.  It is nice to then have a meal simply by either microwaving or heating on low about 30 minutes on the stove top.

Beans  and corn muffins provides a complete protein.

---

Gluten-Free Corn Muffins II

Ingredients

1/2 cup stone ground yellow corn meal

1/2 cup fine corn flour (or Maseca)

1/3 cup 0% fat Greek Yogurt (used FAGE)

1/4 cup fine non-fat dry milk

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 egg

2 Tbsp oil

1/3 cup water or more as needed

Procedure

Mix all ingredients thoroughly with a wire whisk or hand mixer.  If batter is too thick, add water 1 tablespoon at a time.  If too loose, add another tablespoon of Maseca.

Spray a 6 cup muffin pan with an oil spray

Divide batter among the 6 cups

Bake at 350 F oven until browned around the edges and top begins to brown (about 30 minutes).

Servings: 6

Yield: Makes 6 full-sized corn muffins

Nutrition Facts

Nutrition (per serving): 148 calories, 6.1g total fat, 3.8g monounsaturated fat, <1g polyunsaturated fat, 1g saturated fat, 36.3mg cholesterol, 18.4g carbohydrates, <1g fiber, 17.7g net carbohydrates, 3.2g sugar, <1g fructose, <1g galactose, <1g glucose, <1g sucrose, <1g maltose, 205.1mg sodium, 158.6mg potassium, 5.7g protein, 138.2mg calcium, 191.6IU vitamin a, <1mg vitamin b6, <1mcg vitamin b12, <1mg vitamin c, 2.9IU vitamin d, <1mg vitamin e, 2.8mcg vitamin k, 1.3mg iron, <1g lysine, 5.6mcg selenium, <1mg thiamin, <1mg zinc.

---

 

a best guestimate recipe  --- a general listing of ingredients

Large Crockpot (slow cooker)

4 cups brown beans washed picked and soaked for 2 hours.

Spices

2 tbsp dehydrated onion

1 tbsp Dehydrated herb & Garlic mix

2 tbsp Turbinado (raw) sugar

1 tbsp ginger - a must for no toot beans

2 tbsp Cajun spice (low-sodium)

1 tbsp chili powder

2 tbsp red pepper sauce (used Trappey’s)

2 cups cooked ham, cubed or cut into bite sized pieces

Place beans and spices in the Crockpot, covered with 4 cups hot water.

Cook beans on high for 1 hour, reduce  to low for 1 hour.  Check for seasoning and doneness.  If beans are tender, add 1 cup ketchup and 1 cup hot water, warmed ham cubes and additional seasonings to taste.. Stir to mix all ingredients.

Keep setting on low for another hour or additional time before ready to eat.

Serve up in bowls with corn muffins.  Serve corn muffin on side or on top of beans

This makes  8 to 10 large servings

 

Pork n Beans Style Baked Beans - Reminiscing the good old days.

This is a recipe I played around with trying to reproduce the taste of the ‘pork and beans’ we had growing up.  The taste is there, only I use cooked bacon and cubed ham instead of ‘fat back’.  


I have made baked beans with canned beans and from scratch.  This time I had some left-over ham that I wanted to use, so I decided to add it in addition to some bacon.


I had forgotten about making baked beans until  Cookie Baker over at CookieBaker's Corner did a post on Mom's Baked Beans.  So thanks for reminding me to make these.  There were none left and my sister  asked for the recipe under the guise that she wanted to make a cookbook to pass all family recipes down to the next generation.  I have finally decided to give her  the recipe.


We actually bought canned Pork and Beans, but had a big pot of Great Northern Beans with lots of Ketchup most of the time.  Of course the pot included ‘fat back’, aka ‘salt pork’.  Most of the time, we had corn bread on the side.  A few times biscuits were served. 


We were considered very poor having beans for dinner, yet we were a lot healthier than most kids our ages today.


This recipe takes time to prepare, but it is worth the effort!

Pork n Beans Style Baked Beans

This is a little spicier than the Pork and Beans we all grew up eating. The spice is not overwhelming, just a little more seasoning. The flavor of the bacon is still noticed, although some ham was added.

Ingredients

Beans

4 cups dried great northern beans washed, picked, soaked a minimum of 2 hours

Seasoning

1 Tbsp ginger powder

3 Tbsp dehydrated onion

1 tbsp dehydrated garlic

3 Tbsp Chili Powder

2 Tbsp Spanish Smoked Paprika

1 tsp black pepper, coarse grind

1 Tbsp Mrs. Dash Original Mix

1 Tbsp Louisiana Style Cajun Seasoning (contains salt)

4 Tbsp Turbinado Sugar

Baking Sauce

1 can tomato paste

2 Tbsp brown prepared mustard

1 Tbsp hot sauce

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend(or 1/2 cup brown sugar)

2 cups ketchup

2 cups water

1 Tbsp sodium-free Cajun or sodium-free Jamaican Jerk seasoning

Add Ins at the Baking Stage

1 cup bacon, cooked, cut into 1-inch or less sized pieces ( about 8 pieces, baked)

2 cups ham, cooked, cut into inch cubes or thinner

Procedures

--Cook the Beans--

1. Place prepared beans, all seasoning in a large crock pot. Pour 8 to 9 cups hot water over beans, Stir, cover and cook on high for 2 hours, then reduce to low. Check after 2 hours as additional hot water may need to be added. HEAT THE WATER, do not add cold water to beans!   Once the beans are tender, taste and adjust seasoning to your taste. Do not add salt,   remember the SAUCE will be adding seasoning too.

--Prepare --Baking Sauce--

1. Mix all ingredients of the Baking Sauce until blended. Adjust seasoning to taste; DO NOT ADD SALT!  At this point, taste and adjust seasoning to your taste.
2. Add sauce to the beans stirring to mix.

--Bake the Beans--

Spray a large baking dish with oil spray. Spread 1/3 of beans into dish.

Place the ham evenly over the dish.

Add another 1/3 of the beans. Spread the bacon evenly over the dish.

Pour the remainder of the beans over the dish, spreading to cover the bacon.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake at 250 for about 90 minutes to allow the flavors to go thru the beans. Uncover the dish and reduce oven temperature to 200 degrees F for up to an additional hour before serving.

If serving time is longer, re-cover the dish to prevent drying out. This dish is just fine served at room temperature. It does contain meat, so it should not be allowed to sit at room temperatures too long.

Of course, I had to sample some before taking the dish for the get-together.

Servings: 20

Yield: 20 to 24 sides

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 230 calories, 3.5g total fat, 1.3g monounsaturated fat, <1g polyunsaturated fat, <1g linoleic acid, 1.1g saturated fat, 11.2mg cholesterol, 39.3g carbohydrates, 8.8g fiber, 30.5g net carbohydrates, 13.7g sugar, <1g starch, 2.8g fructose, <1g galactose, 3.4g glucose, <1g sucrose, <1g maltose, 812.6mg sodium, 804.6mg potassium, 12.7g protein, 85.1mg calcium, 1054.2IU vitamin a, <1mg vitamin b6, <1mcg vitamin b12, 10.4mg vitamin c, 0IU vitamin d, 1.4mg vitamin e, 5.8mcg vitamin k, 3mg iron, <1g lysine, 10.2mcg selenium, <1mg thiamin, 1.4mg zinc.

Un-Classic Mac and Cheese - and - It’s Gluten Free

I really love aged white cheddar and sharp cheddar cheese so much that I tend to buy too much to eat within a week or two.  So I end up with bits and pieces of frozen cheese waiting to be used in different dishes.
Sometimes it’s potato casserole and sometimes it’s been cheese rolls or scones.

Today has been a rainy, cold and depressing day, so I needed to just bake something.
I didn’t need to make more cookies, because I baked my dozen’s allowance on Saturday past.  Also in the past week, I made apple muffins.

I thought of making a buttermilk pie, but had no buttermilk.  Being that it was rainy, I just did not want to get street splash on my recently cleaned vehicle .

There was a can of evaporated milk sitting on the counter that was supposed to be used in a cake I was also contemplating making. 

The light bulb went off that I had not made mac and cheese in a very long time  AND I had enough cheese to make a potluck-sized dish of mac and cheese!

Since I tend to make too large a quantity of food, I had to rethink how much to make.

So, I measured the cheese and returned the remainder to the freezer.  I was thinking about adding a little cayenne pepper when I realized that one of the cheeses was jalapeno.  So, no additional cayenne!  I have always added a little cinnamon and sugar to my mac and cheese, so I included it this time too.

As soon as it came out of the oven, I dished up some.  Oh yes, it is as I remember as I made it.

 It’s not the mac and cheese that I ate so many years ago that my family and friends made, but  I like my version because it is a bit creamier.  Of course after it sits for a while the pasta will soak up the extra creaminess.   Even then, it is not as dry as the old style mac and cheese.

There is a hint of pepper in this version of mac and cheese.   It is not overwhelming, just an interesting touch.

Un-Classic Mac N Cheese

Ingredients

1 12 oz. can can evaporated milk

1/4 cup water

1 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp cornstarch (or tapioca or potato starch)

1/8 tsp ground black pepper

1 pinch garlic or onion powder

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

4 oz. Aged Cheddar cheese, shredded (any mix, like garlic, jalapeno, etc.)

6 oz. Tinkyada Brown Rice Elbow Pasta

Topping

2 ounces Mexican 4-cheese Blend, shredded cheese (or other mix)

Procedures

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Spray a 2 qt baking dish with oil spray.

Cook pasta according to package to al dente and drain.

Whisk together cornstarch and water. Set aside

Put butter and milk in a medium sized pot large enough to hold the milk and cooked pasta.  Turn heat to medium.  Whisk in salt, black pepper, cinnamon, sugar, cornstarch water and cheese until cheese is melted and mixture is smooth. 

Stir in the drained cooked pasta

 

 Pour pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish.

 

Top with cheese reserved for topping.  

 

Bake for about 35 minutes until bubbly and top is lightly browned.  To quicken the browning, switch the oven to low broil for about 10 minutes.

Serve immediately.

 

Enjoy!

Servings: 6

Yield: 6 sides

Nutrition Facts - as prepared

Nutrition (per serving): 270 calories, 14.9g total fat, 4.2g monounsaturated fat, <1g polyunsaturated fat, <1g linoleic acid, 9.2g saturated fat, 49.1mg cholesterol, 20.8g carbohydrates, <1g fiber, 20.1g net carbohydrates, 7.2g sugar, 0mg stigmasterol, <1g fructose, 0g galactose, <1g glucose, <1g sucrose, <1g maltose, 262.4mg sodium, 249.2mg potassium, 12.5g protein, 412.3mg calcium, 451.5IU vitamin a, <1mg vitamin b6, <1mcg vitamin b12, 1.2mg vitamin c, 2.3IU vitamin d, <1mg vitamin e, 1.3mcg vitamin k, <1mg iron, <1g lysine, 5.6mcg selenium, <1mg thiamin, 1.5mg zinc.