DESERT INSPIRATIONS: SANTA FE BLACK BEAN SALAD

Santa Fe farmers' markets

Get ready for some superb Southwestern-inspired food. But first, Santa Fe is kind of the Disney Land of New Mexico. You wouldn't know this if you didn't venture further into the desert, to the mountain town of Taos say. Or even better - little Las Vegas - a town frequented by Billie the Kid and now a popular film set for Western-tinged films by the Coen Bros etc.

Santa Fe's New Mexico Museum of Art uses the faux-dobe made popular by the town's planning laws

But for wide-eyed tourists such as myself fresh off the train, it's hard not to fall for Santa Fe. Town planning laws dictate that all buildings must pay some homage to the traditional Adobe, invented by the Pueblo people - the traditional land owners. So you play the guessing game of which is the faux-dobe and which is the real mud brick. At least it all looks nice. Even the petrol stations.

Real adobe or faux-dobe?

Shell gets into the dobe-mode

It's not just the mud bricks that tourists flock to Santa Fe for. The town has become an eating destination, with it's own cuisine reproduced in many cookbooks and famous restaurants. Unfortunately I cannot report that our dining experience was anything to write home about  - probably because all the good ones were booked out or had queues longer than Billie could possibly stand. 

The best food we ate in Santa Fe was found right here on the plaza

However, we ate well throughout the rest of New Mexico and the US South West. It's a blend of Mexican, Native American - such as fry bread, corn and beans - and some other stuff tossed in.

Getting hungry? This fabulous salsa salad is easy to make and will impress most palettes. Last night I took it to Skye's birthday beach picnic, and there were enough recipe requests to pass the test.

And yes, Billie loves it. Nine-month-old Fig enjoyed a few mouthfuls last night too - although she preferred the beans to the corn.

I pinched this from my current favorite, Feeding the Whole Family, by Cynthia Lair. I've only made a couple of small adaptations. She suggests serving with tortillas or polenta but I have always used corn chips.

This recipe brings together some of my favorite ingredients: black beans, lime, corn, fresh coriander/cilantro and red pepper/capsicum. Served with a bowl of corn chips, it makes a fantastic dish to share. It can be prepared a few hours ahead of time, so good for outings.

SANTA FE BLACK BEAN SALAD

2 cups cooked black beans  (1 1/2 cups dried or one 400g tin = 1 1/2 cups)

1 red pepper

1 corn cob, steamed (or 1/2 cup frozen/tinned corn but use fresh if you can)

1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander/cilantro

plain corn chips, to serve

Dressing:

3 cloves garlic

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

4 Tablespoons lime juice = one lime

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (use 1/4 if not serving to any kids)

Soak and boil/pressure cook the black beans. They only take 15-20 minutes in pressure cooker if been soaked a few hours. About three times as long if you regular boil in a pot, after soaking. Or open a can or two.

Next, roast red pepper/capsicum to char the skin for easy removal. You can do it under a grill or directly over the low flame of a gas burner. Turn until skin charred on all sides. Place inside paper bag and close to allow pepper to sweat - this will make skin easier to remove. After about ten minutes - or longer if you can wait - the skin should slip off. Slice pepper into thin strips and then chop strips in half.

Meanwhile, steam whole corn cob - again only takes 5 mins in pressure cooker, 10-15 mins probably in regular pot. Let cool then place sideways on board and slice kernels off in strips. Place strips in large bowl with beans, coriander and pepper. Mix gently.

To make dressing: Mince garlic and salt to a paste, either in pestle and mortar or on bread board with a knife. Place in small bowl and whisk in oil, lime juice and cayenne pepper. Pour over salad and toss gently.

Serve with corn chips. If you go for the more spicy option, a bit of yoghurt on the side works well. And if you are feeling energetic, or you want to make the meal go further, the salad partners very well with guacamole. 

My suggestions for making this work for all ages:

BABIES AGED SIX MONTHS AND OLDER: Make a little extra corn and puree

BABIES/TODDLERS AGED NINE MONTHS AND OLDER: Set aside a little beans and corn

TODDLERS AGED ONE YEAR AND OLDER: Serve as is - check seasoning

 

And now, I can't resist a little garden update. 

Just two weeks on, and we have several small green tomatoes and one little courgette. 

The tomato plants are topping their stakes, and the aubergine plants are getting huge too. The poor lettuce, spinach and basil are getting a bit overwhelmed by the growth of their neighbors, losing a fair bit of their sun. Next time I would put tomatoes in their own patch I think.

BACK TO THE OFFICE - ITALIAN MANASTA AND MORE

One of the most scary things about returning to the office this week was FOOD.

How was our family going to eat? I refuse to go back to paid work so I can spend my part-time wage on lunches and takeaway dinners.

So billie bites may be about to become a whole lot more useful for some readers. I've often been told the recipes look good, but there's just not time...

Eating well is all about time management, organisation, planning, budgeting, and shopping. If the cupboards are well-stocked you're more than half-way there.

Now I have a huge disclaimer to announce: A BIG thank you and congratulations has to go to Miles for taking the reins of part-time house-husband. So actually, Miles did most of the cooking. And very well. Especially considering he had to work any minute Billie slept.

However, essential to this successful changeover was a big, well-planned shop on Sunday. As much as we wanted to get out in the sunshine and take a much-needed walk to the beach, to the shops we all went.

EATING WELL IN A BUSY HOUSEHOLD

PLAN JUST A FEW MEALS: 
I used to head to the shops with a strict list after planning the weeks' meals. But this leaves you stuck with overpriced spinach and skipping past the bargains.  So write a list, perhaps after flipping through a few cookbooks or blogs, with several meal options. That way when you discover fresh peas are expensive this week and the store doesn't stock frozen ones, you can throw that idea to the wind. 

KEEP AN EYE ON SEASONS:

Asparagus is in now because it's spring in the southern hemisphere, so take advantage. Avoid it for the rest of the year. It's tricky keeping up with appropriate prices for fruit and vegetables and I'm definitely still learning, but the more you browse the green grocers the better you'll get at eating well on a budget.

COOK IN BULK:

I screwed this up on Sunday night when I cooked one of Billie's favourites - her Italian great grandfather's manasta. I only made enough of this simple nourishing spinach and white bean dish for one dinner and a too-small office lunch for me and a little for Billie. However, when Miles took over on Monday he cooked an entire bag of black beans in the pressure cooker, froze half of them and turned the rest into delicious chili beans. These stretched over two Mexican burrito dinners, a hearty lunch for me and also for Billie.

STORE CUPBOARD STUFF:

Sorry to trundle out that old dogma, but it's true. If you always have most of these in store you'll never have to reach for the takeaway menu (unless you want to treat yourself). Off the top of my head I suggest: Rice, flour, oats, polenta, cous cous, quinoa, dried beans - black, kidney, chickpea, great northern etc- and some tinned beans for emergencies, lentils, tin tomatoes, nuts - almond, brazil, walnut etc, nut butters, dates, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, olive oil, vinegar, tamari/soy sauce, and the list can go on...I know they're not technically store cupboard, but I reckon keeping eggs, milk, cheese, butter and yoghurt around can make your life that much easier too.

Manasta is one of those dishes that makes you feel good just preparing it. On the eve of my return to paid work I was quite anxious, but once I started cooking this tasty, healthy and very easy dish I felt relaxed and calm.

This Italian stable comes from Billie's Great Grandpa Lou whose family hails from Naples. His wife Eve taught me to make it when we visited their Baraboo, Wisconsin home during the fourth of July holiday weekend. Eve is one of the most amazing home cooks I have ever met - we dined on blueberry pie, blueberry pancakes, pumpkin pudding, Mexican egg salad, spinach and ricotta lasagne, chili beans, and this Manasta. Technically a soup, and I recommend serving it with good bread, but it's more the consistency of a stew/casserole. I recommend doubling this recipe.

GREAT GRANDPA LOU'S  MANASTA

1 cup dried great northern beans (white beans)

1 large bag English spinach

1/2 cup olive oil (yes, you need this much - it is Italian after all)

6 large cloves garlic 

1 t fennel seed

   

Soak beans in four cups of water for several hours of overnight. Drain and place in pot with another four cups of water and bring to the boil before simmering for a couple of hours. If you have a pressure cooker use that instead - much quicker and you don't need to soak for as long. Or you could use canned beans but then you don't get the soupy stuff.

Wash spinach and leave a little of the water on the leaves. Place in large pot with lid and cook on medium for about five mins. Shake and stir every minute until just wilted. Remove from pot to cool before chopping.

Heat oil in large pot and cook garlic gently for few minutes. Add fennel seed and cook for just one minute. Add beans, cooking water and spinach. Salt to taste (just a little if serving to baby/toddler and then re-salt adults' later. Simmer for few minutes to blend flavours.

Serve in bowls with good, thickly-sliced bread. Works well as a side dish too, which is what Eve did.

Squeeze a very small amount of lemon juice over just before serving - the vitamin C is needed to absorb the iron from the spinach. Or serve with a tomato salad, fruit etc.

PS Miles also made sushi while he was on. But that's just showing off...

So then I had to catch up, and made this batch the following evening.