Pork N' Beans

This would go very well with a side of greens cooked with salt pork, or would be good with greens added in before baking.

INGREDIENTS:

 2-4 T cooking fat
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic
1-2 tsp salt
1-2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ginger powder or grated fresh ginger
1 cup tomato sauce or puree
1/4 cup honey
2 cups GAPS-legal beans, cooked and drained
2 cups cooked pork, shredded or chopped into pieces
1/2- 1 cup broth

METHOD:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 

In a large skillet, melt the cooking fat and add the onions.  Cook for about 5 minutes or until the onions begin to soften.  Then add the garlic and spices and stir.

Add the tomato puree or sauce and the honey.  Stir thoroughly and cook for several minutes.

Add the beans and pork and stir to coat, then add enough broth to reach desired consistency.  Pour the mixture into a greased casserole dish
(I used an oval dish that measured 9" x 13").

Bake for about 30 minutes.

NOTE-

You can vary the ratio of beans to pork as long as you keep the total at around 4 cups.  If you use only beans, it would essentially be baked beans. 

Gormeh Sabzee (Persian Parsley Lamb Stew)

This soup has a rich flavor that is a little different than the other soups on this blog and a nice change.

INGREDIENTS:

4 T butter or fat for cooking
1 onion, chopped
3-4 c lamb (cubed if raw, in chunks or shredded if already cooked)
2 bunches of parsley, chopped (about 4 cups)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1 quart lamb broth (or more if you prefer more of a soup then a stew)
juice of 1-2 lemons, to taste

METHOD:

Melt the butter or fat in a heavy-bottomed pan.  Saute the onions for several minutes until soft.

Add the salt and spices and stir, then add the parsley and stir again.  Continue to cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes until the parsley turns dark.

Add the meat (if already cooked) and the broth.  Bring the soup to a boil, then let it simmer for 15 minutes to heat the meat through and to give the flavors a chance to blend. 

Add the lemon juice and cook about 5 minutes more.  Remove from heat and adjust the seasonings.

NOTE:

I like this soup as a way to use leftover meat from a leg or shoulder of lamb.  If using raw meat, brown it first in the fat and then remove it to a bowl, cook the onions and parsley in the fat, then return the meat to the soup when you add the broth.

Beef may be used instead of lamb if desired.

It is traditional to make this stew with beans as well.  If you are able to tolerate beans, you can add about 2 cups to the soup.

Lentil-Tomato Soup

INGREDIENTS:
3-4 T butter or fat for cooking
1 onion
2 leeks
1 red bell pepper
1 zucchini
2 cups of greens
2 cups of cooked lentils
1 bay leaf
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 T dried basil
1 T dried thyme
1-2 cups of GAPS-legal tomato sauce, stewed tomatoes or diced tomatoes
1 quart meat stock
salt and pepper to taste

 METHOD:

Melt butter or fat in a large pot.  Chop the onions and leeks and saute for about 5 minutes,  then add the other veggies, chopped.  Add the salt, spices and crush the garlic into the pot. 

Pour in the stock and tomatoes, and add the bay leaf.  Bring to a boil and simmer until the veggies are cooked and the flavors have had a chance to blend.  Add in the lentils and continue to cook until they are hot.

Remove from heat and adjust seasoning if necessary. 

Lima Bean and Roasted Red Pepper Salad

This salad is so simple and absolutely delicious. 

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup cooked and rinsed lima beans
1 roasted red bell pepper
about 1/4 cup chopped parsley
1-2 T olive oil
squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Salt to taste (preferably a course, gourmet salt such as Hawaiian Red Salt)

METHOD:

Cut the pepper into chunks and mix with the beans and parsley in a small bowl.  Add enough olive oil to generously coat the vegetables, squeeze on some lemon juice, and sprinkle on the salt.

Lima Bean Hummus

It looks sort of grayish in the picture because I added black olives before I thought about how unappetizing that might make it look in the photo!  Honestly this tastes so good that my husband has wondered why everyone doesn't make hummus with lima beans.  This would work fine with other white beans that we're allowed on GAPS, but as they are higher in oxalates I decided to go with limas.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups soaked and cooked lima beans
3 cloves of garlic
1 tsp salt (or more to taste)
3 T lemon juice
3 T olive oil (or more depending on how "wet" your beans are and the texture of hummus that you like)

METHOD:

Put all ingredients in the blender or food processor and blend to desired consistency.  Taste and adjust flavors.  You will undoubtedly find your own blend of ingredients that you like best. 

For variation, try adding olives, anchovies, roasted garlic, roasted peppers, dried tomato, or whatever herbs and spices you like.  If you find an especially tasty variation, please post it in the comments for us all to enjoy!

If you serve the hummus with sliced veggies for dipping it makes a nice side dish or even a light meal.

Lentil Stew with Greens

This may not sound like anything special, but it is delicious.  This has been a favorite recipe of mine since my college days, and the original recipe is GAPS legal- the only modification I made for our current use was to substitute other greens for spinach (because spinach is so high in both oxalates and histamine). 

INGREDIENTS:

2 T butter or ghee
1 large onion, chopped
3 (or more!) cloves of garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp turmeric
2 cups of lentils, soaked for 24 hours and drained
2 cups of chopped greens, somewhat tightly packed
1 quart (or more) of meat stock
1 T vinegar or lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
optional- equivalent of 1 can of chopped tomatoes in juice

METHOD:

Saute onions in butter for several minutes until they become soft.  Add the garlic, salt and spices and continue to saute on moderate heat another 5 minutes or so.

Add the lentils and greens and cook another few minutes.  Add the stock, tomatoes and juice (if using), and bring to a boil.  Simmer until lentils are tender, 30-50 minutes depending on lentils.

If the stew is thicker when done than you want, add more stock and heat through.  Remove from heat and add lemon juice or vinegar (real balsamic vinegar is the best if you can get it).  Taste and adjust the seasonings. 

VARIATION:
This stew is delicious with meat.  You can either use leftover meat (I added 3 leftover sausages to the batch pictured), or fresh ground meat or stew meat.  Add the meat, cut into pieces, at the time you are adding the spices.  Depending on the flavors in the meat (if sausages or leftovers), you may want to reduce or alter the spices used.