Beans, Beans... Good for your heart

I decided to bite the bullet, swallow my pride and eat something I have never been able to stomach before. Beans.

Unacceptable for an amateur domestic goddess, right?

I was perusing my favorite recipe site, Kalyn's Kitchen, when I came across this yummy sounding recipe. (If you have never been to her website, she has scrumptious recipes, especially for people like me who are trying to follow the South Beach Diet). My fiance has been oh so patient with my aversion to beans for the past 2 years, so I thought... why not? I will eat just about anything... squid, gizzards, etc... so why am I so afraid of some beans? Needless to say, there are not very many beans in this dish, only one can. And they are black beans, which to me may be the least offensive. My problem has always been the texture... too grainy, too sandy, just doesn't feel right in my mouth. Shudder.

So, on with the experiment. I started by sweating out a finely chopped onion. I love onions. The smell of them cooking, especially with some garlic, makes me very happy. After they had become soft, I added three cups of organic chicken stock and a tablespoon each of cumin and chili powder. A dash of garlic powder and I was soon simmering away:

The aroma was quite nice, I was liking this already! (Yes I know - I haven't added the beans yet)

After simmering for about 10 minutes I added 2 cups of chopped uncooked chicken breasts and one can of black beans. It was done. If I hated the dish, I certainly was not going to eat around all of those beans!

While the pot simmered happily away, I chopped the fresh cilantro I bought earlier at Publix (sadly, I was not able to get myself down to the farmer's market this morning), and added two tablespoons of lime juice.









It was almost time, I said to myself, taking a deep breath. I'm sure all you bean lovers out there think I am a pansy for being scared of my measly little black bean "accentuated" soup - but this was quite a leap for me. And Al is quite proud, even if he did make fun of me for the lack of beans.

Here's the finished dish.












I sat down in the armchair, after deciding the kitchen table was too formal, and took a bite of my soup.

And then I took another.

Why these beans weren't bean-like at all! They were creamy, not sandy. The dollop of plain Greek yogurt I put on top made this taste like a yummy Mexican stew - tasty, spicy and full of amazing flavors.

I am glad I tried this experiment. I plan on reheating the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. And I just may foray into black bean burgers.

Just don't think I will be doing anything with black-eyed peas or lima beans anytime soon. Yuck!