Beans beans, the musical fruit...

...the more you eat, the more you toot! The more you toot, the better you feel so eat your beans at every meal! 

Ok, enough with the potty talk.

I like dried beans. They are an economical protein source, especially when combined with whole grains to make a complete protein, and they are dirt cheap when bought in bulk. Last year I bought a 11.34 kg bag of organic black beans for $30 and we're still working on them! 

I also think they're a fun thing to grow in the garden. No, they're not going to give you the mass amounts of produce that a zucchini will give, but they are easy to grow and it's also fun to grow something that you can't buy. I have never seen this type of dry beans at any store, although I believe they are similar to the "cranberry beans" I've seen referenced in some cookbooks. 

Last year I decided to try Taylor Horticultural beans on a whim. When cooked up they were nutty and creamy and delicious. Plus, they looked neat, both on the plant and after shelling. I saved some beans from last year and planted them again, found myself impressed at their easy yield. You pop the seeds in the ground, water them occasionally, and when they are all dead, you remove the pods. They're such an easy plant, it's almost ridiculous. None of this "going out every day for a month to pick the plants clean" business. Plant and ignore. Now there's a plant after my own heart. 

Another unexpected pro of these beans this year was that my youngest REALLY enjoyed shelling them. To the point that he would get irritated when I picked one up to shell alongside him. What a great fine-motor activity to do together!

So, if you're looking for something a little different to try next year, give dry beans a try! 

Confession time

I have a confession to make, one that may be surprising considering my veggie-growing tendencies. There are lots of veggies I don't like. Zucchini, onions, eggplant, beets...I truly struggle to like them. It seems that as I've had kids, my tastes have gotten more kid-like. There's no veggies I enjoy more than a cool slice of cucumber, some cherry tomatoes, and a carrot stick. But it must be a skinny carrot stick, not a giant carrot because that feels like gnawing on a root (which I guess it is). And I have to admit that I've really discovered a love for real garden broccoli. But kale? Swiss chard? I read a facebook post the other day saying that both the poster and his child ate boiled chard and yuca fries for dinner, and I was massively impressed that the kid ate it, because I inwardly cringed! Not sure I could gag down boiled chard if you paid me. I think I'm more of a picky eater than I like to admit. And now that I'm dealing with pregnancy aversions again, the thing I seem to be developing a great dislike for is my Tiny Tim tomatoes! Sadness. 

So I planted all this kale in spring with great plans to eat all these super-nutritious greens, and we had maybe one salad out of it. I tried throwing it in smoothies but it just didn't blend well, and the boys won't eat smoothies with chunks of weird green stuff. Can't say that I blame them! :) So a couple weeks ago I harvested a pound and a half of the leaves and tossed them in the dehydrator. I thought if I dehydrated and powdered it, I could still use it in smoothies but it might be a little bit less of an obstacle for the boys.  I have to admit though, that I was surprised when a pound and a half of kale turned into this: 

Oh well, at least I know now that a little bit of powder goes a LONG way! 

Does anyone have any idea on the nutritional value of dried, pulverized kale? I know that nothing beats fresh, but does this at least come close?