Eat Beans for the Earth (And Save a Little Money, Too!)

I'm not a vegetarian (at least not any more.) But if you are, good for you! Modern methods of meat production contribute to massive groundwater contamination and greenhouse gas formation in the form of methane from animal waste. Plus we burn an obscene amount of diesel to produce grain and soybeans for animals, when we could support ten times as many humans per acre if everyone just ate plants.

So I'm trying to make it a point to eat vegetarian more often. Here's a dish I came up with that everyone seems to like. At home we just call it "casserole," but I'll give it a fancier name here to make it sound more enticing:

Texas Chili Pie

Soak a bunch of beans (Any kind of chili bean, black bean, pinto or kidney bean works well.) Two cups of dry beans work pretty well for one casserole's worth. (I once made the mistake of letting my son put the beans on to soak in a 16-quart stock pot. He loves casserole and piled in so many beans that by they time they swelled up with water they knocked the top off the pot. Needless to say we ate beans for what seemed like weeks.)

Anyway, drain the beans the next day and boil them up until they're soft. Then make chili out of them.

I'm purposely keeping this vague for two reasons. One, that's the way I cook. Two, a lot of people have their own favorite chili recipe. If you do, use it! If you don't, don't worry. Just saute an onion or so and some green pepper and garlic, spice to taste (chili powder, cumin, oregano, jalapenos, habaneros if you're brave, or what have you.) Don't forget the salt or it'll be disappointing. Throw in some frozen corn kernels if you like. Add a big can of tomato paste and enough water to make it seem like chili, and you're good to go.

Pour the stuff into a casserole or roasting pan and top it with corn bread. (If you don't know how to make this look it up.) Pop it in the oven at 350 for half an hour until the top is golden brown. Then take it out and enjoy!

It's good with a big tossed salad and fresh fruit. (And I wouldn't know, but I suspect a good cold beer might just be the ticket, too!)

Give it a try, and let me know what you think!


P.S. It's cheap and filling, too.

P.P.S. Now you know why I've never written a cookbook!