Beans and Grain Recipes

A slow-simmered lamb chili with black beans, fresh ginger, allspice, and Zinfandel wine. Beans cook with lamb bones for deep flavor. Best made a day ahead for the richest taste.

A Thai-American fusion chili that blends ground beef and kidney beans with panang curry paste and garlic chili sauce. Smoky, aromatic, and seriously spicy. Ready in one hour.

Bean chili built from scratch with toasted cumin and oregano, ground dried ancho or negro chilies, smoky chipotle, and a splash of red wine for depth. A meatless chili with serious heat and layered spice.

Tender marinated beef and crisp asparagus stir-fried with pungent fermented black beans and garlic in a savory cornstarch gravy. A classic Chinese takeout dish made from scratch at home.

Hearty pork and beef chili simmered low with cocoa powder, cinnamon, cumin, and chili powder for deep, earthy heat. Pinto beans and cornmeal thicken the pot. Serve with sour cream, Parmesan, and chopped onions for a bold weeknight dinner.

A no-bake chocolate coffee torte: a chocolate wafer and almond crust under a light, Kahlua-spiked mocha cream filling. Chilled until sliceable, no oven required, and easy to make ahead.

Two crisp meringue discs sandwiched with dark chocolate-coffee cream and served on a pool of raspberry sauce. A showstopping make-ahead dessert for special occasions.

Chunky mustard beans with red peppers blanch green beans, peppers, and onions, then bind them in a turmeric-mustard pickling sauce with celery seed and mustard seed. A bright, tangy pickled relish for water-bath canning.

Cincinnati-style chili with ground beef simmered in a sweet-savory sauce of cinnamon, allspice, cloves, cocoa-adjacent spices, and molasses, served over spaghetti with cheese and hot peppers. A Midwestern classic.

Cheesy cornmeal casserole topped with sour cream, romaine, diced tomatoes, avocado, and olives. A hearty Mexican-inspired bake that feeds a crowd for Cinco de Mayo or any fiesta night.

A vegetable-loaded Italian minestrone with eggplant, beans, spinach, cabbage, and pasta, finished with a swirl of homemade pesto alla Genovese. Rustic, hearty, and full of garden-fresh flavor.

Bread machine coffee cake made with semolina flour, graham cracker crumbs, and a triple hit of coffee flavor. Slice thick, spread with mocha buttercream, and top with chocolate coffee beans.

Cold dilly beans are crisp pickled green beans canned with garlic, fresh dill, and a hint of cayenne in a cider vinegar brine. A snappy, shelf-stable summer pickle ready in two weeks.

Slow-simmered beef chuck chili with cumin, oregano, and chili powder, made a day ahead for deep flavor. Topped with sour cream and fresh lime.

Ground beef, corn, Mexican stewed tomatoes, and black olives baked under a golden cornbread crust. A weeknight casserole the whole family will dig into.

This is pleasently warm but not mouth burning hot!