Hellobee Boards

We eat a ridiculous amount of beans in our house! I love making red (kidney) beans with rice - adding coconut milk is a nice flavor too. For black beans, we also like to mix in corn and edamame (which is also a source of protein). Our favorite is white (great northern) beans. They are so buttery and delicious! We add them to salads, pasta, and veggie side dishes (like green beans, white beans, and tomatoes with a vinaigrette dressing). Oh, and there's also hummus!

Of course we eat a lot tacos, quesadillas, and burritos. But we also eat a lot of rice and beans. Tonight is curried lentils and sweet potatoes over rice. I like to make a bean salad with corn, bell peppers, cucumbers--LO loves that. I also do a pesto with whatever leafy greens I have in the fridge and hummus. Hummus or black bean spread (just black beans, a little water, onion, garlic & spices in the blender) over toast.

Other sources of protein: I've been doing smoothies for LO. I mix it with milk and add some peanut butter for protein. Wheat bread, brown rice, whole wheat pasta all have protein.

I'm a vegetarian so I eat a TON of beans!

White beans (cannelini or great northern) are my favorite. I eat them with pasta (or couscous) and veggies or in salad multiple times a week, usually with olive oil and either lemon juice or balsamic vinegar. Or like looch said, pureed into a dip like hummos. Chickpeas work too.

I eat a lot of black beans too, either on salad or a quesidilla. Or with rice and veggies. or we make a non-authentic version of huevos rancheros--double protein there with the eggs! egg whites especially are another great protein option.

Lentils are great too, and there are so many different kinds. dh makes this awesome lentil dish with black lentils, roasted beets and goat cheese, and one with red lentils and mirepoix (carrots, onions, and celery). you could make an indian-spiced daal with yellow ones too--we haven't tried that but I've been wanting to.

ETA: we use Barilla Plus pasta most of the time because I'm addicted to pasta and it has extra protein in it

For something a little different, I like to put red or cannellini beans in risotto along with mushrooms and peas.
I also serve seasoned black beans with cheddar grits and salsa.

Good suggestions from yourself and others so far! I'm happy to get more ideas - lots of beans eaten in this house!

@regberadaisy: I'm a total bean lover (vegetarian)
You can do wraps/roll ups or sandwiches with hummus or other bean spreads. I have done a bean bolognese before (pasta dish). Enchilada casserole with black beans. Pasta bakes with beans added. Beans in soups, rice and beans, beans on salads (often with rice too for a more filling meal). Sweet potatoes with black beans as a topping is popular with DH.

@cmomma17: Oh sweet potato and black bean combo sounds SO GOOD.

@cmomma17: I make sweet potato and black bean burritos that DH is crazy about, and about twice a month I make a big pan of black bean and spinach enchiladas with a sweet potato sauce. I LOVE this combination!

@regberadaisy: Hmm...this is the base recipe for the burritos, but I sub black beans for the kidney and add a few handfuls of chopped spinach:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Addictive-Sweet-Potato-Burritos/Detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=sweet%20potato%20burriots&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Home%20Page

And this is the recipe for the enchiladas, but I sub in roasted mashed sweet potatoes for the pumpkin (although the pumpkin is tasty too), omit the chicken and add chopped spinach to the bean mixture.

http://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/2012/10/spicy-black-bean-chicken-enchiladas-with-pumpkin-sour-cream-sauce/

@lindseykaye: it's soooo yummy. The beans are seasoned with cumin and some chili powder, chop up an onion and red pepper with them too. Bake the sweet potato and then top with bean mixture, salsa, cheese and greek yogurt mixed with some taco seasoning. So good!

@futuremrsmck: it is a great combo! my meat-eating DH likes it, and he normally hates beans!

@looch: cumin is always my go-to for black beans

We eat a ton of black beans around here. I'll mix them with corn and taco seasoning for a simple toddler lunch protein - throw on some cheddar and put it in a tortilla and bam, easy meal. We also do quesadillas often - tortilla, melted cheese, maybe some chicken or avocado chunks. Serve with black beans and fruit.