Picnic maple ginger red beans

 
Just a very few weeks ago, it looked like winter would never, ever end, and that this would be the year the glaciers reformed and traveled down I-94.

And now the farmers market is back, the trees are blooming, and it's picnic weather again.

The perfect time for a little bit of planned spontaneity. Oxymoronic, you say? Not entirely. Planning that can enable spontaneity isn't really cheating. It's making sure you have your wallet on hand on a delightful spring day in case you might find yourself on the patio at Sandcastle again. Or stocking up on ingredients that let you decide to assemble a quick backpack picnic in a half hour.

This recipe definitely helped, since it comes together really quickly and I usually have a "can" of beans lurking in my freezer. Plus, it's picnic friendly so even if you don't eat all the beans you take, they won't spoil before you get home. And they reheat just fine.

We paired this with a quick slaw tossed with light olive oil, a splash of toasted sesame oil and seasoned rice wine vinegar, another picnic winner.

I made curried chicken salad sandwiches by combining in a food processor 2 cut-up cooked chicken breasts, 3 tablespoons mango chutney, the zest of 1 orange, 1 scant teaspoon curry powder, 5 tablespoons of yogurt or mayo or a combo of the two, and 1 tablespoon pickle juice. By hand, stir in 2 diced celery stalks and 2 chopped green onions. Spread on bread and top with some greenery; I used pea shoots that called out to me at the farmers market.

Lots of things called out to me at the market, and it wasn't just the Wisconsin cheese barker. In addition to old friends, we've got a new bread baker again, an oil/vinegar stand that makes a really tasty lemon flavored variety that's an instant favorite and a new pickle person. Delightful dill pickles from the latter supplied our all-important pickle/condiment component of the picnic above the lake. All that and 8,400 steps round-trip to help walk it off.

Oh yeah, that's why we live here. Good to remember again.

Maple ginger red beans

Adapted from “The Spoonriver Cookbook” by Brenda Langton and Margaret Stuart

Ingredients

3 cups cooked small red beans*

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons ginger puree

1 tablespoon soy sauce (I used teriyaki sauce as well once when I ran out)

1 teaspoon salt

Method

Heat up cooked beans in a pan. When warmed, add maple syrup, soy sauce and salt. Cook a few minutes longer to let the flavors blend and serve warm or at room temperature.

Rating: Really nicely flavored with an excellent balance of sweet and sour. A great variation on the usual baked beans at picnics. Very pantry friendly, and speedy if you’re starting with cooked beans …

* Note: Achieve cooked beans however you prefer. Obviously 2 15-ounce cans of beans is fastest, and sometimes that’s necessary. My favorite way is to soak the beans in water overnight, then drain the beans, discarding any chaff. Place the beans in a slow cooker. Top with an onion cut into large chunks, a few peppercorns, two whole cloves, 1 teaspoon of salt per pound of beans and whatever herbs you’ve got handy. Cover with water by 2 inches. Cover and cook on low for anywhere from 4 to 8 hours, depending on whether you bothered to presoak the beans, how big they are, and whether you want really soft beans for soup or firmer beans for a salad. I think they cook best 2 pounds at a time, so you wind up with a lot. Divide up in the freezer storage boxes (including the liquid to help avoid freezer burn) in “can” size measures: 1¾ cup of actual beans, about 2 cups of bean/liquid combo. These beans are so much more flavorful and this lets you control the texture and salt factor. And now you're ready when the urge for a quick picnic side dish strikes.