A tasty way to start a new year!
Since my old New Year's Eve/Day traditions just wouldn't work (for a variety of reasons that I won't go into right now) this year, I started searching (the Internet, of course) for some new traditions that would work! One of the traditions that I kept coming across was to eat "prosperous foods" -- like the traditional Southern dish called "Hoppin'John". So, I decided to try it... ON New Year's Day!
The trouble was that I hadn't decided soon enough. Consequently, I needed to find a recipe that used ingredients that I already had on hand. I thought I had the main ingredient -- some black-eyed peas -- on hand, and I was pretty sure I had the rest of the ingredients in the pantry, as well. So... I wasn't too worried, especially when I found a simple recipe that utilized one of my favourite kitchen appliances: my Crockpot.
After a simple New Year's Eve celebration (with another new tradition), I got up the next morning and set about assembling "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John", the recipe that I'll be sharing with you for the first "Tasty Tuesdays" recipe of 2016. I wanted it to be ready upon my return from a third new tradition, my "First Day Adventure", a hike at a local park that I visited once two summers ago and vowed to visit again.
Well... I didn't get too far. When I went to retrieve the main ingredient, I could not find the bag of black-eyed peas that I thought had in the pantry. After searching high and low for it AND doing a bit of thinking on the matter, I realized that I had probably tossed it because I wasn't sure how long I'd had it. Probably not a problem given the fact that we're talking about dried beans, but that decision left me without the main ingredient for my "prosperous food"!
Not willing to give up so quickly, I scanned the recipe's list of ingredients and was relieved to find that I had every other ingredient for the "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John", except for the crushed red pepper which I wasn't going to add, anyway, since my tummy doesn't do spicy! Some quick calculations proved that I could start the "Hoppin' John" once I got back from a quick trip to the grocery store AND my "First Day Adventure.
So... Off I went! I decided to stop at the grocery store BEFORE I went on my hike because I figured that I might be too tired and/or forget to get the main ingredient -- the black-eyed peas. Went to my local grocery store and purchased a bag of dried black-eyed peas since that's what I had thrown away.
It wasn't until I was taking a break midway through my hike that I realized cans of black-eyed peas might make the cooking of my "prosperous food" go faster, even though the original recipe called for dried black-eyed peas. With this thought in mind, I finished the hike (feet dragging as I neared the end of the trail) and then stopped at the first grocery store I saw on the way home. Well... I left empty-handed. The store didn't have any cans of black-eyed peas. Hmmm... I have to take that back. They DID have cans of black-eyed peas -- for $1.99 per can!
With canned black-eyed peas on my brain, I quickly grabbed two cans, and then I examined the shelf tags more carefully. The store brand was only $0.87, and the name brand was more than twice as much! At that point, the frugal side of me kicked in: "You're going to pay THAT much for each can of beans? Are you crazy?! You've got the dried beans that the recipe called for in the car!" So... I put back the expensive brand-name cans of black-eyed peas.
However, I wasn't ready to give up just yet! On my way back to the house, I decided to stop at my local grocery store, the place where I had purchased the bag of dried black-eyed peas before my hike. Since I hadn't thought to check for cans of the main ingredient earlier, I wanted to see if that store had any cans of the store's brand of black-eyed peas. Once there, I discovered the same situation, but because they were on the top shelf, I asked one of the employees if they had any.
He must not have heard me say "cans" because he went straight to the dried beans section. He was amazed, too. He said that he had a three-tier display of the bags of black-eyed peas, but they were all gone! (Guess I made the right decision to stop at the grocery store BEFORE the hike!) After that, I had him confirm that they didn't have any more of the store brand (which were even cheaper at this store. They didn't.
So... I went back to the house and got the recipe I'm about to share with you. Let me tell you, it smell really good while it was cooking. After working up an appetite, I couldn't wait for it to be ready to eat!
And now, without further ado, here is this week's "Tasty Tuesdays" recipe for "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John:
Ingredients
4 strips thick-cup bacon, diced (I sacrificed the flavor a bit by using olive oil.)
1 small onion
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (As I mentioned earlier, I omitted this ingredient.)
1 cup dried black-eyed peas, rinsed and picked over
1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, drained (Hmmm... I think I might have forgotten to drain the 'matoes.)
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice (I believe I used brown rice instead.)
1 teaspoon salt
Preparation
1. Place bacon in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until just beginning to crisp. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Scrape bacon, bacon fat and onion into slow cooker. Add crushed red pepper, peas and 4 cups water (I used vegetable broth to give it a bit more flavor since I didn't use the bacon.) and stir to combine. Cover and cook Low until peas are nearly tender, 3 to 4 hours. (I cooked 'em on High for 2 hours since time was of the essence.)
2. Stir in tomatoes, rice and salt. Cover and continue to cook just until rice is tender and has absorbed all liquid, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Fluff with a fork and serve.
Serves 6
So, there you have it: "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John" AND the story behind it. I'm happy to report that it was delicious. The only trouble is that I've STILL got some Hoppin' John left... four days later. Between New Year's Day and now, I've had Hoppin' John every which way, including Hoppin' John burritos and Hoppin' John quesadillas! I'd better have a VERY prosperous 2016 with the amount of Hoppin' John I had for just little ol' me!
The trouble was that I hadn't decided soon enough. Consequently, I needed to find a recipe that used ingredients that I already had on hand. I thought I had the main ingredient -- some black-eyed peas -- on hand, and I was pretty sure I had the rest of the ingredients in the pantry, as well. So... I wasn't too worried, especially when I found a simple recipe that utilized one of my favourite kitchen appliances: my Crockpot.
After a simple New Year's Eve celebration (with another new tradition), I got up the next morning and set about assembling "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John", the recipe that I'll be sharing with you for the first "Tasty Tuesdays" recipe of 2016. I wanted it to be ready upon my return from a third new tradition, my "First Day Adventure", a hike at a local park that I visited once two summers ago and vowed to visit again.
Well... I didn't get too far. When I went to retrieve the main ingredient, I could not find the bag of black-eyed peas that I thought had in the pantry. After searching high and low for it AND doing a bit of thinking on the matter, I realized that I had probably tossed it because I wasn't sure how long I'd had it. Probably not a problem given the fact that we're talking about dried beans, but that decision left me without the main ingredient for my "prosperous food"!
Not willing to give up so quickly, I scanned the recipe's list of ingredients and was relieved to find that I had every other ingredient for the "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John", except for the crushed red pepper which I wasn't going to add, anyway, since my tummy doesn't do spicy! Some quick calculations proved that I could start the "Hoppin' John" once I got back from a quick trip to the grocery store AND my "First Day Adventure.
So... Off I went! I decided to stop at the grocery store BEFORE I went on my hike because I figured that I might be too tired and/or forget to get the main ingredient -- the black-eyed peas. Went to my local grocery store and purchased a bag of dried black-eyed peas since that's what I had thrown away.
It wasn't until I was taking a break midway through my hike that I realized cans of black-eyed peas might make the cooking of my "prosperous food" go faster, even though the original recipe called for dried black-eyed peas. With this thought in mind, I finished the hike (feet dragging as I neared the end of the trail) and then stopped at the first grocery store I saw on the way home. Well... I left empty-handed. The store didn't have any cans of black-eyed peas. Hmmm... I have to take that back. They DID have cans of black-eyed peas -- for $1.99 per can!
With canned black-eyed peas on my brain, I quickly grabbed two cans, and then I examined the shelf tags more carefully. The store brand was only $0.87, and the name brand was more than twice as much! At that point, the frugal side of me kicked in: "You're going to pay THAT much for each can of beans? Are you crazy?! You've got the dried beans that the recipe called for in the car!" So... I put back the expensive brand-name cans of black-eyed peas.
However, I wasn't ready to give up just yet! On my way back to the house, I decided to stop at my local grocery store, the place where I had purchased the bag of dried black-eyed peas before my hike. Since I hadn't thought to check for cans of the main ingredient earlier, I wanted to see if that store had any cans of the store's brand of black-eyed peas. Once there, I discovered the same situation, but because they were on the top shelf, I asked one of the employees if they had any.
He must not have heard me say "cans" because he went straight to the dried beans section. He was amazed, too. He said that he had a three-tier display of the bags of black-eyed peas, but they were all gone! (Guess I made the right decision to stop at the grocery store BEFORE the hike!) After that, I had him confirm that they didn't have any more of the store brand (which were even cheaper at this store. They didn't.
So... I went back to the house and got the recipe I'm about to share with you. Let me tell you, it smell really good while it was cooking. After working up an appetite, I couldn't wait for it to be ready to eat!
And now, without further ado, here is this week's "Tasty Tuesdays" recipe for "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John:
Ingredients
4 strips thick-cup bacon, diced (I sacrificed the flavor a bit by using olive oil.)
1 small onion
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (As I mentioned earlier, I omitted this ingredient.)
1 cup dried black-eyed peas, rinsed and picked over
1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, drained (Hmmm... I think I might have forgotten to drain the 'matoes.)
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice (I believe I used brown rice instead.)
1 teaspoon salt
Preparation
1. Place bacon in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until just beginning to crisp. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Scrape bacon, bacon fat and onion into slow cooker. Add crushed red pepper, peas and 4 cups water (I used vegetable broth to give it a bit more flavor since I didn't use the bacon.) and stir to combine. Cover and cook Low until peas are nearly tender, 3 to 4 hours. (I cooked 'em on High for 2 hours since time was of the essence.)
2. Stir in tomatoes, rice and salt. Cover and continue to cook just until rice is tender and has absorbed all liquid, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Fluff with a fork and serve.
Serves 6
So, there you have it: "Slow Cooker Hoppin' John" AND the story behind it. I'm happy to report that it was delicious. The only trouble is that I've STILL got some Hoppin' John left... four days later. Between New Year's Day and now, I've had Hoppin' John every which way, including Hoppin' John burritos and Hoppin' John quesadillas! I'd better have a VERY prosperous 2016 with the amount of Hoppin' John I had for just little ol' me!