About three months ago, I wrote a post about soaking, cooking and freezing beans in bulk. I’ve done this with black beans, white (northern) beans and chickpeas (garbanzo beans). I’ve yet to do it with pinto beans, but that’s next on my list. It’s still so nice to have a lot of beans on hand without having to stock up on cans, and therefore saving money. I’m just now finishing off my white and black bean stash from 3 months ago, and it’s time to freeze some more.

But, what to do with all those beans? First of all, they’re great to have on hand for recipes like soups and stews. But, I’ve also started to make my own hummus, which is wonderful because we always have it on hand at our house. I also tried a white bean dip recipe suggested by Mrs. Sketchbook and we’ve enjoyed that too as a replacement for hummus. So, here are some great bean recipes that we’ve tried and loved!

Hummus without Tahini

To be honest, one reason I hesitated to make my own hummus for so long was my resistance to buy tahini. It’s not something we regularly have at home for other recipes, and I didn’t want to pay for it either. So, I was nervous that the hummus wouldn’t taste good without it. But, I was so wrong! I feel foolish for not making my own all the years I’ve been stocking up on hummus from the store!

I used two different recipes, but kind of mixed them for the recipe I like best.

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Ingredients:

  • 1.5-2 cups of drained chickpeas (or one can)
  • 1/4 cup of lemon juice (or the juice of one lemon)
  • 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tsp of minced garlic (I use it from the jar)
  • 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 2 tsp ground cumin

Directions:
Add it all to the blender and mix! You’ll have tasty hummus that should last at least a week!

White Bean Dip 


This recipe is really good whether you use fresh or dried herbs. Just be sure to follow the adjustment if you use dried herbs. Too much would kind of ruin your batch.

  • 1.5-2 cups cooked beans with their liquid (about one can)
  • One bay leaf
  • 2 medium cloves garlic, peeled and minced (I just use the already minced kind in a jar!)
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill (or 2 tsp dried)
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint (or 2 tsp dried)
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (or 1 tsp dried)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tsps fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tsp salt
  • generous pinch of red pepper powder

Directions: Add all ingredients to a blender and mix! Spread on sandwiches, wraps, crackers, carrot sticks, etc. Use it like you would hummus!

Taco Soup

This time of year we LOVE having soups, stews and chilis more often. Adding it back to the meal rotation was a fantastic choice as it was SOO delicious! I tend to choose recipes online that I have most of the ingredient on hand and then add, take away or substitute what works better for us. This is the recipe I referenced, but below is what I ended up actually making.

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 3 tbsp of my own taco seasoning (or one taco seasoning packet)
  • 1 bag of frozen corn (I will say that we always use organic corn to avoid GMOs)
  • 3 cups of frozen black beans, thawed (or use 2 cans of black or pinto beans)
  • 1 28oz can of diced tomatoes (with or without chiles, depending on how spicy you want it)
  • 1 tsp dried parsley
  • 3/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp Seasoned Salt (or Season All)
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp onion powder
  • 1/8 tsp dried thyme

Directions:

Brown the ground beef while you thaw the frozen beans in a bowl of warm water (unless the beans have been thawed overnight in the refrigerator). Add the taco seasoning to the ground beef and mix. Then, add all the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Then, simmer for 15 minutes.All the seasonings on the bottom come from a recipe for “ranch dressing seasoning packet.” So, you could choose to go with a seasoning packet too. I just find it simpler and easier to use the seasonings already in the house rather than buy a packet at the store for $1.

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I’m sure I will find lots of other uses for the frozen beans as time passes, but for now all of these are some of our “go-to” recipes! What are some of your favorite bean recipes?