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canned vs dried beans...

I always use canned beans for cooking. But, in my 'nicer' cookbooks many recipes start off with soaking dried beans.

Anyone have any opinions about the benefits/tradeoffs of using dried vs canned beans?

About recipe keeping, I find more and more that I turn to the internet and just read recipes off my laptop in the kitchen. I really like seeing what other users have to say, especially on Epicurious; many a time it's saved me from some little mistake in a recipe. So I keep two bookmark folders in Safari: "To Cook" and "Cooked." I really need to get more organized than that!

I tried to keep a cooking journal in a Word document with recipe copies and notes, but I have fallen behind on that. My weblog is helping me keep track of my very favorite things, but not nearly everything.

Well, I'm new here so forgive me if this has been covered before, but I'm wondering how people keep track of their favourite recipes - both online and hardcopy.

Online, I've been uploading recipes I really like to Epicurious so that I have full access to them. Generally, its when I find something at work that I really like and need a place to put it before it disappears from top of mind.

At home, I've recently purchased a 8 1/2 x 11 sketch book (REALLY cheap - CA$4.95 at an art supply store) and I've been transcribing recipes into it and creating an index in the back.

So how do you keep track of your faves???

I print them out and put them in plastic sleeves in a binder. I've got loose general categories. I've tried putting post-its on the edges of pages that I've tried and liked, but those fall off. Now I'm just shuffling the good ones to the beginning of each section.

With actual printed cookbooks that I own, I brazenly dog-ear the corners of pages with good recipes.

Sorry, this is a gardening question, not an answer to the recipe-collection question (though I also use a plastic-sleeved binder).

In NYC, we are finally looking at a lot of rain for the next couple of days. For the first time, I have a bunch of potted plants (tomatoes, herbs, etc.) sitting out on my terrace. I've been told to be careful not to overwater. What do I need to do to make sure they don't get too much water during these weeks of showers? I really want stuff to grow!

Finally got around to making the roasted asparagus with poached eggs and parmesan last night. Absolutely delectable! Also got to put the week-long prosciutto craving to rest. And the husband didn't mind eating asparagus that way....

GM--

chances are, your plants-in-pots will NEVER get "too much" water. Potted plants dry out at an alarming rate. I too have a (rooftop) container garden with tomato seedlings and herbs, and if I don't water daily, things start to droop.

If you have placed your potted plants in saucers, and you notice after a lot of rain that the saucers are full of water, simply remove the saucer and tip the container sideways to let things drain. Keep in mind that seedlings--even drought-hardy ones like tomatoes and rosemary--really really love to grow in wet mud.

happy harvesting!

GM
It's all about the drainage. I agree with kwj, except...
Are the pots plastic or clay, or glazed clay? A plant in a regular clay pot will never get overwatered because the clay absorbs the excess, but if it's plastic and there are no drainage holes things can get skunky with standing water.

Eric, I have a huge clear plastic accordian folder with pockets for paper recipes. It's not a great system but at least it gets them out of the way. The eternal question, does X recipe go in Italian or Vegetable?

My opinion on beans:
canned beans will save you time for sure. Flavour/texture may suffer a bit. Overall, not bad depending on your intended use.
In soups where a different liquid is going in (stock, tomato sauce etc) I don't mind canned beans. If I have frozen homemade beans, then I use them. I use canned beans for a 3-bean salad I make, but when I have my own beans(frozen) I use them & I find the texture/taste is better; firmer for one.

If you're making a bean soup (red,black) where beans & liquid will be consumed, I would certainly start with the dried beans. In my place of birth people eat beans every day (never canned). Refried beans from canned: no.

How we cook them:
Rinse beans, add to boiling water to which you have added an onion (in quarters is ok), a few peeled garlic cloves (you may slice or leave whole) & a bay leaf. Cook until tender, adding more boiling water as necessary (do not add salt before this stage or it will toughen beans). Will take 2 to 3 hrs.
Chickpeas definitely need to soak overnight, then drained & cooked.

re: recipe-keeping, I copy them into MacGourmet, a cute little application for the Mac OS. i used to rely on web bookmarks, but have occasionally had problems with epicurious being busy or slow at REALLY inconvenient times, so i turned to an offline solution.

:) carignane

Does anyone else here happen to live in Prospect Heights Brooklyn? I'm interested in joinnig the CSA and would like to split a membership if I find someone.

I get most of my recipes online, then do a cut-and-paste into MS Word. Each recipe (or group of recipes -- I'll often find 5-6 recipes for the same dish and save them as one doc, so I can compare variations) is saved as one MS Word document.

Recipes for parties and holidays are stored in either one MS Word doc and/or in an MS Word folder. For example, I have a Word folder entitled "Dinner Parties" and under that I have, say, a document called "New Years 2004" or "Thanksgiving 2005". That way, I can print out all the recipes needed for an event, and it makes it very easy for me when a friend asks for a recipe from a party months ago. It also helps with generating a party grocery list, plus you just throw away the stained, crumpled paper recipe afterwards. The doc is usually on the fridge for the pre-party week, to help with prep.

Gosh, I sound like such a nerd. :)

carignane, thanks for the mention of that app. I haven't been too impressed with other recipe apps, but this one is intriguing. I'm downloading a trial version and it has some very cool features..

kwj and Guido, thanks for your responses. I have plastic pots with holes, so I hope that will be sufficient, with me being vigilant to tilt out the water if they overflow.
One other question: I potted three little sage plants in one big pot. Came home and found only one in the pot, one lying in a sad dead heap next to the pot, and one completely gone. I live on the second floor. Do you think it was wind or squirrels? Any tips on how to prevent this in the future? Plant more firmly? I thought squirrels weren't interested in herbs. Strawberries, yes; cilantro, no.
I really don't know what I'm doing. I just ordered a book on container gardening, so hopefully I can learn fast.

squirrels, GM, squirrels
they like to dig. even in empty (or newly seeded) pots.

luckily, you'll only need one sage plant in a pot -- they get pretty big if they have enough light.
I make little sharp guards out of aluminum rolls of gutter guard to keep them out of my pots.

Guido, more instructions on the guards? What do they look like and how do you make them?
Thanks!

GM,
sounds like squirrels ate your sage, to me too. I dread squirrels, also feral cats (who like to do their business in my 2nd story pots. so gross.), and also starlings (who eat flower buds. the jerkoffs.)

container gardening is NOT difficult. it does takes more watering than growing in the ground, as well as plant varieties that like or can tolerate being in pots.

I'd suggest lots of sun-loving, heat-tolerant, wind-resistant things: geraniums, rosemary, thyme, lavenders, sedums. And the biggest containers you can get--the bigger they are, the more water they retain.

Hi Eric-re recipe org. question. I have 3-ring binders. I keep tried ones on top. I have a couple of recipes that get frequent use & those are in plastic sleeves. Categorizing is problematic for me. Examples, one binder for each: favourites, menus, reviews, vegetarian, vegetables, tofu, 'to be filed':) Not working so well.

Also I need to organize further: I have a box full of recipes in no order. It's 'interesting' trying to find a recipe that I know I have, somewhere. Need the time to try more recipes, too!

'me', you are so organized! wish I could be more like that-a good practical system.

GM, I feel your pain, squirrels are the bane of my existence!!! I haven't planted any herbs, as 9 times out of 10 I kill them, but I plant flowers all the time. I like guido's idea of the sharp guards, will have to try it. But I have started to put rocks in the pots. Went to the local garden store and bought some decorative rocks, it works so-so, they still get in but not as bad as they used to.
Nothing worse then coming home after work to see your beautiful container garden dead from the little irritants!!!
Also with cats, I don't have this problem but my parents did. As I recall any kind of pepper/mustard will help keep them away.

GM, how about keeping your plants in a birdcage or dog crate? they'll get plenty of sun and water, but no critters. i imagine you could punch holes in the bottom to let water drain out.

Re: beans. I just made feijoda with canned black beans, and had to throw it out. There might be decent brands out there, but I've never found any. The beans always taste sweet/soapy/floral when from a can.

I'm a big fan of the overnight soak; it doesn't take much/any work, just a little planning ahead (which I could use some help with).

paa-yes they taste different than homemade, which IMO is a better bet.
I cook them the way I've always seen them being made. There are other good ways of course, like the overnight soak & pressure cooker methods.

Chris,

RE: CSA sharing -- if you haven't already, contact the CSA you are thinking of joining and find out if they can pair you with someone. Even if they don't officially match up half shares, they may have an informal list or point you in the direction of a few interested parties.

cheers,
jayme

After reading yesterday's comments--a (mostly) love fest for Whole Foods, I really encourage folks to check out Michael Pollan's latest book, The Omnivore's Dilemma...I think it may make you question your whole food's love--I know it did that for me!

Help me. I'm having a couple of friends over for dinner next week. She's vegan. He has Crohn's disease and can't eat wheat gluten, sugar, peanuts, corn, dairy, red meat or citrus. I'm diabetic, and therefore can't eat anything that makes my insulin spike (think pasta, potatoes, anything excessively starchy). Are we complete pains in the ass, or what?

Anyway, I really don't want to end up serving dry tofu and brown rice. Any ideas?

Wow. That sounds like a GRE logic question or something. I mean, I am all about embracing constraints, but wow!

I don't have a lot of experience in this whole area, being utterly omnivorous, but the problem is so intriguing I want to try!

My instinct would be towards South Indian food, a lot of which is vegan and sugar-free. Maybe a nice chana masala - chickpeas with tomato and spices, served with brown rice and a chunky, well seasoned salad with pecans or pistachios and some other filling veggies. Orangette has a fantastic chana masala recipe here: http://tinyurl.com/entvp - I've made it twice and it gets even better after a day in the fridge. You could try making dosai, the crepes made from dal and rice, so no gluten, I think. Or injera - a sour, spongy Ethiopian bread made with teff flour.

And for dessert - can he eat fruit at all? Because you could make a fruit puree of mangoes or kiwis or other fruit, gel it with agar-agar, and layer it with a vanilla-soy-milk panna cotta - also thickened with a vegan gelling agent. Both of these are so sweet on their own that you wouldn't need extra sugar, probably. Sort of a mango/soy milk terrine - lots of work, but would be all done ahead of time. Like this: http://tinyurl.com/k88vn

Good luck - I would love to know what you end up serving and how it turns out.

Eric, check the last OT for lavender scones & foccacia recipes, kindly posted by Heather last night!

melissa, how about ratatouille? (i probably spelled that wrong.) it's just eggplants, zucchini, tomatoes, and herbs. perhaps toss in some chickpeas or white beans for protein.

i usually serve it with crusty bread and butter or olive oil on the side--maybe you can ask them if there's a non-wheat bread they like?

Spelt bread is really good.
I make spelt banana muffins, using spelt flour, rolled spelt flakes, & more spelt flakes on top, delicious.

potato carrot pancakes this morning!

I've substituted spelt flour in a lot of recipes, and have always liked it.

anti-squirrel forts . . .
that's a great idea about bird cages! wouldn't work in my situation, but I the look cracks me up!

I have a roll of aluminum gutter guard
(found in my parent's basement, but pretty sure it's at hardware stores)
you cut it into strips with scissors or tin snips and bend the ends to make a threatening snaggle, and push them into the dirt around your plants. You can get hideous anti-pigeon wire poky things here in NYC, but I'm not willing to go that far.

I'm going to start collecting rocks, either to surround the plants or throw at the beasts . . .