Beans!

The cookbook I will be using this week is another by Sara Foster. Fresh Everyday has gotten many a good review on the Cooking Light Bulletin Board and it is one I have used many times in the past. There are recipes for all seasons in this lovely cookbook.

Dinner tonight was Navy Bean Soup with Rosemary and Smoky Ham Hocks served with Skillet Cornbread and potatoes. I thought everything was very good and had lots of flavor. I love bean soups so it doesn't take much to please me in that respect. DH did not care for the rosemary in the soup however. Beans and Ham Hocks are sort of a Hoosier tradition. Around here it is always served with cornbread and potatoes.

After an overnight soak, the beans are cooked with onions, garlic, celery, ham hocks, and seasonings in chicken stock until tender. Remove the hocks and shred the meat before returning to the soup pot. Very good and full of fiber.

The cornbread is cooked in a cast-iron skillet in a hot oven. While you mix the cornbread, the skillet pre-heats in the oven with the oil. When you add the mix, it sizzles and helps to make the crust brown and crispy. This was a very good cornbread with just a small amount of sugar added. Many southerners frown on sugar in their cornbread.

I even prepared a dessert from this book today. Dark Chocolate Souffle Cake is a flourless chocolate cake that is very rich and decadent. I love dark chocolate, but this was a bit too dark for DH. I really struck out in the cooking department with him today! I thought everything was excellent however.

That is it for tonight. Off to watch the half-time show. Until tomorrow.

Recipes
Navy Bean Soup with Rosemary and Smoky Ham Hocks
adapted from Fresh Everyday by Sara Foster

Skillet Cornbread
from Fresh Everyday by Sara Foster


Dark Chocolate Souffle Cake
from Fresh Everyday by Sara Foster