Savory Spice Week: Day 2

September 11th will always be a day full of memories for me.  You may not know, but we had just moved to DC two months before the tragedy.  We had no cell phones and I, at least, was new to the city. I saw those terrible images for the first time from the basement of the law school where we were sheltering in place.  Brent heard rumors of a bomb at the State Department near where I was and things became suddenly personal. Ultimately, I walked all across town that day to find my new husband and try to make it home to our small apartment in Alexandria, while an enormous dark cloud billowed to the south.  The streets were filled, vehicles stalled, and homeless people broadcast the news by mouth or on their stereos as we walked by, updating us as we made the pilgrimage home.  By the time we returned to class, the streets were filled with military vehicles and, as they say, life changed forever.  On this anniversary, as every year, I thank God for bringing my family and our nation through that day of tragedy and pray that we do not see such days again.

With such mellow thoughts in mind it seems appropriate that we have warm comfort food on the menu today.  Dishes like this remind me of home and comfort, which are definitely a good recipe for days like this.   (Last year, we commemorated it by teaching our friends to bake homemade bread so maybe this is a trend...) 

For this adventure into comfort food, I started with my Summer Beans recipe from my Taste of Summer series.  We had more zipper peas from our garden club box, but, of course, didn't have all the ingredients or the time from my last attempt, so it was abridged.  Here is take two featuring Savory Spice OKC's Summit County Seasoning.

Summer Beans (Take two)

Ingredients:

1 c. chopped ham ( about 1/2 by 1/2 inch squares of Cure 81).

1/2  medium onion, chopped

1 sprig of rosemary, finely minced

2 small cloves of garlic, finely minced

3 sprigs sage, chopped (or maybe 1/2 tsp of dried ground sage)

1 T. butter

3 cups of water (or more as needed)

1/2 tsp salt, to taste

1 T.  Summit County Seasoning (1/2 the sample packet)

1 lb beans -- here I used fresh Zipper Cream Beans - you could use dried beans and just cook them a bit longer (possibly pre-soak if that is your normal habit).

Saute the first five ingredients over medium-low heat for 5 minutes until the onions are translucent and everything is tender.. (It might have been better to do 10, but I didn't have the time today.) Add the water, beans, Summit County Seasoning, and salt to taste. Simmer over low heat until tender. This was roughly an hour and a half today, but might will likely take a bit longer with dried beans. (I should note that I like my beans very soft so you may want to adjust accordingly).

We served it with cornbread from the Pioneer Woman's cookbook.  So tasty!

I think that this version actually was more popular than my first attempt.  To begin, my kids actually ate some, not a ton, but more than last time.  They particularly liked the switch to ham rather than bacon.  Brent and I liked it better too.  Some of the improvement from last time was texture.  Finely mincing the herbs made a big difference in the mouth feel and the rosemary was much less overpowering when we dialed back the quantity. (Actually, M picked it for me, which also helped as we only get an M size handful!)  The added flavor from the Summit County Seasoning made up for not having any chicken broth or time to do the extra cooking of the onion at the beginning.  The broth had a delightfully complex flavor and the dish became a bit more dump it in the pot ready than my first version.  I like both, but this one is my slight favorite.  Another win for delicious, but less time intensive cooking.

I do recommend you don't accidentally then spill the rest of your sample on the counter like I did.  Sigh....

Savory Spice Week Day 1 -- Long's Peak Spiced Pork Loin - Just in case you missed it!

For those of you that live nearby, you can find the shop and all its wares at 4400 N. Western Ave, Oklahoma City, OK.  If you happen to live elsewhere and want to buy some spices from my brother you can reach him at awblakley (at) gmail.com or the store's phone number will soon be open at 405 - 525 -9119. 

Disclaimer - I am not an owner or employee of the shop and am not compensated in any way by SavorySpiceOKC ...other than the free samples that are available to anyone.  I was not asked to write this review and all opinions are my own.