White Bean and Salmon Salad

Do you ever arrive home from work so hungry that your brain can't even begin to plan dinner? I do. In cases like this, I need food fast! And I need something with lots of protein, but that's not too heavy. Last night, this salad did the trick. Using just a couple of ingredients I found in the pantry, and some fresh herbs from the garden, dinner was delicious and on the plate in mere minutes.

White Bean and Salmon Salad
Serves 2

1 (540 ml) can of white kidney beans
1 (170 g) can of wild salmon
2 cups of baby spinach
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh chives
1 1/2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil
sea salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Drain and rinse beans and place them in a large bowl. If using regular salmon, drain the water, then remove the skin and bones and flake into the bowl with the beans. (I used tuna style flaked salmon, which was ready to use.) Add the spinach. In a small bowl or glass jar, add the herbs, the oil and vinegar and salt and pepper. Mix well and then pour over the bean mixture and toss well. Serve with a slice of dark rye bread.

Kitchen Improv:

This is one of those recipes that you could easily adapt based on what you have available. Try a different kind of beans, or use tuna instead of salmon, or swap out the vinegar or herbs for your favorites! Let me know if you come up with a winning combination.

Here's another really delicious example of this type of salad using lentils and tuna. I've made this recipe several times.

Two Bean Vegetarian Chili

Slow-cookers rock!

A couple of posts ago I swore off soups and stews for the summer. That was before I remembered that I have the world’s best slow cooker! It’s wonderful for several reasons:

It was a gift!
It doesn’t heat up the house.
It’s enormous (6.5 US quarts, or roughly 6 litres). So, after I’ve exhausted myself chopping vegetables for an hour, at least I’ve got food for a week.

Which is what I’m trying to accomplish here with this two bean vegetarian chili. Batch cooking is my best bet for bringing lunch to work. (I never seem to fit making lunch into my morning and who can make dinner and lunch in an evening…)

This recipe makes use of fresh herbs while they’re in season, but feel free to add dried herbs instead. The veggie choices are flexible, too. Add or subtract as you see fit. I chop them all coarsely for a chunky chili.



A note about the beans: I use dried beans and cook them alone with the water for 1 hour prior to adding the other ingredients, but if you’re not around after you press start on the slow-cooker, use one can of each type of bean.

You’ll need a 4 US quart slow-cooker or larger for this recipe.

Two Bean Vegetarian Chili

1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 medium onions, chopped
2 stalks of celery with leaves*, chopped
10 medium cremini^ mushrooms, chopped
½ red bell pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon each of fresh chopped chives, Italian flat leaf parsley, and basil
½ cup dried pinto beans
½ cup dried red kidney beans
5 cups of water
1 can whole tomatoes
½ teaspoon of fresh ground pepper
½ teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of cumin
3 teaspoons of chili powder

*celery leaves add great flavour to soups and stews
^ cremini mushrooms are the same shape as white mushrooms, but they are slightly darker with a stronger, earthier flavour

If using dried beans, rinse and add to the slow cooker with the water. Cook on high for one hour. Then add remaining ingredients and cook on high for 5 hours.

If using canned beans, add all ingredients to the slow-cooker at once and cook on high for 4 hours.

Adjust seasoning to taste. Add your favourite hot sauce to taste.

And, voila! Lunch!