Cranberry Bean And Toasted Black Quinoa Salad

This bean salad has all of the rustic, deep, and rich colors that Sarah Kenney likes to see in food.
Text And Photo By Sarah Kenney

My kitchen and I have become pretty inseparable. Sometimes I just want to hug the cool granite slab covering my kitchen island.  My little dog Chester and I choreograph several dances around my island once a new recipe commences.  Chopping, stirring, and often fretting are carefully timed between snatches of tidbits or two  tossed down Chester’s way.

On Saturdays, I practically skip out the door  to get to my Williams-Sonoma  class.  I now recognize familiar faces.  I  just adore the chef, Jill’s witty style.  Last weekend the topic was “Legumes”.

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I will not buy more cooking gadgets from the store this week.

I will not buy more cooking gadgets from the store this week.

I am sure there  are no more incredible DEVICES  from the Williams-Sonoma store that I need in my kitchen…this week. But, I never know what I might cook and then need… NEXT week…on that wonderful granite island.

Ha!

Beans? At class, I quickly learn that  new line of carefully selected bean growers has been added to the Williams-Sonoma line up of packaged food items.  I smartly realized this wouldn’t be a gadget buying weekend.  Oh, no!

But, could it, would it –  be a “bringing home, let’s just say, beans kind of weekend?  Now, that would be an intelligent and healthy option to ensure the well-being of my beloved family.

Twisted, but that’s how my mind works. Beans it shall be.  No gadgets.  Now lets look at those beans and see what this fuss is about.

We made all kinds of healthy deliciousness with beans, or, legumes during class.  One bean salad in particular was tasty.  It was a “Cranberry Bean and Toasted Black Quinoa Salad”.

I definitely have wanted to cook with more beans. The soaking process always put me off.  I have no idea why I’ve been intimidated by buying beans that you soak.  Really, all you do is put the desired amount in a bowl of water overnight and rinse them out the next day.  Why did this always sound so trying?  I also didn’t know that beans need to be kept in the refrigerator.

The only beans that I ate growing up were black-eyed peas. This is a southern traditional bean eaten on New Year’s Day.  I honestly cannot remember eating them on any other day of the year.  Families eat a serving of black-eyed peas with cole slaw.  If I remember correctly, the black-eyed peas were eaten for good luck and the cole slaw for wealth.  I remember my brothers cringing and grimacing while eating their portion but since, even as a child, I pretty much tried anything, I did happily eat mine.  If we ate these good luck charmed foods, then we could flip our plates over and there would be some money underneath.  How is that for instant luck and wealth in one sitting!!

Since beans aren’t loaded with flavor, these wonderful ingredients went into the bean salad:  garlic, parsley, lemon juice, olive oil, and feta cheese.

The recipe calls for toasting the black quinoa on the stove top for a few minutes.  This was fun.  They crackle and smell delicious.  This salad would be a great option to take to a summer picnic or barbeque. I served it with my bbq’d soft tacos.

For me, this bean salad has all of the rustic, deep, and rich colors that I like to see in food.  The woody beans, the deep scarlet toasted quinoa, the strong herbal smell with the tart feta  appeal to all of my food senses.  This recipe made so much of this salad that we had leftovers for days afterwards.  The flavors get better and better.  Enjoy!