Thrifty Thursday ~ Beans with Marrow & Corn/Yellow Pepper, Brown Rice with Parsley and salad

Kitchen Play List: Bon Jovi ~ Greatest Hits Album

For this weeks Thrifty recipe I wanted something colourful. It's been a hard couple of weeks fighting off the 'comfort' food cravings due to the weather turning cold and 'life' going on around us. And although the comfort foods of stodge are always My Love's food of choice..I can happily say that wholemeal pasta with a rich tomatoey sauce and veggies are my food of choice. And brown rice and beans. lol. Yep the very humble brown rice cooked simply in water with no additions and beans heated through with no additions. I could eat that every day. Sometimes I would choose to have a splash of Low Sodium soy sauce if I was feeling daring! lol. And when I'm ill it's the only meal My Love can get me to eat. Oh and steamed broccoli and brussels sprouts. Am I really that strange? lol Probably! lol But make no mistake..I am far from an angel! lol  Anyway....

Beans with Marrow and Corn/Yellow Pepper, Brown Rice with Parsley and Sundrop Tomato Salad

We had picked up a small marrow from the supermarket at the weekend and this recipe came together after standing in my kitchen looking at it for a little while..the thoughts drifting through my mind were one of "Do I really want to stuff another marrow?..Do I?". So I put it away and them made myself a cuppa and hit my cookbook library and finally settled on a recipe from Rose Elliot's cookbook The Bean Book. 

Rose's recipe calls for sweetcorn but I cannot get My Love to eat it even if I tried...and I have! So substituted it for yellow pepper so I would keep that beautiful yellow colour in the dish. I have put both on the recipe for you to choose. The recipe comes together very easily and looks beautiful. I did have to cook mine 5 minutes longer than instructed but that could be because I left my marrow pieces larger than Rose did? But despite this it was very easy to make. 

I chose brown rice as we haven't eaten any for a while and I fancied some. lol. I am trying to find my 'parsley love' ready for the Salycilate food change in the New Year. I haven't added cooking instructions for this as I simply threw mine in my rice cooker. So cook your rice as you normally would and then throw in a good handful of chopped fresh parsley at the end.

The salad was a beautiful little bag of baby salad leaves, the tomatoes were Sugardrop Tomatoes which were full of flavour and sweetness and the salad was completed by stripey cucumber. I didn't want to over shadow these beautiful flavours with a dressing so I didn't make one. But then most of the time I enjoy my salads..well..undressed! lol. 

Sundrop Tomato Salad ~ Natural beauty, eh?

The costings for this meal for four follow the recipes as normal. I am still fighting with my computer so please forgive the wiggly costings list..It's not your eyes...it's my uncooperative computer! Urgh! 

Beans with Marrow and Corn/Yellow Pepper

Beans with Marrow and Corn/Yellow Pepper Serves 4
(Recipe from The Bean Book/Elliot)

3 tbsp olive oil (I used 1 tsp sunflower ~R~)
1 large onion, chopped
1 large garlic clove, grated
1 14oz tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
2 14oz tins of blackeyed beans, rinsed and drained
1lb marrow, washed and cut into large cubes
4oz corn or yellow pepper, diced
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

In a large skillet heat the oil and then cook the onion for 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic, tomatoes, basil and oregano, and cook over a high heat for 10 minute, without a lid, to make a thickish sauce. Stir in the marrow, beans and yellow pepper is using and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the sweetcorn and cook until everything is tender. Season and serve. 

Serve with brown rice cooked to your personal preference and with a salad. 

Enjoy! 
~R~ 

Thrifty Thursday Recipe Costing Breakdown

Items 
Baby Leaves                         £1.00
Blackeyes Beans                        56p
Yellow Pepper                           45p
1/2 cucumber                            40p
Tomatoes                                   38p
Marrow                                      34p
Brown Rice                                33p
Chopped Tomatoes                  33p
Fresh Parsley                            25p
Onion                                          16p
Garlic                                            5p
Oil                                                  2p
Dried Basil                                    2p
Dried Oregano                             2p
Salt                                                1p
Black Pepper                               1p

Total:                                 £4.56

Cost per person:            £1.14

Not bad, eh? For a lovely filling and nutritious meal for four people... 

Save those pennies folks! 

~R~