The farmers market is a happy place to be during the summer and fall. Around here, fall brings the distinctive scent of roasted green chiles in addition to fresh tomatoes, hard squash, fresh pinto beans, potatoes, eggplant, cucumbers, beets, okra, sweet corn, apples, peaches and other seasonal foods.
I visit every week to load up on a variety of local fruits and vegetables and its a great excuse to skip the supermarket!
Inspired by my harvest at the market and Rule #15 from Michael Pollan's Food Rules, An Eaters Manual, I often cook this meal of fresh beans, oven roasted tomatoes, spicy green chile, and crunchy kale.
Fall Harvest Beans and Seasonal Vegetables
The night before....
Place 2 cups of dried pinto beans in the slow cooker crock and cover generously with water.
The morning of...
Rinse beans and add clean water to the beans and crock of the slow cooker and cook the beans on low all day. Add a clove of garlic and a red chile pod if desired.
At dinner time...
Turn on the oven to 400 degrees Farenheit
Slice 3 large tomatoes and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on a foil lined cooking sheet and roast for 30 minutes.
Rinse and tear kale into bite size pieces. In a large bowl, combine kale, olive oil, salt and pepper until kale well coated. Place on another foil lined pan and roast for 15-20 minutes. Make sure that the kale is placed in a single layer.
Place green chile pods directly on the grill or in the oven and roast until the skin blackens and blisters. Place roasted green chile in a ziploc bag and allow them to steam. After 10 minutes, rinse chiles under cold water to remove skins. Remove seeds and chop. Note: If you wear contact lenses, remove them prior to chopping the chile (a lesson learned the hard way).
Serve a generous bowl of beans with your roasted vegetables and enjoy with either corn or flour tortillas.
Happy Fall!
