February 27, 2024 7 min read
Welcome to the March Heirloom Bean and Grain Club, where we're diving into a rainbow of diverse flavors. This month's box features the Organic Flor De Junio with its pretty pink swirls, Organic Blue Moro Beans showcasing a steely blue color, and heritage purple barley from Hayden Mills. From a comforting minestrone soup to a vibrant grain bowl, we've whipped up some fresh, plant-based recipes to make your meals as colorful as they are delicious. Get ready to savor the unique tastes of these heirloom treasures!
Organic Blue Moro Beans, Organic Flor De Junio Beans, Heirloom Purple Tebetan Barley
Organic Blue Moro Beans, Organic Flor De Junio Beans, Black Turtle Beans
Check out our blogposts with everything you need to know to get the most out of your membership in the heirloom bean and grain club.
How To Cook A Perfect Pot of Beans
The Definitive Guide To Cooking Beans
This very rare bean comes from Brazil. It's one of those beans that is so beautiful you don't know if you should cook it or put it on the table as a centerpiece. The dappled steal blue color is striking. Don't be tempted to leave them in the pantry or turn them into jewelry though because you'll be missing out on a rare treat. The moro is like a cross between a pinto and a black bean with a creamy dense texture and thin skin. The flavor is closer to a black bean with earthy undertones and a broth so velvety a
nd delicious you'll be lapping it up. Fifth Crow Farms got their hands on the seeds for these gems from Brazil through a seed exchange and they are growing them organically.
Brazilian Beans is somewhat of a national dish. Different from traditional Latin bean dishes with cilantro and lime, this uses white wine vinegar and parsley, more European ingredients from the Spaniards that settled in the region. You may want to enjoy the national drink of Brazil with it, the caipirinha. Brazilian beans are very similar to the cuban favorite, Moros Y Christianos (Moors and Christians, so named after the dark beans and white rice). Blue Moro Beans are meaty and dense like black beans with a similar flavor so you can use them in all of your favorite black bean recipes. Use them in place of traditional garbanzo beans in the herby MInestroni Soup below or go through the bean blog and pick your favorite recipe to try.
Nothing is better on a chilly March day than a big bowl of hearty minestrone. This Italian classic is a daily ritual for some of the longest living people on the planet. The beauty of minestrone is that you can use whatever beans and vegetables you have on hand. The Flor de Junio and the Blue Moro would both work very well but feel free to experiment with whatever is in the pantry.
Fifth Crow Farms is an organic family owned farm in Pescadero, California. Grounded in a values-based approach to land stewardship, Fifth Crow Farm is a dynamic and diversified organic farm in Pescadero, CA. Founded in 2008 with a shoestring budget, a supportive local community, and ambitious dreams, they strive to bring eaters the highest quality, best tasting, and most nutritious food possible.
Flor De Junio (Spanish for Flower of June) are a lovely lavender swirled bean that is plump and very creamy in texture. They the most popular bean in the state of Michoacan. They are renoun for their silky texture that makes them a great choice for charro beans or classic Frijoles De La Olla. I also thing they'd be an excellent and non-traditional choice for Pasta e Fagioli.
Looking for a healthier (and in my opinion tastier) alternative to corned beef and cabbage? Every chef on the planet seems to have charred cabbage on the menu these days and we just kept thinking that what all those dishes are missing is beans. Crispy charred cabbage is smothered in delicious umami rich miso beans and sun dried tomatoes then topped with jammy frizzled onions. It's the perfect meal for cozy winter evenings or your St. Patrick's Day feast. This recipe will work with any bean with a silky texture that holds its's shape. The Flor de Junio will be perfect.
Primary Beans is a brand-new, sister-founded purveyor of single-origin dried beans from recent harvests on a mission to place the almighty bean at the forefront of meals that are good for people and the planet.
Linsey and Renee are fifth-generation Arizonans from a small town on the Mexican border. Like any border town kids, they grew up around the culture and flavors of Northern Mexico. Early on, they developed a deep appreciation for beans and were the kids asking for “no rice, only beans please” at the local restaurant.
Turning their passion into a mission, the sisters created Primary Beans to deepen our connection to the food we eat and the land it comes from. They ethically source fresh, delicious beans from their network of family farms to deliver them to your table.
Heritage Tibetan Purple Barley has a deep, earthy flavor to match its distinctive color. The deep purple grain is high in antioxidants. Discovered in Tibet, this variety of purple barley was first brought to the United States almost 100 years ago but was locked away in seed vaults with little attention. Luckily farms like Hayden Mills are bringing back this nutritious whole grain. With a stunning color and a delicious nutty flavor it's a favorite of ours in grain bowls, salads and soups. It can be used as a substitute for rice and makes a delicious faux risotto. Barley is not gluten free but it is low in gluten making it a healthy alternative for people who can tolerate some gluten in their diets.
Deliciously nutty, purple barley makes excellent salads, grain bowls like the colorful vegan Tiger Bowl pictured above. Barley substitutes for rice in this yummy risotto recipe from the New York Times. It's the perfect way to elevate a mushroom barley soup. In this hazelnut elderberry purple barley salad, we combine it with hazelnut oil, elderberry balsamic, pecans and berries to create one of our favorite cold salads to enjoy all year long.
Hayden Flour Mills was started by a father-daughter duo, Jeff and Emma Zimmerman. Their vision was to mill some of the world’s forgotten ancient and heritage grains using sustainable methods at every level of the process, from seed to table. Their mill is located in Queen Creek, Arizona on the farm where most of their grains are grown.
These organically grown midnight black beans are a beautiful true turtle bean with traditional flavor and texture perfect for everything from dips to soup. You'll find this heirloom variety called everything from Midnight Black to Black Valentine or simply "black beans".
They have a delicate skin and a dense, meaty texture, giving off a inky black broth that made them a favorite for centuries of cooking in the Southwest. The broth alone is so prized it is often served as a soup by itself.
Black beans date back over 7,000 years when they were a staple in the diets of Central and South Americans.The turtle bean was first widely grown in the present-day United States after the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). However, it was primarily grown as a snap pea (for the edible seed pod).
The little black dress of beans, you can use these in everything from this vegan Not So Basic Black Bean Soup Recipe to a killer Black Bean Burger which is not vegan. I usually cook up a pot of them on Sunday and then keep them in
the fridge all week to throw in salads, soups and even a stir fry. They make amazing black bean cakes and they are fantastic in our Urfa Chili Black Bean Brownies.
Small Town Specialties is a family owned and operated business. Allen and Kendral are passionate about bringing you Non GMO, and Gluten-free products directly from their farm. What started with just a handful of beans, years later has turned into a flourishing crop.
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