When you are doing a slow carb diet, one of the most things to do is eat lots of protein. Protein is your main source of energy and it’s crucial you eat enough of it. About 30 grams within the first 30 minutes of waking in the morning and another 20 grams per meal. While downing three eggs or making chicken breast at 6am is not everybody’s favorite, the best alternative are legumes.

Required Nutrients

Your body needs a lot of different nutrients in order to function healthy and a good way to get most of them are beans. In beans there’s protein, the base for energy and muscle growth, calcium, the main material that your bones are made of, magnesium and potassium, for muscle and nerve function, as well as protein synthesis and flavonoids, to reduce coronary artery disease and cancer.

They have also iron, for growth and development, thiamin, for heart nerves and muscles, phosphorus, for your teeth and bones, zinc and pantothenic acid, for the immune system and growth, pyridoxine, for blood, skin and nervous system. On top of that you can find riboflavin and niacin, that are good for your raspatory systems. As you can clearly see, a lot of what your body needs you can get from legumes. But again, balance is the key to a healthy life – don’t eat the beans exclusively.

Bean Recipes

Although 1.150.000 acres are used for growing beans in the US a lot of people do not know a lot about beans or how to prepare delicious meals with them. From appetizers to soups, to salads, mains and sides – every meal can be bean centric. Some of the best bean recipes in the world can be found in the books of Trish Ross. She’s the pope of bean cooking and has been writing books on the topic since 1996.

Her bestseller Easy Beans: Fast and Delicious Bean, Pea, and Lentil Recipes has been out of print, but is now out as a second edition, with a wide variety of bean dishes, that are fairly easy to prepare. The book covers all there is to know from bean facts like history, nutritional charts and the different varieties. You will learn how to soak and cook them and how to prepare dishes for many occasions.

Check out Easy Beans on Amazon

Easy Beans ...Fast and Delicious Bean, Pea and Lentil Recipes by [Trish Ross]

Here’s the table of contents:

Appetizers

Appetizer Wraps
Black Bean Bruschetta
Black Bean Hummus
Hot Bean Taco Dip
Hummus
Santa Fe Bean Salsa
Spicy Bean Vegetable Dip
Stuffed Mushroom Caps
Tapenade
Tapenade Baguette

Soups

Autumn Vegetable Soup
Beefy Bean Soup
Chick Pea & Coconut Soup
Chicken Tortellini Soup
Classic Black Bean Soup
Creamy White Bean Soup
Curried Pea Soup
Flexible Bean Soup
Italian Lentil Soup
Jiffy White Bean Soup
Lebanese Lentil Soup
Leek & Lentil Soup
Minestrone Soup
Moroccan Soup
Mulligatawny Soup
Picanté Black Bean Soup
Puréed Black Bean Soup
Quick Mediterranean Soup
Seafood Minestrone Soup
Spicy Split Pea Soup
Spicy Tomato Soup
Split Pea Soup
Tomato, Garbanzo & Spinach Soup
Tomato & Black Bean Soup
Two Bean Rotini Soup
Vegetable Stock

Salads

Bean & Pasta Salad
Black Bean & Rice Salad
Black Bean Tomato Salad
Christmas Bean Salad
Couscous & Chick Pea Salad
Curried Chick Pea Salad
Feta Garbanzo Salad
Garbanzo Potato Salad
Italian Bean Salad
Layered Bean Slaw
Mixed Bean Salad
Nutty Lentil Salad
Orange White Bean Salad
Southwestern Potato Salad
Summer Dill Salad
Tabouli
Taco Salad
Texas Chicken Salad
TexiCali Salad
Tuscany Lentil Salad
Wild Rice & Cranberry Salad

Main Dishes

Baked Black Beans
Bean & Veggie Burrito
Black Bean Quesadillas
Black-eyed Pea Chili
Champion Black Bean Chili
Chick Pea Curry
Chicken & Goat Cheese Burrito
Chipotle Chili
Chipotle Mayonnaise
Cowboy Casserole
Dahl Wrap
Enchiladas
Feta Veggie Wrap
Fettucine with Vegetables
Garbanzo Stew
Gratin of White Beans with Herbs
Italian Pasta & Beans
Many Baked Beans
Mexican Brunch
Mexican Lentil Casserole
Moroccan Chicken
Quick Southern Pizza
Quick Spicy Sausage Stew
Red Lentil Dahl
Robinson Crusoe
Salsa Chicken
Salsa Fish
Santa Fe Lentil Wrap
Seafood Chili
Skillet Chili Chicken
Snow Chili
Spicy Vegetable Medley
Tortilla Stack
Tortilla Treat
Vegetarian Chili
Vegetarian Lasagne
Veggie Spaghetti Sauce
Yellow Split Pea Dahl

Vegetables & Side Dishes

Bean Counter’s Medley
Black Beans & Rice
Broccoli & Chick Peas
Caribbean Rice
Curried Cauliflower with Beans
Jamaican Peas & Rice
Red Beans & Rice
Refried Beans
Stuffed Baked Potatoes
Tomato Lima Bean Parmigiana
White Bean Provence
Zucchini Garbanzo Stir-fry

If you are interested in bean cooking Easy Beans: Fast and Delicious Bean, Pea, and Lentil Recipes is for you.

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