Jamie Oliver = Fantastic Lunch

Yesterday I had to make a pot of Jamie Oliver's Humble Home Cooked Beans from his new cookbook: Jamie at Home. The photography in this book is just great, and I'd challenge you to want to make these beans based solely on the photos of them alone. Jamie Oliver does have great asthetic, and even though his food seems to be a bit high-brow, it is always amazingly simple to prepare.

I never tried cranberry beans before, but found them easily at my food co-op. And his recipe is fantastic... only I had to refrain from making it into a pot of soup. I swear it tasted as if I added bacon, and they are completely vegetarian. I was planning to eat them on toast with tomatoes and basil like he suggests, but I never got that far because for lunch today, I saw the mango salsa from yesterday peering back at me with longing. (This particular mango salsa was raw, but extra good due to the red chile from my garden, and the plethora of herbs from my yard: cilantro, pineapple sage and Vietnamese coriander. And man were those chiles HOT!)

HOT chiles.

So as I often do with leftover mango salsa, I made tacos. The beans were delicious, and kind of remind me of super big pintos. Of course, I added cheese, and hot sauce, but still I could taste those wonderful beans. I don't think I've ever had a bean I didn't like, but these - especially with the rosemary and thyme Jamie Oliver style - I'll definately earmark to make again.

And I will go to sleep tonight thinking of the lunch I'll have tomorrow, to Mr. Oliver's recommendation: beans on toast, with tomatoes and basil. I'm sure a photo will be forthcoming...