HAM and PINTO BEANS, CORN BREAD AND APPLE SALAD YUM

HAM and PINTO BEANS Ham and Pinto Beans The first time I ever had Pinto beans my husband and I went to visit his mother in Mississippi, we got into that little town in the middle of the night and had to walk two miles with our suitcases to the farm. We were tired and starving as only young people can be. She served us Pinto beans and ham, hot corn bread, butter milk and lots of salad from her garden. I am not a big meat eater so beans are a staple in my house. I eat beans, split peas, grains, I like a little meat to flavor them but I like the beans the best. 1. You must go through the beans by hand first. To do this, pour a small amount of beans on your counter and go through them looking for any tiny pebbles, dirt or bad beans. Throw those away and scoop the good beans into a colander. Rinse beans with water. Pour beans into a soup pot, and pour water over them to cover a couple of inches. Place lid on pot and let soak overnight. 2. When ready to cook, drain off all the water from the beans. Place the ham bone in the soup pot. Pour the drained beans into the pot. Then refill the pan with enough water to cover the beans at least an inch. At this time, add a small chopped onion, a stick or 2 of celery, I can stewed tomatoes, 6 to 8 baby carrots, 1 cup black strap molasses, salt & pepper to taste.I usually add a quart or 2 of vegetable broth that I keep in the freezer. I save it for making soup. Bring soup to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer, covered until beans are tender. Check the beans fairly often as they really can use up the water, so you may need to add more water during cooking. So make sure the pan does not get dry and cause the beans to burn. Burned beans do not taste good! (I learned this from experience too!) Beans are done when you can easily smash them with a fork, or taste them to check tenderness. In my altitude, the beans are done in less than 2 hours. 3. Carefully remove the ham bone from the soup. When cool enough to handle, remove the ham from the bone and take off any fat that may be still attached. Add the ham pieces back to the soup. I then taste them to see how much salt and pepper to add. 4. As you can see, this is a very basic method. If you like beans with a kick, add some seeded hot peppers while cooking. My Mother sometimes added a dried Bay leaf to the pot. It just depends on what you like. My husband and I love to eat our Ham and Pinto Beans with a spoonful of spicy salsa added. Delicious! If you haven't cooked dried beans before, I hope you'll give these a try. They are not only tasty, but healthy as well. Enjoy! NOTE: IF the beans are almost done and there happens to be more liquid than you want in the pot, just remove the lid and let the broth cook down some. I happen to be one of those people who think that the topping makes or breaks the soup I usually take 2 avocados mash them with 1/2 Cup of Salsa, a little fresh garlic a squirt of lime juice. I top my beans with this. If you want it real spicy just add spicy salsa or a hot pepper to the mix. I sometimes add cheddar cheese. But usually I go for the Avacado. Corn Bread Yield: 6 servings INGREDIENTS 1 tablespoon bacon drippings 3/4 cup Martha White® Self-Rising Enriched White Corn Meal Mix plus additional for preparing pan 1/4 cup Martha White® Self-Rising Flour 1 tablespoon sugar 1 cup buttermilk 3 tablespoons Crisco® Pure Vegetable Oil 1 large egg beaten DIRECTIONS HEAT oven to 450°F. Grease an 8-inch cast iron skillet with bacon drippings; place in oven to heat. COMBINE corn meal mix, flour and sugar in large bowl; mix well. Add buttermilk, oil and egg; blend well. Sprinkle small amount of corn meal into hot skillet. Pour batter over corn meal in hot skillet. BAKE 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Waldorf Salad for two what you need 2 Large Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced 1/2 cup chopped PLANTERS Walnuts, toasted 1/2 Cup of dates I cup of fresh whipping cream that you whip COMBINE ingredients. Only make enough for the people you are going to serve this salad does not keep. SERVE immediately. VARIATION mix in 2 Cups baby spinach or arugula for the mixed salad greens and/or PLANTERS Pecans or Almonds for the walnuts.