Black Bean Brownies????

Well a week has gone by and I still have not tackled the enormous job of sorting pictures from our trip. I tried today, but my computer didn't want to accept them so long story short, it will be awhile. However, I do have an awesome sister n' law who blogged a few pictures of all the cousins together. She captured some absolutely hysterical expressions. I encourage you to follow this link and have a look your self.

http://barkerkidos.blogspot.com/2010/01/cousins-great-grandma-poach-auntie.html

Now that you have had a good laugh, you can laugh some more. As most of you know I have been interested in whole foods/healthy eating for awhile now. We are by no means perfect or ever will be...we have our weaknesses ; ) On the way home I read a book in which the author brought up the point multiple times: that we have way too much fat and sugar in our American diets. He suggests that the four main food group be vegetables, fruits, grains, and legumes (beans). Much of what he said was very interesting. I have made it my quest to learn how to cook a variety of these foods. Needless to say I have tried some very different recipes lately, most of them we have enjoyed. A few, I won't make again. I found a brownie recipe that used black beans as a main ingredient, yes strange, but true. I thought I would humor the recipe and try it out, after all it did have good reviews. Well it was different than I expected. In a weird sort of way, it was captivating. The brownies were not like any other brownie I have ever tried, but I couldn't stop eating them either. The kids, surprising, loved them. I think most kids would have turned their noses to them, but my four gobbled them up. And my biggest food critic, my husband said, "These actually aren't too bad." I don't know if I will make them again, but it was fun trying out such an interesting mix of ingredients.

I have found a few winners: homemade spaghetti O's, vegetable pita sandwiches with an artichoke bruschetta, a fantastic granola recipe, and some really good banana muffins.

A few things that I'm looking forward to trying: green chili hummus, spinach-artichoke hummus, a soup made with fava beans, and the list goes on.... I have a stack of cook books checked out from the library and the Internet at my fingertips...the hunt is on!!