Saturday, January 10, 2009

It's Pinto Bean Pie Recipe Day


This isn't a recipe from the Methodist Church Lady cook book, though it very well could be. (I've said before that the Methodist church ladies of my childhood could make something edible out of just about anything.)

This recipe comes from "The Grange Range -- Favorite Recipes from the St. John's Community." It was a Christmas gift from a patient's family a couple of decades ago, and it's a wonderful collection of recipes, including ones for unusual pies like "oatmeal" or "mashed potato" and of course, "pinto bean."

What with the beans and the eggs, I would call this pie a high protein dessert. And no, I don't know if you'll need "Beano."

So, if you're feeling rather daring today, here it is:

Pinto Bean Pie

2 cups cooked pinto beans
2 cups sugar
3 Tbs. chocolate*
2 Tbs. self-rising flour
1/2 cup margarine
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla

2 unbaked pie shells.

Place beans in a large mixing bowl. Mash until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into unbaked pie shells.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.


(*I'm pretty sure "chocolate" means "cocoa.")


Enjoy!


(I should use this recipe in a book.)

4 comments:

Liz Flaherty said...

I think you're right--this recipe belongs in a book. I have Grange cookbooks of my grandmother's. They're some of my favorites. Doesn't mean I cook any better, just that I like reading recipes. :-)

Cheryl said...

Liz, I collect cookbooks -- not because I like to cook but because I also enjoy reading the recipes -- my friends and loved ones find this very strange. Even so, I can't ever pass up a church lady cookbook, old or new. Or long ago TV celebrity cookbooks. I have a "Betty Furness" chock full of recipes that are on the high side of lethal -- but make for great reading.

Liz Flaherty said...

The cool thing is that the ones from my mother and grandmother are worn, not from reading but from use. They always read the recipes carefully, but both of them were great substituters; took me years to figure out why my attempts never tasted like theirs!

Cheryl said...

I only just recently discovered why my mom's homemade vegetable soup and beef stew doesn't taste like anyone else's -- it's especially good. I finally asked why mine never tastes like hers. She said she always wanted the potatoes to taste like potatoes, so she cooks them separately, seasons them with salt and butter when they're done, and then adds them to the soup or stew when it's ready to serve. Somehow I never noticed that she did this -- or if I did, I just thought the pot was too full to get the potatoes in there. Such a simple thing, but it certainly makes a difference in the final product.