Let’s face it. Every busy family needs a stash of pantry staples that can be quickly used to make a meal. I can’t think of a more classic, internationally accepted example of a pantry staple than baked beans. And it seems, they’ve reached almost cult-food status in the wake of the recent global pandemic.
Although most of our family enjoy them, I can’t help but cringe at the ingredients they contain:
- 3 teaspoons of sugar in a ½ cup serving (4 – 5 teaspoons in US versions)
- maize thickener
- seasoning (that reportedly contains natural flavours, whatever this means)
- citric and ascorbic acids (that are manufactured chemically, not from natural sources)
Hmmm, now that convenient tin of beans isn’t looking so appealing.
But if you’re left wondering what you’ll do for a quick meal, I’ve got you covered. I’m going to be bold and say that this option is much better than tinned baked beans in terms of health and taste!
By combining 7 whole food, pantry staples, it is possible to make your own baked beans. They take just 15 minutes to pull together and use just one saucepan.
They’re a quick, low-GI meal that provides a serving of vegetables, folate, and excellent protein and fibre, (including prebiotics to feed our good gut bacteria).
But possibly my favourite thing about these beans is there’s absolutely nothing to chop. This fact alone raises this quick meal to cult-food status for me!
And just quietly, there’s zero-guilt if you enjoy yours generously topped with grated cheese, cos that’s how most of our family insist on eating it ?
Peri x
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