There is a crispness to the air today that makes bean stew sound absolutely divine! This recipe takes some planning and is meant to cook for 5 hours. HOWEVER, since many of us are already in the throws of Monday, here are some easy things you can do to still enjoy this at home tonight.

-Sub the dried black beans and pinto beans for canned versions- 2 cans of each should be more than sufficient.

-Use dried Anasazi and lentils in place of the black and pinto beans- they cook faster and require no overnight soaking.

Savory Bean Stew with Cheddar Corn Dumplings

Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked Black Turtle Beans
• 2 cups cooked Pinto Beans
• 1 (28 oz.) can Crushed Tomatoes
• 2 cups chopped Sweet Red Bell Pepper
• 2 small Zucchini, coarsely chopped
• 1 large Onion, chopped
• 1 Poblano Chili, seeded and chopped
• 1/2 cup sliced Celery
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Tb Chili Powder
• 2 tsp ground Cumin
• 2 tsp Oregano
• 1/2 cup Unbleached White Flour
• 1/2 cup Medium Grind Cornmeal
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp Sugar
• 2 Tbsp Cold Butter
• 1/4 cup Reduced Fat Cheddar Cheese
• 1 Tbsp Fresh Cilantro, minced
• 1/2 cup Lowfat Milk (or non-dairy milk of choice)

Directions

Combine tomatoes, bell peppers, cooked beans, zucchini, onions, poblano chili, celery, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano and 1/4 teaspoon salt in slow cooker. Cover and cook on high 4 hours or until vegetables are tender.

During the last hour of cooking, prepare dumpling batter. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, sugar and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in medium bowl. Cut in cold butter with pastry blender or fork until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Stir in cheese and cilantro. Pour milk into flour mixture; blend with wooden spoon just until dry ingredients are moistened. Drop dumpling dough into 6 mounds on top of bean stew. Cover and cook 40 minutes to 1 hours or until toothpick inserted into dumpling comes out clean.  Makes 8 Servings.