Quick Breakfast: Beans and Greens on Toast

I fell in love with beans and greens on toast while working on the Schooner Adventuress up in Puget Sound, Washington. The boat had a tight food budget, and operated on a lot of bulk dried goods and donations. Needless to say, they had quick, cheap, delicious meals figured out. There are many variations on this combination, but the one I'm sharing with you today uses the goods I have access to in January in Portland, that are not packaged in plastic.

Breakfast Menu:

Black Beans and Greens on Toast

Wheat bread: toasted and buttered, with salted black beans and alfalfa sprouts

Tea

Lapsang Souchong Tea

Black Beans and Greens on Toast

Black Beans and Greens on Toast Recipe (5 minutes)

Slice and toast bread*. Spread butter or vegenaise on the toast; your preference. Spread beans** on the toast. Sprinkle generously with salt. Add sprouts to the top. Enjoy.

Lapsang Souchong Tea (5 minutes)

Bring water to boil. Fill tea ball with lose tea***. Add hot water and tea ball to cup and steep for a few minutes until the tea is dark brown. This is a smoked tea that has a strong campfire flavor. I think it's best with a little cream in it. I usually use home made almond milk.

Today's Plastic Free Local Shopping List:

People's Coop:

Bulk Black Beans 2.49/lb*

New Seasons/Fred Meyers:

Bread 2.99/ loaf**

Earth Balance sticks 5.79/lb

Vegenaise 7.49/quart

Alfalfa Sprouts

Almonds 5.99/lb

Lapsang Souchong Tea 19.99/lb

Local Black Beans and Chickpeas at The People's Coop

*It is so easy to find fresh bread that is sold in paper in Portland! We have a lot of local bakeries and groceries who bake their own bread. Often, they will slice the loaves for you. I like getting bread wrapped in paper from the New Season's bakery, but there are many wonderful options.

** Canned food has a layer of BPA plastic inside of the can. Because of this, I only buy dried beans. Right now the People's Coop has bulk black beans from Noti, Oregon- just west of Eugene.

***For a while I bought exclusively Tao of Tea, which is based in Portland comes in a metal tin. Now I have an excess of the tins. New Seasons, Fred Meyers, and the Coops usually have tea in their bulk section. I like the selection at New Seasons, so I go there. I found that refilling my lapsang souchong tin was about half the price of buying it new.