Full of beans

Cat Campbell/For The Madera Tribune

Rich, tender and savory, pinto beans go great with tortillas or most types of bread.

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This week’s recipe theme comes from the suggestion of my son, Matt, who is staying with me for a while. It’s his 45th birthday, and he asked if I would make a pot of my pinto beans and a batch of tortillas. I told him that when I make beans, I don’t use a recipe but just eyeball everything. I think I can make a real recipe if I just try, so here goes.

One good thing about cooking a pot of beans is that you have a lot of room to be flexible with the ingredients. I shared my recipe for flour tortillas not too long ago, but just in case there are readers who did not see it, I will include it again here.

Beans, to me, are a comfort food, especially since Fall is here and the weather is becoming cooler (even though we still have many hot days to deal with). We will explore some recipes that use other types of beans, too. I have a favorite that calls for butter beans, or the large dried limas, with ham and turnips. It is almost impossible to find a ham with the bone in it. Store employees keep telling me that such hams are “only for holidays.” Since when?