"I'll Just Make Some Beans" Beans

For many years, I stressed out planning dinner when Torre was coming over. As an omnivore dedicated to impressing my vegan friends, I would be on the blogs, on the phone, and in the kitchen at work trying hard to make something worth talking about. Torre is one of those friends I am explicitly trying to impress (versus just trying to impress myself), because she always impresses me. In the beginning, I couldn’t tell when she was being polite and when she really liked something, but I am better at that now. I have attempted all manner of inherently vegan dishes, and also I have adapted non plant-based recipes with varying success (all it took was one person to point it out: it’s really not that hard to find delicious plant-based dishes and it tends to work so much better).

At some point in our friendship, I started saying, “I’ll just make some beans” and Torre would bring something to add to it. It has now evolved into a tradition for our shared dinners. My recipe for Alubia Blanca bea…