Happy holiday season, everyone! I thought about titling this ’10 Reasons to Be Thankful’ and just listing 10 different types of beans and other pulses, but I decided to take a less tongue-in-cheek approach. I’ll save that for next year. 😉 Instead, here are 5 things bean-related for which we can all be truly grateful.
Wait, don’t stop reading!
I know what you’re thinking. Oh boy, here we go again with another list of the health benefits of beans… but that’s not what I’m aiming to do here. Sure, beans are well-known for their human and environmental health benefits (see, to prove to you that listing those points is not my goal, I didn’t even link to my other posts that address these topics). Yes, those are important and undoubtedly amazing reasons to be thankful for beans. But let’s think outside the box today, shall we?
5 Reasons Beans Are the Best
Before reading on, how many of these bean-y reasons can you guess?
The numbers do not reflect order of importance. Okay, here we go!
- Beans are FUN! Don’t believe me? Try making a turkey or other art masterpiece out of beans – with family, friends, or even by yourself (that’s what I did) – and you’ll soon be singing a different tune. In fact, I challenge you to look at this turkey bean art I made and not smile. However, if you succeed at that challenge, please don’t feel obligated to tell me. I’m perfectly happy carrying on with my delusion.
- Beans are BEAUTIFUL. They are gorgeous both in the field and after they come out of the field. Look at this incredible diversity of heirloom pulses!
- Beans are DIVERSE. Amazingly so, in fact! Don’t like one type? Try another. Don’t have time to cook with dried beans? No problem. Watch this helpful video on how to cook dry beans, pick up some dry lentils that cook up super quickly, keep canned beans on hand, grab a bag of frozen black-eyed peas, or enjoy products like pulse-based pastas for days you need faster meal prep. Use this versatility to get creative in the kitchen and have some edible fun.
- Beans are AFFORDABLE. I’m a graduate student, so this may have extra appeal to me. But I can’t be the only one who appreciates the economical price of beans, right?
- Beans are DELICIOUS. I have to imagine you feel similarly, or you probably wouldn’t have landed on this page. But wow! I just can’t get over how delicious they are. What is your favorite bean dish? I truly mean it when I say I would love to hear in the comments below!
And a bonus point of gratitude – I’m thankful that my website has helped 1.) lead me to other bean lovers, and 2.) spread bean enthusiasm to others. Thank you for stopping by and reading!
ALSO. If you want to make my day, take a photo of any bean art you create and email it to me (click on the contact/email icon you see written under ‘Connect with Me’ on every page) and/or tag me on social media. Here are my Instagram and Facebook.
Peace on earth, good beans to all!
