The Kind Diet, Recipe 6- Hearty Pinto Bean Stew

This is my most recent recipe from The Kind Diet.  This was dinner tonight at my house.  It was rainy and damp out (although not super cold), but I was in the mood for a comforting stew today.  I did cheat a bit and make this stew with canned pinto beans (the recipe calls for using dried beans and soaking them overnight, but I had canned on hand, so I figured, why not?).  Since I used canned beans this already simple recipe was even easier for me to whip up.  I made this in about 30 minutes this afternoon.  I was able to make it before I had to pick my daughter up from school, that way I didn't have the hassle of cooking when we got home, all I had to do was heat it up!  Anyway, this recipe is very easy and convenient.  Simply heat up some tomato soup (Alicia recommends the one by Imagine, that's what I used), with some water, and shoyu (found in the Asian aisle) and bring this to a boil.  Then add the beans and simmer a bit.  Then you add in some onion, garlic, fresh basil, dried oregano, and red pepper flakes and simmer for a bit longer, until the stew thickens up.  Season to taste with sea salt and you're done.  That is, if you want to be.  She also suggests adding in some chopped up tofu dogs for a beans 'n' franks effect.  It just so happened that I had some leftover tofu dogs from this weekend, so I chopped those up and added them too.  (Amazingly, it really did taste like beans 'n' franks!)  Served it up over wild rice with a big salad on the side.  It was really comforting and filling, the perfect meal for a rainy day.  However, I think the next time I make it I'll omit the tofu dog- the tofu dog seemed to take away from the flavor of the beans, and they were really good!  It was, however, a very nostalgic meal- brought me back to the flavors of childhood picnics and barbecues........

My rating- 7.5