It’s Bean Day

A family tradition from the American Civil War + rose petals in a glass

Every February 3^rd since I was old enough to remember, my mother would make beans for dinner and tell us the story of our great-great-great-great-great grandfather Mastin Cherrington and his pot of beans that survived a civil war.

The Cherrington family immigrated to the United States from England in the 1840’s settling into Illinois. As the Civil War broke out, Mastin, then still a teenager, volunteered for the Union Army, mustering in as a private in the 83^rd Illinois Infantry Regiment. He spent much of the war patrolling Tennessee, based around Ft. Donelson, originally a Confederate stronghold that was captured by the Union army in 1862. A year after the pivotal battle for Ft. Donelson, the Confederates attempted to retake the fort. For a group of young soldiers, they knew it was going to be a long day, one they may not survive. They put a pot of beans on to cook in the morning and went out to perform their duty to their young country.

It was my great-grandmother Nadine Giles, who kept this story alive in our family. I’ll let her writing, below, tell the rest.

When my great grandmother would tell us this story, she always emphasized that when the surviving soldiers returned from battle, the beans were “cooked to perfection”. There was something mystical about those beans, a faith that the soldiers would return and the reward of a perfect meal for their bravery and survival. Sharing the beans then with each other and with their friends and neighbors in the years that followed, was a promise of peace.

Promises can be fragile.

I read this story a bit differently today than I did as a child. Mastin was a second-generation immigrant, born to parents most likely fleeing poverty in England. To arrive in America to build a new future just to have it nearly wiped out by civil war must have been unfathomable. Still this young man, along with many others, risked his life to save a collection of states that was more of an idea of what we could be, than an established union.

We are a world again in flux, with humans migrating to flee war and famine in unprecedented numbers (though very few of these humans are settling into the West, despite how some present the situation). The United States, no longer a child by democracy standards, can feel deeply divided, at war with itself, if not with infantry and muskets. What motivated Mastin Cherrington’s parents to move to the United States and what motivated a young Mastin to risk his life for this nation is the same thing that still drives many of us today, whatever your political views: the want for a better life, for ourselves and our families.

What Mastin and his messmates created with Bean Day adds one more element to this equation for a better future. A better life for all is forged with stronger community. Making a meal, perhaps a pot of beans, and sharing it with your friends and neighbors, it may not solve all our problems, but it is a start.

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I don’t think they were making beans like this during the American Civil War, but the spirit of Bean Day is to make beans and share. So here I am, sharing one of our all-time favorite family recipes for legumes. It is a lentil recipe, using ingredients that have migrated across borders and oceans, yet thanks to this wonderful melting pot, all readily available to anyone in your nearest supermarket. Best eaten with family and friends, breaking bread, or pita.

North African Red Lentils with Chicken

Don’t be scared off by the cooking time or list of ingredients. You are only active for about 25 minutes. Spend the rest folding laundry or reading a book while sultry aromas of spice and chicken fill the house. Feel free to double the recipe. Makes for even better leftovers.

Serves: 4

Time: 1 hr. 15 min.

Yield: 4 servings

• 1 cup red lentils

• 2 T. vegetable oil

• 1 large onion

• 1 medium carrot

• 1 rib celery

• 2 cloves garlic

• ¼ tsp. cayenne

• ¼ tsp. smoked paprika

• ½ tsp. ground ginger

• 1 tsp. whole fennel seed

• 1 tsp. whole cumin seed

• dash cinnamon

• ½ T. turmeric

• 2 T. tomato paste

• 5 cups chicken broth

• 1 full chicken leg or two chicken thighs, bone-in, skin off

• ½ tsp. sea salt

• ¼ tsp. ground black pepper

• 1 lemon

• 4 T. butter

• cilantro sprigs

• pita bread

Rinse the red lentils under running water and pick out any noticeable rocks. Heat vegetable oil over medium in a large heavy bottomed soup pot. Dice onion, carrot, and celery. Add to oil. Sweat vegetables for 3 minutes. Mince garlic and add to the pot. Sweat for another 2 minutes. Stir in cayenne, paprika, ginger, fennel, cumin, cinnamon, and turmeric. Stir until fragrant for about 60 seconds. Stir in tomato paste to event coat vegetables. Add chicken broth, lentils, and chicken. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 35 minutes with lid on, partially ajar.

Remove chicken from the lentils and let cool slightly. Remove meat from bone and shred. Turn off heat on the lentil soup. Use an immersion blender to blend until smooth, or puree in a standing blender in two batches. Return to pot over a low heat. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Stir in the juice of one lemon.

Melt butter in separate pan over low heat. Skim off the milk solids. To serve, dish up lentils, drizzle with a bit of the clarified butter. Top with cilantro sprigs and serve with warm pita bread.

To Drink…

Fleurie, Guy Breton, Beaujolais, France 2022

Yes, the bottle in this photo is nearly empty. Also, I drank it almost all myself over three nights. My husband is not a fan of Fleurie, and Beaujolais in general. We agreed to disagree on the Fleurie, without civil war, and I enjoyed the spoils.

This is a gorgeous bottle, a textbook example of Fleurie from Guy Breton, one of the so-called “Gang of Four”, legendary winemakers of Beaujolais. Sitting south of Burgundy, it is not Pinot that reigns here, but the Gamay grape. The namesake of this commune was a Roman legionnaire, not fleur, though floral notes are a distinctive characteristic of the elegant wines from Fleurie. In this bottling, imported in the US by Kermit Lynch, rose petals and juicy red fruit swirl with soft tannins for a medium-bodied, food friendly, deliciously drinkable red. It is all finesse and a lovely find for fans of refined Pinot Noir or Nebbiolo of the Barbaresco bent.

From $46 direct from Kermit Lynch also available from Caves in Encinitas or other online retailers