Adobe Milling is Beans and More.

Adobe Milling

60740 Highway 491 (east of Dove Creek, at the very top of the hill after leaving town)

Dove Creek Co 81324

Phone: 970-677-2620

Website: https://www.anasazibeans.com/

 

“Necessity is the mother of invention" means that a strong, urgent need or problem pushes people to think creatively and develop new tools, methods, or solutions.  This proverb has been quoted, in several forms, by several writers, but originally can be traced back to Plato’s Republic ("our need will be the real creator").

"If you build it, he will come" is the actual line from the 1989 movie Field of Dreams, featuring Kevin Costner, and the “he” refers to the ghost of disgraced baseball player Shoeless Joe Jackson.

Now what do these have to do with milling beans?  In 1983, Denise Pribble, the daughter of a local pinto bean farmer, founded the Adobe Milling Company in Dove Creek, Colorado.  Dove Creek is known as the “Pinto Bean Capital of the World”, and the milling company popularized the processing, bagging and selling of pinto beans, black beans, a distinct heirloom variety called bolita. and an ancient bean attributed to the Anasazi culture appropriately named after this culture.

 

Dried beans are a critical food asset as they combine an exceptionally long shelf life, low cost, and high nutritional value into a single ingredient. They serve as a foundational pillar for global food security, personal nutrition, and culinary versatility.

Nutritionally, they are high in fiber; aid digestion, promote gut microbiome health, and regulate blood sugar levels; and are naturally rich in iron, potassium, magnesium, and folate which support heart health and cellular function.

…and let’s get right down to the truth of it, no matter how they are cooked, or what recipes they are added to, they taste pretty darn good.

So, out of need for a centralized processing center, the milling company was built, and he/she/they all came to fill their pantry needs.

However, Adobe Milling is more than a provider of quality beans.  They have their own line of spices, soup mixes and sauces; and recently they expanded their shop that includes Blue Bird Flour, products from Honeyville (located north of Durango), raw honey from Mesa Verde Honey, candles and cookbooks.  The prices are quite reasonable, especially in these times of high inflation, and for a mere $20 purchased black beans, Anasazi beans, chili powder seasoning, and raw honey.  Talk about a bargain!

 

 

 

 

 

Adobe Milling is currently owned by Charles and Kim Elias; Kim helped us out with information, and is a kind and friendly lady.  Son, Michael, daughter, Ashley and her husband Jason are also part owners of the company.  While visiting, there was a steady stream of customers, and Kim happily greeted many by name.  Being able to visit an establishment, especially for the first time, and to feel welcomed and comfortable is a great plus indeed.

Locally, many shops and restaurants offer Adobe Milling products for sale.  But, and a huge but here, please take the time to travel to Dove Creek, and visit the actual shop.  There is so much more being offered for sale, and then maybe leave some time to visit one of the local restaurants for a delicious meal. 

Mary Cokenour

Heirloom Beans from the Anasazi.

Settlers of the Four Corners region discovered a wild bean growing amongst the ruins, but it was not until the 1950s that it was given a name.  Within an archaeological dig, of a cave in New Mexico, sealed clay pots gave forth a bounty, beans.  Carbon dating gave them the age of 1500 years, then again, carbon dating has been found not to be that accurate.  Since the ruin sites were attributed to the Anasazi (130 AD to 1200 AD), scholars played it safe and lowered the age to 750 years, or the last known sighting of the Puebloan people.  These beans were given the name, Anasazi, and planted to see if they were still viable; surprise is, they sprouted and grew!  Cultivation of the species continued and finally introduced to the American consumer in 1983; Adobe Milling in Dove Creek, Colorado is one of the largest distributors in the Southwest.

As with corn and wheat, beans are not indigenous to southwestern North America; they too were brought up from Mexico by Native tribes seeking trade, and Spanish explorers.  Anasazi beans fall under the botanical classification Phaseolus vulgaris which originated in Peru from a species simply referred to as “common beans”.  Other popular bean varieties stemming from the common beans include black, kidney, pinto, and navy beans.  Anasazi beans are a vibrant swirl of white and maroon coloring; being low fat, sweeter and mealier gives them a unique taste and texture that adds to any recipe.  Nutrition wise, they are high in protein and fiber; an excellent source of potassium, calcium, and iron; one cup has less cholesterol and calories than three ounces of beef.  Here is the really good news, remember that saying, “Beans, beans, good for your heart.  The more you eat, the more you *ahem* pass gas.”? They contain 75% less of the gas-causing carbohydrates compared to pinto beans! 

How to cook up Anasazi beans? I referred to two cookbooks, “Pueblo Indian Cookbook” by Phyllis Hughes (1972) and “Southwestern Indian Recipe Book” by Zora Getmansky Hesse (1973); it was not as easy as my cookbooks stated.  Two cups of beans went into a cooking pot, with enough cool water to cover and soaked overnight for 14 hours.  During soaking and cooking, do NOT add salt, vinegar or anything acidic, like tomatoes, or the beans will get tougher.  After draining, rinsing, just covering with more cool water, adding chopped onion, bacon, and a teaspoon of granulated garlic; they simmered on the stove for 4 hours…and remained as hard as when first purchased.  Let’s think logically about this, the Puebloans did not use a gas stove as I did, but they did cook using a wood fired adobe oven.  Nope, did not have one of those in the backyard, so back to the stove; I checked on them every hour for an additional 4 hours.  The result was not much better.

Cover beans with water, soak overnight.

Drained and Rinsed.

Add Bacon and Onions.

After 8 hours on stove top.

 

Instead of throwing out the beans in frustration, I decided to toss the entire mixture into a crock pot, put the setting on high and waited 4 more hours.  Yes, I have patience when I want to achieve a goal.  Eureka, the beans came out wonderfully; a semi-firm texture that had absorbed the flavors of both onion and bacon.  The water, with help from the bacon fat, had reduced down to a thickened sauce with a hint of garlic.  Seems the insulation of the crock pot acted in the same fashion as an earthenware pot within an adobe oven. Paired with the Pueblo bread I had made earlier in the day, it was a meal worth waiting for.   I am certainly enjoying my adventures into the world of Native American cuisines; who knows what will come next…mutton stew perhaps?

Mary Cokenour

 

 

Grains of Our Lives.

The visual piles of dried corn, pinon nuts and beans flowing through outstretched fingers lead my mind to these words, “Like sands through the hourglass, so are the Days of Our Lives.”  While this long running soap opera, aka daytime drama, has not much to do with life in our Southwest; grains have always been a relied on staple.  Corn (maize) was introduced to the Native cultures of the Southwest approximately 2100 BC from Mesoamerica.  “Isn’t that Mexico?” you might be asking, that is only partially correct.  Mesoamerica extended from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica.  Corn cobs found at ruin sites and inside caves were much smaller than what we know of today; similar to baby ornamentals seen around fall holidays.  Great care was taken in cultivating stronger varieties that would survive higher altitudes, and weather systems that alternated between drought and flooding.

In the 1520s, explorers from Spain introduced wheat to Mexico; as with corn, it made its way up to the Southwest and into Native fields.  Evidence of trade, between San Juan County Native cultures and Mexico, was proven with the finding a macaw feather shawl, in Canyonlands National Park, by explorer, Kent Frost; housed and exhibited at Edge of the Cedar State Park and Museum.  Traces of cacao were found in pottery at Alkali Ridge National Monument; an exhibit was displayed at the Natural History Museum in Salt Lake City in 2014.

How did corn and wheat become the flour to make breads?  The Puebloan people used stone tools; a “mano”, a smooth hand-held stone was used against a “metate”, a large stone with a depression. The movement of the hand stone against the depressed stone consisted of a circular, rocking or chopping motion, using one or both hands, to grind.  Work rooms, called “mealing” rooms, were established with sets of manos and metates for mass grinding efforts; basically gossip central for the women.  Baking nowadays is much easier with gas or electric powered ovens; the Puebloans used a mud adobe-built outdoor oven.  The oven was beehive shaped, using wood as the heat source to build a fire inside.  When the proper amount of time had passed, embers and ashes were removed, or moved about the oven; bread was then inserted for baking.  This oven was also used for roasting corn and cooking meats.   Now aren’t you happy that all you have to do is head on down to the local supermarket to buy pre-ground flours and fully baked bread goods?

Using a recipe from the “Pueblo Indian Cookbook” by Phyllis Hughes, I ventured into making Pueblo Oven Bread.  As a first timer, my bread was not the prettiest, but it tasted pretty darned good, especially with butter, honey, combo of both; oh, and bacon.  Bacon makes almost everything better….not desserts though, no not desserts.  This first time I also used basic all-purpose white flour, but I’m going to be playing with other types of flours, like wheat, blue corn and corn.  It will be interesting to see if baking times vary with the flours, and especially the tastes.  Let me tell you that as a side for a freshly cooked batch of Anasazi beans with onions and bacon, the bread is so satisfying.  Ah, but that’s another story to tell…

 

 

Pueblo Bread

(Pueblo Indian Cookbook – page 10)

 Ingredients:

9 cups flour

2 packages dry yeast
½ cup warm water (110-120 degrees)
2 tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. melted lard or cooking oil
2 cups water

Preparation:

Soften yeast in warm water.  Mix melted lard or oil, salt and yeast in large bowl.  Alternately add flour and water, a little at a time.  (I did 2 cups flour, ½ cup water), beating thoroughly after each addition, kneading in last of flour until dough is very smooth.  Shape in ball and let rise, covered with damp cloth in large greased bowl until doubled in size.

Activate Yeast

 

Alternate Addition of Flour and Water.

 
 
 

Need in Last Cup of Flour.

 

Dough in Bowl for First Rising.

 

Dough Doubles in Size.

Punch down, and knead on floured board for at least five minutes.  Shape into four balls, put in greased baking pans (I used 4-8 inch nonstick cake pans), cover with cloth and let rise for 20-30 minutes in warm place.

Second Kneading (1)

Second Kneading (2)

Four Equal Portions

Dough Balls in Greased Pans.

After Second Rising, Ready to Bake.

Bake in 400F oven for 50 minutes (my gas oven did require the 50 minutes) or until tops are browned and loaves sound hollow when tapped.

Mary Cokenour