Reviews & Comments

I am an aged cook, expierenced in revising recipes to include whatever is on hand or to my boyfriends finiky tastebuds. I used one can of the black beans plus one small can of sliced black olives and juice. Instead of the chili powder (heartburn), I used one tsp. each of garlic and onion powder to the beans. I cut the ham in fairly large chunks, I like to taste the meat instead of using it just as a flavor enhancement. I also included a half cup of lightly thickened chicken stock so the ham and bean mixture was not quite so watery. I made the dumplings according to recipe but substituted the chili powder with one tsp. of garlic powder and one tab. of parmesan cheese and always some dry parsley. The dumplings were perfect. We had huge second helpings and almost went back for thirds. Recipes inspire me to be the cook I am today. Thank you Betty Crocker for the inspiration.

I started with dried beans, so I had lots of "juice" - more than you would have with canned beans. I added extra mild to the cornbread mixture and treated it like dumplings. The whole family loved it, even my husband who started out suspiciously inquiring about the percentage of meat to beans.

I really liked the beans and ham mixture... but by the time the cornbread topping was finished, the mixture became a bit dry. Definitely skip the cornbread topping and just serve with separate cornbread muffins or rolls. Otherwise, this turned out great.