Ever since taking on the role of community relations specialist at Whole Foods Market, one of my job responsibilities has been to take customers on tours of my store. Boy and Girl Scout troops, elementary and high school classes, weight loss boot camps, investment clubs, church groups -- even a knitting collective -- have made appointments to see the store with me, meeting the cheese and fish mongers, the butchers and bakers.

We tour the aisles, and a stop in the bulk department is always on the agenda. I always share that buying in bulk saves on packaging waste, provides flexibility to try new things without investing a lot of money (let's face it, not everyone is going to enjoy texturized vegetable protein), and can save even more money on things you use often by making them from scratch. I always use beans as my example. A can of beans is very affordable, but if you spend the same amount on dry beans you get even more for your money.

My disgraceful foodie secret is that I'd never actually tried it doing myself. Oh, the shame!

But now was the time. I was already cooking up some enchiladas and a large crock of simmering beans would make a perfect side dish. Undaunted, I did a little research on cooking times and preparation tips and tackled what I'd been informing others was easy and cost effective for years.

Here's the recipe:

• 1 lb. organic pinto beans
• 1 large smoked ham hock
• 2 strips of applewood smoked bacon, diced
• 1 large white onion, minced
• 1 jalapeño, minced
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1 whole bulb of garlic, minced (Yes, I used THAT much garlic)
• 2 bay leaves

After an overnight soaking to speed up the cooking time, I poured the entire pound of pintos into a crock pot and added the ham hock and bay leaves, then covered everything with cups cups of water. Once the beans were soft, I began making a sofrito by rendering the bacon, then cooking the onion, jalapeño, tomato and garlic into a sauce. Once it had completely cooked down, it was stirred into the beans. Salt and pepper were added to taste and voila! Success.

Total cost of my ingredients: $6.77. I could have omitted the ham hock, but the flavor it imparted made it more than worth it and my doggies will enjoy the bone immensely in the backyard. It made a lot of beans. It easily fed 10 dinner guests with many leftovers to spare.

They were a little on the mushy side for my taste, but definitely not bad for a rookie effort. I learned how to avoid that mistake going forward and the future looks bright for me getting better with each try. One of my youngest friends (age 6), who I've witnessed make dinner time a battle more than once called them, "the best beans he'd ever eaten."

High praise, indeed.