Black Bean Brownies

I just made these last night and they came out great! So yummy! There are a lot of very similar black bean brownie recipes on the internet. This is the one I made. So for Rebecca who buys black beans 25 lbs at a time and Mary who is looking for healthy dessert recipes, here you go!

Ingredients:
2 C cooked black beans or 1 can black beans, drained
3 eggs
1/3 C melted butter or melted coconut oil
1/4 C cocoa powder
1/8 t salt
2 t vanilla
1/2 C honey
1 t baking powder (optional) for a slightly more cakey brownie.

1/2 C chocolate chips or chocolate chunks (optional)
1/3 C chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x8 baking dish. Place all but the final two ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Fold in or sprinkle on optional nuts and/or chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared baking dish. Bake for 30 min; until brownies start to pull away from the edge of the pan.

From what I read, the brownies taste better if they have been refrigerated overnight. I left mine out on the counter overnight b/c they were still hot when I went to bed. I had one this afternoon and it was delicious!

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Kibbeh

This sounded really good but I haven't made. I didn't want to lose the recipe...

BAKED PUMPKIN KIBBEH
Servings: 6
I prefer this dish served at room temperature.

1 cups fine (#1 grade) bulgur wheat, soaked in 2 cups boiling water
(for info about bulgur wheat)
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups canned pumpkin
(or use very well-drained, thick mashed, cooked pumpkin or dark orange winter squash [see Cooking Tip Below])
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1 teaspoon Aleppo Pepper
(*Aleppo Pepper substitute: 4 parts sweet paprika and 1 part ancho chile or cayenne powder)
3/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 cup chickpea flour (besan)
4 teaspoons olive oil (for greasing)

Tofu/Tahini Mint Sauce
2/3 cup (5 oz.) firm or extra-firm silken tofu
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons tahini
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon dried mint (or 1 tablespoon fresh, chopped)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pinch sugar
freshly-ground pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 375 °F.

Heat the 1 tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick skillet and, when hot, add the chopped onions and salt lightly. Saute briefly, then turn the heat down to medium-low and continue to cook until they are softened and just started to brown.

MICROWAVE OPTION: Place the oil in a microwave safe dish, add the onions, salt lightly and toss to coat with oil. Cover and cook on High for 4 minutes (that's at 1200 watts-- slightly longer for less wattage).

When the bulgur has absorbed most of the water, pour it into a fine strainer over a bowl and then squeeze handfuls of it as dry as you can. Place the squeezed bulgur in a medium bowl and discard the liquid. Mix the salt into the bulgur, distributing evenly.

Place the cooked onion, pumpkin, garlic, coriander, pepper, allspice, cumin, cayenne (or Aleppo Pepper), and chickpea flour in a food processor and whirl until thoroughly blended.

Scoop the processed mixture into the bulgur and mix well.

Grease two 8-inch square pans, each with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Scoop half of the mixture into each pan, and smooth the surface of each until level. Drizzle a teaspoon of olive oil over the top of each and spread it around gently and evenly with your fingertips.



Bake for 25 minutes or until the surface looks dry. (The inside will be moist.)

Place the pans under the broiler for a few minutes (watching carefully!) just to brown and crisp up the surface a bit. Remove the pans to a rack to cool.

Cut the kibbeh into squares or triangles and serve at room temperature with the Tofu/Tahini Mint Sauce.



To make the Tofu/Tahini Mint Sauce,
blend all the ingredients until smooth. Scoop into a bowl, cover and refrigerate until serving time.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving—includes sauce): 275.6 calories; 31% calories from fat; 9.8g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 822.3mg sodium; 525.3mg potassium; 40.0g carbohydrates; 9.5g fiber; 6.1g sugar; 30.5g net carbs; 10.4g protein; 5.5 points.

Cooking Tips
If you use home-cooked pumpkin or squash, bake it until it is tender and then scoop it out of the shell and puree it in a food processor. Drain it for several hours hanging in a cloth (tied with string) suspended by your kitchen tap over the sink, until it’s thick like canned pumpkin.
Measure AFTER draining.

Carrot & Coriander Soup

This recipe is from my friend, Allison, who made this soup for me when I visited her a few months ago.

Serves 4

1 tsp. canola oil (or whatever oil you prefer)
1 lb. carrots, peeled and sliced in large chunks
1 large onion, sliced in wide rings
1 tsp. ground coriander
32 oz. vegetable or chicken broth*

Saute the carrots, onion, and coriander in the oil about 5 minutes. Add the broth, cover, and bring to a boil. Simmer, covered, until vegetables are tender. Blend in the pot with an immersion blender, or pour into a blender. Blend until totally smooth. If you removed it to a blender, pour it back into the pot and keep warm. Serve warm.

Allison served this with fancy grilled cheese sandwiches - Raclete on ciabatta and Drunken Goat on ciabatta - and both were fantastic.

*Making your own vegetable broth is super easy. I made 2 quarts, so I used 2 1/4 quarts water, one bay leaf, 1 tbsp. peppercorns, 2 carrots in big chunks, 2 onions in large wedges, 3 stalks celery in big pieces, and about 1 tsp. of finely diced candied ginger (optional). I also added in the innermost papery skin of the onions, because I read somewhere that the pigment in the onion skin will add a nice color to the broth. It worked! I covered it, brought it all to a boil, and then simmered it for about 45 minutes. I added 1 tsp. salt at the very end. Add salt to taste. Then I strained it through a fine mesh strainer into a big bowl, let it cool, then portioned into 2 1-quart containers.

Whole Grain Sourdough Crackers

Adapted from an adapted recipe at Sarah's Musings.

These crackers are absolutely delightful! They do not last long around here. I can hardly stop myself from eating one batch before the next batch is done! Honestly, I think the lard is a big reason why they are so nice. They are crisp and tender all at the same time! I haven't tried them with coconut oil yet, but that would be a good alternative for you veggies out there! Please use lard from a good source (i.e. pastured animals and with no additives.)

Ingredients:
1 C sourdough starter (use inactive starter leftover from feedings)
1/4 Lard (from pastured pork) or coconut oil
1 C whole grain flour, or as much as you need to make a stiff dough
1/2 tsp sea salt
olive oil for brushing
Coarse salt (such as kosher salt) for sprinkling on top

Equipment:
mixing bowl
prep bowl
silpat liner
rolling pin
pastry brush
pizza cutter
baking sheet (in which the silpat fits)

In a large bowl combine the sourdough and lard and mix thouroughly. (This is easy when the lard is room temperature.) In a separate small bowl, mix the salt and 1/4 C of the flour then add it to the sourdough mixture. Knead it together in the bowl, adding the remaining flour - as much as necessary to make a stiff dough. Cover the bowl with a lid, or place plastic wrap over the dough so that it doesn't dry out. Let it sit at room temperature for 12-24 hours.

After 12-24 hours, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Take a small portion of the dough (about 1/4 cup) and roll it out on a silpat liner until it is very thin. Then brush the dough with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt. (I tried fine sea salt and it really isn't as good as coarse salt.) Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough horizontally and vertically into cracker quadrangles. Place the silpat on the baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until just golden brown. The crackers will shrink and separate while baking.

Notes: I have made a double batch of the dough, the divided it up into 8 portions after the soaking period and froze those so I could make a quick batch of crackers with less lead time. It doesn't take too long to thaw (maybe an hour or so? I took it out of the freezer before we went to church and when we got home it was room temp.) They came out just as good as the other batches and that portion is just right for one sheet.

Lentil Soup with Kale

I just made this tonight and it was yummy. We ate it with grilled cheese sandwiches. I found this recipe in a parenting magazine.

2 tsp. canola oil
1 sm. onion, chopped
1 lg. carrot, peeled and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
16 oz. green or brown lentils
12 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. salt
8 cups chopped kale
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest (I skipped this one)

Heat the oil in a 6-qt. pot over med/high heat. Cook onion, carrot, and celery until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and stir, cooking for another minute or so. Add the broth, lentils, basil, thyme, and salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, add kale, and cover. Simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in lemon juice and zest and serve.

Chicken Piccata

This recipe is from a book called: Not Your Mother's Weeknight Cooking. I made this for Saba and Nana and they asked me to post the recipe, so here it is:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (pounded out to 1/4" thickness)
salt and pepper
1/2 cup all purpose flour or oat flour
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 med. shallot, minced (or 1/4 cup finely diced onion)
1/2 cup chicken broth or dry white wine
1/3 cup lemon juice (2 to 3 lemons)
2 tbsp. chopped, drained capers
2 tbsp. chopped, fresh flat leaf parsley

Sprinkle chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken breasts in flour on both sides.

In large skillet, over med/high heat, melt butter and add olive oil. Saute chicken until golden brown, 2 to 3 min. per side. Remove chicken to a platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

Add shallot to skillet and cook until translucent, 1 min., stirring constantly. Add broth/wine, lemon juice, and capers. Bring to a low boil and stir for a few minutes until reduced and thickened slightly. Return chicken to skillet and partially cover. Spoon sauce over chicken as you lift the lid every few minutes. Simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 5 to 10 minutes, but be careful to not overcook.

Add parsley to sauce, and plate it up.

Whole Wheat Sourdough Blueberry Muffins

This is a somewhat specialized recipe because it requires sourdough starter. What I really like about it though is that it is a recipe for "discarded" starter, not active starter. A great way to keep from drowning in starter and not let it go to waste! I've adapted the recipe to include soaking of the whole wheat flour in order to eliminate phytates and make it more nourishing. I've also subbed out the oil and sugar for healthier alternatives. (I've been making it with a white flour starter, but a whole wheat starter would surely work just as well.)

Adapted from a recipe by Mike Avery.

Ingredients:

1 C sourdough starter (discarded/refrigerated starter)

1 C whole wheat flour (sift flour prior to measuring)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon (optional)

1/4 melted coconut oil or melted butter

1/2 C honey

1 tsp baking soda

~1/2 C blueberries

Method:

In a stand mixer, combine sourdough starter and whole wheat flour. Once the two are thoroughly combined, cover the dough with plastic wrap ensuring that none of it is exposed to the air. Let sit at room temperature for 12-24 hours.

The dough will rise some while it sits. If any of it has gotten exposed to the air and gotten dry, just remove those bits so you don't have little dough nuggets in your final product.

12-24 hours later, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a muffin pan with papers or grease the cups.

In a separate bowl, mix together all other ingredients except for blueberries and baking soda. Then add those to the dough in the mixer's bowl and mix together. Once all the ingredients are mixed and have come together as a batter, sprinkle the baking soda in the bowl and mix batter again briefly to incorporate. Fold in blueberries and scoop into prepared muffin pan.

Bake for 20 min. Makes 8-12 muffins.

I have also made this recipe as pumpkin muffins. Instead of blueberries, mix in 1/2 C pumpkin puree (I add it to the same bowl in which I'm mixing the egg, honey, oil etc.). In addition to the cinnamon, I also added about 1/4 tsp ground cloves, 1/4 tsp ground coriander and 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg. Adjust spices to your liking,