September 2002    Vol. 1   No. 9
 
Recipes

FALL GARDEN BOUNTY SOUP

As the days turn cooler, I like to make soup for dinner.  Soups are the perfect one pot meal.  All you need for dinner is a hearty soup and a great loaf of fresh whole grain bread.  This is also the time of year that many gardens have an abundance of vegetables ready to harvest for your soup.  This soup can easily be varied to contain whatever is most prolific in your garden this year.  This also reheats well and freezes well.

Preparation Time:  45 minutes
Cooking Time:  60 minutes
Servings:  8

½ cup water
1 onion, chopped
2-3 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds
2 stalks celery, sliced
3 cups chopped Roma tomatoes (about 12)
6 cups vegetable broth
1  15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1  15-ounce can small white beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cups sliced zucchini
2 cups small cauliflower florets
2 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
2 cups thinly sliced Swiss chard
½ cup small uncooked pasta
¼ cup slivered fresh basil
several twists freshly ground black pepper

Place the water, onion, garlic, carrots, and celery in a large soup pot.  Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.  Add tomatoes, broth, beans, and soy sauce.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.  Add zucchini, cauliflower, and cabbage.  Continue to cook for 15 minutes.  Add Swiss chard and pasta and cook for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, or until pasta is done.  Stir in fresh basil and pepper.

Serve hot.

 

BARBECUED BEAN SALAD

This is a fast and delicious salad that can be served in many different ways.  It can be eaten plain as a side dish, as a topping for chilled greens, such as spinach or lettuce, stuffed into a pita bread with some fresh chopped greens, or rolled up in a wrap plain, with barbecued tofu (see recipe below), or with greens.  To use home cooked beans in this recipe, cook your beans in a pressure cooker or on the stove and use about 1 ½ cup cooked beans for each can of beans called for.  This may also be made with other variations of beans, choose all one kind or a mixture of different beans.

Preparation Time:  15 minutes
Chilling Time:  2 hours
Servings:  4-6

1  15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1  15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1  15-ounce can white beans, drained and rinsed
½ cup diced sweet onion
1 stalk celery, diced
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
½ cup bottled oil-free barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
dash salt

Place beans in a large bowl.  Add vegetables and mix well.  Add remaining ingredients and toss again to mix.  Refrigerate to blend flavors.

Hint:  To use fresh corn instead of frozen, cook two ears of corn until tender.  Cool.  Slice from cob and use as directed above.

 

TEXAS BARBECUE WRAP

Heather came up with this idea when we had some of the Barbecued Bean Salad in the refrigerator.  We all agreed it was wonderful!  This is also a great lunch idea because it is just as delicious cold as it is warm.  Take all the ingredients in separate containers and assemble just before eating.

Preparation Time:  10 minutes
Cooking Time:  45 minutes
Servings:  4-6

1 pound firm tofu, drained (not silken)
1 cup oil-free barbecue sauce
¼ cup salsa (optional)
2-3 cups Barbecue Bean Salad (recipe above)
1 avocado, thinly sliced (optional)
2 cups leafy greens torn into bite sized pieces (lettuce or spinach)
8-10 fat-free tortillas
Barbecue sauce or salsa as desired

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the drained tofu into ¼ inch thick slices.  Mix the barbecue sauce and salsa together.  Lay the tofu slices in the bottom of a non-stick baking dish in a single layer.  Pour the sauce over the tofu, then flip and turn until the tofu is well covered with the sauce.  Place the tofu in the oven and bake uncovered for about 25 minutes, then turn all the tofu over and continue to bake for another 20 minutes, or until the sauce has cooked into the tofu and the tofu is no longer soft.  Remove from oven and slice tofu into bite-sized strips.

To assemble, warm a tortilla, spread some of the bean salad down the center of the tortilla, add a few strips of tofu, some greens, avocado, and sauce, if desired.  Roll up and eat.

 

MCDOUGALL WRAPS

We always have many kinds of “wrappers” in our kitchen, stored in the refrigerator or freezer.  Tortillas are the most common wrappers, but lavash, a long, thin, soft flatbread, also works well to roll around a variety of fillings.  Pita bread may be used in place of any of these wrappers, the filling is just stuffed inside the pita.  Look for tortillas, lavash, or pita that are made with healthy ingredients (no animal products or added oil).  You should be able to find at least a few varieties of these no matter where you live.  Wraps are easy to eat warm or cold, and there is little clean-up afterward.  The fillings and vegetables may be varied as desired, so there is always something new to try. Almost any filling works well in a wrap, although I have been making a variety of bean fillings for years.  Beans are very versatile and adapt well to many different seasonings.  Our favorite bean burrito meal is actually a wrap meal.  We use cooked, mashed pinto beans (cooked with chopped onion and whole garlic cloves) as the filling, then layer on the onions, tomatoes, sprouts, lettuce, and salsa, roll up and eat!

General assembly instructions: Take a large tortilla, spread some of the filling mixture down the center of the tortilla, layer with assorted stuffings such as tomatoes, onions, shredded carrots, sprouts, cabbage lettuce, etc.  Fold the bottom of the tortilla up over the filling, roll the sides over, pick up, and eat.  Or after rolling tightly, slice into pinwheels and use as an appetizer (this works very well with the larger lavash wraps).

 

SPICY GARBANZO PINWHEELS

I received an e-mail from a woman who had attended one of our classes in Santa Rosa many years ago asking me if I remembered the roll-ups we served at the class.  She wanted the recipe for the roll-ups because she hoped to serve them at a party she was giving.  These were always a favorite at our classes and they are easy to make.

Preparation Time:  30 minutes
Chilling Time:  2 hours
Servings:  variable

1  15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
2 green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 ½ tablespoons grated fresh ginger
½ teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
½ teaspoon honey (optional)
dash hot sauce, if desired
fat-free tortillas
shredded carrots
grated red cabbage
alfalfa sprouts
green onions

Combine the beans, 2 green onions, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar, honey, and hot sauce to taste in a food processor and process until smooth.  Refrigerate before using to allow flavors to blend.  Adjust seasonings, if necessary, after mixture has been refrigerated for at least 1 hour.

Spread the garbanzo mixture on the bottom of a large tortilla, almost to the edge.  Layer with shredded carrots, grated red cabbage, alfalfa sprouts, and julienned green onions.  Roll up tightly like a log, then slice into thick pinwheels, about 1 ½ inches thick.  Serve cold or at room temperature.

Hint:  If you are making these ahead of time, do not slice until shortly before serving.  Roll the logs into parchment paper, then roll tightly in foil.  Keep in the refrigerator until ready to slice.

This garbanzo spread also makes a delicious sandwich filling, dip for vegetables or crackers, or a stuffing for pita bread.

 

©2002 John McDougall All Rights Reserved