Beans + Spicedrawer
Tonight is the last day of the month. My cupboards are looking cleared. out. Tonight I emptied the fridge, a can, and the spice cabinet into this little action. I guess it doesn’t really matter what you put in this. Its all hung on the magical wonderful mystical powers inside a can of beans. Black, cannellini, chickpeas, black eye peas… so versatile (ps: get over the healthclub pride of soaking and cooking your own beans dudes. There is no shame in canned legumes). Ultimately, whatever herb you have, whatever spice or veggies you have… warm them up with some beans and PLENTY of Olive Oil and you are good to go. For a quick-ass dinner alone, you can’t beat this type of stuff. Chickpeas don’t just looks like little mini chickens they are high in protein, zinc and dietary fiber. And they have the unique honor of being a great source of carbohydrates for those with diabetes (and they are low in fat). So let the olive oil flow darlings (beans and olive oil are best friends), and stick with the agave. Its gluten free, low carb, dairy free, vegan, low sodium and sugar free. Who can’t eat this? No, seriously, who?
Roast Chickpeas with Raisins
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and well rinsed
- a scant grab-full golden raisins (1/4 cup)
- 3 glugs of olive oil
- two smashed/chopped garlic cloves
- a glug of red wine vinegar
- a slice or two of left over red pepper (that I had in the freezer)
- a few scrapes of lime zest
- a pinch of each (or other relations): turmeric, cyan pepper, garam masala, mustard seed, cumin
- salt and peppa
Toss everything together in a pan and put it in a 375 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until the raisins are plump and browning but not burnt. If you don’t have a spice cabinet full of mystery like I do: it is most important for you to throw in the cumin. If you have garam masalla just that is perfect.
Cucumber Salsa Stuff
- a half cucumber, seeded, peeled and chopped
- a grab of cilantro
- a drop of Sambal
- a glug of Agave
- a glug of rice wine vinegar
- pinch of salt
- the mild green part of a green onion
Toss this mess together and serve chilled along with the roasted Chickpea mess. Drizzle with olive oil. If you are a bread eater, you can use that as a shovel.
god i envy you having time for these delicious niceties. come fall, we need to (per tim butterfield’s suggestion) have a sunday supper club – tupperware and a dish to share…we’re all good for the week.
I’ll forward this to your uncle. He will pick up on your covert “I love you” encoded in Chickpeas.
I am making a 16th c. English Feast for my “England in the Age of Reform Class” and came across a fabulous spice in one of the cookbooks called powder fort.
Powder Fort:
1 part cloves
1 part mace
1 part cubebs (allspice works as a sub)
7 parts black peppercorns
7 parts ginger (dry)
7 parts cinnamon
grind the ingredients down fine and you’ll have a great spice with some wicked kick. We used this spice for an appulmoy dish (i.e. homemade applesauce with almond milk and powder fort) and also in a fig and raisin dish. Very tasty.
Not sure if powder fort would be great with beans, but I love the spirit of passionate spicing behind these recipes.
Actually, I couldn’t eat this, but leave out the red pepper and I’m there! Nightshades are bad for people with arthritis – potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. I cannot live without potatoes. I miss eggplant. I find it impossible to avoid tomato products. That little New World wonder has permeated the entire globe. Peppers, I do not miss at all. They make my joints throb, so they can burn in hell!
My mother has mentioned the same thing to me about her arthritis. Do you know if you can have sweet potatoes? Those are not a nightshade are they?
Sweet potatoes, squash, yams, etc., are fine and a good substitute for potatoes. I tried some sweet potato fries that we found in the frozen food section one time, but they were coated in potato starch, so kinda defeated the purpose. One has to read the fine print.