Hidden Legumes + Simple Summer Fare

The increasingly summery weather where I live has been leading me to crave things I've never craved before. This time around, specifically: soba noodle salad. I've never had a soba noodle salad, nor have I ever had any desire to try one. But when a naturopath friend told me to try cutting wheat out of my diet for awhile (much harder than it sounds), the cogs in my little brain began to turn and being aware that soba noodles are traditionally (and conveniently) made from buckwheat (not technically wheat!) - well, everything just fit right into place.

The ones I found were a combination of spelt (which I happen to have a strange and inexplicable affinity for) and buckwheat. The recipe I ended up making was the bastard child of about seven or eight different soba noodle salads I found through Foodgawker and Tastespotting. It was DELICIOUS! Light, tasty, satisfying and overall, healthy! It even got a rave review from my mum, who is very French and spurns food that is not carb, cheese, meat or booze-laden, and has trouble understanding the way I eat (save for my outrageous sweet tooth, which I must have inherited from her).

My Super Soba Salad

Ingredients:

 For the salad:

- handful of soba noodles

- 1 bunch dino or black kale

- 1 minced garlic clove

- 1 carrot, peeled + grated

- 3-4 brown mushrooms, washed and sliced

- 1/2 small onion, minced finely

- 2 t tahini or sesame oil

- 4 t soy sauce

- 1-2 t honey or agave

- small chunk cucumber

- shredded pre-cooked chicken breast

- toasted sesame seeds

 For the dressing:

- 2 t rice wine vinegar

- 3 t soy sauce

- 2 large t miso paste (dark or light)

- 1 t sesame oil

- 1.5 t safflower oil

- 1.5 t sambal oelek

- 1/2 T agave

- 1 t minced ginger

Cook the soba noodles as instructed by package. Place in ice bath or thoroughly rinse with cold water directly after straining. Strain again and set aside. 

Wilt the kale in a skillet with some garlic and oil. Set aside.

In the same skillet, add the onions, tahini, soy sauce, and honey + stir over medium heat for a couple of minutes. Add the brown mushrooms + stir until a thick sauce forms and the mushrooms are softened.

Place mushrooms, kale, noodles, grated carrot, and a few bits of chopped cucumber in a bowl. Mix all dressing ingredients together in a cup and pour over salad. Mix well.

Place salad in bowls and top with shredded chicken and toasted sesame seeds. 

Devour.

Another thing I've been loving these days are STRAWBERRIES!! Organic strawberries. Big fat juicy ones. I've been spending way too much money on these but god, it's worth it. There's nothing like something like the beauties below to end a meal on a light, sweet note.

Topped with some of my lactose-free-but-just-as-fluffy coconut whipped cream (1 can thoroughly chilled full-fat coconut milk whipped in a thoroughly chilled bowl with thoroughly chilled beaters - add icing sugar to taste and, if needed, a few T coconut flour to achieve desired consistency). Then add some lemon or lime zest to really make the strawberries' sweetness pop. Oh momma!

Last, but certainly not least, I'd like to address another strange fascination that's come over me recently (almost, but not quite, on par with my soba noodle salad craving). This fascination involves legumes. Specifically, legumes in baking. I'd been wanting to try some version of the adzuki bean brownies I've seen floating around the interweb for some time now - I even went so far as to buy a sack of adzuki beans from my local grocery store - but that involved cooking the beans themselves which is not something you have patience for when you want a chocolate dessert NOW!

So I opted instead for black bean brownies, where I could use a can of pre-cooked black beans (lazy, I know, but delicious nonetheless). After again making a bastard child out of a few internet recipes, I wound up with the below pan of peanut-studded fudgy-as-hell black bean brownies.

Please ignore the ugly knife score marks - I'm still learning to photograph food BEFORE mangling it.
 

While these did not have the chewy, half-baked cakey texture I like in a brownie they were a) dead easy (I mean, come on: place all ingredients in food processor, pulse, and pour into pan? Totally awesome), b) low in fat, high in fiber, flourless, milkless, and c) SUPER CHOCOLATEY.

I found that they were best eaten once refrigerated for awhile, and topped with either peanut butter, hazelnut butter, or cajeta (Mexican goat milk caramel), and with a warm mug of coffee or tea. Again, a nice light dessert that fulfills my every chocolate + legume desire.

Fudgy Black Bean Brownie Recipe

Ingredients:

1 can reduced sodium black beans

3/4 cup cane sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder (I used Fry's)
1 tsp salt
3 eggs
  3 Tablespoons avocado oil (you can use canola or safflower also)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon instant coffee 

Optional:

Peanuts

Walnuts

Any other kind of nut that floats your boat

Chocolate Chips

Marshmallows

Etc.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease or oil an 8 x 8" pan.

Thoroughly rinse and drain the beans.

Place all ingredients except your optionals (nuts, chocolate chips, marshmallows, etc.) in a food processor. Blend + scrape sides of bowl until batter is smooth.

Pour batter into pan and top with optionals.

Bake for 20-30 minutes until they look dry and dark around the edges.

Cool completely before cutting and devouring :)

 

I'm curious: how do you feel about legumes in baking? Does it totally turn you off or are you indifferent? I have to admit, I had a hard time getting my family to eat these once I made the mistake of revealing the 'secret ingredient'... despite their having professed a liking for them beforehand.


Ah well, their loss ;)