Some weeks my budget gets a bit snug, but I don't want to give up eating a healthy, delicious plant diet. This week is one of those weeks with three new sets of tires, travel expenses, and so forth. What to do? I remember a lecture given by Dr. Fuhrman. He told us if we don't have enough money for all the fresh produce to eat more beans. I have a fantastic food storage and well-stocked pantry. With a less than $20 dollars spent on apples, spinach, and cabbage plus parsley and kale from under the snow, I'm in business.
A snug budget isn't the only problem. When we drove back into town after spending some time in the Pacific NW at our daughter's wedding, we were greeted with 6 inches of snow and 12F temps. Knowing this meant a darth of fresh greens in Walmartville, I started soaking seeds and beans for indoor micro greens and sprouts after I unpacked the car. I planted my first trays this morning. I should have sprouts by tomorrow or the next day and greens in about 6-8 days.
I started a pot of pinto beans slow cooking yesterday for nori burritos, chili potatoes, and taco salad. Am cooking a pot of white beans in the sun oven today for Crema di cannellini, Fagioli all'Uccelletto over Polenta, Pasta Fagoli, and Tuscan white bean and kale soup. Finally, a pot of piatto pavoro and another of pumpkin tomato basil soup. All this peasant/king food will feed us well for the next 10-14 days. By then the greens in our square inch farm will be producing like gang busters for salads and smoothies.
You may notice, I don't add salt to my dishes. This is for stroke protection. You may or may not want to follow my lead.
Crema di Cannellini
3 garlic cloves, pressed
dried rosemary ( I put this in a spice grinder to powder. Otherwise it is like pine needles.)
cooked white beans
cooked brown rice
1/8 t. lemon peel
pepper
A handful of parsley, finely chopped
fresh spinach
I love this dish because I can use as much or as little of each thing according to my pantry.
Put everything except rice, parsley, and spinach in the blender with add enough bean broth to thin out the bean purée to the desired consistency. Stir in the rice, chopped parsley, and spinach. Return to heat long enough to wilt spinach.
Fagioli all’uccelletto over Polenta
2 c. cooked white beans
1/2 c. dry polenta, soaked in 2 c. lime water
1/4 t. dried sage
1 small onion, pureed
3 cloves of garlic, pressed
1pt. tomatoes, pureed
A handful of parsley, finely chopped
fresh spinach
Over the lowest heat, cook onions, garlic, and sage, cooking until golden about 20 min. Add tomatoes and beans, continuing to cook for 20 minutes. During last 2 min add parsley and spinach.
In a large pot bring the polenta to a boil, whisking continually. Turn the heat to low and cook, stirring often until the polenta thickens and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Turn out onto 3-4 plates to cool slightly.
When beans are ready, ladle over the plates of polenta. Garnish with a few twists of freshly ground black pepper and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.
Piatto Povoro
4 medium potatoes (or) 1-2 c. cooked brown rice, added at end of cooking time
1 large onion, pureed
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 small head cabbage, chopped
1 t. savory
1 t. basil
1 pt. tomatoes
2 c. cooked white beans
4 c. onion or vegetable broth
pepper
apple cider vinegar
A handful of parsley, finely chopped
Over low heat, cook garlic and onions until golden about 2o min. Add cabbage, potatoes, tomatoes, broth, and herbs. Simmer for 60 min. Put in bowls. Stir 1t. apple cider vinegar into each bowl. Top with a couple twists of pepper and a bit of parsley.
Pumpkin Tomato Basil Soup (I'll omit the mushrooms and zucchini this time and leave some of the white beans whole.)
1 small sugar pumpkin, seeded, peeled, and cut in chunks.
2 pts. diced tomato
4 c. onion or vegetable broth
8 carrots, peeled and grated
3 cloves garlic
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
12 oz. mushrooms, sliced
2 T. minced fresh basil or 2 t. dried
1 bunch kale, chopped finely
2-3 small zucchini, chopped
pinch cayenne pepper
1 c. cooked white beans
Put all ingredients except mushrooms, kale, basil, chia seeds, and beans in a crock pot on low heat for 4-6 hours. When pumpkin is very soft, put beans, a small amount of the broth, and chia seeds in the blender, and puree. When this is smooth, puree the rest of the soup in batches, returning it to the pot. Add basil and kale. Dry saute mushrooms and zucchini covered with 1 t. dried basil until golden. Ladle soup into bowls and top with mushroom mixture as you would croutons. Soup freezes well without kale, mushrooms or zucchini. Add them fresh, after thawing and warming
