Saturday 20 July 2013

Black Bean, Beetroot, Almond, Chocolate Brownie

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This is my take two on black bean-beetroot brownies. Take one is here. This husband likes this version better than the previous.

Ingredients
  1. 1.5 cups Cooked black beans, mushed up in a blender 
  2. 2 cups Soaked and ground up almonds 
  3. 1.5 cups Beetroot, cooked and ground up
  4. 1 cup Dutch processed unsweetend chocolate powder
  5. 4 Eggs
  6. Stevia to taste
  7. Oil for lining pan
  8. A pinch of salt
  9. Baking powder, a pinch
  10. Baking soda, a pinch


Method:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Mix 1 through 4 together
  3. Break the four eggs into the mixture and incorporate
  4. Add stevia and salt and taste to make sure they are in the right proportions
  5. Line a 9"x9" pan with aluminum foil and dribble some oil on it
  6. Bake for 45 minutes or until done.
Made 25,  2"x2" brownie. Texture was almost crisp rather than moist.
Total Macro Nutrients:
Protein: 118 gms
Carbs: 119 gms
Fat: 167.9 gms

Macro Nutrients per piece:
Protein: 4.3 gms
Carbs: 4.76 gms
Fat: 6.716 gms

For a dessert, I suppose this is not too bad. Top with berries or berry compote for added flavor/style/fun




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Thursday 18 July 2013

Subtly flavored, Mediterranean inspired, Tempeh Stuffed Hungarian Peppers

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Did that name make your mouth cramp up? Well, you have treat in store for you. I am so glad I came up with this recipe. It makes two things easy: getting some vegetarian protein and eating zucchini. I hate zucchini. Not anymore. I use it as a sauce thickener.

Ingredients:

  1. 2 Packets of Tempeh -- finely chopped or crumbled
  2. 8 Hungarian wax peppers (they are not sweet, and I like that)
  3. 2 medium sized zuchinis or 1.5 biggish zucchini -- peeled and finely chopped
  4. One medium sized onion -- chopped
  5. 5 garlic pods -- minced
  6. 1 cup loosely packed fresh lemon basil -- (you can even add more)
  7. 1 tbsp dried rosemary -- crushed.
  8. Whole black pepper corns -- to taste
  9. Some chili powder or paprika -- to taste
  10. Olive oil
  11. 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
  12. Almond milk -- may be about a cup or more (you will have to adjust on the fly)
The Method:
  1. Heat some oil in a pan and saute the tempeh until crisp.
  2. Add the lemon basil and a little more oil and saute some more.
  3. Set aside, once the lemon basil gives up its aroma and wilts a bit.
  4. Add some crushed pepper and a little salt to above.
  5. May be around now, you can preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
  6. Heat the pan again with some oil 
  7. Add 5 or 6 pepper corns whole and wait for it to pop. This will happen only if the oil is sufficiently hot.
  8. Reduce heat and drop the garlic and crushed rosemary
  9. Once the garlic is translucent and aromatic, add the onions, salt, chili powder, rosemary and some crushed pepper. 
  10. Add the chopped zucchini and the almond milk. And let the zucchini really become soft. 
  11. You can keep mashing the zucchini which will pretty much liquify it. 
  12. Check for taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
  13. Check for consistency (we are going for something like the roux here) and add almond milk or oil if needed.
  14. Toss the fried up tempeh into this, add some balsamic vinegar and cook till incorporated. Add only enough balsamic vinegar to make the flavor have more depth than salt and heat, but not too much to make it very vinegary.
  15. Cut the top off the Hungarian peppers and remove the rind and seeds. 
  16. Stuff the tempeh mixture into the peppers -- pack it real tight
  17. Line a baking tray with aluminum foil and set the peppers on it. 
  18. Dribble some oil on each of these
  19. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes.
  20. Enjoy -- here is a picture of the stuffed peppers, before it was baked.


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Wednesday 17 July 2013

Hot Temps and Red Hot Pokers

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When it is around 2 Million degrees outside, you really can't do any more gardening. Not much outdoor projects. All you want to do is sit inside some air conditioned building. But, these guys have been tempting me to go out anyway.

Lilium stargazers! The high point of my garden in July. With their divine fragrance and their happy faces, they just perk you right up, no matter how blue you are feeling.

So I brought some of these babies in:

They were borne on teeny, tiny plants. So removing the flowers will help the bulbs grow bigger and next year I will have more from them.

These are a special treat for me this year, because last year, the contractor we hired to re-do our siding, totally crushed most of these plants. I had to scramble to save the few that I did. I am glad this many of them actually made it.


Notice the white one on the far end? That was a surprise. Did not even know I had a white one! Did it mutate or something? Anyway, it smells divine and looks beautiful and that's good enough for me.

Meanwhile in the front garden, the red hot pokers (or torch lilies or kniphofias) are holding forth, looking like the current temperature map of US!

These are supposed to be deer proof. I think they are too. But the little one in the deer family that lives near my home, never got the memo. He/she gnawed out the first of these blooms. He/she not come back for seconds!


I think some baby deer in the vicinity got told off my Mommy dearest to never go eating every bright thing it sees! Heh! 


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