Romano Green Bean And Garbanzo Bean Salad With Basil Pumpkin Seed Pesto And Cherry Tomatoes - Vegan And Gluten Free

Romano beans are an Italian snap bean.

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Romano Beans
If your garden is still producing beans, cherry tomatoes, and basil, here's a salad that I think you'll enjoy!

Romano beans are my favorites. They are Italian snap beans. If you can't find them in the grocery store, try the farmers' market. They are fun and easy to grow too. You can use any kind of green bean in this salad so if you don't have access to Romano beans, just substitute what you have.

Romano green beans

Pesto
Making pesto is a great way to use up that garden basil while you still have it. At the end of the summer, I like to make lots of pesto and I freeze it in 1/2 cup servings. It freezes well, especially when you make it with lemon juice (which I always do) which allows it to keep its color. I use cold-pressed hemp oil when making pesto for a salad and extra virgin olive oil if it's going into a cooked dish. Hemp oil should never be used for cooking as it will destroy the heat-sensitve omega-3 fatty acids.

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Romano and Garbanzo Bean Salad with Pesto and Cherry Tomatoes
Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 6 servings]
Requires a food processor

For the pesto
1 large clove of garlic
1 packed cup fresh basil
1 heaping tablespoon Red Star nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons raw, shelled pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons cold pressed hemp oil or extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste

For the salad
1 pound Romano or other type green bean
1 (15 oz) can no salt added garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup pesto (above)
Salt and black pepper to taste

Run the garlic through the chute of the food processor. Add the basil, nutritional yeast, pumpkin seeds, oil, lemon juice, and salt and process until almost smooth. Set aside.

Pesto ingredients

Processed pesto

Prepare the green beans. Trim the ends and cut in half. Steam until just fork tender, about 5 to 10 minutes. Test occasionally to prevent overcooking.

If the cherry tomatoes are large, cut them in half.

Place cooked green beans, garbanzo beans, cherry tomatoes, and pesto in a large bowl and toss until well combined. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste and serve.

Toss in a large bowl.

Per serving: 176 calories, 7 g total fat, 0.7 g saturated fat, 724 mg omega-3 and 2,636 g omega-6 fatty acids*, 7 g protein, 25 g carbohydrates, 7 g dietary fiber, and 113 mg of sodium**.

*Essential fatty acids do not include any contribution from the nutritional yeast since that information is not available from the manufacturer. 

** The amount of sodium does not include the amount added "to taste". 

Vegan Bell Peppers Stuffed With Orzo, Mushrooms, and Kalamata Olives

Whole wheat orzo makes a nice stuffing for these bell peppers.
There are several gluten-free brands of orzo too.

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It's been a busy 2 days for Doug and I. We harvested over two and a half tons of Pinot noir on our organic vineyard here in Sebastopol. Knowing how little time and energy I'd have to cook after picking all these grapes, I made these stuffed peppers ahead of time for our meals. So if you're looking for a dish to make on Sunday and cook during the work week, try this one out!

Make-ahead meals are important when you
have a busy work week ahead of you!

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Orzo Stuffed Bell Peppers
Vegan, gluten free (with gluten free orzo)
[makes 4 servings]
Requires an 8" x 8" x 4" casserole dish with cover

4 large red bell peppers (4 lobes, 1/2 pound each)
1/2 pound whole wheat or gluten-free orzo
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 pound crimini mushrooms
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
3 medium tomatoes, diced or one (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
1/4 packed cup chopped fresh basil
8 pitted kalamata olives, thinly sliced
1/2 cup Daiya mozzarella shreds*
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

* non-vegans can substitute low-fat mozzarella


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare the peppers. Select big, square peppers with 4 lobes on the bottom so that they will stand up nicely in the casserole dish. 

Square peppers with 4 lobes.

Fill a medium size pot with water and bring to a boil. You will be using this same pot for blanching the peppers, cooking the pasta, and preparing the filling. I hate dirtying too many pots!

Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds. Boil, two at a time, for 2 minutes. Remove the peppers, leaving the boiling water in the pot. Drain the peppers well, and place in the deep casserole dish.

Place hollow, blanched peppers in deep casserole dish.

Bring the water back to a boil, add salt, and cook orzo according to directions. Make al dente.

Drain the orzo, rinse, and set aside. Dry the pot with a towel.

Heat olive oil in the pot and cook the onions for 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook one minute. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until they soften and release moisture, about 5 minutes. Season with black pepper to taste.

Add tomatoes, basil, and kalamata olives to the pot with 1/4 cup of water and stir. If you are using a can of diced tomatoes instead of fresh tomatoes, you do not need to add water. Cook   for a few minutes.

Stir in orzo and mozzarella "cheese." Add salt if needed.

Stuff the peppers with the orzo mixture. You may cover and refrigerate at this point or add 1/2 cup of water to the bottom of the casserole dish, cover and bake in preheated oven until hot and bubbly, about 45 minutes. 

Remove from the oven and serve.

Each stuffed pepper provides 11 grams of protein
and 12 grams of dietary fiber!

Per serving: 375 calories, 9 g total fat, 1.5 g saturated fat, 101 mg omega-3 and 892 mg omega-6 fatty acids*, 0 mg cholesterol, 11 g protein, 103 g carbohydrates, 12 g dietary fiber, and 425 mg sodium.

* Essential fatty acids do not include any contribution from Daiya mozzarella shreds since that information is not available from the manufacturer.


For more delicious recipes, peek inside my eBook, Health Begins in the Kitchen.

No-Cook Tomato Sauce With Garlic And Fresh Basil - Vegan And Gluten Free

No-cook tomato sauce on gluten-free brown rice noodles.

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Garden Tomatoes
Is your garden loaded with ripe tomatoes? Are you looking for ways to enjoy them?
Here's a quick and easy no-cook sauce that you can prepare in less than 30 minutes. And don't leave out the oil!  Good fats, when eaten with foods that contain lycopene (like tomatoes), have been shown to increase serum lycopene levels. Increased lycopene levels have been linked to reduced risk of coronary artery disease. That makes sense since lycopene is fat-souble.

I use a little cold-pressed hemp oil in this recipe for the beneficial omega-3 fatty acid. Hemp oil should never be heated on high temperatures as it will destroy the omega-3. You can also use extra virgin olive oil, especially if you plan to put it over direct heat. I typically use this sauce at room temperature and toss it in with hot pasta.

Tomatoes are rich in lycopene, a carotenoid associated with lowering the risk of coronary artery disease.

  
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No-Cook Tomato Sauce with Garlic and Basil
Raw Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 1 1/2 cups]

1 pound ripe, tomatoes (about 3 good size tomatoes)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 or 2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon cold-pressed hemp or extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Fill a small pot of water and bring to a boil.

Wash the tomatoes. Cut out the stems and score an x on the bottom of each tomato.

Tomatoes with stems cut out and bottoms scored.

Drop the tomatoes in boiling water for 1 minutes to loosen their skins.

Parboiling helps loosen their skins.

Gently remove the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and place in a colander to cool. When they are cool to touch, remove their skins.

Skins peel off easily.

Cut the tomatoes in half horizontally. Holding each half in your hand, over a sink, squeeze out the seeds and some of the juice.

Tomato halves after seeds are removed.

Chop the tomatoes and place them in a bowl with basil, garlic, oil, salt, and pepper.

Chopped tomatoes, garlic, basil, oil, salt and pepper.

Mix to combine.

Ready to eat!

Toss the room-temperature sauce with hot pasta or pour over hot polenta and serve.

Nutritional information: Note that the hemp oil provides more essential fatty acids than the olive oil.

Per one half cup of sauce (with hemp oil): 70 calories, 5 g total fat, 0.3 g saturated fat, 677 mg omega-3 and 2,792 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 1 g protein, 7 g carbohydrates, 2 g dietary fiber, and 202 mg sodium.

 Per one half cup of sauce (with extra virgin olive oil): 70 calories, 5 g total fat, 0.6 g saturated fat, 45 mg omega-3 and 565 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 1 g protein, 7 g carbohydrates, 2 g dietary fiber, and 202 mg sodium.

Vegan, Gluten Free Lasagna Rollups Filled With Tofu Ricotta And Pesto

I prefer rollups over lasagna when cooking for 2 to 4 people.

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Rollups
Lasagna is one of my "go to" meals when I have a crowd. It takes a lot of preparation and I generally make enough to feed a small village. But if I'm only cooking for the 2 of us I don't want to go through that much trouble. Rollups are a good solution as they are much easier to make and 8 of them fit nicely in an 8 inch square pan - enough for 4 servings.

Gluten Free Noodles
If you are on a gluten free diet, you no longer have to skip eating lasagna! I discovered a very nice brown rice lasagna noodle made by Tinkyada. The noodles hold their shape very well and remain al dente even after baking. The only downside is that many of the noodles in the box were broken. I don't know if that was just my luck or if rice noodles are more prone to breakage during shipping. In any case, pick up a spare box for backup. Perhaps that's their marketing strategy to get people to buy more product :-)

Tinkyada gluten free brown rice lasagna noodles.
2 ounces provide:
210 calories
2 g fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 0 g cholesterol
43 g carbohydrates
4 g protein
2 g dietary fiber

Tofu Ricotta
By blending firm tofu with some nutritional yeast, salt and pepper, you end up with a great ricotta substitute. This works well if you are lactose intolerant and can no longer eat cheese. 
If I were making this ricotta for a dish that wasn't also using pesto, I would add some granulated garlic and would pulse in some fresh parsley or basil at the end. For a shot of omega-3, you can also add a flax egg (1 T ground flax seed and 3 tablespoons of water). 

I use Wildwood SprouTofu but any firm tofu will do.

Process until smooth. 

Pesto

The flavor of this dish comes from pesto. You can use any kind you'd like. I happen to have some vegan cilantro pesto left over from a photo shoot so I used that. But basil and walnut pesto (below) would probably be more traditional for a lasagna rollup.

Pesto provides the flavor in this dish. 

Lasagna Rollups filled with Tofu Ricotta and Pesto
Vegan, Gluten Free
Requires Food Processor and 8 inch square pan
[makes 4 servings]

For the rollups
8 gluten free lasagna noodles (or regular noodles if not concerned with gluten)
2 teaspoons salt for water
2 cups prepared  tomato sauce (if sodium is a concern use no salt added)
2 tablespoon fresh basil, sliced
For the ricotta
1 pound firm tofu, drained and cut in 1 inch cubes
2 tablespoons Red Star vegetarian formula nutritional yeast
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
For the pesto
1 clove garlic
1 packed cup fresh basil
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons raw English walnuts
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon Red Star vegetarian formula nutritional yeast
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

Fill a large pot with water and 2 teaspoons of salt. Bring to a boil and cook pasta for several minutes less time than called for so that the noodles are flexible but durable. If using Tinyada, cook for 10 to 13 minutes and not 15 as called for. Rinse in cold water and set aside.

Make the ricotta. Place the tofu, nutritional yeast, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and black pepper in a food processor fitted with an S blade. Process until smooth scraping down the sides when necessary. Place in a bowl and set aside. Clean the food processor so you can make the pesto.

Make the pesto. Place the clove of garlic in the shoot of a running food processor. Add the remaining pesto ingredients and process until smooth scraping down the sides when necessary. Set aside.

To make the rollups, place 1 cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of an 8 inch square baking dish.

Place a cooked noodle on a flat surface. Spread 1/8th of the tofu ricotta over one side of the entire lasagna noodle. Then spread 1/8th of the pesto over the ricotta. Roll up the noodle and place in the pan with the seam of the noodle facing down. Repeat until all the noodles are filled and in the pan.

Spread tofu ricotta over the noodle.

Then spread pesto over the ricotta and roll it up.

8 rollups fit perfectly in an 8 inch square pan.
Cover with the remaining sauce and bake.

Cover the rollups with the remaining 1 cup of tomato sauce. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and bake in the oven until hot and bubbly, about 45 minutes.

Remove the foil and top with sliced basil and serve.

After baking, top with fresh basil and serve.
Two rollups is one serving.

Per serving: 425 calories, 15.7 g fat, 1.8 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 17.4 g protein, 54.1 g carbohydrates, 5.8 g dietary fiber and 336 mg sodium (sodium is calculated using no salt added tomato sauce).