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Italian-Inspired Chickpea Salad

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An incredibly bold and lively Italian-Inspired Chickpea Salad from Frances McCormack, this takes just minutes to make andis served with a Wholegrain Mustard and Balsamic Dressing. Packed with flavour, this makes a great sandwich spread or topping for a bed of greens. Serves 1 as a large salad, or 2 as a side or sandwich spread.

Ingredients:
For the salad
1 can chickpeas, drained and minced
1 roasted red pepper (I used one from a jar), finely diced
3 sundried tomatoes, finely chopped
8 black olives, finely chopped
Large bunch basil, chiffonaded

For the dressing
1 tbsp suitable-for-vegans wholegrain mustard
1 tsp maple syrup
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Mash the chickpeas. Mix with all of the salad ingredients.
2. Whisk the dressing ingredients together. Season to taste.
3. Toss the salad with the dressing, a little at a time, tasting as you go (I used all of the dressing, but I like bold flavours).

Chickpeas, kale, and kamut with red pepper, olives, and capers

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Dressed with garlic, chili and tamari, this is a simple, vibrant dish with no added oil or sugar but lots of flavour.

Ingredients

For the chickpeas, kale and kamut
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup kamut
2 cups green kale, stemmed and coarsely chopped
2 red peppers (about 1 1/2 cups), 1/2″ dice
1 cup cooked chickpeas

For the dressing
2 scallions, minced
1T fresh garlic, minced
1T tamari
1T lemon juice
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1T kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1T pickled capers, minced
1t nori flakes
1t purple dulse flakes
2T cold-milled brown flax seed
1/4t dried red chilis (or to taste)
Coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste

Optional: Chopped walnuts, sliced ripe pear, clementines, sauteed mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, will all add flavor, texture and nuance to this dish. Roasting the chickpeas separately with a little tamari and chili or the dulse and nori will also add nuance.

Directions

In a small sauce pan with a lid, toast the kamut for 2-3 minutes. Add the water and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer until the water is absorbed and the kamut is soft by nicely chewy (expect about 1 hour). You could reduce cooking time a little by soaking the grain overnight.

While the kamut is finishing up, assemble the kale, red pepper and kale in a large bowl. When the kamut is ready, increase heat to medium high, add the scallions and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the garlic, and stir fry for 1 minute. Add the chickpeas, toss to coat, and stir fry for another minute. Add the lemon and tamari. Deglaze the pan. Remove from heat. Add the remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Add the kamut and chickpeas to the kale and red peppers and toss to combine.

Let stand 5 minutes to wilt the kale lightly. Season to taste. Dish out and serve.

 

 

Sweet, spicy tempeh stuffed agnolotti pasta with kale, kalamata olives, garlic and avocado oil

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A relatively straightforward, sturdy and richly flavoured stuffed pasta dish. This is an ‘al plin’ variation for agnolotti. The recipe makes an appetizer portion for 4 or a filling bowl or 2.

Ingredients

For the pasta dough
1 cup semolina flour
1t tapioca starch
A pinch baking powder
1/3 cup heaping warm (but not hot) water

For the filling
1/4 cup water
1T sun-dried tomatoes, minced (dehydrated, not jarred)
1t dried herbs de Provence, rubbed
1/2T fresh garlic, minced
1 scallion, minced
125g tempeh (use pasteurized)
1/4 cup soft, dried dates, pitted and minced (I use medjool)
1t sriracha (or similar and/or to taste)
1t balsamic vinegar
2T bread crumbs
2T nutritional yeast
Coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste

For the sauce
2T avocado oil
1/4t coarse sea salt
2 cups green curly kale, coarsely chopped
1T kalamata olives
1/2T fresh garlic, minced
Coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste

Optional: Replace the water for the filling with vegetable stock if you prefer. If you prefer, saute the kale without the oil, but in that case, I would recommend 2 tablespoons of olives for a little extra flavour. Add a tablespoon avocado oil to the filling for a richer taste and mouth feel. Garnish with some sun-dried tomatoes, scallions, or capers for additional flavour and nutrition, but keep it simple. Agnolotti are a fairly sturdy pasta — so, heavier sauces will also work but traditionally, the flavour goes into the filling.

Method

Start the filling, then the pasta, then the sauce.

In a large frying pan with a lid, bring the water to a light boil. Add all of the ingredients up to and including the sriracha. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes or until most of the water has been absorbed, stirring periodically.

While the filling simmers, mix the dry ingredients for the pasta dough. Add the water. Mix, then knead until a solid dough forms, and then another minute or so. Let rest about 10 minutes covered in the bowl with a warm, wet tea towl.

At the 15 minute mark, uncover, increase heat to medium and saute for another 5 – 10 minutes until the pan is starting to brown. Add vinegar and deglaze the pan. Add the bread crumbs and nutritional yeast. Stir to combine and set aside to cool while you roll out the pasta.

Break the pasta into 2 – 3 pieces. Keep the dough you’re not using moist with the tea towel. Roll the dough out to about 3″ x 14″ strips, about 1/8″ thick. Fill the sheet width-wise in a solid line, about 1″ in diameter, about 1 1/2″ down from the top. Leave 1 1/2″ from the left side and 1 1/2″ on the right unfilled.

Carefully fold the top of the pasta toward you just over the filling, leaving about 1/2″ or so of dough at the bottom. Press the top of the dough into bottom of the dough with the flat of your index fingers to form a consistent seal. Pinch the unfilled left and right sides.

You’ll now have a long tube of filled dough. Using your index fingers and your thumbs, pinch the agnolotti in (6) 1″ pieces vertically, creating about 1 1/2″ inch of dough in between each agnolloti. Pinch firmly. The pinch, the small amount of filling and the dough, along with the cut is what seals the pasta.

Trim the three sides of folded dough with a pasta cutter. Separate each agnolotti with the pastry cutter with a cut through the pressed dough in between each. With your thumbs and index fingers carefully press the pinched pieces of dough down at the sides (completing the fold).

Let the agnolotti dry a few minutes while you bring the water to a boil. I use the saute pan to boil my agnolotti so that the pasta picks up some of the flavour from the filling, but use a fresh pan if you prefer.

When the water has reached a light boil, add the pasta, swirl the pan, and simmer gently for about 3 – 5 minutes. The agnolotti will float when done. Don’t overcook.

Drain carefully, reserving 2T pasta water in the frying pan. Return the frying pan to heat on medium high. Add the kale and remaining ingredients. Stir fry for 2 – 3 minutes or until the kale is lightly wilted and a vibrant green. Rinse the agnolotti with warm water and add to the pan, stirring gently to pick up the sauce.

Remove from heat, bowl out, garnish and serve.

Sun-dried tomato scones with olives, figs, and green herbs

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Made with miso and cashew butter, these are a simple treat good for a snack, small sandwiches or other uses.

Ingredients

The wet ingredients
3T cashew butter
1T white vinegar (or to taste)
1T unpasteurized sauerkraut vinegar
1/4 cup unsweetened plant milk
1T white miso

The dry ingredients
1 cup bread flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1t baking powder
A pinch baking soda
1/2T herbes de Provence (or similar)
1t garlic powder

The garnish
2T sun-dried tomatoes, chopped and rehydrated with 3T boiling water
3T figs, finely diced
1T kalamanta olives, pitted and chopped
Coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste

Optional: The crumb will be light and closer to foccaccia in some ways than to a traditional dense but flaky scone.
If you prefer, bake as a in a very well-oiled 3″x9″ loaf pan. Black olives will also work fine in this. White miso will produce a lighter crumb, while red produces a richer flavour and a darker coloured crumb. Balsamic vinegar will produce a slightly sweeter and darker scone.

Method

Rehydrate the tomatoes with the boiling water. When the tomatoes are getting close to room temperature, whisk the wet ingredients together (adding the ingredients in order) until smooth. Chill both the tomatoes and the wet ingredients in freezer for about 20 minutes.

At the 30 minute mark, preheat the oven to 425F.
Combine the dry ingredients. Add them to a small food processor. Add 2T figs, 2T rehydrated sun-dried tomatoes (i.e., leaving a little of each for garnish) and 1/2T olives, the wet ingredients and the sun-dried tomato soaking water.

Pulse blend until a dough forms. Mix in the remaining figs and sun-dried tomatoes, handling the dough as little as possible. Press into a 3″ x 9″ loaf pan and chill covered with plastic wrap for about 30 minutes.

Turn out the dough. Press the remaining olives into the top, gently. Cut into 3″ squares. Cut each square in half at a 45 degree angle. To bake, use a baking sheet lined with baking paper preferably, or a very lightly oiled baking sheet or a baking sheet lightly dusted with fine corn meal
if necessary.

Bake on the middle rack for about 12 – 14 minutes or until the scones are lightly browned. Remove from heat and let cool on a wire rack until ready and serve.