Chickpea Blondies

 Yes, chickpeas and chocolate is a thing!

These "blondies" are quick and easy to make and can be vegan too, if you like.

Turn on the oven to 180 degrees

In to a food processor put:

2 cans chickpeas or white beans, drained and dried off with a clean tea towels or paper towels.

2/3 cup of maple syrup (rice syrup or honey).

2/3 cup of smooth peanut butter (or almond butter).

2/3 cup of spelt flour or a mix of flour and ground almonds.

2 tsps baking powder and a large pinch of salt.

1 dsp of vanilla

Blend all together until smooth.

Remove the blade and stir in 1/2 cup of chocolate chips- good quality dark chocolate is best.

Spoon in to a small tin lined with baking paper. Sprinkle over a few more chocolate drops and press in to the mix gently

Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and cooked.

Cool well before removing or cutting.

Green Falafel

 These green falafel are just brilliant! Entirely flexible in the making, full of greens and so tasty.

So different to any other falafel I have ever come across. Based on a Jamie Oliver recipe, but I have made some additions- like loads of onion weed and wild greens. 

A food processor is a good idea as my poor little stick blender was pushed to it's limit in being asked to blend everything.

1 1/2 cups of any of these, or a mixture: frozen green peas, broad beans or edamame

1/3 cup of chickpea (or plain if you prefer) flour- organic is best for texture. 1/3 tsp baking powder.

A whole pile of wild or other greens such as onion weed, puha, spinach, dandelion leaves, beach beet, nettles, nasturtium leaves, coriander etc

A large handful of fresh mint. 

Salt, pepper & the magic ingredient- a preserved lemon. I dare say you could just add some zest if you don't have a preserved lemon on hand.

1 tsp black cumin seeds or regular cumin. 1/2 cup of either chickpeas or butter beans etc (canned). 

Add a slug of olive oil and process until it all comes together and is green!

Fry in a little olive oil until golden. 

Preserved lemons are very easy to make.

Just cut up a few lemons removing seeds as you go & fill a jar with the wedges sprinkling salt over the layers- 1 tsp salt to each lemon. Packing firmly. Pop on the lid & leave for a week to process.

You can also do limes and oranges this way.

Aquafaba Mayonnaise

Ok, so this sounds like the weirdest thing ever and honestly- what the heck is an aquafaba?
Well it's what you make with the liquid left over from cooking chickpeas or the liquid that's in the tin with chickpeas when you open a can, and it's brilliant!
A light, great tasting and versatile mayonnaise that keeps really well & only takes a few minutes too make.
I simply strain off the liquor from a tin of chickpeas, or use half a cup of the cooking liquid if you made them yourself. Cold would be best, rather than warm.
Then in to a blender (or use a hand mixer) add:
~ A tbsp of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, or infused apple cider vinegar
~ salt, pepper, a good spoonful of wholegrain mustard
~ Any fresh herbs that you like
~ 1 tbsp honey

Blend for a few minutes until frothy, then slowly drizzle in about a 1/2- 1 cup of olive oil
Keep processing & adding the oil until you hear it thicken up.

That's it!
Pour in to a jar. Pop on the lid and you now have a delicious light mayonnaise.

Katie X

Best Chickpea Salad Ever

I came across this salad recipe in a Cuisine magazine & just loved the sound & look of it so I thought I'd better have a go- thank goodness I did! It's absolutely delicious.

I'm telling it my version, however.

2 cans chickpeas- drained.

The liquid can be used for making a great mayonnaise if you feel so inclined.

Put the chickpeas in to a frypan with a little olive oil & sprinkle with sumac & sea salt & cook on a medium heat until they are starting to colour & taste delicious.

Transfer the chickpeas in to a bowl to cool & then add

Finely chopped coriander, to your taste- loads or a little.

1/2 c coconut chips lightly toasted (in the same pan)

1/2 cup broken or chopped cashews lightly toasted.

Then, either some chopped spring onion, or finely chopped red onion.

You can pour a little rice vinegar over the onion while you're preparing everything else to help soften the raw onion thing- tip off the vinegar again.

6 or so Medjool (type)dates- de-stoned & chopped. 

Dressing

4 tbsps olive oil

2 tbsp tamarind puree- either ready made or soak the caked tamarind version in water to soften, then push through a sieve.

2tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp lime juice

2 cloves of garlic or onion weed bulbs crushed

1/2 tsp fennel seeds lightly toasted & crushed- mortar & pestle or a spice grinder.

A pinch of chilli flakes

Shake altogether in a jar & pour over the salad mixture.

We sprinkled the salad with fresh flax seeds. New year is just the right time to collect them.

 The dark sausagey pods are best.

Here's the original salad that included crushed poppadoms.

 It was the most delicious dinner we've had in ages!

No substitutes on this one- lime juice & maple syrup are essential to the flavours. 

As is toasting the fennel seeds & then crushing them.

You can find the Kawakawa salad recipe just here.

And the Aquafaba mayonnaise just here.

Well, you will find those recipes soon when I've written them up.

Katie X