Middle Eastern Tacos
From LINDA FRIEDMAN
Wonderfully tasty and satisfying! Of all the recipes that appeared in the 1971 edition of this iconic cookbook, Diet for a Small Planet, by Frances Moore Lappé, this is the one my family has eaten most often. The bean-sesame mix makes a great cracker spread, too. With precooked beans, the whole thing can be put together in no time. Increase any of the spices to taste.
Ingredients
3 c well-cooked garbanzo beans (1 c uncooked)
1/2 c ground toasted sesame seeds or 1/4 c sesame butter
2 cloves garlic
2 T lemon juice
3/4 t ground coriander
Salt to taste
1/2 t ground cumin
1/4 – 1/2 t cayenne pepper
10 pieces pita bread or wheat tortillas
Garnishes: shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, chopped cucumber,
chopped onion, 1-1/2 c yogurt, or grated cheese
Purée together beans, sesame seeds, garlic, lemon juice, coriander, salt, cumin, and cayenne pepper, adding beans’ cooking liquid or water
if needed for easier blending. Let stand at room temperature a least 30 minutes.
Cut flatbread in half (to give 2 semicircles from each) and fill pockets with bean mixture. (If you like, heat filled pockets in oven before garnishing. If serving on wheat tortillas, fry until soft but not crisp.) Set out garnishes and let everyone assemble their own. Makes 10 tacos.
The Life-Changing Crackers
Ingredients
1 c sunflower seeds
1/2 c flax seeds
1/3 c pumpkin seeds
1/4 c sesame seeds
1-1/2 c rolled oats
2 T chia seeds
4 T psyllium seed husks (3 T if using psyllium husk powder)
1-1/2 t fine grain sea salt
1 T maple syrup (for sugar-free diets, use a pinch of stevia)
3 T melted coconut oil or ghee
1-1/2 c water
Rosemary, Garlic,and Smoked Salt Version
Half batch:
2 T. chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 – 1/2 t garlic powder (depending on how strong you like it)
Smoked sea salt, to taste
Fig, Anise, and
Black Pepper Version
Half batch:
3 large dried figs
1 t anise seed
1 t cracked black pepper
In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients, stirring well. Whisk maple syrup, oil, and water together in a measuring cup. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix very well until everything is completely soaked and dough becomes very thick but still manageable). Divide the dough roughly in half, and set aside one half.
Place one half of the dough back into the bowl and add any flavoring you like. Gather into a ball and place it between sheets of baking paper. Using a rolling pin, firmly roll out into a thin sheet. Remove top layer of baking paper and using the tip of a knife, score the dough into shapes you like (I choose rectangles). Repeat with remaining half of dough. Let sit out on the counter for at least two hours, all day, or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350º degrees. Using the baking paper, slide the dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove cookie sheet from oven, flip the whole cracker over (if it breaks a bit, don’t worry) and peel the baking paper off of the back. Return to oven and bake for another 10 minutes, until fully dry, crisp, and golden around the edges.
Let cool completely, then break crackers along their scored lines and store in an airtight container for up to three weeks. Makes 2 baking sheets of crispbread.
Wild and Green Casserole
From POLLY FOX
Our lush and most luscious spring in years has filled our meadows with beautiful plants and flowers. These are just some of the plants ready to eat now (or will be later in our Lama mountain growing season); Amaranth, Clover, Dandelion, Lambsquarter, Knotweed, Mustard, and Purslane. Garden-grown herbs are powerful, much like the wilds growing nearby.
Ingredients
One dozen eggs (We like Linda Friedman’s happy Lama chicken eggs!)
1-1/12 c herbs and wild greens, finely chopped
One bunch of Rainbow Chard leaves, torn into small pieces
3 c grated cheese. Use 2-4 different kinds
3/4 c half-and-half or milk
3/4 c frozen or freshly prepared green chiles
1 t ground cumin
1/8 t freshly ground nutmeg
About 3/4 c breadcrumbs
- Begin by picking the greens. Recently I gathered Thyme, Oregano, Lovage, Mint, Summer Savory, Chives, Tarragon, Rosemary, Lemon Balm, Lambsquarters, Dandelion, Alfalfa, Grass, Mustard, Dock, and Clover. Chop what you have to equal 1-1/2 cups. Combine with chard and chiles.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs, cumin, nutmeg, milk, or half-and-half. Add the greens and most of the cheese. Add to the ceramic baking dish. Put the reserved cheese on top and cover generously with breadcrumbs and gently push the crumbs and cheese together to form a happy crust.
- Bake in a 375° oven for about an hour in a greased 8 x 10” ceramic dish. After baking, let it rest a short while before eating hot. It is equally good cold, cut into small pieces, and eaten as finger food. For a potluck dish, cold is easiest.
Polly Fox is a painter. Her pastels and watercolors are sometimes available at The Magpie
Gallery in Taos. Her marbled papers are in a permanent collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. She is the founding member of the family flower essence business www.petessences.com.
Fresh Vegetable Salad
From STEPHANIE OWENS
This is always a hit! And sometimes we all
forget that salads are needed at potlucks, especially in summer!
Salad Ingredients
Kale, finely shredded
Carrots, shredded
Red cabbage, shredded
Cauliflower, finely chopped
Sunflower seeds
1 T or so of nutritional yeast
Dressing Ingredients
Garlic, minced (to taste preference)
Balsamic vinegar
Low sodium soy sauce
Oil of choice
- Whisk liquid dressing ingredients together to your preferred taste. Add garlic.
- Massage vegetables with a little oil. Pour dressing onto veggies and toss to coat well. Sprinkle sunflower seeds and mix in.
