Chickpea and bulgur salad with mint

  

            Chickpea and bulgur salad with mint

Ingredients:

Fine bulgur, rinsed 150g
Chickpeas, drained and rinsed 400g
Red onion, finely chopped 100g
Toasted sesame seeds 30g
Cloves garlic, crushed 30g
Olive oil 75ml
Lemon juice 40ml
Parsley, finely chopped 60g
Mint, coarsely chopped 30g
Sea salt 10g
Black pepper 10g
Paprika 10g

Preparation:

1. Place bulgur in a bowl and pour in boiling water and leave it to soak until it doubles in volume. Place chickpeas in a bowl with the onion, sesame seeds and garlic, and mix with olive oil and lemon juice.
2. When bulgur is cool, remove any excess water and add to the chickpeas. Add the chopped parsley and mint to the bowl. Toss well, season with salt, pepper, and sprinkle the paprika over before serving.

Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup

         Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

3  sweet red peppers 
8  cups tomatoes, chopped
2  vegetable stock cubes (or chicken)
2  tablespoons sugar 
1/2  cup cooking cream 
4  tablespoons butter 
    fresh basil
    salt 
    white pepper 

Directions:

1.Grill the peppers, turning frequently, until bla ckened all over. 

Peel off the skin. Gently wipe or scrape off any remaining black stuff from the outside. Cut open and discard seeds and white insides. Do not wash as this will flush away much of the flavour. 
2.Puree peppers and tomatoes in a blender or food processor. 
Strain out seeds. 
3.Place pepper/tomato mixture in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered for about 25 minutes. Add remaining ingredients except butter and basil. Simmer uncovered for 15 - 20 minutes. Add butter and basil right before serving.

Yellow Bean Salad Recipe

Yellow Bean Salad Recipe

Method:

Yellow Bean Salad

I make this salad with yellow runner beans, but you can certainly make it with green beans! Also, if you tend to like a bit more heat, leave (all or some of) the veins and seeds in the chile pepper.

1 pound / 16 oz yellow runner beans

1 serrano chile, stemmed and seeded
5 green onions, green parts trimmed & reserved
a big handful of cilantro
1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 tablespoon sunflower oil
1 cup coconut milk, well mixed

1- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, or to taste

2 big handfuls / 1/2 cup toasted pepitas
1 1/2 cups tiny pan-fried tofu cubes, optional
basil flower garnish, optional

Cut the beans into 1-inch segments on a deep bias. Cook in a pot of well-salted water for just 30 seconds, drain, and run under cold water to stop cooking. Drain, and aggressively shake off as much water as possible. Set aside.

To make the dressing, pulse the chile, onions, cilantro, garlic, salt, and sunflower oil into a paste with a food processor. Pulse in the coconut milk in two additions, before adding the lemon juice to taste, a half tablespoon at a time.

Place the beans in a large bowl with most of the pepitas and tofu cubes (if you're using them). Toss well with a generous amount of the dressing (you'll have plenty of leftover), even so, as I mention up above, this is one of those salads that benefits from over-dressing versus under. Serve in a bowl or platter topped with the remaining pepitas and tofu, and basil flowers if you happen to have them.