Bryanna Clark Grogan’s Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 23rd Century Table

I used a silicone spatula to press the mixture into the mesh to get the most liquid out of it that I could. I had this much pulp left after the first straining :


I decided to strain it once again through a small tea strainer-- the only thing I had that was a finer mesh than the strainers I'd used before.  It took a few minutes, because the strainer is so small, but I ended up with a nice smooth "cream".  (And I will be looking for a larger fine strainer!)

If you read my last post, and the one before, you'll know that I developed a wholewheat no-knead dough that can be kept refrigerated for weeks and with which you can make all sorts of flatbreads, pizza dough, and some fabulous hamburger buns that are not heavy -- in fact, as I wrote before, I don't like heavy buns and these were just light and tasty enough (with a slightly crispy bottom) to compliment the burger rather than dominate it."

While I was finishing the trials on that recipe, I decided to make a new homemade vegan burger-- one made from inexpensive, simple, healthful ingredients, and suitable for soy-free and gluten-free diets, too.  That meant, no gluten powder, TVP/TSP, xanthan or guar gum, etc. (though I have nothing against any of those ingredients!).

Well, who knew that it would take me 5 tries!  But it did-- I've been obsessed with these burgers for over a week!  (Good thing my husband likes burgers any ol' time.)  I got the basic ingredients pretty much nailed right at the beginning, but there was some fooling around with amounts and trying, then discarding, extra grains as an addition.  I wanted the burgers to not be too "squishy", as I find many bean burgers, and I wanted more flavor than most I've tasted.  

I concentrated on umami-carrying ingredients for the seasoning (umami is also called the "fifth flavor" and foods that contain umami compounds are powerful flavor enhancers-- read about it here and here) and finally found the combination that carried enough flavor for my taste.  Adding small amounts of  mushrooms, onions, soy sauce (or my Soy-Free Sauce), miso, nutritional yeast, tomato ketchup, wine and dark sesame oil contributes umami and synergizing umami for full flavor.

Play around with the herbs and spices, if you like!

The buns are made with my No-Knead 100% Whole Wheat Flatbread, Pizza and Bun Dough 


NOTE ON OATMEAL FOR GLUTEN-FREE COOKING: 


Printable Recipe

Fat-Free Vegan Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies made with bean puree

My latest obsession is baking and making creamy salad dressings with beans.  Dreena Burton unknowingly  instigated all this, I'm afraid.  I made her wonderful Hummus Salad Dressing and that got me thinking about using pureed white beans to make creamy vegan salad dressings.  A delicious bean-based Caesar Salad Dressing resulted (recipe below) and I'm working on a few more. That led me to some information (mostly from folks who are into food storage) on using puree beans instead of fat in baking (sometimes for all of the fat, sometimes for some of it).  I have held back from intensive experimenting with this because, for reasons of vanity, I don't want to eat too many baked goods, fat-free or not! But I have lots of ideas.  In the meantime, I tried two cookie recipes.  I was not entirely satisfied with the chocolate chip cookies I experimented with (2 versions), so I have put them on the back burner for now, along with using bean puree in muffins.  But I was happy with the oatmeal raisin cookies I tested (and so was DH!), so I'm including the recipe in this post.

Next I tried using a white bean puree in a no-knead pizza dough. This idea has intrigued me for some time and I'm so glad it worked so well (and in a no-knead dough at that!). It's a great way to add healthy protein and bean fiber to a kid-friendly meal.  I looked up the nutrition facts for a Boboli thin-crust for pizza of the same size as mine. 1/2 a Boboli thin crust contains: 70 more calories than mine; 7.5 g fat compared to the 1.2 g in mine; 330 mg more sodium than my crust; about the same amount of protein; and a little over 1 g of fiber compared to 7 g in mine. Not bad!

I use plenty of beans in my day-to-day cooking, but I think using them in more unusual ways would be helpful for many people.  It might be easier to get kids (and older folks with waning appetites) to eat beans in a salad, creamy soup, dip, pizza, muffin or cookie, for instance.  Everyone could reap the benefits of beans, even while claiming to dislike them.

What are these bean benefits?  They are easy to store, easy on the purse, and versatile in the kitchen.  They are filling and low in fat, and according to this study: "Adding beans and other legumes to the diet appears to help people with type 2 diabetes improve their blood sugar control and lower their risk of heart disease, according to new research. Two diets were tested in 121 men and women with type 2 diabetes. Both diets were healthy, but one added legumes, such as chickpeas, lentils, and beans. "People with diabetes did better in terms of blood sugar control on the bean diet versus a diet without beans, which was otherwise extremely healthy," says researcher David J.A. Jenkins, MD, PhD, DSc, professor of medicine and nutrition at the University of Toronto and St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. The bean diet lowered the predicted risk of heart disease more, too, Jenkins says. And it did so in a way that surprised him, he says. "It reduced heart disease risk predominantly because of its effect on blood pressure," he says.

Well, back to the pantry to check my bean supplies....

THE RECIPES:

The following three recipes feature white beans, but, depending on the color you are aiming for in your recipes, any other beans can be used.  TIP: You can buy cans of beans, of course, but what I've been doing is cooking big batches of beans and freezing them in 1, 2 or 3 cup containers or zipper-lock bags.  If you use canned beans and you have some left over, freeze the excess and add the leftovers together to make enough for another recipe.

WHAT KIND OF WHITE BEANS?  Check out this article.  

BEAN PUREE:  If you want 1 cup iof bean puree, measure out 1 cup of rinsed and drained cooked or canned beans, packing them down a bit.  Puree with a hand/immersion blender, or in a blender or food processor.  If the mixture is too thick to move on the blades, add a little water (carefully) until it does.  Multiply as needed.





Printable Recipe

I had to photograph the Caesar Dressing on a regular salad because I didn't have any Romaine lettuce at the time-- but it was still delicious.