I got the idea for these cute lettuce cups from The Vegetarian (Who Hates Tofu). I happen to love soft, pillowy clouds of tofu, but I also love these crunchy chickpeas. The crunch comes from baking them on a sheet pan. I've made chickpea "nuts" before, but never thought to use them this way. Its so nice to read other blogs and get some inspiration. I don't think I'll ever stop learning how to make great food.
Instead of a vegan mayo as the base for the ranch dressing, I use a cashew sour cream inspired by My New Roots. I can't believe how easy this is to make. I used to think that cashews needed to be soaked in water for several hours before blending into a smooth cream. However, I've recently resurrected my Magic Bullet from the depths of my cupboards, and found that it is amazing at pulverizing cashews-no soaking necessary! I've been a cashew freak ever since this discovery. Oh, and I hear the Ninja, another "As Seen On TV" product, works great for this too. Anyway, these are so easy to make. Here's how to do it.
Vegan Ranch Dressing:
1 cup raw cashews
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbs water
2 Tbs Lemon juice (I always keep a bag of lemon ice cubes in my freezer. 1 cube equals 1 Tbs. I just put the cubes in the Magic Bullet with the other ingredients)
1/2 tsp each garlic powder, onion powder, and salt
10 grinds of black pepper
1 Tbs chopped fresh parsley
Blend together all ingredients except for the parsley-stir it in at the end.
Crunchy Chickpeas
2 15 0z cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 Tbs lime juice
2 Tbs olive oil
1 ts each salt, garlic powder, paprika, and cumin
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Pat chickpeas dry with a paper towel. In a large mixing bowl, toss chickpeas with the lime juice, olive oil, and seasonings. Place chickpeas in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes or until crisp and golden brown. I don't bother preheating and mine are done in about 50 minutes.
Chopped Tomatoes
2 cups chopped cherry tomatoes
1 Tb parsley
1/2 ts salt
few grinds of pepper
I assemble my crunch wraps in this order:
Lettuce cup, chickpeas, couple slices avocado, chopped tomatoes, drizzle of ranch dressing.
I ate way more than the two in the photo. I ate like 6. But who's counting?
That looks really, really good. I'm going to have to try making something like that other than my usual popcorn and pizzas, lol. By the way, you take your own pictures? They look extremely professional, like straight out of VegNews.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh Zack, that is so funny that you say that, cuz I'm actually really self conscience of my old photos. It really made my day that you said that. I just got a new camera yesterday and learned about taking pictures outside, so this photo is a lot brighter than the others. I'm going to keep it real, Jason took a lot of the pictures from my previous posts. He has a real eye for it and I'm trying to learn myself and take more ownership of it. What days and times do you work at the store?
ReplyDeleteYeah I wouldn't worry about it, all of your pictures look awesome. I know what you mean, with all of the newer cameras it does take a while to master it, especially with the hundreds of settings they have now. I work Monday and Tuesday in the morning just for a few hours, then on Saturday all day and once the construction is done I will work Sundays as well. We have been getting in so many vegan products because, oddly enough, there are quite a few vegans in Merced. You wouldn't think, but there are a lot of people in town just like us...pretty cool.
ReplyDeleteI actually feel like an alien less and less these days. We all need to meet up and share our recipes.
ReplyDeleteYep, same here. You're friends with Erika and Brenden right? We should get together, all the ethical vegans of Merced... and I'll bring a bunch of my popcorn. The cool thing about working at the store is that I inevitably run into other vegans all the time so I haven't been feeling like a loner as well. There are a lot of people in town just like us and it's really unexpected, especially in a place that's still kind of socially backwards.
ReplyDeletei can't even exclaim of just how hungry your blog is making me! as you know, i suffered from bulimia for YEARS . . . and it's so so so nice to have a real urging of real, healthy hunger. please keep up with your fabulous blog posts because they are so inspiring. www.nicoleandgwendolyn.com
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Nicole=) It means so much to me that my little posts can effect someone in anyway. I am so happy you see food in a healthy way now and that its not your enemy. I myself have realized over the years that whatever problems I may have, food won't solve it. I love food so much more now! Congratulations on your first giveaway! Great idea. I think I'll give my book, Skinny Bitch away sometime!
ReplyDeleteAva loved your popcorn=) It really kept her occupied!
ReplyDeleteOrganic rice may be cooked and eaten as a high-fibre, high-nutrition wholegrain, often called brown rice, or might be husked and then served as white rice, which is less nutritious and has no fibre content. Is rice a high or low gi food? A few rice families have distinct and attractive fragrances and flavours, but most basmati brown riceis chosen to be bland so it can be cooked, served and eaten as a filling accompaniment to tastier foods.
ReplyDelete