These come from a cookbook I bought for $1 at a flea market. Just as I'm
writing this I've completely forgotten the name. It's something like "The
little Bean CookBook." It's full of high-fat bean dishes, some of which
like the one I'm posting are quite adaptable to VLF eating. I've served
these to many guests who like them very much. I've removed all oil from
them and added my own notes where necessary.
Garbanzo Fritters with Pear Salsa
Adapted to low-fat by Judy
1.5 cups cooked garbanzos, drained
1 t salt
1 medium Idaho potato
1 small onion, coarsely grated
1 T flour
2 t hot pepper sauce
3 egg whites, lightly beaten (see note 1)
May need Pam spray
Chop the garbanzo beans coarsely and season with the salt.
Peel and grate potato and squeeze out as much water as
possible. In a medium bowl, combine the potato, onion, flour, and hot
pepper sauce. Mix well to blend. Add garbanzo beans and egg whites
and mix.
Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat. When it's hot, drop
rounded tablespoons of the batter into the skillet allowing room for
batter to spread. Cook over moderately high heat until they are golden
brown on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Turn fritters over, flatten
slightly and cook about two minutes longer.
Note 1: Instead of Egg Whites, you can substitute EnerG Egg replacer
made up as three eggs. (It's potato starch and works great in a recipe
like this where the eggs are used more as a binder than as a flavor)
Note 2: If you are using a really good non-stick skillet, you may not
need the Pam spray. Make sure the skillet is *really* hot though before
putting the fritter batter in the pan. Then, reduce the heat once they
start cooking.
Zesty Pear Salsa
2 Italian plum tomatoes
2 firm pears (preferably bosc) peeled, cored, and diced into 1/4 inch
pieces
1 T fresh lemon juice (use the fresh stuff for this recipe, not
bottled)
6 large scallions, chopped (I used the green parts only)
1 tablespoon jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1-2 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar (I used basil vinegar)
1 t honey
Blanch the tomatoes in a medium saucepan with boiling water for
one minute. Rinse them under cold running water to cool, and slip the
skins off. Cut the tomatoes in half and scoop out the seeds. Slice
them into one-quarter inchd julienne strips.
In a medium bowl, toss the diced pears with the lemon juice.
Add the tomatoes, scallions, and jalapenos. Mix well.
In another bowl, whisk together the vinegar and honey. Drizzle
over the pear mixture and toss to coat. Serve with a slotted spool to
allow most of the juice to drain off.
Note: the original recipe called for 2 T of olive oil. I think this
salsa tastes much better without it..I've never really figured out why
recipes call for oil in salsa anyway...
Enjoy
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