Saturday, May 26, 2012

Honorable Mention Recipe #1- Italian Mariara Beanball Subs

So, I've decided to include honorable mention recipes- recipes from books that I am not going to cook my way through, but that are SO good that I just have to write about them.  (For me this means they rate a 9 or higher.)  This particular recipe is from Tosca Reno's new book- The Eat-Clean Diet Vegetarian Cookbook.  I made these Beanball Subs for dinner a couple of nights ago and they were outstanding!  Everyone in my family liked them (except for my picky 2 year old), my husband couldn't get enough!  They are actually really easy to make too- it just takes a bit of forethought because you do use some cooked red quinoa in the recipe.  So, I simply cooked up the quinoa in the morning so it was ready to go when I was ready to make dinner.  Here's how the recipe goes- in a food processor you process onion, garlic, basil, and parsley until smooth.  Then you put that mixture in a bowl and add some cooked cannellini beans (about 1 can) to the processor and process until chunky.  Add the beans to the aromatics and add to that the red quinoa, Bragg's liquid aminos (these can be found in the health food section of your grocery store), nutritional yeast, red pepper flakes, whole wheat bread crumbs, wheat germ, olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper.  This all gets mixed up (it's fun to do with your hands!) and then you form it into golf ball sized balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for about  35 minutes and your beanballs are done!  All that's left to do is assemble.  Cut up a whole-grain baguette into 5 6-inch sections and top that with 4 beanballs, 1/2 cup marinara sauce (I had homemade, but forgot to thaw it, so had to resort to store bought- just try to use a healthy sauce- I used Newman's Own Marinara), and sprinkle on some more nutritional yeast (this is also found in the health food section and is a great replacement for cheese- it has a similar taste).  If you have a family that is split- some vegan/vegetarian and some meat eaters this is a WONDERFUL recipe!  Meat lovers and veggie lovers alike will LOVE this recipe!  It's not lacking in flavor by any means- and it really hits the spot- it's a truly satisfying meal.  Serve it up with some greens on the side and you have one fantastic meal!  Thanks Tosca for this fabulous recipe!

My rating- 9

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