Meatless Mondays with La Bella Figura

Awhile back I received an email from Tasting Table that was a letter from Mario Batali  about a movement called Meatless Monday's. It was the first I'd heard about Meatless Mondays and as a vegetarian I was thrilled to see it endorsed from someone as famous and carnivorous as Batali.

I'm not one of those vegetarians that are hyper sensitive about meat, would I love it if the whole world went veggie? Of course, but as much as I really care about the plight of animals I also recognize that eating habits are a deeply personal and cultural thing. I'm overjoyed that so many people are embracing this movement. It's great that people are recognizing that you can eat satisfying veggie meals and that reducing your meat intake by one day makes a HUGE difference not only for your body but also for our planet.

I thought it would be fun to share some of our  favorite meatless recipes with you each week. Sometimes our recipes will be vegan and sometimes just plain old vegetarian.

This week is all about getting dinner on the table quick! Here at La Bella Figura we are very busy gals and sometimes dinner needs to get on the table fast.

Cannellini Hummus Pita Sandwich

 This recipe is strictly no cooking and only requires a food processor. The best part of this recipe is that you can tweak it to your hearts desire. Swap the raw garlic for 2 -3 cloves of roasted garlic, add Tabasco, or  spices such as cumin or sumac. If you have the time to grill thinly sliced eggplant that works great in here as well. The sky's the limit!

For the Hummus: 

1 garlic clove chopped

2 cups of cannellini beans soaked and cooked according to package 

   or 1 can cannellini beans drained and rinsed

1-2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice (fresh really does make all the difference)

2-3 tbsp olive oil or culinary Argan oil

1/8-1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or more if you want the heat)

1/8 tsp paprika

1/3 cup loosely packed fresh parsley

salt to taste

For the Sandwich:

1 and 1/2 cups baby spinach leaves 

1/2 zucchini or a cucumber thinly sliced

thinly sliced red onions (as many as you like)

thinly sliced tomatoes

4 pita breads (whole wheat or white)

Add all hummus ingredients except the parsley to the food processor, process for about 2 minutes until smooth. Add the parsley and pulse to chop. Add salt and mix.

Spread hummus on inside of pita breads, top with zucchini, spinach, tomatoes and onions.

Serve with carrots, sweet potato fries, or chips.

Hope you enjoy this fast and easy recipe! Stay tuned for next week's Meatless Monday recipe.

                                                             En bonne santé,

                                                                                                 Karen 

 

*Note: To ensure this recipe is vegan, check the ingredients in your pita bread. While most pita's are made with just flour and water some companies will use egg.