Legume Recipes (continued)

Desserts using Beans!

Pinto Bean Fudge (YES fudge. It was soooo good)
1 C cooked pinto beans, drained & mashed well (can use canned)
1/4 C milk
1 T vanilla
3/4 C melted butter
6 oz unsweetened chocolate
2 lbs powdered sugar.
Nuts (optional)

Stir beans and milk together in a large bowl. Add enough milk so mixture looks like mashed potatoes. Stir in vanilla. Melt chocolate and butter and stir into bean mixture. Gradually stir in powdered sugar. Knead mixtuer with hands to get it well blended. Spread in lightly buttered/greased 8x8 baking dih or form into molds or pieces. Chill 1 - 2 hours.

Coconut Walnut Chickpea Pie (SOO delicious!)
2 C cooked chickpeas, drained & rinsed
1/4 C margarine/butter
4 eggs
2 C dark brown sugar
1 C coconut milk or cream
1 T vanilla
1 1/2 C coarsely chopped walnuts
1 1/2 C flaked coconut
1 9 inch deep dish pie crust, uncooked (can be storebought)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Puree the chickpeas in a food processor. Add the margarine/butter. Add the eggs one at a time, processing until mixture is smooth and creamy. Transfer the chickpea mixture into a mixing bowl. Add the dark brown sugar and coconut milk. Beat until well blended. Stir in walnuts and coconut. Pour into piecrust and bake in preheated oven for 60-70 minutes or until knife inserted into center comes out clean. Serve warm, optional with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. (we had it plain and it was still delicious.)

Smoothies
makes enough to serve about 4 people I would guess
(I made this in class, and I followed the recipe we had, but I'm changing it a bit on here to make it what I think would taste even better.)
15 oz can navy beans or another white bean
1 to 1 1/2 C orange juice or other juice you have at home (add one at first and then see if it needs or you want more)
2 1/2 C frozen strawberries (slightly thawed)
1 C frozen blueberries or raspberries (slightly thawed)
3 T honey
1/2 tsp cinnamon (start with that, and taste to see if you want to add another 1/4 or 1/2 tsp.)
pinch nutmeg
1 1/2 C plain vanilla yogurt (can add more if you want)
Process all of the ingredients in a blender until smooth. If you like to add ice cubes, add them after this and blend until smooth. (I personally like my smoothies without the ice cubes added)
I think this is a great drink to TRY and add different thigns that YOU think would make it better. I'd never guess to put beans in a smoothie, but it's actually pretty good if you have a good flavor in the smoothie already you don't even notice. I think this would be a good thing to AVOID telling who your making it for that there are beans in it to see if they like it. Since my class knew there were beans in it, I think some people just were determined to not like it because of that. I have a realllllllllly picky class though.

Spice Cake
1 C white flour
1 C whole wheat flour
(or two of one kind)
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
2 C cannellini beans (about one 15 oz can)
3/4 C apple juice
3/4 C honey
2 T veg. oil
(we all thought this cake would be especially good with nuts, and perhaps lessening some wet ingredients and adding pumpkin)

Glaze:
1 T margarine
3 T maple syrup
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 F. In bowl, combine flours, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt, and baking powder. Puree the cannellini beans in a blender with apple juice, honey, and vegetable oil. Pour the bean mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until well blended. Pour batter into a pre-sprayed/greased 8 inch pan. Bake on middle rack for approximately 45 minutes.
Combine glaze ingredients. Poke holes in the cake with a toothpick and pour glaze on top. Serve warm.
(I think this cake would go well with a cream cheese frosting, but I did like it the way it was too.)