Philosophical Vegan Forum

I cook a lot of food, as to help save money. I eat a decent amount of toast with peanut butter, but I want a kind of pinto/navy/lentil/black bean spread that I can put on toast so it can be more hearty and taste really good. Any ideas/recipes?

And don't suggest Hummus, it tastes nasty.

What flavors do you like?

Hummus may be an acquired taste, but so are most beans.

I like all of them, and I can enjoy any on toast with some salt and spices. Do you have a food processor?

brimstoneSalad wrote:What flavors do you like?

Hummus may be an acquired taste, but so are most beans.

I like all of them, and I can enjoy any on toast with some salt and spices. Do you have a food processor?

No, all I have is a small blender. I can still mash the beans though.

My favorite beans are black beans, pinto beans, lentils, kidney beans to an extent, and sometimes navy beans. I love to add a ton of spices!

Have you tried pumpkin hummus? I used to dislike hummus too, then forced myself to het used to pumpkin hummus. I enjoy it now. What I did was using it on a sandwich first (with tomato and cucumber). Now I dip carrots in it.

I recommend investing in a food processor; smashing beans by hand can be pretty tedious. Or an immersion blender works pretty well.

miniboes wrote:Have you tried pumpkin hummus?

Is that made from beans?
When people don't like hummus, I think it's usually due to the tahini.

brimstoneSalad wrote:I recommend investing in a food processor; smashing beans by hand can be pretty tedious. Or an immersion blender works pretty well.

miniboes wrote:Have you tried pumpkin hummus?

Is that made from beans?
When people don't like hummus, I think it's usually due to the tahini.

It's 50% pumpkin, 25% chickpea, 9% tahini (at least, the one I get is. I think another brand had equal amounts of pumpkin and chickpea) I think it's a good gateway into hummus with more bean.

I agree with BrimstoneSalad that it's usually the tahini that people don't like in hummus. Tahini is bitter and people who are sensitive to bitter foods tend to not like it. You can substitute unsweetened peanut butter in the hummus for a similar taste and texture without the bitterness.

I've made this and it's delicious. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/white-bean-dip-with-pita-chips-recipe.html

Chickpea "tuna" salad: http://www.thekitchn.com/vegetarian-lunch-chickpea-of-t-114022

You can eliminate the plum vinegar if you can't find it or it's too expensive.

Edamame dip: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/edamame-dip-recipe.html

This stuff is very good. If you don't like spicy food, though, this recipe is not for you.

VeladoriaW wrote: ↑Fri Jul 15, 2016 4:13 am I want a kind of pinto/navy/lentil/black bean spread that I can put on toast so it can be more hearty and taste really good. Any ideas/recipes?

For a savory dish, personal preferences play a major role. I can give you some suggestions that would appeal to me, but if you threw in a few dishes you already enjoy, it would help to specify a spread that fits your personal pallete.

I'd add freshly cracked pepper, sea salt, cilantro, sugar, and an aromatic spice like thyme or rosemary. For me personally, I'd also use a seasoned skillet to heat the bean mixture, on high heat, and give it a good crisp before adding the seasonings.

If you like peanut butter, spread a miniscule amount on the bread, and toast each side with it before adding the bean mixture.

brimstoneSalad wrote: ↑Fri Jul 15, 2016 5:29 am When people don't like hummus, I think it's usually due to the tahini.

Not only that, but it isn't necessarily safe to eat, unless you cook it yourself.

One ill person was hospitalized and died.
—Salmonella Infections Linked to Tahini Sesame Paste

By the way, I was just making hummus with garbanzo flour, along with some grain flour to thicken it more, instead of using tahini (I don't know if that's the purpose of tahini, but I'm just going for a good consistency here). It's pretty easy to prepare (just add water, stir and cook), no blender necessary, the other ingredients can simply be stirred into it. That's the general idea. Combining blended beans with some kind of flour (as a thickener), and stirring oil and spice into it can make a good bean dip or spread. I wouldn't presume that any bean flour would be non-toxic though, because some beans have to be cooked a long time to be edible. Garbanzo beans are edible raw, so just cooking this bean flour for a few minutes is a shortcut to boiling the dried beans a long time, in order to soften them. Using canned beans would be about as fast, between putting those in a food processor, or whisking the flour in a mixing bowl (before cooking, either way—it isn't safe to use uncooked flour as a thickener).

The same goes for peanut butter (nine deaths from one outbreak), it isn't necessarily safe to eat without cooking it yourself, even though that would be weird. I guess they make peanut flour (or peanut butter powder) too...

Me too since becoming vegan am missing spreads to put on bread to replace the cheeses and cold meats etc.

Also tahini is an issue in taste but also there is the concern about sesame allergy!

There are some new spreads made with crushed tofu on the market and seem to be both nutritious and tasty. Anyone tried them yet?