Our Veggie Kitchen

I made black bean enchiladas this weekend and, since black beans were on sale, I made a gigantic batch of beans. I figured I was sharing snack duty again at work and I couldn't go wrong with a tasty dish of beans. The problem with black beans, though, is that they are undeniably ugly. They're tender and break apart easily, there is very little contrast between whole and mashed bean and they are, well, black. They're black hole black in that they suck every bit of color from a dish.

So I put this spread together (which makes a tantalizing sandwich), and spooned dolobs onto slices of baguette. It made for tasty finger food that only barely looked like the second coming of your last meal. I was quick, easy and a double batch lasted barely lasted 24 hours. And that's the truest sign of success.



Black Bean Dip/Sandwich Spread
3 cups cooked black beans (2 cans)
1/2 lime, juiced
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded & minced (more to taste)
2 small shallots (2-3 tbs total)
1/4 cup salsa
1 tbs Vegenaise
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
dash cayenne pepper (or to taste)
salt to taste

Partially mash the beans so that they somewhat clump, but still have many whole beans. Stir the remaining ingredients together with the beans and season to taste with salt. The flavors, especially the shallot and jalapeno will mellow and blend with time. The were best eaten the next day, but let them sit, for at least an hour.

8 servings: 103 cal (2g fat, 17g carbs, 6g protein)