eggs

Green ‘n Bean Tart

7 Comments

Versatility is good.

Some of my favorite foods are also the most versatile ones; eggs, yogurt, muffins, cheese, greens, oats.  Each one has a multitude of uses and they can stand on their own or easily incorporate into a dish.  Be it breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks, there is a place for these foods!

This tart is the same way.

It’s a quiche. No, it’s a pastel.  No, it’s a savory pie.  I suppose that, like most versatile foods, it can be whatever you want. 😉 I want a tart.

Green ‘n Bean Tart

Makes many servings but the exact number I hesitate to say.  Is it a snack? Main course? Appetizer?  I’ll just give it a range of 4-8 servings.

Pre-heat the oven to 360*

Equipment needed: sautee pan, cutting board, knife, parchment or silpat, baking sheet, rolling pin, stirring spoon

  • 1 yellow onion, minced
  • 2 teaspoons butter or coconut oil
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 3 big handfuls of cooking greens, chopped (I used the last of our garden collards and some dandelion from the yard.  Kale or swiss chard would be perfect also.)
  • 1 cup cooked and drained white beans of some kind (I used large lima beans but baby lima, cannellini, or great northern would be perfect as well.)
  • 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 recipe whole wheat pie crust
  1. in a large sautee pan, heat the butter or oil over medium heat and add the onions
  2. slowly cook the onions until they are translucent, stirring occasionally
  3. add the garlic and chopped greens and stir occasionally until the greens wilt
  4. turn off the heat and add the beans
  5. remove from heat and let mixture cool for several minutes (so as not to cook the egg when it’s added)
  6. add cheese, salt and pepper, and eggs
  7. stir vigorously until the eggs are beaten and incorporated into the mixture
  8. roll out your pie crust on a piece of parchment paper, forming a large thin circle
  9. move the parchment and crust to a baking sheet
  10. pile the green/bean mixture into the center of the crust
  11. fold the sides of the crust up around edges of the mixture
  12. bake for about 25 minutes or until the center is set and the crust starts to brown
  13. eat hot or cold!

My pie crust was delicious but a little crumbly.  It made for a very rustic tart.

If you don’t eat wheat/grains you could make the filling and then bake it in muffin tins without a crust.  You really could.

This tart can stand alone as a balanced meal.  It’s full of protein, fiber, whole grains, greens, all the good stuff.

I ate my first serving with a side of roasted carrots but it was just as good as a cold leftover the next day.

Beans should totally be added to my earlier list of versatile foods.  Did you know some people have been known to put them in brownies?  I’m kind of shocked that I haven’t tried that one yet….

What’s your favorite versatile food?

Super Foodies

18 Comments

Want a crazy easy, ridiculously nutritious meal?

Turn this


Into this

When I was a kid my mom made us salmon burgers semi-regularly.  I had a random craving in college, bought some canned fish, opened it up, gagged and fed it to the cat.

Nearly 10 years after the incident I was ready to give it another try.  Turns out, unless you are into that sort of thing, buy the “skinless-boneless” salmon.
The lesson learned and now I am hooked on the convenience and nutritional stats of this easy summer meal.

Superfood Burgers

  • 1 can of skinless, boneless, wild salmon
  • 1 piece of bread, coarsely chopped (whole wheat and sprouted for more nutrition!)
  • 2 pasture-fed, local eggs
  • 3 tablespoons oats
  • 1 tablespoon of walnuts
  • 3 cloves minced garlic
  • lots of fresh, finely chopped dill, chives, and parsley
  • dash of cayenne
  • ~1 tablespoon organic, grass-fed butter
Mash everything-except butter and garlic-together in a bowl.  Set aside.  In a skillet heat about a teaspoon of the butter on low-medium heat, add garlic, and cook until just soft.  Add garlic to salmon mixture and give it all a good stir.  Add another teaspoon of butter to skillet, use your hands to form patties, gently add patties to hot skillet.  Cover with a lid.  Flip after a few minutes, cover, remove when both sides are golden brown.  Repeat with remainder of mixture. I made 5 three-inch patties.
Why superfood burgers?
Wild salmon and walnuts are awesome sources of Omega-3 Fatty Acids which contribute to joint and cardiovascular health as well as improved mood and cognition.
Whole, sprouted grains have higher vitamin content than unsprouted or refined grains.
Pasture fed eggs have a 1/3 less cholesterol, 1/4 less saturated fat, 2/3 more vitamin A, 2 times more Omega-3’s, 3 times more vitamin E, and 7 times more beta-carotene than conventional eggs.  Note: “vegetarian fed” “cage free” or “organic” is not the same as pasture-fed!  It’s hard to find pasture-fed eggs at a conventional supermarket so seek these babies out at farmers markets or local health food stores.  It’s so worth it.
Oats, do I really need to say more?  Ok, just a quick reminder; soluble fiber=positive influences on overall cholesterol,high satiety, and regularity.
Garlic is full of the natural antibiotic allicin.
Fresh herbs are a great source antioxidants which reduce damage to cells by stabilizing free radicals.
Cayenne increases circulation, boosts metabolism, and makes food more satisfying.
Organic, grass-fed butter is an excellent source of Omega-3’s, vitamin E, and conjugated linoleic acid.  The benefits of eating pastured eggs and butter proves, once again, that whole foods win out of processed ones every-time.  The cows and chickens in the pasture eat the fresh food that is full of nutrients provided by the sun and soil.
What better dessert after a superfood dinner than serviceberry‘s straight off the tree?