Vegan Black Bean Bolognese
I just recently found out that bolognese exists, so I decided to make a vegetarian/vegan friendly version so that I could eat it :) I remember a doctor at my university one time asking me to eat beans because she was very worried that I wasn't getting (any) protein. Well look at me now! Beans are a great source of protein, and this dish actually does taste meaty thanks to them. It's kind of spooky :0
Ingredients and calories:
1/2 cup of black beans, drained (~90)
1 medium sized tomato, diced (~22)
4 tsp of tomato paste (20)
1/3 cup of sliced white onion (~20)
1/3 of a spaghetti squash (~80)
1.5 cups of chopped kale (~50)
1/2 cup of sliced mushrooms (~22, I use baby bellas)
A few sprays of olive oil (~32)
Salt (0)
Pepper (0)
Italian seasoning (0)
Paprika (0)
Half a medium lemon (basically 0, it's for the juice)
6 slices of cucumber (~5)
1/2 cup of carrot slices (~26)
1/2 of a small avocado (~107)
Total calories (Makes one serving): ~474
Cut the spaghetti squash into thirds, scrape the seeds out of one of those thirds, and set aside. Place the beans into a bowl and mash them with a fork; this doesn't have to be completely mushy, just as long as you get most of the beans. Spray a small pan with olive oil and add in the beans, diced tomato, tomato paste, and onion slices over medium heat. Stir occasionally and don't let the beans crust onto the bottom of the pan. Meanwhile, spray a large pan with olive oil and shred the spaghetti squash over the pan with a fork. Add in the kale and mushrooms and set over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once the black bean bolognese is starting to crust, sprinkle over some salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, a little bit of paprika, and some lemon juice. Add some salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and lemon juice to the spaghetti squash mix as well. Place the spaghetti squash mix and bolognese on a plate and add some cucumber, carrot, and avocado on the side. Enjoy :)
Edit: After eating the black beans, my stomach went crazy. Not good :( But I tried this recipe with a fifth of a block of extra firm tofu (80 calories, I just mashed it up like I did with the beans) and it works! So tasty, too :)
