Description
We’re taking lunches and salads to the next level with this tasty dish! Healthy and utterly delicious, this easy to make Tuscan Bean Salad is filled with delicious ingredients, aromatic spices and herbs, and sure to make your belly happy. Perfectly fluffy millet, hearty chickpeas, navy beans, black beans, cannellini beans, zesty scallions, flavorful sundried tomatoes, sweet red and green bell peppers covered with a rich and delicious Tuscan dressing makes for a fantastic, filling salad. An excellent lunch dish, add some tasty taters or roasty veggies for a lip-smacking dinner!
Whole Food Plant Based, vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients, and gluten free.
Ingredients
- 1 cup chickpeas*
- 1 cup black beans *
- 1 cup cannellini beans *
- 1 cup navy beans *
- ¾ to 1 cup cooked millet *
- 2 celery ribs, fine dice
- ½ red bell pepper, fine dice
- ½ green bell pepper, fine dice
- 3 green onions, finely sliced
- sea salt to taste *
- black pepper to taste
Dressing Ingredients:
- ¼ cup white balsamic vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 2 teaspoons miso *
- 1 teaspoon organic maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon tahini
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 ½ teaspoons Italian Seasoning
- pinch black pepper
- 3 sundried tomato halves, (1 Tablespoon finely minced) *
Optional Garnish/Toppings:
- Chopped flatleaf parsley
- Kalamata olives
Instructions
- In the meantime, place 3 sundried tomato halves in a small bowl and cover with boiling water for 10 minutes. Then drain off the water, then mince finely. Set aside.
- Make the salad dressing by adding all the salad dressing ingredients (including the finely minced sundried tomatoes) into a bowl and whisking until well combined. Set aside.
- Place the cooked and cooled millet, and all the remaining ingredients into a large bowl and then add in the salad dressing, tossing gently as you go until everything is coated in the dressing.
- Serve immediately at room temperature.
Notes
*Beans: You can use any mix of cooked beans (and ratio) that you wish equaling 4 cups total. If using canned beans, be sure to drain and rinse thoroughly.
*Cooked Millet: Cooked and cooled millet (or quinoa) works beautifully in this salad. If you do not need to be gluten free, you could also use bulgur, barley, or farro. Measure the ¾ to 1 cup after cooking.
*Miso: We used Miso Master Organic Mellow White Premium Lite Miso, Certified Gluten Free. Miso really lends itself to balancing flavors when you don’t use oil. If you are going to live the Whole Food Plant Based lifestyle, then you will quickly find that miso is your friend. Miso is simply a paste made from fermented soybeans, barley or rice malt. We use a gluten-free mellow white miso. It is Whole Food Plant Based compliant, and most grocery or health food stores carry it these days. You can find it in the refrigerator section. A lot of Vegans and Whole Food Plant Basers call it “the secret weapon” because it really brings that rich umami flavor forward in a lot of dishes. Since we discovered it, we use it a lot. Simply because it really adds something special to our dishes that you just can’t get with other ingredients. It has a long refrigerator shelf life because it is fermented. So, if you can’t find it locally, we suggest that when you are taking any trips out of town, find a store that carries it, take a small ice chest and stock up.
*Sea Salt: Our family was divided over if this recipe required sea salt or not, please use sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
*Sundried Tomatoes: We used Mediterranean Organic Sundried Roman Tomatoes. Be sure to select oil free sundried tomatoes. They are typically dried like dates.
*Servings: 4-6
*Storage: Refrigerate, use within 5 days.