Mangia Bene Challenge Day 1 Recipes

Lunch
Green Salad, Whole Wheat Pita, Red Pepper Hummus
What a combination!
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 Hummus 1x
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients
Salad
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 (10 ounce)packages mixed salad greens (or garden)
4 thinly sliced chicken deli meat
1 tomato, chopped
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
3 dashes garlic powder
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 pinches salt
3 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing
Whole Wheat Pita
240 ml (1 cup) lukewarm water
2 teaspoons dry yeast
1 teaspoon honey or agave
180 grams (1 1/2 cup) whole wheat flour
160 grams (1 1/4 cup+1 tablespoon) all-purpose flour + extra if needed
1 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Red Pepper Hummus
3/4 cup roasted red bell peppers (about 1 lb. peppers, roasted)
3 1/2 cups soaked and cooked chickpeas/garbanzo beans (1 1/2 cups dry) OR 2 cans chickpeas/garbanzo beans (15 oz. each), drained and rinsed
1/4 cup tahini paste
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp crushed fresh garlic (or more to taste)
3/4 tsp smoked paprika (or more to taste)
1/4 tsp salt (or more to taste- I usually use about 1/2 tsp)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
Warm water as needed
Instructions
Salad
Saute onion and bell pepper until soft; set aside to cool.
In a large salad bowl, combine the onion, pepper, salad greens, deli meat and tomato. Sprinkle with the onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper and salt. Toss to mix.
Pour on enough salad dressing or vinegar to coat, toss again and serve.
Whole Wheat Pita
In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix the water, honey and yeast together and let it sit for about five minutes.
Add the flours, salt, olive oil and mix for a couple of minutes, until it comes together.
Sprinkle a little bit of flour onto your clean work surface and turn out the dough.
homemade-whole-wheat-pita-bread
Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, until it’s smooth and elastic. adding more flour only if necessary.
Make a ball
homemade-whole-wheat-pita-bread
and place it into an oiled bowl, cover it, and allow to rest until doubled, about an hour.
Gently deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide it into 9 equal pieces and shape each piece into a ball.
homemade-whole-wheat-pita-bread
Using a rolling pin, roll each ball into a circle about 1/2 cm (1/4 inch) thick. Lift and turn the dough frequently as you roll to make sure it isn’t sticking to your counter. Sprinkle with a little extra flour if it starts to stick.
homemade-whole-wheat-pita-bread
Cover the circles with plastic wrap or a clean damp cloth.
Preheat the oven to 230 degrees C (450 degrees F) and place a baking stone or a baking sheet on the middle rack.
When the oven is ready, transfer 3 pitas at a time ( or more if your oven is big) onto the baking surface and bake for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the pitas balloon fully.
Remove the bread from the oven and repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.
Allow the homemade whole wheat pita bread to cool and serve as desired
Red Pepper Hummus
Use jarred roasted red peppers (drained), or make your own.
If using canned chickpeas, drain them and rinse them. If using dried chickpeas, drain and rinse them after soaking, then simmer them in lightly salted water on the stovetop for 60-90 minutes until soft and tender. Drain the beans and allow to cool to room temperature
To make this hummus ultra creamy, you can peel the cooked chickpeas. Squeeze each chickpea gently to remove the skin, then discard the skins before processing. While this step is not completely necessary, it will ensure that your hummus turns out very smooth and creamy.
Put a blade attachment on your food processor with . Combine roasted peppers, chickpeas, tahini paste, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and spices in the processor.
Pulse the ingredients for about 60 seconds, then process until smooth. If mixture seems too thick, add warm water a tablespoon at a time and blend until desired consistency is reached. Taste the mixture and add more salt, lemon juice, cayenne or garlic to taste. Process again to blend any additional ingredients.
Pour into a serving bowl and chill thoroughly before stirring. Hummus will firm up slightly as it chills
Nutrition
- Serving Size: Varied
- Calories: Low!
Keywords: Mediterranean Diet, Weight Loss, Lose Belly Fat – Lunch
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