Look what I found at Whole Foods!

We were shopping to get ready for our upcoming camping trip and I got waylaid by these sweet little pods.

Each little pod has one or two beans

I’ve never seen fresh Garbanzo beans before, so I had to try them…which I did immediately in the store – such a no-no, I know – I peeled a couple and tasted them: I loved them. So, I tried them on my kids, and they loved them too. They’re kind of like Sugar Snap Peas, but heartier.

I bought about a pound, brought them home and did a bit of research. They’re great raw. Some folks do cook them, but I prefer when I can to go raw, to maintain the maximum vibrancy and nutrition of the food.

I created the most refreshing and simple salad with them too. I picked up the Jicama and the Sunflower Greens at Whole Foods too.

Fresh Garbanzo Bean and Jicama Salad:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup shelled Fresh Garbanzo Beans
• 1/2 of a medium sized Jicama. If you haven’t tried Jicama before, go look for it. It’s a most unattractive big brown root vegetable that is lovely, white and juicy inside. It tastes a bit like an Asian Pear, but not as sweet. Just cut off the thick skin and eat the rest.
• 1/2 cup Sunflower Greens – these are Sunflower Seeds that have been sprouted. They are packed with protein. At Whole Foods they come in a little zip-bag, in the sprout section. They are a delicacy!
• 1 organic avocado – cut into small cubes

Dressing:

• 2-3 tablespoons of Extra Virgin Organic Olive Oil – depends on how oily you like your dressing
• Juice of 1/2 Lemon
• sprinkle of Cayenne Pepper – this is up to your taste of spiciness
• sprinkle of salt

1. Put fresh Garbanzo Beans, Sunflower Greens, Avocado and Jicama in a bowl.
2. Drizzle Olive Oil on top.
3. Squeeze the Lemon Juice.
4. Give a shake or two or Cayenne Pepper and Sea Salt.

I know that this salad would be lovely with fresh basil or any of your other favorite fresh herb, but I liked the simplicity and zing of just going with the lemon and cayenne.

Definitely experiment and let me know what you come up with.

Here it is before I decided it needed an avocado to get everything to blend in a yummy way .

Fresh Garbanzo and Jicama Salad all dressed, including avocado which makes it creamy.

It's a double

In case you need more of a reason to eat this delicious salad:

Here are a few of the health benefits of garbanzo beans…

• High in Fiber
• High in Protein
• Low Glycemic Index
• Good source of Iron
• Good source of minerals: Molybdenum and Manganese (I’ll tell you why they matter some other time).

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Nina Manolson, MA, CHC, LMT is the Smokin’ Hot Mom Mentor and Family Wellness Expert. She’s the founder of SmokinHotMom.com and HealthyYummyKids.com. She helps busy moms look and feel their best, and helps them feed their kids well in a world that doesn’t. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her healthy recipes and wellness tips click here.

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Nina Manolson, MA, is the founder of Body-Peace®.She helps women end the war with food and body and finally feel truly at home in their body—as it is.

She is known for her deeply feminist, anti-diet, body-peace® approach. She brings her 30 years of experience as a therapist, Body-Trust® Guide and Psychology of Eating Teacher to helping women create a respectful and trusting relationship with their food and body.

Nina’s Body-Peace® work is all in service of helping people get off the diet roller-coaster, and into a compassionate and powerful way of eating & living which creates a positive long-lasting change in and with their bodies. Her courses, coaching, poems and Body-Peace APP positively change the conversation that women are having with their body.

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