…the more ya eat the more ya toot, the more ya toot, the better ya feel, then ya ready for your second meal! Does anyone out there remember that rhyme? My third grade teacher Mrs. Blanco made us watch a PBS special on beans and how wonderful “vegetables” were and this and that… while us kids were sitting there thinking she was an idiot because we just learned that beans were a fruit! And they can sing! Duh!

I had some good hummus at Jaffa Cafe in the village of AG on Friday night and I’ve had beans on the brains since then! Last minute on Friday, I got invited to a wine tasting in the village at the Siena Home Boutique… so I hopped on my scoot and met my friend Elizabeth and her husband Spencer for some wines from Argentina, Italy and Napa Valley. The wines were really delicious and there’s another one this Friday night at five o’clock. I’ll be there with bells on! And you should come too!

I also had some terrific wine at the Pierre LaFond Wine Bistro in Santa Barbara on Saturday when me and my good friend Jennifer took an impromptu afternoon drive there and back. And forgetful as I always am, I left my prized Ray Ban aviator sunglasses at the table… I called and luckily they still have them and will hold them for me! Must be some good karma from something I’ve done, or maybe it was my desperate prayers to St. Anthony (patron saint of guidance) to please, please, help me find them!

So back to beans. I love them. Lentils. Black. Cannellini. Kidney. And recently, garbanzo beans, better known as chick peas. In the winter months I love making chili with a large variety of beans and vegetables and freezing it so it lasts throughout the colder months. And since the black beans brownies I made last week were such a hit with my yoga students, I thought about creating a garbanzo bean cookie recipe. Why? Why not! Garbanzo’s are high in protein, low in calories and fat, and are an excellent source of zinc and folate. Oh! And studies show they can assist in lowering your cholesterol so eat up!

I don’t feel guilty eating or feeding my students cookies that have nutritional value in them so if you’re coming to my four o’clock class at Yoga Centre today, I’ve got a treat for you. And these are dairy-free, sugar-free and gluten-free. I thought about making them vegan but eggs work so well in recipes that don’t include any type of flour!  And according to My Fitness Pal app, these babies have 100 calories in them each, so have two, they’re small, and enjoy them!

Pumpkin Garbanzo Bean Cookies- makes 20 cookies 

Ingredients:

-1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed

-1/2 cup pumpin puree

-1/2 cup almond butter

-1 egg

-2 T honey

-2 T vanilla

-1 tsp baking powder

-1/2 tsp each nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice an cinnamon

-1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350.

2. Wash the garbanzo beans in cold water with your hands, so that the skin of the bean peels off. (check out my drain for a picture of the skins)

3. Place the beans in your food processor and pulse.

4. Add everything else to the food processor, except for the walnuts, and mix well.

5. Fold in the walnuts last.

6. Using sheets of parchment paper, scoop the cookie mix on them and bake for 20 minutes or until sides are browning. These are extremely moist so don’t be fooled and cook them longer, they should be like that! Use a wire rack for cooling.

Finished product…

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Look what arrived in the mail from my Ma this weekend… my annual Advent calendar! Let the season begin!