Abs Diet Power - Beans and Other Legumes

Beans and other legumes ...

Legumes. I'm pretty sure that 40 years ago I would have asked what the heck is a legume. Growing up in a large, partly-Irish family, the only beans we ate were baked with hot dogs on Saturday nights. My first experience with lentils back then was at a sketchy B'hai gathering on an Indian Reservation in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Ever since then I've associated lentils with chanting and peyote. And then there's that little ditty we've all known since childhood.

Now the lowly bean has been elevated in status - a legume, a super food. Low in fat, high in fiber, complex carbohydrates, folate, phosphorus, potassium, iron, zinc, calcium, and selenium. Truly a nutritional power food.

Taste buds are adjustable - much of the time. I have a hard time with legumes. I've tried. I have bags of dry lentils and beans - waiting for a craft project. Being a convenience eater, if something requires much preparation I'm apt to avoid it. I've tried canned. It just hasn't become something I look forward to eating.

Reading up on ways to conveniently fit legumes into my diet, I discovered that peanuts are not nuts at all - they're legumes! They are higher in (beneficial) fat than beans and lentils, but they contain more high quality plant protein than beans or lentils, offer the same essential minerals and are a good source of Vitamin E. Works for me. Why not peanut butter as a legume? I use Teddie brand unsalted, all-natural peanut butter. Ingredients: peanuts. That's it.

Chickpeas are a legume, too. Thinking creatively again, that makes hummus a source of legumes. Hummus also contains lemon juice, garlic and olive oil, all good-for-you ingredients. I use hummus as a spread on a sliced chicken sandwich instead of mayonnaise (which I classify as a super-evil food). Hummus is about 50 calories for 2 tablespoons, compared to close to 100 calories in 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise - never mind mayonnaise's 99% fat, artery-clogging properties. I also mix it with tuna instead of using mayonnaise. Or as a dip with a good tortilla chip: Food Should Taste Good brand. I like the multigrain ones - Ingredients: Stone Ground Corn, High Oleic Sunflower Oil and/or Safflower Oil, Brown Rice Flour, Flax Seeds, Evaporated Cane Juice, Oat Fiber, Sesame Seeds, Sunflower Seeds, Quinoa, Soy Flour, Sea Salt.

I don't know if the nutrition experts would agree, but I think I've got the legumes covered.