During my 30 days of plants experiment, I didn’t plan day one since I decided to start after I woke up. I threw this dish together, based on a spice mix my elder daughter gave me. This dish is very comforting. I made it with olive oil, just because I was feeling lazy and didn’t want to sweat the onions and garlic with water. But, this dish would probably be just as flavorful using water and wine instead of adding the calories and fat from olive oil.

Low fat, low calorie tasty comfort food

This is a very hearty, filling dish and at just 550 calories a serving (490 if you skip the oil), you can afford to go back for seconds! I did 3 additional servings worth.

This is my first day of trying “planty” or plant based for the most part. So, I’ll call it my made up recipe 1.

Plant based eating

My first day on this experiment I had 4 servings, so I’m not limiting my intake at all. And, I enjoyed a nice french white wine. Even though I cook with box wine, I appreciate a good find. And, this one is both a good find and a good deal.

Budget wine and inexpensive indulgent meals

If you’re on a budget, Walmart’s store box white wine is actually quite good. It works great for cooking, but is drinkable as well. A bit more moderate budget wine drinker may want to look at French wines right now. The lessor known regions produce less consistent flavors, but good vintages can rival the famous regions. Spain and Italy are also undervalued in my opinion (circa 2024 sales prices). I paid $17 for this bottle, where Walmart’s Oak Leaf sells for around $13 right now or around $3.25 a 750 (standard bottle size).

You can be indulgent and budget conscious if you can avoid keeping up with the Joneses. Keep in mind, real wine snobs shop for flavor, not brand. You won’t find many bottles in my collection that sold for more than $100 new.

I’d consider investing in a cellar of good wine right now if you love to entertain or treat yourself. Though, land is probably a better investment if you’re looking for a cash return.

This meal may have been better paired with a hearty red wine. I was feeling like a springy light white wine today.

Mary Taylor Bordeaux Blanc ‘Jean-Marc Barthez’ 2022

Total dish cost: $8
Servings: 4

Turkish spiced beans and potatoes

Turkish flavors in a classic beans and potato potage

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Resting time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Servings 4 servings

Calories 550 kcal

Equipment

• 1 Large pot standard stainless or iron pot
• 1 Knife chopping things

Ingredients

  

• 2 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
• 2 whole onions diced medium sized yellow or white
• 4 cloves garlic fresh
• 2 tbsp black pepper freshly ground
• 2 tbsp course salt
• 3 wholle potatoes peeled, cut into large pieces
• 15 ounces kidney beans dark red, strained
• 15 ounces mixed beans kidney, black, pinto beans do not strain
• 15 ounces garbanzo beans strained
• 4 ounces wine cheap white, great use for boxed wine
• 4 ounces water

Instructions

 

• Smash and dice 4 cloves of garlic into a hot pot with olive oil and salt, sweat the garlic until it softens (estimated 5-10 minutes)
  
• Add 2 diced medium sized onions, sweat until they begin to stick to the bottom of the pan, deglaze with a glass of cheap white wine
  
• Add Turkish styled spices
  
• Slow simmer for up to 10 minutes, adding a glass of water to continue sweating the onions and garlic
• Add black pepper to taste preference (2 tbsp default), stir continuously
  
• Add peeled, chopped potatoes, cover and cook at a medium heat
  
• Add canned beans, cover and cook at a medium heat
  
• Let sit at a very low heat, up to 30 minutes longer before turning off the heat

Notes

This entire pot has an estimated 2200 calories, with a total fat of around 34 grams, with approximately 3.8 grams of saturated fat and most of that is from the olive oil. If you believe the oleic acid is good for you and you're not drastically controlling saturated fat intake you can leave the olive oil in.

At 4 servings, we're only talking about <1 gram of saturated fat per serving, and a mere 550 calories. Add 100 for wine, and you're at 650 calories for a meal.

Nice!

It is easy to substitute water for the olive oil and sweat the onions and garlic without oil. It will modify the flavor slightly, but you can save an estimated 240 calories. Cutting olive oil will cut out 60 calories a serving.

This dish is very flavorful, while maintaining a bit of a goulash vibe (sans pasta and meat).