Beanball Subs

I apologize to those of you who already have this recipe from my friend Jen's blog, Belly Bites.  (And I think at least half of my readers link to me from her blog!  Thanks, Jen!)  But I must post this recipe so that I can make it again and again.  It was soo good!  Even with all of my mess-ups.  And believe me, there were a few.  It took me while to make sure I had all of the ingredients at the same time.  When I finally thought I was ready and began to make the beanballs I went to get my kidney beans out of my pantry and...I was OUT!  I'm NEVER out of kidney beans.  But after making 7 Shepherd's Pies in one day (for a frozen dinner exchange) I used them all up and forgot to replenish my stash.  Bummer!  I decided to use black beans instead.  They worked great so if you're ever out of kidney beans...black beans make a great substitute.  Just so you know.  I also forgot to put the olive oil in the beanball mixture.  Oops!  Didn't seem to make a difference so I might leave that out again.  I also just used marinara sauce from a jar instead of making the gourmet, and much more delicious I'm sure, recipe that goes with this.  I know this looks like a lot of steps and work but it really comes together quickly.  Jen says she always doubles her beanball recipe and freezes them for another time.  That would really speed the process up!  OK...here's the recipe!

Beanball Subs

1 recipe Beanballs {below}
1 recipe (4 cups) Marinara Sauce {below}
1 recipe Pine Nut Cream {below}
4 hoagie rolls, split open
2 cups fresh spinach leaves, well washed

Prepare the recipes of the first three components. (And yes, that means cook the beanballs as directed in the beanball recipe.  I had a question about that.)  Preheat oven to 350*F. Place (precooked) Beanballs in a casserole dish and top with about 1 cup of marinara and all of the pine nut cream. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until pine nut cream is lightly browned.

Spread more marinara sauce on one side of each roll and distribute the Beanballs evenly among the sammiches, layering the spinach leaves over them - it'll wilt some. Top liberally with more marinara sauce. Close your sammiches, slice in half on the diagonal, and serve.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Beanballs
1 (20-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained (about 3 cups)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons steak sauce or tomato paste
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional for frying or baking
2 garlic cloves, grated or minced finely
1/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1/4 cup vital wheat gluten
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

Preheat oven to 375*F.

Mash the kidney beans in a mixing bowl until no whole beans are left. You don't want them to be completely smooth, you should still be able to recognize that they are kidney beans. Add the soy sauce, steak sauce/tomato paste, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the garlic, lemon zest, bread crumbs, wheat gluten, and herbs, and use a fork to mix everything together. Use your hands to kneed the mixture for about a minute, until everything is really well combined and firm.

Roll the bean mixture into walnut-size balls (I use a cookie scoop so they're all uniform). But don't make them too big; smaller makes for the best texture.

Grease a rimmed baking sheet with olive oil {i spray}. Place the balls on the sheet and then drizzle them with a little more oil, to coat {i spray a liberal coat}. Bake for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned on the bottom, then flip them and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove them from the oven.

Time Saver: Double this up, freeze what you don't use. And have them quick and ready for another time.

Marinara Sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
several pinches of freshly ground black pepper
a whole bulb of peeled roasted garlic, smooshed
roasted red pepper, chopped

Preheat saucepan over medium-low heat. Add water and garlic to steam-fry for about a minute until fragrant, being careful not to let it burn. Add the remaining ingredients, cover, and raise the heat a bit to bring to a simmer. Add the roasted garlic. Simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the roasted red pepper and warm through.

Pine Nut Cream
1 pound soft silken tofu
1/2 cup pine nuts
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon arrowroot powder
1 garlic clove
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1 1/4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
white pepper

In a food processor, blend the pine nuts and lemon juice, scraping the sides with a rubber spatula, until a cream paste forms. Add the tofu, garlic, arrowroot, nutmeg, salt, and white pepper. Blend until creamy and smooth.