CHICKPEAS, ONION AND MINT SALAD, CHINESE CABBAGE AND OLIVES –YES, IT’S ANOTHER SALAD, WE JUST CAN’T GET ENOUGH- AND SMOKED CHEESE SANDWICH.

To the discovery of the mysterious ingredient!

Days of anxious wait have preceded the arrival of our “panier bio” of the week. We got all excited reading about this chinese cabbage no one had ever heard about before and we started to make all kind of conjectures about it: would it be still green? Still crunchy? Still stinky when you boil it?

And then day came. It arrived. In all its funniness. Yes, because this is what it looks like.

Isn’t it adorable? Honestly, I have no idea why it’s called chinese, but I would have found lots of other more appropriate names for it: gnome cabbage. Or unicorn cabbage. Or raindrop cabbage. Just to mention a few.

So, many, more, approriate name.  more in line with it’s funniness.

Whatever, it’s still really funny.

And stimulating, I would add.

INGREDIENTS:

Ø  Salad 1: chickpeas, onion and mint salad

-          Chickpeas

-          Onion

-          Mint

-          Olive oil

-          Salt

(Please do not underestimate the importance of this ingredients list: to forget to add salt would be a catastrophy).

Ø  Salad 2: chinese cabbage and olives salad

-          Chinese cabbage

-          Olives

-          Olive oil

-          Salt

(Same as before PLUS, I’m also giving you a priceless tip, in case the exoticness of the chinese cababge was about to discourage you from trying this super nice salad: it can be replaced with savoy cabbage, that tastes exactly the same. –Though, wothout being as funny, I have to say).

Ø  Smoked cheese sandwich

-          Smoked cheese

-          Bread

-          Salt and pepper

Without indulging on directions (I trust you), I think it’s just important to remind that, if you’re using dried chickpeas, you should remember to leave them in a bowl full of water for 24 hours and boil them for half an hour before eating them.

I also recognize, though, that if you are in a dried-beans-excitement as I am, you already know this while, if you’re not sharing this whole excitement, you might not be that concerned, since the only thing you have to do with canned beans is to open the can.

Well, ok, I thin that's all.

INGREDIENTI:

Ø  Insalata 1: Insalata di ceci, cipolla e menta

-          Ceci

-          Cipolla

-          Menta

-          Olio d’oliva

-          Sale

(Vi prego di non sottovalutare l’importanza di questa lista degli ingredienti: dimenticare di aggiungere il sale sarebbe una catastrofe).

Ø  Insalata 2: Insalata di cavolo cinese e olive

-          Cavolo cinese

-          Olive

-          Olio d’oliva

-          Sale

(Vedi sopra. INOLTRE, vi do anche un impagabile consiglio, nel caso l’esoticità del cavolo cinese fosse sul punto di scoraggiarvi dal provare questa buonissima insalata: può essere sostituito con la verza, che ha esattamente lo stesso sapore. – Nonostante non sia altrettanto buffa, mi sento di aggiungere).

Ø  Toast con formaggio affumicato

-          Formaggio affumicato

-          Pane

-          Sale e pepe

Senza soffermarci sui preparativi (mi fido di voi), credo sia importante ricordare che, usando I ceci secchi, dovete ricordarvi di lasciarli in una ciotola piena d’acqua per 24 ore, e di bollirli per mezz’ora prima di mangiarli.

Certo è che se anche voi, come me, siete in questa “fase di esaltazione da legumi secchi”, questo lo sapete già e, se invece non doveste sentire tutta questa euforia, potrebbe non interessarvi più di tanto, considerato che l’unica cosa da fare prima di mangiare legumi in scatola è aprire la scatola.

Bè, ok, credo che sia tutto.