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Haystacks! The Strack way.

Posted by Sean on

I want to open up the door to new ideas here. In fact, what about a book of 101 ways to do haystacks? If you’ve never had a Haystack before (and you probably have but just didn’t know it was called that) let me introduce it to you.

Author: Ella May Hartlein. This particular version is the Strack’s favorite way to do it.

Yield: Serves 2.

Seasons: All, ingredients vary with the season.

INGREDIENTS: On a plate:

• A handful or two of lettuce chopped, or baby greens of any kind.

• A handful or two of chips. (We recommend Organic corn chips)

• 1 cup Cooked Rice, Quinoa or Millet (a lot of people skip this at potlucks, but you really don’t want to miss out on the flavor and extra nutrition!)

• 1-2 cups cooked beans (usually black or pinto), or canned.

• Toppings:

• Chopped onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, Hakurei Turnips, any other vegetable on hand. Cilantro for garnish.

• Fresh Salsa, or canned. (Recipes coming up)

• AND

• Vegan Sour Cream (recipe coming up)

• OR

• Yumm Sauce (recipe coming up)

• AND/OR

• Guacamole or chopped avocado

Now we’re going to break it down into what it takes to prepare what goes on that plate. If you have questions about how to cook rice and beans, let us know.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. About an hour before the meal, get the grain and beans cooking. (We soak dry beans overnight, instead of using canned. An Instant Pot, or 2, can help this process be less labor intensive.

2. Chop up all the vegetables and lettuce into separate bowls, so people can make their own plates.

3. Make the dressings (even salad dressing, if you’d like), Salsa, Sour Cream, Yumm Sauce, Guacamole, etc. We like to make some of this a day or two ahead.

4. Set the table and serve. This meal is a real favorite in the Strack house. Often we also have Quesadillas featuring garden fresh greens(recipe coming up). Sometimes chips are used as forks.