Curried Tomato Spread

Yum yum - try this one either as a spread for a sandwich on baguette bread, or as a dipping sauce for crudites - cauliflower and broccoli spears come to mind.

In a saucepan, combine 1/2 cup water and 2 chopped garlic cloves. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Add 1/2 cup crushed fire-roasted tomatoes (try the Muir Glen variety - organic! http://www.muirglen.com/), 1/2 tsp. cumin, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. curry powder, and a dash each of crushed red pepper and turmeric. Cook for two minutes. Add one, 16-oz can of cannellini beans (rinsed and drained) and cook another two minutes.

Now process it all in a food processor until smooth! A quarter cup of the spread is 80 calories. A word of caution: mine was a little runny, and I wonder if that was because I used diced fire-roasted tomatoes instead of crushed, so definitely do try and buy the latter.

Cost:
canned, fire-roasted tomato $1.89
cannellini beans $0.79