Black Bean Dip

Credit: Courtesy Breast Friends

Stave off aging with this black bean dip’s antioxidant properties

Chock full of antioxidants and cancer fighters, this healthy black bean dip will quickly become an appie favourite

Black beans and other legumes are a healthy, inexpensive source of protein and nutrients including B vitamins, folate, calcium, iron, potassium and zinc.

InspireHealth recommends eating them twice or more weekly, especially when they’re prepared at home (rather than from cans). Home-cooked beans are more easily digested and therefore the protein, vitamins and minerals are better used by the body. (Beans contain hard-to-digest substances which can be inactivated through proper preparation.)

Black beans are high in antioxidants that stave off aging and illness. Zinc, for example, is an antioxidant mineral that is involved in many aspects of your immune system, and it also balances copper in the body (too much copper may promote cancer). Beans have certain carbs that reduce the effects of enzymes in the intestines that may cause cancer, and fibre which helps eliminate toxins.

Ingredients:

• 1 450 ml. can black beans
• 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• unrefined salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. 

2. Some canned beans have more liquid then others, so you may have to drain some liquid off.

Makes two cups.  

Serve as a dip for veggies or pita chips.

For this book’s healthy recipes, Breast Friends teamed up with InspireHealth, a not-for-profit organization and leader in integrative cancer care, with three centres in BC and an online program. InspireHealth promotes healthy lifestyle including nutrition, exercise, support groups and stress management while supporting standard cancer treatments.