Spinach & Bean Pockets

Who doesn't love portable food? I don't have a regular routine for lunch. Sometimes I eat at my desk, other times I am in the middle of teaching, and sometimes I am in my car on a trip. I've been thinking about portable food, and trying to figure out what I can bring that will be healthy. For inspiration, check out veganlunchbox.com. It's an amazing blog that has been turned into a cookbook! I appreciate the author's love of lunchboxes, and this has inspired me to really put some thought into what I am bringing for lunch, and how I am packing it.
Here is my recipe for spinach & white bean pockets. These are so much fun to eat, and they freeze really well. I make a big batch, cool them, and freeze them in foil. Then I take one out of the freezer to thaw in the fridge overnight, and toss it into my lunchbag in the morning. You can heat them up in the microwave for 1 minute on high. Drizzle with tahini and hot sauce (of course) and you are good to go. Eating in the car? Just eat straight out of the foil!

Spinach & Bean Pockets
1 recipe whole wheat pizza dough (in earlier post)
1/2 lb frozen baby spinach
1 can white beans, drained (your choice of bean variety!)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
paprika
about 1 cup veggie broth

Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat for a few minutes. Toss the garlic and onion in the pan, stirring continuously so it browns, but doesn't burn. (You could use olive oil here if you want, but I am trying to go low-fat.) Cook till the onions are soft and fairly translucent. Add about 1/4 cup of the broth and stir, scraping any browned bits off the pan.

Add the white beans and a few pinches paprika, and stir to incorporate flavors. Add the spinach, straight out of the freezer. Now, at this point, you want to stir and stir, preventing any of the food from sticking or burning. Add broth as needed to steam the spinach a bit, but you want to make sure you cook away all the liquid. Add a few pinches of salt. Remove from heat and cool completely.

Take your pizza dough and divide into about 4 equal parts. Kneed each part, and roll out to about a 7" circle. When the spinach/bean filling is totally cool, spoon some into the center of the dough circle, leaving about 1/2 diameter from the edge. Fold over the circle to make a little pocket, and press the edges to make a seal. Sometimes I turn the edges to make a cool "braid" like look.

Heat in a 400* oven for about 18-20 minutes.
Yay!!!