My husband was out of town today and I knew he’d get home around 6:30, provided there was not too much traffic coming out of Austin on I-35. One little wreck can slow him down an hour! So I chose to whip up a simple dinner from a can of whole clams that I knew I could cook from start to finish in 30 minutes after he got home. This was a real treat and quite delicious.
Check out my latest pasta discovery! Black bean spaghetti that I stumbled upon at Thrive Market on-line. It’s organic, is certified gluten-free, high in fiber and protein! It has more carbs than zucchini noodles, but is a nice alternative to spaghetti squash and zucchini squash all the time. For lowest carbs, serve over 20 oz. of pre-cooked zucchini noodles. The verdict on the black bean noodles: both I and my husband liked them in taste and texture. They didn’t really taste of beans and reminded me of regular whole grain pasta in flavor. Texture was like any al-dente thin spaghetti. The color is black before they are cooked. After cooking they are an off-putting gray, so they are not something I’d ever serve to company, or that I chose to use in my feature photo above. I took a snapshot of them below so you can see the gray color after cooking. Only 11 net carbs per 2-oz serving, which is lower than Al Dente brand Carba Nada Noodles! Only listed ingredient is black beans.
Their gray color will elicit all sorts of comments from the kids. I will definitely buy and cook these tasty noodles again. Color doesn’t bother me at all. 
Of course, as I said above, you can serve this clam dish over zucchini noodles to cut carbs. I am posting nutritional info for methods of serving.
This recipe is suited to Atkins Phase 2 and beyond (make without wine and with zucchini noodles if you are still in Induction Phase). This can be enjoyed on Keto diets if you use zucchini noodles and Paleo-Primal provided you use the zucchini noodles as well.
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INGREDIENTS:
1 8-oz. box of black bean spaghetti
4½ oz. raw bacon, chopped
3 oz. red onion, slivered
3 oz. leek, chopped (or green onion)
2 T. my Sofrito sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped
1 10-oz. can whole clams (with juice)
¼ c. dry white wine (omit for Atkins Induction)
Dash of your preferred thickener (I used 1/4 tsp. xanthan gum)
OPTIONAL: Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese (not calculated in below)
DIRECTIONS: In large pot of boiling water, cook the noodles for 6-8 minutes per box directions. Heat large skillet over medium-high heat and brown chopped bacon. When nearly done, add the red onion and chopped leeks and saute until tender. Add sofrito sauce, minced garlic and chopped plum tomatoes. Add white wine. Stir as the mixture cooks for about 5-7 minutes. Add thickener and stir over low heat until it has begun to slightly thicken. Drain noodles when done cooking and spoon them onto a serving platter. Top with the clam mixture, a sprinkle of grated Parmesan if you like, and serve with a nice green salad.
NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 4 servings, each contains:
USING BLACK BEAN NOODLES: 484 calories, 18.8 g fat, 33.25 g carbs, 13.87 g fiber, 19.38 g NET CARBS, 4.05 g protein, 471 mg sodium
USING 20 oz. ZUCCHINI NOODLES: 293 calories, 22 g fat, 15.32 g carbs, 3.72 g fiber, 11.6 g NET CARBS, 18.2 g protein, 470 mg sodium
Buttoni's Low-Carb Recipes 