I have always been a big fan of hummus (I think I first tried it in college) which is a sort of middle-eastern bean dip made from cooked chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans), garlic, tahini (a paste made from sesame seeds) and olive oil.
When my mom gave me a food processor for Christmas a couple of years ago I knew I would be making some homemade hummus - but for some reason, it took me a long time to get around to it. I was encouraged by the fact that Rebecca tried store-bought hummus (the Central Market spicy red pepper stuff is very good) a few months back and liked it.
So without further ado, here was my first attempt:
Hardware:
Kitchen-Aid 16 cup food processor, standard blade attachment
flexible silicone spatula (for scraping the sides of the mixing bowl)
Software:
2 cans chickpeas, drained
10 cloves garlic, peeled
juice of 2 lemons (about 1/4 cup)
2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup tahini
3 tablespoons olive oil
(optional) 2 diced sun-dried tomatoes
Place the drained chickpeas, garlic and salt in the workbowl of your food processor and spin on high for 15-20 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the lemon juice and tahini. Spin an additional 15-20 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then while running the processor, drizzle in the olive oil (and add any additional garnishes you want mixed in.)
Serve immediately or chill in a covered container and serve cold. Goes well with pita chips or whole-grain crackers.
You can use homemade cooked chickpeas (a pressure cooker lets you make a batch in about an hour) which will give you slightly better flavors, but honestly with 10 cloves of garlic that's the dominant flavor anyway. A reasonable alternative could use less garlic and garnish with something like olive tapenade, capers or diced roasted peppers, all of which would be delicious as well.
One word of warning - although this is very healthy (and vegan!) food, it is VERY calorie dense. The above recipe makes 10-12 servings of about 250 calories each, so this is more a meal than it is an appetizer.
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Anasazi Beans and Rice
Anasazi beans are large, red-and-white speckled beans that look sort of like a cross between a pinto bean and a kidney bean. They were cultivated by Native American civilizations in the American Southwest over 2,000 years ago. They are also delicious!
One of the interesting thing about the anasazi bean is that it has less starch per serving than pinto beans, but is also faster-cooking. About the only drawback is that they are somewhat difficult to find; my local HEB carries them, but only infrequently.
I had been eyeing them on the shelf for a long time, and finally decided a month ago to buy a bag and do something with them - this recipe, inspired by the basic 'cooked white beans' recipe in Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything, was what I came up with.
Hardware
1 Large Stock Pot or Dutch Oven
Colander (for rinsing beans)
1 large saucepan
Software (for the beans)
1 lb dried Anasazi beans
1 medium onion
12 oz smoked bacon
1 (14.5oz can) tomatoes and green chiles
1 bay leaf
2 tsp chili powder
1 pinch red pepper flake or cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Software (for the rice)
2 cups white rice (I prefer Texmati)
2 tablespoons butter
heavy pinch salt
4 cups water
Assembly:
Check over the beans on a tray or counter for rock. Rinse the beans and soak overnight in cold water.
Chop the onion and bacon and set aside. Drain the beans. Cook the bacon in the large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat until cooked thoroughly. Remove the bacon (using a slotted spoon) and add the onion and a pinch of salt to the pan. Cook the onion in the bacon fat until translucent; return the bacon to the pan, and add the beans, along with 6 cups water, the (drained) can of tomatoes, and the chili powder and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for approximately 90 minutes (check the beans for doneness at this point)
For the rice, heat the butter in the saucepan over high heat. Once melted, add the rice and a pinch of salt. Saute the rice until toasted, then add 4 cups water and bring to a boil. cover and reduce heat to simmer; simmer for 20 minutes, then turn off the heat and allow to rest for 10 more minutes.
Serve the beans over the rice - keep in mind that dried beans can take a LOT of salt.
One of the interesting thing about the anasazi bean is that it has less starch per serving than pinto beans, but is also faster-cooking. About the only drawback is that they are somewhat difficult to find; my local HEB carries them, but only infrequently.
I had been eyeing them on the shelf for a long time, and finally decided a month ago to buy a bag and do something with them - this recipe, inspired by the basic 'cooked white beans' recipe in Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything, was what I came up with.
Hardware
1 Large Stock Pot or Dutch Oven
Colander (for rinsing beans)
1 large saucepan
Software (for the beans)
1 lb dried Anasazi beans
1 medium onion
12 oz smoked bacon
1 (14.5oz can) tomatoes and green chiles
1 bay leaf
2 tsp chili powder
1 pinch red pepper flake or cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Software (for the rice)
2 cups white rice (I prefer Texmati)
2 tablespoons butter
heavy pinch salt
4 cups water
Assembly:
Check over the beans on a tray or counter for rock. Rinse the beans and soak overnight in cold water.
Chop the onion and bacon and set aside. Drain the beans. Cook the bacon in the large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat until cooked thoroughly. Remove the bacon (using a slotted spoon) and add the onion and a pinch of salt to the pan. Cook the onion in the bacon fat until translucent; return the bacon to the pan, and add the beans, along with 6 cups water, the (drained) can of tomatoes, and the chili powder and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for approximately 90 minutes (check the beans for doneness at this point)
For the rice, heat the butter in the saucepan over high heat. Once melted, add the rice and a pinch of salt. Saute the rice until toasted, then add 4 cups water and bring to a boil. cover and reduce heat to simmer; simmer for 20 minutes, then turn off the heat and allow to rest for 10 more minutes.
Serve the beans over the rice - keep in mind that dried beans can take a LOT of salt.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Chipotle Apple Slaw
I'm pretty proud of this one as I invented it myself! (although a google search indicates I shouldn't try to copyright it - I must have seen a similar recipe at some point in the past and it bounced around in my subconscious for a couple of months or years before emerging)
I like to use crunchy, sweet apples (Honeycrisp, Gala, Pink Lady, or any of a number of recent heirloom brands I have seen at the store all work equally well.) The chipotle peppers will probably be near the salsas and enchilada sauces, or in the 'international foods' section of your grocery store. If you are not in Texas, you might have to order them online.
Software:
3-4 Large Apples
2-3 canned chipotle peppers
1 tsp adobo sauce (from the can of peppers)
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
juice from 2 limes
handful cilantro leaves
salt to taste
Hardware:
Cutting board
juicer (optional)
large mixing bowl (preferably with lid)
Directions:
Dice the apples fairly small (you want a smaller dice than bite size, but don't cut them too small or you will end up with apple salsa instead of slaw) and toss with the lime juice. Finely mince the chipotle peppers (feel free to add more if you want the final product to be hot) and add, along with the vinegar, olive oil, adobo sauce, and cilantro leaves. Add a good pinch of salt and mix thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for 12-24 hours. Equally delicious with chips, as a garnish on mexican food, or by itself. I'm not sure how long it will keep for since it never lasts longer than a day in my house.
I like to use crunchy, sweet apples (Honeycrisp, Gala, Pink Lady, or any of a number of recent heirloom brands I have seen at the store all work equally well.) The chipotle peppers will probably be near the salsas and enchilada sauces, or in the 'international foods' section of your grocery store. If you are not in Texas, you might have to order them online.
Software:
3-4 Large Apples
2-3 canned chipotle peppers
1 tsp adobo sauce (from the can of peppers)
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
juice from 2 limes
handful cilantro leaves
salt to taste
Hardware:
Cutting board
juicer (optional)
large mixing bowl (preferably with lid)
Directions:
Dice the apples fairly small (you want a smaller dice than bite size, but don't cut them too small or you will end up with apple salsa instead of slaw) and toss with the lime juice. Finely mince the chipotle peppers (feel free to add more if you want the final product to be hot) and add, along with the vinegar, olive oil, adobo sauce, and cilantro leaves. Add a good pinch of salt and mix thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for 12-24 hours. Equally delicious with chips, as a garnish on mexican food, or by itself. I'm not sure how long it will keep for since it never lasts longer than a day in my house.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Homemade Pitas
This was a big hit with the kids - I made them to go with falafel and was surprised at how much better than storebought they were.
Software:
3 cups bread flour (you can substitute up to 1/2 with whole-wheat flour)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 packet instant yeast
1 cup warm water
Hardware:
Stand mixer, food processor or bread machine
peel
rolling pin
baking stone
Combine the ingredients except the water in your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. With the mixer set to 'stir' slowly add the water and stir until the dough comes together. Switch out the paddle for the dough hook and knead the dough for 5 minutes; form into a ball and cover to let rise for 1-2 hours.
After the dough has risen punch it down and divide into 8-12 equal portions. Roll these into balls and flour lightly; cover with a towel and leave to rise for 20 minutes while preheating your oven (with a baking stone on the middle rack) to 350 degrees.
Roll out your pitas to ~1/4 inch thickness and use the peel to deposit them on the baking stone. Bake for 3-4 minutes, then flip over and bake another 3-4 minutes. Remove and devour as is, or brush with melted butter. Or use them to make a falafel sandwich!
Software:
3 cups bread flour (you can substitute up to 1/2 with whole-wheat flour)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 packet instant yeast
1 cup warm water
Hardware:
Stand mixer, food processor or bread machine
peel
rolling pin
baking stone
Combine the ingredients except the water in your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. With the mixer set to 'stir' slowly add the water and stir until the dough comes together. Switch out the paddle for the dough hook and knead the dough for 5 minutes; form into a ball and cover to let rise for 1-2 hours.
After the dough has risen punch it down and divide into 8-12 equal portions. Roll these into balls and flour lightly; cover with a towel and leave to rise for 20 minutes while preheating your oven (with a baking stone on the middle rack) to 350 degrees.
Roll out your pitas to ~1/4 inch thickness and use the peel to deposit them on the baking stone. Bake for 3-4 minutes, then flip over and bake another 3-4 minutes. Remove and devour as is, or brush with melted butter. Or use them to make a falafel sandwich!
Falafel!
This recipe is somewhat labor intensive but the result is delicious, healthy, and kid-friendly. It's also vegan, incidentally, if that sort of thing matters to you :)
So what is falafel, anyway? Basically it's the middle eastern take on a hush puppy (that's how my wife described it after trying it for the first time) - a fried ball or patty made up of minced chickpeas, onion, garlic, and various spices. A food processor is fairly essential for the construction, although you might be able to make it work with a grinder attachment to a stand mixer instead.
You can eat it as-is or make a sort of sandwich using pita bread. Traditional condiments include lettuce, tomato, red onion and tahini or yogurt sauce.
Software:
1 lb dried chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans)
1 small onion, quartered
3 cloves garlic
large handful cilantro or parsley leaves
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or red pepper flake
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Hardware:
Food processor with blade attachment
large skillet or dutch oven for frying
1 qt neutral oil (such as grapeseed) for frying
draining rig (a cooling rack, a plate, and a couple of paper towels works fine)
Start by soaking the chickpeas in cold water overnight (12-24 hours). Drain, and place in the work bowl of your food processor along with all the other ingredients. Pulse repeatedly until the chickpeas are a coarse, well-chopped texture (there should still be visible pieces of bean, but small pieces.) Shape into balls or patties and let rest while you heat the oil (at least an inch deep) to 350 degrees over medium high heat.
Fry the patties for 2-3 minutes per side, or until well browned. Remove to draining rig to drain and cool.
Some pro tips:
The tricky part of making falafel is that often the 'dough' will not want to form into anything, but rather will fall apart regardless of shaping. If this happens it means that your mixture is too wet. Place the pile of 'dough' in a tea towel and wring out over the sink (this is a fairly difficult thing to do without making a huge mess, so dress appropriately) - you will be surprised at how much water comes out!
If the dough still resists forming, try adding a couple of tablespoons of flour, stirring to combine, waiting a few minutes, and trying again. If you have chickpea flour (gram) it is an even more effective option.
If your falafel holds together pretty well, your oil should be good for at least one or two more frying sessions. If they fall apart really badly, the burned debris will probably mean the oil should be thrown out.
So what is falafel, anyway? Basically it's the middle eastern take on a hush puppy (that's how my wife described it after trying it for the first time) - a fried ball or patty made up of minced chickpeas, onion, garlic, and various spices. A food processor is fairly essential for the construction, although you might be able to make it work with a grinder attachment to a stand mixer instead.
You can eat it as-is or make a sort of sandwich using pita bread. Traditional condiments include lettuce, tomato, red onion and tahini or yogurt sauce.
 |
| Falafel with homemade pita bread and lemon-pepper-yogurt sauce |
Software:
1 lb dried chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans)
1 small onion, quartered
3 cloves garlic
large handful cilantro or parsley leaves
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or red pepper flake
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Hardware:
Food processor with blade attachment
large skillet or dutch oven for frying
1 qt neutral oil (such as grapeseed) for frying
draining rig (a cooling rack, a plate, and a couple of paper towels works fine)
Start by soaking the chickpeas in cold water overnight (12-24 hours). Drain, and place in the work bowl of your food processor along with all the other ingredients. Pulse repeatedly until the chickpeas are a coarse, well-chopped texture (there should still be visible pieces of bean, but small pieces.) Shape into balls or patties and let rest while you heat the oil (at least an inch deep) to 350 degrees over medium high heat.
Fry the patties for 2-3 minutes per side, or until well browned. Remove to draining rig to drain and cool.
Some pro tips:
The tricky part of making falafel is that often the 'dough' will not want to form into anything, but rather will fall apart regardless of shaping. If this happens it means that your mixture is too wet. Place the pile of 'dough' in a tea towel and wring out over the sink (this is a fairly difficult thing to do without making a huge mess, so dress appropriately) - you will be surprised at how much water comes out!
If the dough still resists forming, try adding a couple of tablespoons of flour, stirring to combine, waiting a few minutes, and trying again. If you have chickpea flour (gram) it is an even more effective option.
If your falafel holds together pretty well, your oil should be good for at least one or two more frying sessions. If they fall apart really badly, the burned debris will probably mean the oil should be thrown out.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Irish Stew (St. Patrick's Day Special Edition)
I have been remiss in keeping this blog updated over the last few months - things have been busy, and although I've been cooking as much as normal I haven't been trying a lot of new recipes.
Today of course is St. Patrick's Day, and in honor of the holiday and its innate Irishness I am making a hearty lamb stew. Why not corned beef and cabbage, you ask? Well for one thing, the stew is a lot tastier, but also - it's actually Irish, whereas corned beef and cabbage is Irish-American immigrant food.
Software:
2.5 - 3 lbs boneless lamb shoulder, cut into bite size chunks
12oz bacon, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 cloves garlic; minced or crushed
1/4 cup beef broth
2 cups beef broth
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
teaspoon kosher salt
teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
2 cups diced carrot
2 cups diced potato
1 cup diced onion
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup white wine
Brown the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat; remove to large stock pot, reserving the fat. Whisk together the flour, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl; add the lamb chunks and toss until evenly coated. Working in batches, brown the lamb chunks in the bacon fat in the skillet over medium-high heat, adding to the stock pot once done. Saute the onion, celery and garlic in the skillet and add to the stock pot. Deglaze the pan with the 1/4 cup broth, add this, the 2 cups broth, and the sugar to the stock pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 2 hours.
After 2 hours add the carrot, potato, onion, thyme, and wine; cook for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked to desired tenderness.
This recipe should serve 6 people (and hungry ones at that) but can easily be scaled up or down.
Serve with bread (irish soda bread if you want to be extra authentic, but I actually prefer french country style bread myself)
Today of course is St. Patrick's Day, and in honor of the holiday and its innate Irishness I am making a hearty lamb stew. Why not corned beef and cabbage, you ask? Well for one thing, the stew is a lot tastier, but also - it's actually Irish, whereas corned beef and cabbage is Irish-American immigrant food.
Software:
2.5 - 3 lbs boneless lamb shoulder, cut into bite size chunks
12oz bacon, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 cloves garlic; minced or crushed
1/4 cup beef broth
2 cups beef broth
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
teaspoon kosher salt
teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
2 cups diced carrot
2 cups diced potato
1 cup diced onion
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup white wine
Brown the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat; remove to large stock pot, reserving the fat. Whisk together the flour, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl; add the lamb chunks and toss until evenly coated. Working in batches, brown the lamb chunks in the bacon fat in the skillet over medium-high heat, adding to the stock pot once done. Saute the onion, celery and garlic in the skillet and add to the stock pot. Deglaze the pan with the 1/4 cup broth, add this, the 2 cups broth, and the sugar to the stock pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 2 hours.
After 2 hours add the carrot, potato, onion, thyme, and wine; cook for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked to desired tenderness.
This recipe should serve 6 people (and hungry ones at that) but can easily be scaled up or down.
Serve with bread (irish soda bread if you want to be extra authentic, but I actually prefer french country style bread myself)
Monday, December 5, 2011
Light & Delicious Gingerbread Cookies
I've always liked the idea of gingerbread cookies but never cared much for actual gingerbread cookies - they always taste heavy with molasses and too strongly spiced with cloves for my liking. When Rebecca asked me to make cookies for her kindergarten class (after a minor baking cataclysm deprived them of cookies the week before) I went on the prowl for a recipe that might make cookies that tasted delicious instead of like somebody working in the clove industry came up with them.
Dry Team:
3 cups all purpose flour (plus additional for work surface / rolling pin / etc.)
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 tsp ground cinnamon
Wet Team:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 cup molasses
whisk together the dry team in a mixing bowl and set aside. In a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until well combined. Add the molasses and continue mixing until thoroughly integrated. Working in batches, add the dry team and stir together on low until all ingredients are mixed. You may need to add a couple of tablespoons of water if the dough is having trouble coming together. Cover the dough and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Working on a well floured surface, roll the dough out to ~1/4 inch thickness and cut into your desired shapes. Bake for 7-10 minutes and allow to cool before decorating (or devour, warm, as is.) Makes ~30 small ginger-men or about 36 small cookies.
The cookies taste almost bland at first but have a wonderful gingery taste with a hint of clove and cinnamon in harmony. They received universal acclaim in our household, as well as in Rebecca's classroom.
 |
| Using the awesome snowflake cutter the Fords bought us, long ago |
 |
| 2 large ginger-men, a snowflake, and a S for Sydney! |
 |
| Final product. A delicious, unique, and beautiful snowflake. |
Dry Team:
3 cups all purpose flour (plus additional for work surface / rolling pin / etc.)
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 tsp ground cinnamon
Wet Team:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 cup molasses
whisk together the dry team in a mixing bowl and set aside. In a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until well combined. Add the molasses and continue mixing until thoroughly integrated. Working in batches, add the dry team and stir together on low until all ingredients are mixed. You may need to add a couple of tablespoons of water if the dough is having trouble coming together. Cover the dough and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Working on a well floured surface, roll the dough out to ~1/4 inch thickness and cut into your desired shapes. Bake for 7-10 minutes and allow to cool before decorating (or devour, warm, as is.) Makes ~30 small ginger-men or about 36 small cookies.
The cookies taste almost bland at first but have a wonderful gingery taste with a hint of clove and cinnamon in harmony. They received universal acclaim in our household, as well as in Rebecca's classroom.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)