Non-Chickpea Hummus

I try a lot to vary hummus when I make it, as in different spices, and then different beans — black, cannellini, kidney, etc.

Then I had some edamame that I wanted to use so checked out some recipes for that to see if there was anything different about it. I finally ended up with one from FoodTV that did not use chickpeas, which was perfect.

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Ingredients

1/2 pound frozen shelled edamame (green soy beans), about 1 1/2 cups
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
1 lemon (about 3 tablespoons), juiced
1 clove garlic, smashed
3/4 teaspooon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Boil the beans in salted water for 4 to 5 minutes, or microwave, covered, for 2 to 3 minutes.

In a food processor, puree the edamame, tahini, water, lemon zest and juice, garlic, salt, cumin, and coriander until smooth. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and mix until absorbed.

Transfer to a small bowl, stir in the parsley and drizzle with remaining oil. Serve with the suggested vegetables, or refrigerate, covered, up to 1 day.

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When I was making this, I was at this great place where I dogsit that has a beautiful, amazing kitchen but lack of ‘stuff.’ As in, no food processor. There is a mini prep and antiquated blender. It was quite a process to make this, or shall I say — entertaining.

The end result was ok. It was just missing something — I added more salt and lemon juice, then some garlic, thinking maybe that would do it. Nothing great. Now, it did get a better after sitting for a bit. But, nothing overly fancy or exciting, but a decent alternative to ‘normal’ hummus.

 

 

New find

Was at Trader Joe’s the other day (not like that was something new) and they have done their typical thing of moving products around.  So now the hummus is pretty much right in front of you as you walk in the door at one of the locations I go to.  Had to check it out just in case I needed to pick some up.

I saw a new one…it’s not actually hummus but Green Tahini Dip and Sauce.  The ingredients: Tahini (Ground Sesame Seed), Water, Lemon Juice, Parsley, Green Onion, Dill, Mint, Dehydrated Garlic, Cilantro, Sea Salt, Cumin, Citric Acid.

It has some nice tang to it, great with veggies and the normal pita chips, etc.  Totally worth testing.  And, it’s lactose free and gluten free!

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Use It Or Lose It

In the past week I’ve been making a bunch of great recipes that of course called for delicious fresh herbs.  But, how much did I need to use?  Oh, maybe 1-2 tablespoons.  And how much did I have to buy?  Oh, that entire huge packet at the store.  So, these herbs are on their last legs and I have to use them somehow.  So, what to do?  Pesto!  The main ingredients I needed to use were (flat leaf) parsley, chives and basil.  Can you tell I shop at Trader Joe’s a lot based on the packaging?

IMG_1975[1]Got those sort of off the stems the threw them in the mini prep then decided what all to put in there.  Opted to use lemon olive oil, tons of garlic (of course!), a splash of lemon juice then opted for hazelnuts for a bit of a different taste.  Oh, S&P, too of course.  I can’t use the cheese because of the lactose intolerance thing, though if I had manchego on hand, I might have tried it.

IMG_1977[1]With all said and done, I had some very tasty green mush.  Will be great for pasta or just a veggie dip.

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Asparagus Hummus

Just made this recipe. Delicious!! The only changes I made were that I used a little bit of tahini instead of the olive oil. I also made half the recipe vs the whole. Great, unique flavor!! Thanks for the recipe, Homemade Delish!

Homemade Delish

Processed with Rookie

My family and I love purchasing and making fresh hummus in our house.  I was interested in trying to make  a new flavor. So I went ahead and made an asparagus hummus to enjoy with some crackers and veggies.  The flavor of the asparagus really comes out.  I think this is just another way to add more nutrition to your hummus.  This hummus has a refreshing finish too.  Enjoy as a snack or with your next get together.

Ingredients:

2 (15.5 oz) Can of Chickpeas, drained and rinsed

10 Asparagus Spears

3 Garlic cloves

Salt & Pepper, to taste

1/2 to 1 cup of Extra Virgin Olive oil

Juice and Zest of 1 Lemon

 

Preparation:

In a medium pot bring water to a boil and add asparagus. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes. In a medium bowl with cold water and ice add asparagus. This will stop the cooking…

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Zuch-anoush and More Mediterranean Flair

More playing in the kitchen!  I had this enormous zucchini that my friend gave me from her garden that led me make a twist to one of my favorite dips.  When I can find Baba Ganoush without dairy (yogurt) because of my lactose intolerance I love it, but it can be hard.  So, I tend to make it at home.  But, it’s fun to make small changes to the recipe. Therefore, I have made it with zucchini vs. eggplant a few times.  The hardest part of all this is thinking ahead and roasting the zucchini a for a good 45 or so minutes.  You just cut the zucchini into big chunks, throw it on a cookie sheet and put it in oven at about 425 to roast it.

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When it’s done, you want to be sure to squeeze it to get rid of extra water.  After that, throw it in the food processor and add tahini, lemon juice, garlic, S&P…and any other spices you might like.  This batch seemed to be missing something but it was still good!  I dipped carrots and crackers into it.

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I was in a Mediterranean mood that day and continued in the kitchen and made a Village salad.  I’d grabbed a great yellow (vs traditional red) tomato at the farmer’s market and added a cucumber that I had from my friend’s garden and some greek olives.  I had a red onion in my fridge but totally forget to put that in there.  I threw some other ingredients in the mix to both clear out my fridge and add some fun — celery and walnuts.  Sprinkled with a Penzey’s spice mix and olive oil.  Great, healthy, hearty meal!

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Testing…1,2,3…Testing

herbThe kitchen is my playground.  My parents brought my brother and me up in the land filled with spoons, forks, knives, blenders, mixers (go KitchenAid Stand Mixer), stoves (gas is the only acceptable type), BBQs & more.  And, we had to eat everything.  I have therefore learned not to waste anything.  In order to not waste, I love just making stuff…testing.  I know various flavors and what can and can’t, or shouldn’t, go together.

  I have some fresh herbs left from a dinner last week that I don’t want to them go bad/waste.  What to do with them?  Thick pesto-like dip, cheese-free is what I came up with.  So, ingredients I pulled from various areas of the kitchen, along with the essential mini-prep food processor:

All quantities are ‘some’ — who really measures?  It’s all about taste!

-fresh basil

-fresh flat leaf parsley

-1 lemon (ok, measured, but still could be big, could be small)

-garlic — I cheated and used stuff from the jar

-walnuts

-almonds

-S&P

-a great Penzey’s spice with lemony-Italian flavors

-olive oil

Blended, sampled, added more stuff, blended, sampled.  Good!  Now, will get final reviews after it’s been in the fridge for about 24 hours.  Plan to serve with chips, tomatoes and/or mushrooms for dipping.

Testing…1,2,3…Testing.