Chickpea Hummus

So I'm going to toot my own horn on this.

Since I've been back in Austin, I've really wanted to have a try at hummus but didn't have a food processor. Still don't have the food processor yet and I just couldn't help myself. I had prepared fruit-veggie stock and I needed to use it soon. And what better way to cook beans in than water?

Chickpea Hummus

Soak overnight in stock, cook till tender. May need to add more stock to cover beans as they simmer (est 1.5hrs)

• 1c dry garbanzo bean

In a food processor (I used the Magic bullet), puree and set aside

• 1/3c tahini paste
• Juice from 1 lemon
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1t ground cumin
• 1t salt
• 1T olive oil

When beans are easily mashed between fingers, puree beans with left over stock. Use enough liquid for the beans to puree to the consistency desired. I ended up using more liquid than expected to boil and puree. Be sure to use enough or you can burn out the motor if your using something other than a food processor. Which is why I had to puree mine in small batches.

First Time for Hummus

Mix all the pureed ingredients into a medium bowl. Serve warm or cold.

Optional add-ins

• 1/3c minced herb of choice
• top with olive mixture
• pinch of paprika
• Olive oil for drizzling

I used 1.5t spicy Spanish smoked paprika  to mix in and drizzled olive oil on top. SOOO GOOD! I'm defiantly going to experiment with making other hummus dips with other beans. I'll be even more pleased once we get the food processor because I'll have a much smoother texture. :)

Swiss Chard & Basil Marinara over Spaghetti

Thursday, I really wanted to find a use for that Swiss Chard. And I was inspired after we picked up the basil on Wednesday. I made Swiss Chard and Basil Marinara over Wheat and White Spaghetti noodles.

For this dish, Farmer's Market and Veggies from Sprouts (sale local farmers products)

Swiss Chard and Basil Marinara over Spaghetti Pasta

• Fresh Whole Basil with stem, thinly sliced
• Swiss chard with stem, thinly sliced
• Zucchini, thinly sliced
• Vine ripe tomatoes, chopped
• Garlic cloves, minced
• Yellow Onion, chopped

Sauteed Zucchini and onion in Extra Virgin Olive oil. Then added Tomatoes and Sakie, reduced. Added freshly ground oregano and rosemary. Then, lay the Swiss Chard, Basil, and Garlic on top of sauce to steam. Stirred and let greens cook. And I prepped Spaghetti noodles, boiled, drained, and threw into sauce pan and mixed well.

Served with Parmesan cheese and I put red pepper flakes in mine. 

Only thing I wish I had was mushrooms. It did make enough for left overs and I tried using nutritional yeast for the substitute for cheese because its high in Vitamins: B3, B1, B2, B6 and B12. Didn't taste really like cheese but it could be because it was overshadowed by the basil and Swiss chard.

Korean BBQ Warm Salad

I feel fortunate that Austin had multiple farmers markets and a variety of grocery stores that I can select the best ingredients for my dollar.

We stopped by the Triangle. Which has a farmers market on Wednesdays and we picked up some goodies. And Saturdays, downtown, they have a really big farmers market. I've been pretty happy with my selections since sometimes I find better looking food that just came off the farm and now its at my table. I admit its hard to cook food immediately after purchase but we do our best to keep up.

Wednesday, I made a warm salad, Korean BBQ Pork Short Ribs over Romain.

For the Bed

Warm Korean BBQ Pork Salad

• Romain
• Yellow squash, thinly sliced
• Red radish, thinly sliced
• Mexican Cheese

 For the Warm, Sauteed

• Pork Short ribs, thinly sliced
• Daikon radish, thinly sliced
• Green onion, thinly sliced
• 6 Basil leafs, thinly sliced
• Garlic Clove, minced
• Korean BBQ sauce
• White ground pepper

Sautee diakon radish and browned meat with white ground pepper. Add Korean BBQ sauce, cook till meat is a bit firm. Then add basil, green onion and garlic. Serve with juice over salad. It was very easy and a fairly quick meal.