Hummus (2)

This is a new and improved hummus recipe. It is improved as I have learned a way to improve the texture of the hummus so that it is not so grainy. Its different in that it has different ingredients and a cleaner taste. Both recipes on my site are good but this one is my latest and maybe favorite of the two. After much research I came up with this version.

Here is what I did.

2 Cans Garbonzo beans, rinsed and place in a salad spinner.
3 cloves of garlic, minced (you can add more to your taste. I just don't want it to be overpowering.)
juice of  1-2 lemons, about 1/4 cup (add this to your personal taste. More or less whatever suits you.)
1 tsp. salt
1 (7oz) container of plain Greek yogurt.
3/4 cup Tahini (I have learned to make my own. It is very simple and I will post a recipe soon)
6 Tbl. olive oil
6 mint leaves
4-6 Tbl. water
1/8 tsp. smoked paprika (you can either add it to the recipe or just sprinkle it on top when serving. Since we don't ever just serve a big platter of hummus I chose to add it to the mix.)

Ok, part of what makes a smooth hummus is removing the skins off of the Garbonzo beans. I had no patience for this in the past. Then I watched a video on youtube (love youtube) and a woman had a great idea. She took the cans of beans and poured them into the strainer portion of a salad spinner ( you know the spinner that spins the water out of salad greens.) She rinsed them and then drained them. She then took her hands and gently rubbed the beans together in her hands and the skins sort of just came off. She didn't do it hard enough to mash the beans but enough that most of the skins came off. She then put the strainer into the bowl portion of the spinner and filled it with water. The skins kinda of float to the top. As she tilted the bowl and drained the water she used her hand to just push the skins out of the bowl. I did this twice to get rid of all the floating skins. Then drain the beans and place in a food processor.

Then add the chopped garlic, lemon juice, salt, yogurt, tahini, evoo, mint and blend well. Stopping and scraping down the sides of the bowl. Next to get the consistency you want you will add water. I ended up adding between 4-6 Tbl. Blend well till it is smooth and no more chunks. Then taste for seasoning. Add the paprika if you want and blend again. Or wait and serve it with paprika sprinkled on top and a little olive oil drizzled on it before serving.
Like I said we just grab it right out of the bowl and so I added it.
Everything here is a personal taste thing. You can add more of something or less depending on what you like. I did try adding cumin to this once as cumin is in a lot of hummus recipes and I have always liked it but I like this better without the cumin. My other recipe has cumin in it. This is just a good clean tasting hummus and we enjoy it a lot. 

Rustic Hummus

My family loves hummus. I have a son that could live on the stuff. I use to buy a big container of it weekly at Costco. It dawned on me that there was no reason to buy it when I can make it at home for 1/2 the price.
I have tried many different recipes. I have never found one that I loved. They were bitter or just not right. This one is really good.
 To get that super smooth hummus we tend to see you must sit and remove the little skins off of each garbanzo bean. Well after pulling the skins off of about 5 little beans (I had 4 cans of beans rinsed and ready to use) I said the heck with it. We will have rustic hummus. I'm not sitting there and peeling the skins off of 4 cans of beans. So it is up to you on how smooth you want it to look. It tastes the same.
This recipe makes a large bowl. You can certainly half it.
The thing about this recipe is that you can adapt it to your own taste. More of this, less of that. It is a good basic recipe to play with.

Here is what I did:
4 cans garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
1 cup tahini (this is a sesame seed paste you can find at most grocery stores and health food stores. Make sure you mix it well before you use it. The oil and seed butter separate. )
4 lemons juiced
1 Cup extra virgin olive oil + a drizzle or so as needed while blending.
1 bunch cilantro, cleaned and just tear the top leaves off, a little stem is ok. You will be blending it a food processor anyway.
1/2 cucumber, peeled and diced
2 tsp. garlic powder (you can certainly use fresh garlic. This is just easy and works fine in my opinion.)
1 1/2 tsp. salt or more to taste
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. cumin
optional- a drizzle of honey if it tastes too tart from the lemon juice. The lemon will mellow some if you want to wait before adding any honey.

In food processor add tahini and lemon juice. Blend and scrape down sides if needed. Add evoo, cilantro, cucumber, garlic powder, salt, paprika, cumin and blend scraping sides down to blend it well. Add half the beans and blend well. Add the other half and blend well. Scrape down sides a few times during blending to make sure it is completely blended. If it is too thick add a drizzle of evoo or a Tbl. at a time of water.  Taste for tartness and add honey if you want to. Just a small drizzle. As I said before the lemon will mellow out. Now taste for seasonings. Add more salt or cumin etc...as needed. You don't want to under salt this or it will be very bland. The lemons and salt are important ingredients in getting the right hummus flavor.
Serve with cut up veggies, corn chips, pita chips or eat it off a spoon. It all works. We love to use it in veggie roll up as the condiment. YUM.
Enjoy!

No Bake Chocolate Walnut Bars

My husband and sons love, love, loves these. They are a great grab and go. If you have a sweet tooth, these will hit the spot.  They are pretty easy to make and work great for us.

Here is what I do:
1/2 Cup raw unfiltered organic honey
1/4 Cup organic cold pressed coconut oil
1/4 Cup almond butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 Cup chopped walnuts or half cup walnuts and half cup almonds chopped
1/2 Cup raw organic cocoa nibs (you can use chocolate chips if you want. We just don't want the added sugar. Cocoa nibs keeps it healthier.)
1/4 Cup sunflower seeds
1/4 Cup pepitas ( raw shelled pumpkin seeds)
1/4 Cup dried goji berries (I sit and cut them in half. You don't have to but I like them smaller)
1 Cup organic rolled oats

Place walnuts, cocoa nibs, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, goji berries and rolled oats into a large bowl. Mix and set aside.
Oil an 8x8 baking dish and set aside.
In a saute pan set over med-low heat add the honey, coconut oil, almond butter, salt and cinnamon. Bring to a boil over med heat and let boil about two minutes stirring constantly. This will be your tried and true work. If you boil it long enough the bars will not get soft and messy when eating them room temperature. If you don't boil it long enough they will be a bit gooey. Not big deal. You will figure out what the right amount of time to boil the mixture for is. After the two minutes remove from the heat and add the vanilla and stir well.
Pour over dry ingredients and stir well to combine (I use a rubber spatula for this. It seems to work best and everything doesn't stick to it.)
Pour into prepared baking dish and press everything in tight. Place in refrigerator for two hours. Take out and cut into 12 bars. I them wrap them individually in plastic wrap and store in refrigerator. They will soften some as they warm up while you eat them. Sticky and delicious. 

Guacamole

Although its hard to believe based on the temperatures here in Texas. Summer is drawing to a close soon. I for one will be happy to see the cooler weather come back. Or at least as cool as it ever gets here in good ole Texas.
I have been hungry for some Tex-mex and just some summer time foods. I actually am planning a big Tex-mex meal this weekend  with cheese enchiladas smothered in chili gravy, big pot of pinto beans, and Mexican rice. I may or may not grill chicken. I have to see what I feel like. Oh, and of course margaritas. I will post a really easy and wonderful recipe for margaritas later. They aren't the frozen kind but they are delicious and easy because you can make huge batches and you don't have to use the blender.
Anyway, my family is like flies to ......well you know, when it comes to my guacamole. It is a real battle to have enough for dinner time if I make it too early. This isn't a big secret recipe. I have seen everything from guacamole with just mashed up avocados and onion, to some who add in picante sauce (I actually started out making mine that way.) Just like all recipes there is no right or wrong way in my opinion. There is just good. I'm not a food purist. If it tastes good or makes something better then do it. Now I know when to leave a recipe alone as well. I just think its about taste and your food experience. Enjoy it rather than stand on whats right or wrong. Anyway, here is what I do.

Guacamole
4 large ripe avocados.

Everything from here on out is personal choice. You choose how much of each ingredient you like in your Guacamole.
1 jalapeno (stem removed, cut in two and remove seeds and veins. The heat is really in the seed  and veins. So if you remove them you don't have so much fire.) Slice into slivers and then mince.

2 plum tomatoes,  cut in two and with a spoon scoop out all the seeds and wet stuff. After this dice into fairly small pieces.

1/2  a medium onion (use whatever you like, white, yellow, red....) and dice fine

1/2 bunch cleaned cilantro, minced

salt

juice of half a lime

Peel the avocados and place in a bowl. With a fork mash them up as much as you like for your guacamole. Add the rest of the ingredients except the salt and lime. Add the salt last a little at a time till it is salty enough for you. Lastly mix in the lime juice. Taste for salt and of course if it needs more of any ingredient or even more lime. Serve with corn chips.
If you make ahead and want to store in fridge:
I have heard and tried using the avocado seed. Can't say that really worked all that well. What you want to do is cover with Saran wrap. Place it directly on the guacamole and make sure there are no air pockets. Air is what turns it brown as it oxidizes. Place in fridge. When your ready to eat just remove the saran wrap and give it a stir. Taste for seasoning once more and then enjoy.

Buffalo Hot Wings

We love hot wings, but have you taken your family out for wings recently? You need a small loan to pay for the number of the little darlings it takes to feed everyone. Now when you have a family of Sasquatches like I do it is a real financial challenge.
So I set out to make my own. I have made them in the past but the problem was getting so many made and everyone fed at one time. I began with my typical research and after reading many recipes came up with this recipe that works GREAT and feeds everyone at the same time.

To feed my 6 grown Sasquatches and then 2 more Sasquatch friends I purchased 50 whole wings and after cleaning them and cutting them into their little parts I had 100 wings. Believe it or not we only had about 15 wings left after dinner. Shocking I know.

make sure you buy the Franks Original NOT the wing sauce.


Buffalo Hot Wings

Place all the cut up wings in a large bowl. We are going to marinate the wings for 8-24 hours before cooking them. Using FRANKS  RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce (this is the best) add just enough sauce to lightly coat the wings in the bowl. You don't want them swimming in the sauce just lightly coated. Then place them in a large zip lock bag. Place about 25 wing pieces per bag. Now Put a good coating of Cajun Seasoning (I used Ragin Cajun) and about half the amount of garlic powder over the wings then close the bag and shake and mix the wings with the cajun seasoning and place in the refrigerator for 8-24 hours.
When you are ready to cook them place a large heavy dutch oven or deep fryer (however you plan to fry your wings) over a flame and fill the pot half full with oil of your choice.  Bring the oil to 350 degrees. You want to try and keep the temperature of the oil as close to 350 degrees as you can during cooking. Layer three paper towels on counter and place the chicken pieces out on the paper towels (this is to absorb the liquid that may have collected on them.) You don't want to wipe them off because you will wipe away the seasoning. Just roll them over the paper towel and stack them. I separate them into piles of drummettes and wingettes because they cook for different times. You should have already cut these up. The wing tip should be discarded and the drummette and wingette separated from each other.



 Fry in batches depending on how large your pan is 6-8 at a time. You will fry the drummettes at 350 degrees for about 8 to 10 minutes (depending on the size of them.) and you will fry the wingettes about 8 minutes. Once they are fried drain and set aside. I drained mine and then place them in two seperate baking dishes. Once you have fried ALL your wings in batches and place in baking dishes set aside your pot of oil and make your wing sauce.

Turn oven on to 325 degrees

Hot Wing Sauce- This amount was perfect for the large amount of wings I made. It doesn't make a lot so you decide whether you want to half it or not.

1 23oz bottle of Franks Hot sauce
2 sticks of butter
2-4 good dashes of Worcestershire sauce
Place in sauce pan and heat to melt butter and combine.

Pour the sauce over the wings in the baking dishes and mix thoroughly to coat evenly. Place pans in heated oven for 15 minutes to heat the wings back up and to adhere the sauce to the wings. Once heated give them another good stir to coat them with the sauce on the bottom of the baking dishes. SERVE!