Hummus

Hummus is the Arab word for chickpea. But now 'Hummus' is almost synonymous with the dip. The history of hummus extends across the Mediterranean, as far as India, and reaches back thousands of years. While many cultures worked to perfect the recipe, it remains basically the same: Chickpeas, olive oil, sesame tahini, lemon juice, and garlic. The spices and garnishes often vary, but this is an excellent version, if not the best hummus recipe.

Ingredients:

1 cups of canned chickpeas
1 lemon
1 med. clove garlic crushed
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbsp Tahini 3 tbsp olive oil 1/2 tsp paprika

Method:
Boil beans in canned water for 5-7 min. Drain half of water. Pour beans into blender, add lemon, garlic, tahini and 1 tbsp of olive oil . Puree until smooth (2-3 min), adding a little of the reserved liquid if the mixture seems too thick though, it will be slightly grainy. Season with salt and pepper.

Serving Tips:
Place in a shallow bowl and let it stand for half an hour to cool. Sprinkle paprika and pour 2 Tbsp. of olive oil on top. Garnish with parsley. Serve with toasted Pita, cucumbers, green olives, tomatoes and fete cheese.

Note:
You can make tahini paste in a food processor or blender by grinding toasted sesame seeds. Toast the sesame seeds over medium heat until golden brown, about 3 minutes.

Pita Chilly Melt

Since I told you how to make pita bread, let me also share a few very simple pita recipes...

Ingredients
Half large whole wheat Pita bread
Half cup canned pinto beans
2 tbsp grafted lowfat cheddar cheese
1 tbsp diced green chilly

Put the beans, cheese and chilly into the pita bread. Microwave till the cheese melts...

Nothing more... It is ready to eat!!

Whole wheat Pita Bread Sandwich

Its so boring to eat the same thing over and over again... I thought of trying whole wheat pita bread which is healthy and tasty! And you can choose your fillings...

Ingredients:
2 cups Whole wheat flour
1 tsp dry yeast
1 cup luke warm water
Salt to taste

Method:
Take luke warm water and sprinkle the yeast over it. Leave in a draught-free place for 10-15 minutes. Once it is frothy, mix the yeast into the flour along with the salt and knead to a soft dough with water. Cover with cling film or a wet cloth and leave in a draught-free place for about an hour, to rise. Normally it rises to double the size. Divide the dough into 6-8 pieces and roll into flat or oval rounds.
Cook it on a regular nonstick pan over the fire till pitas puff and both sides are brown. Remove from heat and cover the bread with a moist towel to soften. When cooled, slice in half and use a knife to cut pockets in the bread.

Now the sandwich part:
You can use tomatoes, cucumber, paneer, chicken etc. It tastes great with sandwich fillings, peanut butter, or dipped in hummus or anything you fancy.

Isn't it yummy??