Hummus Please

I love to make and eat hummus. You can make such a variety of different flavors, it is easy to make, and fun to eat. In the past I have made roasted asparagus, sun dried tomato (one of my favorites), roasted garlic and cumin, and just recently lemon and rosemary, a little Italian twist on the Mediterranean dip.

Lemon and Rosemary Hummus

4 sprigs fresh rosemary
3 cloves garlic, roasted
1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup tahini
1 lemon, zested and juiced (about 1/4 cup juice)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 (pinch) teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 springs fresh parsley

In the food processor, add the beans, rosemary, spices, and tahini, and pulse a few times to start making the hummus.

Add in the lemon zest and half of the lemon juice, and continue to blend. Add the rest of the juice to make a smooth "paste" like texture. Once you get it to the desired consistence, add the parsley and pulse just to incorporate it, you do not really want to make the hummus green by chopping the parsley too fine.

I do not add oil to my hummus mainly because the tahini adds enough "fat" to the party, plus I find it makes the hummus too runny, I guess I am just more of a spread my hummus on foods rather than the usual hummus dip. So I am taking poetic license by saying this is a "hummus."

So I have been sick lately, and when I am sick I crave salads not soup, don't ask me why cause honestly I am not sure. I think it is craving Vitamin C. So I have been stocking up on oranges, papaya, persimmons, spinach, and other veggies- peppers, that are high in Vitamin C (ha I went to school for nutrition, so I do know somethings about food.)

Like I have told you all before I am on the hunt for a really peanut buttery tasting peanut butter cookies. So a friend at church gave me the idea of using some cashew butter with the peanut butter to add a richer nutty taste. I have a new love for cashew butter, but I am still developing a recipe that is going to blow my socks off. Yuppers.

What's For Dinner?
Tuesday, January 18th

I am not sure what to call this version of my never ending salads, but it has: avocado, tomatoes, roasted corn and peppers, black olives, parsley, and fresh lemon juice and zest. I had it with sun dried tomato wraps that I baked into chips.

Wednesday, January 19th
Roasted root veggies, cashew, and parsley salad.

Thursday, January 20th

Mushroom and tomato stew. I sauteed mushrooms and rosemary, added diced fire roasted tomatoes, tomato paste, my usually spices, fennel seeds, and parsley. I had the sundried tomato wraps with provolone cheese.

Friday, January 21st

Sweet potato platskis with toasted hazelnuts, and I made my own apple sauce:

Cinnamon Roasted Apple Sauce:

2 Macintosh apples, diced (I enjoy the the skin, so I left it on)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (I added more because I love cinnamon and am now pron to the spiciness of cinnamon)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Toss all of the ingredients together.

Spread onto a pan.
Roast for 20-25 minutes, until the apples are soft.

Place in a bowl and

mash with a potato masher.

Saturday and Sunday, January 22nd and 23rd
Salads with spinach, jicama, peppers, tomatoes, and carrots with ginger dressing.

Feel free if you do read any of my entries to leave a comment, ask a question, have any request of a recipe you would like me to try, a challenge for me, I am up for anything. I would love to hear from all of you!