Hummus & Baba Ganoush

Okay. Today Blogger really did it! I know everyone faced issues when Blogger went down for maintenance, but this is something that is even more annoying. I finished typing a whole new post, I formatted it, and wanted to change something. After typing a couple of words, I decided not to use that, and deleted it. But the whole text of the post got deleted somehow. I knew that I just needed to use Ctrl+Z to bring back my post, but before I got to it, Blogger’s annoying Auto-save kicked in and saved my blank post! And I lost all my work. Grrrrr... Does anyone know how to turn off auto-save or at least change the time setting? I can’t seem to find the setting anywhere. This just makes me want to join the hoardes migrating to Wordpress even more. Ok, now that I have vented, I will get back to my post. I hope I remember all that I wanted to say.

This is part two of my post on our Lebanese meal. I have already shared with you my recipes for the Pita Bread and Chicken Kebabs. Now, I share with you my two dips. The Hummus and the Baba Ganoush.

I cannot tell you how much I love Hummus. You may have noticed that I say that about a lot of foods. I like foods in general. But this really is one of my favourite things to eat. In my opinion, hummus goes with a lot of things – pita bread, sliced baguette, crudités or even crispy nachos. Yes. Nachos. I like to mix things up and I enjoy every bite. I have made it several times before, and each time I very pleased with the outcome.

Hummus has a few standard ingredients, but I am sharing with you the proportions I like. I like to taste the creaminess of the chickpeas, the peppery taste of the extra virgin olive oil, the sharp notes from the lime, the heady aroma & flavors from the garlic and cumin and the nuttiness of the sesame tahini. I think it is a perfectly balanced dish and tastes incredible. Even my eighteen month old thought so. (Oh have I mentioned that she has now mastered counting up to 10? She started at 17 months, and is now a pro at it. I am such a proud mama!)

I suppose the easiest way to make the hummus is to use canned chick peas. That is a luxury that is not available to us here. So, I buy dried chickpeas and soak them overnight. Then, I discard the soaking liquid, add fresh water and salt and pressure cook it for about 20 minutes. Whether you use canned chickpeas or dried ones, make sure you reserve some of the cooking/canning liquid for the recipe.

Hummus

Ingredients

2 cups cooked chickpeas

5-6 cloves of garlic (medium size)

1/4 cup tahini

7 tbsp lemon juice

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

3-4 tbsp of the cooking/canning liquid

1/2 tsp roasted cumin powder

1 tsp salt

Zest of 1/2 lemon (optional)

Extra virgin olive oil and smoked paprika to serve

Method

1. In a blender, combine half the chickpeas, 5 cloves of garlic, the tahini, 5 tbsp of lemon juice, the olive oil, the cooking liquid, cumin powder, zest and the salt.

2. Blend until smooth and silky. Add the remaining chickpeas and continue blending till you achieve the texture you like. The hummus should be a thick, smooth paste and not lumpy and dry. Add more cooking liquid if your paste is too thick.

3. Taste the hummus and adjust the levels of garlic, salt and lemon juice to taste.

4. Transfer to a serving bowl, drizzle generously with olive oil and sprinkle with paprika.

The second dip that we ate with that delicious meal was Baba Ganoush. I have eaten it a few times at a local restaurant, but this was my first time making it. I was very pleased with the result.

Baba Ganoush

Ingredients

1 large eggplant                       

1/4 cup tahini

2 tbsp (or more) lemon juice

2 cloves of garlic

1/2 tsp salt       

A pinch of cumin powder

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

4 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

Method

1. Roast the eggplant directly on the stove-top (over the direct flame), turning it frequently until the skin has blackened and starts to split, and the flesh has started to soften.

2. Transfer the eggplant to a greased baking tray and bake at 200 for 20-25 minutes or until the eggplant is soft and cooked though.

3. Take the eggplant out of the oven and drop it in a bowl of cold water. After 2-3 minutes, remove the eggplant from the water and peel off the skin and discard it. Chop the flesh roughly and transfer to a blender jar.

4. Add the lemon juice, garlic, salt, cumin, olive oil and blend until smooth and silky. Taste the baba ganoush and adjust salt and lemon juice.

5. Stir in the chopped cilantro.

6. Transfer to a serving bowl and top with more cilantro.

It has several of the ingredients used in the hummus, but tastes very different. It was also really delicious, and had a lovely smoky flavour and the wonderful taste of cilantro. The flavours of the pita, kebabs, hummus and baba ganoush really complement each other.

The whole meal required quite a bit of planning and prepping, but in the end, it was a meal to remember. I really enjoyed making and sharing it with my little family.

Technorati Tags: Dips, Spreads, Hummus, BabaGanoush, Recipe