Cilantro-Jalapeno Hummus

Did You Know? Last year, over 1,000 tons of hummus was eaten during Israeli Independance Day (Yom Haatzmaut). Of that thousand, 881 pounds was consumed out of a single, Guiness-Record sized plate.

It's hard to believe that this is my first hummus post on Buff Chickpea. I practically live off of it. Whether I'm dipping veggies, crackers, chips, a spoon, or my finger in it, I have to have hummus everyday, no joke. Whenever I am home from school, and for some strange reason there is no hummus left in the fridge (I call and ask Mom), I hit the grocery store before ending at my house.

I love how adaptible hummus (and most bean dips for that matter) is. If you master the basic puree, which isn't hard to master, you can add in flavors to suit your tastes. Be it roasted red peppers, tomato and basil, zesty lemon, roasted garlic, you name it, there is a hummus to show for it.

I've only very recently become smitten with cilantro. And now that my taste buds have warmed up, I've been adding it to everything. I bought an awesome three-layer hummus at Trader Joe's the other day, and one of the layers was cilantro-based. Hoping to recreate this new found fave, I pulled out my food processor, and gave it a go. The results were incredible! I don't know why I don't make homemade hummus more often, because this is definitely the way to eat it. Creamy, fresh, and spicy, and still warm, I was in hummus-heaven, if such a place exists. If your looking for a go-to hummus recipe, look no further, this is your one...

Cilantro-Jalapeno HummusI prefer the taste of cashew butter to tahini, but feel free to substitute
1 (15-oz) can of chickpeas
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup cashew butter
1/4 cup lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno, ribs and seeds removed
1-2 tablespoons cooking water*

Rinse and drain the chickpeas. Gently rub the skins off of the chickpeas with your hands (I like to remove all of them for a smoother consistency). Transfer the skinned chickpeas to a small saucepan, and cover them with water by an inch or so. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for about 5-10 minutes, until the chickpeas are very soft. Drain, making sure to reserve a little of the cooking water.*

Add the cashew butter, lemon juice, salt and garlic to a food processor, and pulse for a couple of seconds to combine. Add the chickpeas, cilantro, and jalapeno, and process until smooth. If the hummus is on the dry side, add a tablespoon or two of cooking water (or more), until you reach your desired consistency (I like a real creamy hummus, but it only took me about 1 tablespoon of water). Scrape down the sides in between each tablespoon, and season with additional salt if needed.

Transfer to a bowl, and serve with veggies or pita chips. Or if your like me, eat directly from the food processor. It was so good nice and warm from the freshly simmered chickpeas.

Roasted Pepper Veggie Burgers

Did You Know? The white ribs inside a pepper that we all trim away actually contain heart healthful bioflavonoids, so use them in your soups!

This was one of the first things I made for my family when I started this blog, but unfortunately I don't have the pictures from our very first experience. Because if I did, you would see them on big, homemade kaiser rolls. I was so excited at how well those rolls turned out, but for some reason, I have yet to make them again. I'll save that for Spring Break, which will be here before I know it.

Besides the rolls, which definitely don't make or break this sandwich, the burgers have quickly become my go-to meal. Pre-Roasted Pepper Veggie Burgers, my diet consisted of a lot of store-bought, frozen patties (Gardenburger mostly). They were convenient, healthy, and pretty tasty, but I knew all of that sodium and TVP couldn't be the best thing in the world. When I came across Heidi's Ultimate Veggie Burger, I knew it had to be good, I mean is there anything on 101 Cookbooks that isn't?

Serving her burger as the bun, it lent itself to a lot of different fillings, which she detailed wonderfully. Being a bread person, I knew I wanted to take some of her filling ideas, and experiment with adding them to the burger mixture itself. That way I would incorporate some extra veggies, add some more flavor, and plate the burger more traditionally, sandwiched between bread.

The burgers are a breeze to throw together, and the taste is like nothing you will find in their manufactured counterpart. I love the depth that the roasted peppers bring, set-off by the brightness of the cilantro. The sauteed exterior develops a wonderful, golden crunch, split open to reveal a creamy, hummus-like filling.

Keeping the base mixture consistent with Heidi's recommendations, the flavor combinations for mix-ins are endless - all resulting in an entirely new burger. I've already come up with a new favorite version of this ultimate veggie burger that I can't wait to reveal to all of you in the future. Until then, here's my first take on Heidi's classic...

Roasted Pepper Veggie Burger
2 (15-oz) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
4 large eggs
1 red bell pepper
2 jalapeno peppers
1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 onion, chopped
Zest of one lemon
1 cup alfalfa sprouts
1/2 cup whole-grain bread crumbs
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or cooking spray

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Place red and jalapeno peppers on a baking sheet, cut side down. Right before placing them in the oven, switch your oven over to broil. Broil for about 8-10 minutes, until charred on the outside.

Remove from the oven and place the peppers in a zip-lock bag. Seal the bag, and let steam for about 20-30 minutes. At this point, the skins can easily be peeled away, to leave you with the roasted peppers.

Combine the chickpeas, eggs, roasted peppers, and salt in a food processor. Puree until the mixture is the consistency of a slightly chunky hummus. You don't want a smooth batter. Add the alfalfa sprouts, and pulse a few more times just to combine. Pour into a mixing bowl and stir in the cilantro, onion, and zest. Stir in the breadcrumbs or flax, and let sit for a couple of minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture.

Form the burger mixture into patties, and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. I use an ice cream scoop for this to get around 12-15 small burgers. You can either freeze the patties (which is what I do, so I can have them whenever the mood strikes), or heat up that last tablespoon of oil in a skillet, and cook for a few minutes on each side, until nicely browned and heated through.

I enjoy mine on a toasted Ezekial 4:9 Sprouted English Muffin, smeared with some red pepper hummus and topped with baby spinach leaves.