Let's Talk...I brought hummus.

Some things never change. It's been almost four (!) years, and I still can't relax before a good meal until I snap a blog-worthy photo first. These days it's more like insta-worthy, but then again who's not a professional photographer when you have X-Pro II at your disposal? But for real, I can't believe something I looked forward to doing each day has sat idle for so many years, just waiting for me to love it once again. The truth is, I never lost my love for blogging, and I had sincere intentions of picking it back up time and time again, but that same time I speak of got the best of me. Life still happens, days become months, then years, and a younger Buff Chickpea's break from college had come to an end. I was moving back on campus, and that meant no more fully stocked kitchen, but more importantly, no more countless hours during the day to photograph my gourmet meals before all the natural light disappeared into the dark. So while I packed all my clothes to take with me to school, I packed up Buff Chickpea, and tucked her under my bed for safe keeping. I've changed a lot over the past four years (I hope for the better), but one thing has not changed, I'm still eating, and I hope you are too! So I come with a peace offering, carrot hummus to be exact. What better way to dust off Buff Chickpea, than with chickpeas (and carrots)? Because I know it's hard to put on real pants when you could cancel your plans and flop all night. But you should really go catch up with your friends, it's good for you, and they'll probably have dip. Real friends chip and dip.

Carrot Hummus

Za'atar spice would also be great in this, but it's so hard to find. When I get my hands 

on some, this is the first thing I'm making with it. 

1 (15-oz) can of chickpeas, drained + rinsed

1 lb carrots, steamed until soft*

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 teaspoon maple syrup

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1-2 tablespoons fresh oregano

1 clove garlic, minced

Sea salt, to taste

1/4-1/2 cup olive oil

*I use a 1 pound bag of baby carrots set over a double boiler for 5-10 minutes. 

I know it seems tedious, but when I'm making hummus, I always take the little skins off the outside of the chickpeas, before boiling the skinned chickpeas for about 10 minutes. This will soften things up, and make the hummus warm and creamy. You can use some of this boiling water to thin out your hummus for a lower fat alternative, or just stick with olive oil like I do here. 

Once your chickpeas are skinned and boiled, drain the water, and add the chickpeas to a food processor. Add the rest of the ingredients, then hit puree. I'd say start with 1/4 cup of olive oil, then drizzle in more until you reach your desired consistency. Grab your preferred method of dipping (pita chips, rice crackers, veggies, etc.) and get snacking. Or do like I do, and slather hummus on every single piece of food you eat. Toasted cinnamon raisin english muffin, carrot hummus, poached egg, melted cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes...all day, errday.   

Stuffed Mushrooms: Two Ways

Did You Know? Of the 70,000 species of the mushrooms in the world, only about 250 are actually edible.

Mushrooms have always been a favorite food of mine. Ever since I was a baby, I can remember snuggling in my Mema's bed with my sister, and eating bon bons, string cheese, and occasionally stuffed mushrooms left over from dinner, all the while watching Annie or Madeline, two of our favorites. I've always only ever made my Mema's recipe for stuffed mushrooms, basically because they are unbelievable, but ever since I stopped eating cheese, I wanted to try out a vegan recipe.

The recipe I came up with is really quite healthful, and would be an excellent h'orderves to bring to your next Christmas party. Cremini mushrooms, in particular, are an excellent source of selenium, manganese, copper, and zinc, all essential trace minerals, as well as iron, riboflavin and B-complex vitamins. The hummus and walnuts add a good source of protein, and omega-3 fatty acids. The whole grain bread crumbs, olive oil, and basil top it off, for an excellent one or two bite food.

It was a little hard getting my sister to try these out, and since she was the only one home with me when I first made them, I had to get her to eat and like them. I don't know what it is, but every time she hears that the recipe I am making is a vegan one, she's skeptical. She think's the ingredients are going to be unheard of, and the flavors far-fetched. It's pretty annoying most of the time, but I guess most people are put off when they hear "vegan." This one, like most others, turned out delicious - for everyone. One of her friends stopped by soon after I took them out of the oven, and she prefered the vegan mushrooms over the original.

These mushrooms are really easy to make. The only somewhat tedious part is peeling the outer skin off of the mushrooms. It's a step that really isn't necessary, but my grandmother always does it, so that's what I do. I didn't want to talk about the non-vegan mushrooms and then leave you hanging without a recipe for those, so I've posted both. I hope you give the vegan ones a try though, because they were a hit for my family and friends.

Stuffed Mushrooms: Two Ways
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, skins peeled away, and stems removed and set aside*
1/2 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
1/4 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
2 teaspoons dried basil
1/4 cup pecorino romano cheese, grated
1/4 cup red pepper hummus (I used Joseph's, but homemade would be better)
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

*To peel the skins away from the mushrooms, I literally just use my finger to peel back the thin, brown layer on the outside of the mushrooms, so that they look like white button mushrooms when finished, and nice and clean.

Preheat oven to 350.

To prepare mushrooms, scoop out insides to make little cavities inside each one to hold the filling. Save the insides that you scoop out, and chop it all up with the stems that you removed previously. You want it to be chopped pretty finely, so that the filling tastes pretty smooth when cooked.

In 2 medium sized mixing bowls, put half of the chopped stem mixture into each. Add 1/4 cup bread crumbs and 2 tablespoons walnuts to each bowl. For the original (non-vegan) mushrooms, add the romano cheese. For the vegan variation, add the hummus. Season each with 1 teaspoon of basil and the salt and pepper. For the original mushrooms, add a few good drizzles of olive oil, to wet the mixture (the hummus does this for the vegan variation). Stir each bowl to incorporate all ingredients. You want to "smoosh?" the non-vegan mushrooms with the back of the spoon, so that it looks like a crumbly paste, and on the wet side.

Fill half the mushrooms with the cheese mixture, and half with the hummus mixture - mounding the filling on top, and packing it down. Place mushrooms on a greased (I used olive oil) baking sheet, and then drizzle a little oil on top of each mushroom.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden on top. Enjoy, and let me know what you think of both!

Roasted Pepper & Feta Dip

Did You Know? Habanero peppers are 30-50 times hotter than Jalapeno peppers!

We still had some lingering jalepeno peppers in our garden, so after a few days of staring at them, I decided to put them to use. After scanning some of my favorite sites for some dinner inspiration, I landed on this Greek feta dip over at Closet Cooking. I had made this dip before with excellent results, served at room temperature slathered on some homemade chickpea burgers. The combination of sweet sundried tomatoes with the salty feta cheese is so smooth and satisfying. The heat from the jalapenos rounds out this fabulous spread. Even if you don't make this dip (but you really should), make sure you check out Kevin's blog over at Closet Cooking. His unique recipes have made weekly appearances on my family's dinner table time and time again.

Roasted Pepper & Feta Dip
1 Roasted red pepper
2 Roasted jalapeno peppers
4 Ounces feta cheese
2 Green onions
2 Sundried tomatoes (soaked in oil)
1 Garlic clove
Juice of 1 lemon

Puree everything in a food processor. Enjoy as a dip with pita chips, as a spread on sandwiches or burgers, or by the spoonful...doesn't get much easier than that!