I like it both ways

Welcome back, everyone. It's been a slightly crazy time. Not only did I just wrap up a class with the first term paper I've had to write in mumble  years, but my sweetie and I moved into a new apartment, so we've spent a lot of time cleaning, packing and moving, and now goes with the unpacking.

But a couple weeks ago, I did one of my recipe searches, looking for the perfect hummus recipe. As with many foodstuffs, there were variations out the whazoo including one from Alton Brown that used peanut butter instead of tahini. I may never forgive him.

I'm all for fusion if it's done right, meaning there is respect for all the fusing cultures involved. I had some fabulous Peking duck fajitas a long time ago for example. I also believe that some names of foods are often stretched beyond recognition. 

My favorite example of this is the bagel (I've lost my recipe, but I may attempt these again sometime soon). As far as I'm concerned, a bagel is not a bagel unless it has been boiled before baking. This is what makes a bagel so dense and chewy on the inside.

Hummus has become one of those things. My understanding is hummus is not hummus unless there are chick peas and tahini (ground sesame) involved. If you mush fava beans or white beans or black beans (all of which I enjoy), you don't have hummus, you have bean dip. There is nothing wrong with bean dip, folks. You don't have to tart it up and call it hummus. Viva la bean dip!

Anyway, I put two recipes together. They both started with:

• One 14.5 ounce can of chick peas, drained. Reserve the liquid
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• liquid from the chick peas as needed for texture
• 1 teaspoon of salt

Version 1

• 6 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper

Version 2

• juice of 2 fresh limes
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 cloves of garlic

I made these in my blender, which took a lot of patience. If you don't have a food processor, I recommend picking up the blender unit and shaking it a few times. Air pockets will form and you'll need to do a lot of stirring.This is where adding the liquid from the canned chick peas will come in handy. It takes a while, but it is so very worth it.

I served these to one of my gaming groups with some bell peppers (red, orange, gold) as well as some cucumbers and some lentil crackers. There was none left, which I take as high praise.

Thank you for reading! My next Project Management class doesn't start for a month, so hopefully I'll have some time to do some more posting. As always, your comments are welcome.