Beetroot Hummus

"All hummus should be made with beetroot - it's so pretty" quote from Adrian. Should I remind him he used to dislike beetroot?

Here's a quick and nutritious recipe to use up beetroot and add a new twist to a traditional Middle Eastern dish - Hummus - .

Hummus is a staple of Middle Eastern cookery. Its blend of chick peas and sesame seeds are a valuable source of calcium, protein, vegetable fats, iron and B vitamins. The addition of beetroot increases the vitamin C content and adds magnesium. All of which combines to make this pretty much a super-food.

Beetroot added a pretty pink color to the otherwise bland-looking dip. You can either make this from scratch, with dried chick peas and fresh beetroot or you can whiz it up in 5 minutes using pre-cooked beetroot and a can of chickpeas / frozen chick peas. Serve it with toasted bread, fresh vegetable sticks or as a side dish.

For other twist on hummus and homemade tahini, go here. I dressed the dip with some roasted pine nuts. I guess I can call it Pink Hummus Snaubar. I meant to decorate it with parsley but I mistaken celery for flat-leaf parsley...... now what am I going to do with that bunch of celery in the fridge?

Ingredients:
1 beetroot, cooked and diced (roasted or boiled)
1C cooked chickpeas
1 TB white sesame, roasted (or tahini)
1 glove garlic, minced
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 TB olive oil


Blend the ingredients together in the following order:

1. lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, white sesame/ tahini
2. beetroot, chickpea (add water if necessary)
3. Season with salt if necessary.
   

Hummus(es) with a Twist

Nook is going to set up a website for her Master's Degree project. She is collecting a few recipes from her friends to publish on her food guide website. She asked me for a few of my favorites. I ran through my food pictures and must say that I am really proud and like what I did with the Mediterranean. They are not hard to cook but take some time and effort to prepare ahead, which is exactly what I like. I'll start with two hummus(es).

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

I had pureed roasted red pepper on hand, leftover from a Salmon Cheesecake recipe. I'm not sure if there's ready made pureed roasted red pepper, but it's easy to make and you can make it ahead. It stays good in refrigeration for weeks. If you are using canned chickpeas, you can go straight to step 2.

Ingredients:
15 ounce chickpeas
1/2 Cup Tahini*
1/4 Cup lemon juice
2 Tablespoon extravirgin olive oil
2 glove garlics, crushed
1/2 Cup roasted red pepper**
Chopped parsley

1. Cook chickpeas per instruction.
   
2. Combine chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice and olive oil in a food processor and blend roughly. Add in roasted red pepper and garlic. Blend to desired consistency.
3. Garnish with chopped parsley.

*Tahini Recipe
Simply blend together toasted white sesame and olive oil.

**Roasted red pepper puree

Rub 2 red peppers with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake in the oven at 180C until the they collapse. Let cool slightly before you peel the skin off. Discard the seeds and juices. Blend with garlic and a few drops of Tabasco.

The flavorful puree can be used as garnish or sauce. I tried it with an impromptu boiled broccoli. They go very well together.

Hummus On Fire

Not literally. But it could burn your throat if you put too much of the hot oil. I used dried red chillies (Thai style). If possible make the red pepper oil at least a day in advance for the oil to develop into a full-body.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup extravirgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

3/4 cup walnuts, toasted
2 cups cooked (or canned) chickpeas, drained
1 clove garlic
2 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 Cup hot water

1/4 Cup oil-cured olive, chopped,
chopped cilantro for garnish

1. Make the hot pepper oil a day or so ahead of time by heating the olive oil in a small saucepan for a couple minute. DO NOT overheat - no smokes or smells acrid or burned. Turn off the heat and stir in the crushed red pepper flakes. Set aside and let cool.
2. Spin the walnuts in the food processor until they are a sandy texture.
   
3. Add most of the chickpeas, 1 or 2 Tablespoon of red chile oil (no flakes), garlic, and lemon juice. Process until smooth. Drizzle water in a bit at a time to a creamy puree.
   
4. Adjust with seasoning - more salt, more lemon juice, more oil, etc.
5. Serve in a shallow bowl, drizzle with more oil and some red pepper flakes. Add the remaining chickpeas, olive and a bit of chopped cilantro as garnish.