February 1, 2010

February 1...this is the day, every year, where I make the effort to get out of my winter funk, throw out all of Matt's "Cheez-its" in the pantry, maybe wash a window or two, and go on a meat hiatus. Don't get me wrong, I'll come back to this stuff at some point, but right now it is "cleaning house" time for the old bod.

I actually could become a vegetarian quite easily. About the only time that I crave red meat is around the holidays, when I have an excuse to browse all of the recipes for beef bourguignon and crown roast. The latter is something that I haven't tried, and probably won't. But fun to read about.

Most of the time I am happy enough to live on fruit, salads and my current favorite, tortillas stuffed with various goodies. My recent infatuation has been with tortillas that are sauteed in the skillet until they are just crispy, filled with some kind of bean concoction, shredded vegetables and perhaps if I am feeling decadent...some reduced fat cheese.

Every time I go to Trader Joe's, or the grocery store, I am compelled to load up on beans. Beans in cans, dried beans and lowfat refried beans. I think I have about 5 lbs of chickpeas in the pantry. I used to put off making dried beans due to all of the hassle of either soaking them overnight, or doing that "quick way", both of which require time and planning.... until I learned that you can put a bag of beans in the crockpot, pour about 7 cups water or broth over them, and cook for 3 hours on high. Perfect every time.

So today was chickpea day. And what better to make with chickpeas but hummus?

I almost never follow a recipe for hummus. It is thrown together with what ever random items are at hand. But one addition is somewhat quirky, and I discovered it while eating probably the best hummus I have ever had at a little middle eastern luncheonette near the Dayton Mall.

When I asked the waitress how they made their hummus, besides the usual chickpeas/garlic/lemon/tahini/etc., she said that the owner puts chopped dill pickles in it! Whodathunk? Well, it just so happens, that in our spare refrigerator, which I use to store nuts, coconut, flours, corn meal (we get miller moths in our pantry), rarely used condiments and an occasional IPA...sat a lonely little jar of cornichons from Trader Joe's. Not quite sure what I had used them for, but the timing was perfect.

Tortillas with Hummus and Broccoli Slaw

I always double my hummus recipe, as we devour it pretty quickly in our house. This was our main course, after all. Makes about 4 cups

2 cans chickpeas - save the juice

2-3 cloves garlic (we like alot of garlic)

1 cup cilantro

1 bunch scallions - green and white parts, sliced thinly

juice of 1/2 lemon

1/4 cup tahini

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon of cumin

1 teaspoon of sumac (found in middle eastern grocery stores...a tart berry product)

pinch cayenne pepper

salt to taste

Tortillas

Broccoli Slaw in a bag

In a food processor, mix garlic and cilantro together until minced (or mince by hand)

Add remainder of the ingredients and mix until pureed. Add chickpea juice until it is the consistency that you like.

Get your skillet nice and hot (med-high) and spray with olive oil/butter spray.

Place tortilla in skillet and smear hummus on one half. Sprinkle with broccoli slaw. Let it sit for about a minute, then fold over the unsmeared half. Cook until golden brown and serve.