Basic Hummus

Happy New Year!

Actually, I don't really like New Years all that much. Shocker, I know.

It's just that it's an entire holiday revolving around staying up late, loud noises, and crowds. And if you know me at all, I can't stand any of those things. This year, I stayed up just late enough to go up to the near-empty roof of our apartment and watch fireworks go off at midnight, then I went to bed. That was enough to satisfy me.

Also, last complaint, it's pointless to make resolutions just to break them. Do you know how many people do that?! Plus, is one big decision to change really going to be very effective??

Ok, I'm done ranting. And I've got a recipe for those of you who made the resolution to eat healthier: hummus!
In case you haven't heard it before, this mediterranean food has fantastic health benefits including—but definitely not limited to—being high in fiber, protein, and iron, helping lower cholesterol, and even helping prevent some cancers. But remember, all things in moderation: it's pretty high in calories (I definitely don't take my own advice on this point...).

Hummus is surprisingly easy to make—basically, you just toss all of your ingredients into the food processor and BAM you've got hummus. This is a simple, basic hummus recipe that my family really likes. We've tried some more elaborate recipes that just weren't as good. But that's our tastebuds—yours may be different, which is why it's such a great thing that hummus can easily be adjusted to spice it up! And, have extra hummus? Just throw it in the freezer.

Plus, it's super versatile. Here's some ideas on what to eat it with:
-Dip pita bread, pita chips, or veggies in it
-Spread it on a sandwich or wrap
-Dollop it over your salad
-Put it on a burger

I've used Smitten Kitchen's whole wheat pita bread recipe a few times before, and it's turned out pretty tasty every time. Ours didn't puff up as much as the pictures, but that is probably because we skimped on a lot of the rising. We probably rise it for about an hour in a very warm place, then pretty much completely skip the second and third rises after they are shaped into disks. To bake, we use a baking sheet, sprinkle them with water, and do not let the oven reheat each time we open it. I don't have time to wait for pita to puff...so they may not be perfect, but they are tasty!

Isn't hummus just about the perfect food???

So, whether you've made a resolution to eat healthier or not, hummus is a good option!

Hummus
Time: 15 minutes
Makes: 2 1/2 cups

Notes:
-I have successfully used limes instead of lemons in this recipe.
-I have also successfully used homemade tahini (sesame seed paste) in this recipe.
-Do not confuse Mediterranean sumac with poisonous American sumac.
-There is a way to use dried chickpeas if you have those on hand.

Recipe from: http://altonbrown.com/hummus-recipe/

Nutritional information from: http://www.naturalnews.com/049453_hummus_iron_fiber.html

"Nem": Vietnamese Fresh Spring Rolls

The week leading up to Christmas my family spent in Vietnam, as I mentioned before. Three days in Hanoi, three days on a cruise in Ha Long Bay. The cruise was amazing--it was so peaceful to sit up on the deck of our boat and watch the rocky islands rise out of the mist and loom by. We had ample time to sit and enjoy as there were only a few activities planned: rowing around a floating fishing village, kayaking among the islands, touring a pearl farm, and making spring rolls.

The spring roll-making demonstration took place before dinner on both nights, and we learned how to assemble Vietnamese nem (spring rolls). We made fresh spring rolls, so that we could devour them immediately. My spring roll-making-skills definitely improved on the second night!

To make fresh nem, first you need rice paper. Handmade rice paper is best because it is easier to use. You simply lay it on a damp washcloth while preparing the spring roll so that it becomes more pliable. If the rice paper is handmade, it will have a pattern on it from the mold. Rice paper that is not handmade has to be soaked in warm water for about 20 seconds before using, which makes it stickier and more difficult to roll.

There are many things that can be put in fresh nem, but whatever ingredients chosen, it is best if they are in strips so that the spring rolls are not as bulky and have fewer air pockets. Any meats or eggs should, of course, be pre-cooked. We used carrots, lettuce, strips of scrambled eggs, shrimp, and special Vietnamese pork.

For a dipping sauce, they had a special homemade sauce which cannot be found in stores. They casually listed the ingredients while explaining the spring roll process, and I had to frantically write them down. So, since it is a simple list and I have not yet tried making it at home, I'm not sure of proportions. When I make it, I'll update it. However, you can experiment with it as you like! It may be worth trying because the sauce on the boat was really tasty and perfected the spring rolls, in my opinion.
Here are the ingredients, and let me know how it goes if you use them to make a sauce!

Spring Roll Dipping Sauce
2 parts water
1 part fish sauce
1 part rice vinegar
Garlic
Chilies
Lime juice
Sugar

To assemble the nem, you lay a piece of rice paper on a damp washcloth, then you make a small pile of ingredients near the base of the rice paper. You do not want to use too many ingredients!! We saw a lot of people load them to bursting, and lets just say that their spring rolls were, I'm sure, yummy but not pretty. Also, it is easiest to put all of the ingredients in a pile on the rice paper, not in a carpet across the paper. Once all of the ingredients are on the rice paper, start rolling it up very tightly. When rolled halfway, fold the edges into the center, and finish rolling. Then, rub a little water on the edge of the rice paper to glue it down. Or, you can lick it, and, as our guide explained, no one will steal your spring roll. Finally, dip your spring roll into the sauce for a few seconds so that the sauce seeps into your spring roll. If you do a quick dip, it won't have as much flavor and will be more difficult to take a bite of.

This is a really fresh and simple treat, and is fun to make. Enjoy!

Pigs in a Blanket

These were practically gold when I was little, so rare did we get them and so good did they taste.

There was a certain satisfaction in eating food with our hands—to pick up tasty little sausages wrapped in warm, buttery crescent rolls, and pop them into our little mouths, all the while thinking about what a nice name "pigs in a blanket" is.

Well, maybe if you really think about, it's not such a nice name (you're eating cute little piggies while they're sleeping?)—but at least it makes sense.

They were one of those foods that we rarely had, but all loved. I liked to help make them—popping open the tube of crescent rolls never got old—but I loved eating them. I always wished that I had room for more.

I remember one particular day that I didn't feel very well around dinner time, and therefore wasn't very hungry; I was devastated when I found out that we were eating pigs in a blanket for dinner—how was I supposed to be fully satisfied until next time we had them for dinner if I couldn't eat them now?
I solved the problem by eating as many as I wanted anyways.

We haven't had pigs in a blanket for years because of the lack of canned crescent dough overseas; however, this time we made our own crescent rolls. While they were good, I must say that canned crescent rolls are better. I need to keep looking for the perfect copycat recipe! Until then, if you are also unable to buy canned rolls, I suggest the recipe on Home Cooking Adventure, which is what we used.

Pigs in a Blanket

Makes: 8

Ingredients:
1 can (8 oz.) crescent rolls
8 breakfast sausage links

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Grease a cookie sheet; set aside.
2. Cook sausages according to the package directions. Set aside.
3. Open the tube of crescent rolls and separate the triangles, laying them flat. Lay a sausage on the wide end of one of the triangles and roll the dough around it. Place rolled sausage on the prepared pan; be sure to put the pointy end of the crescent roll under the rolled sausage and touching the pan, so that the roll does not come unraveled. Repeat with remaining sausages.
4. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, until golden brown.
5. Serve plain, or dip in mustard or maple syrup.

Bruschetta

I didn't always like tomatoes.

But then one day I woke up and a whole new world was out there for me to discover...pastas, salads, appetizers...and bruschetta. I love bruschetta. It's amazing – perfect for a light lunch or a yummy appetizer. And it's so much better when you make and share it with someone else! Of course you could just cook it up and devour it yourself. Whatever works!

Bruschetta sounds really fancy; it is Italian, after all. But trust me, it's simple (especially if you share the work load!).

Today I made bruschetta with my mom. She's where I got my love for bruschetta from, because it definitely wasn't from my dad. He and my siblings still haven't woken up to the awesome flavor of tomatoes yet (excluding in salsa, that is).

My mom has been making this recipe for forever – so long that she just does the guess-and-dump method now. She got the original recipe from a little Italian cookbook that she doesn't have anymore.

This recipe is her guidelines from that little lost Italian cookbook. Feel free to change it up!

Purple basil gives our bruschetta a new dimension.

Toast your bread all pretty and golden.

Shred lotsa parmesan cheese...

Or just shred it right onto the beautiful bruschetta.

And eat! Told you it was easy.

Bruschetta

Makes 6 pieces

Ingredients:

6 slices French or Italian bread

2 medium garlic cloves, crushed

4 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil

1 large, firm, ripe tomato, chopped

1/4 cup minced fresh basil leaves

1 Tbs. balsamic vinegar, or to taste

Directions:

1. Combine garlic and 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a small bowl.

2. Cut 6 slices of French or Italian bread, whatever thickness desired.

3. Using a pastry brush, brush olive oil and garlic mixture onto both sides of the bread slices.

4. Place the bread slices on a baking sheet and place in oven 5 inches from the heat. Broil until lightly browned (about 3 minutes). Flip and brown the other side.

5. In a skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat.

6. When hot, add diced tomatoes. Sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste. Toss for 1 to 2 minutes, or until tomatoes are just heated through.

7. Drain tomato juice out of skillet. Stir in balsamic vinegar and basil.

8. Put tomatoes ontop of bread slices. Grate parmesan cheese ontop. Serve immediately.

Queso Fundido

Last night my mom had to bring food to a party. She made a new recipe...queso fundido. Sometimes it's dangerous to try new recipes at a party, but if it's from the Pioneer Woman, it must be good!

My sister hovered over it the whole time Mom was making it...it smelled so good! But, unfortunately for both her and I, it was all for the party, so no one got to taste test any.

Later, when my mom returned home, we asked how it was. She said she wasn't really sure, because everyone ate it so quickly! So, we assumed it was good based on the smell and how fast it disappeared. Not to mention the name, 'queso fundido'—'molten cheese'. How could that not be delicious?!

Lucky for us and you, there were some leftover ingredients! So tonight Elena and I helped make it. It was easy! But I warn you, you'd better share it, otherwise you might just eat it all!

Start by browning some sausage and mixing it with your black beans.

Chop up those vegetables into nice little pieces.

Putting those in the skillet you previously used for the sausage makes this recipe extra easy!

Grate that yummy cheese...and if you're like me, sneak some out of the bowl!

Pile it all up and sprinkle on that chili powder!

Pop it in the oven and wait till it gets all melty...

Don't worry, it doesn't take long!

Dig in! It's best straight from the oven!

Queso Fundido

Ingredients:

1/2 pound hot breakfast sausage (like Jimmy Dean Or J.C. Potter) or chorizo

1 whole medium onion, finely diced

2 whole small bell peppers (any colors), seeded and finely diced

1 pound Monterey Jack, grated (or mozzarella, or other stringy melting cheese)

 sprinkle of chili powder

3 whole Roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

 Tortilla chips for serving

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F degrees.

2. In a large skillet, cook the sausage until brown. Remove from skillet and drain on a paper towel. Pour off excess fat. Set aside.

*Optional: mix browned meat with black beans in a bowl and set aside.

3. Add onions and bell peppers to the skillet and cook over medium-high heat for about 7-8 minutes until the veggies are soft and golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Build the skillet: place 1/3 of grated cheese in a medium-sized ovenproof skillet. Add half the sausage. Add another third of the cheese, then the veggie mixture (you may have some extra). Add most of the remaining cheese, the rest of the sausage, then the remaining cheese. Very lightly sprinkle with chili powder.

*Depending on the size of your skillet or baking dish, there may be extra ingredients. Pole the ingredients so they reach about the top of the skillet; the cheese will melt and they will shrink.

5. Place in oven. After about 4-5 minutes start watching it; the cheese should be totally melted, hot, and slightly bubbling. It should not be hard, it should be really gooey.

6. Remove from the oven, sprinkle on the diced tomatoes, wrap a towel around the handle (so it won't burn people), and serve immediately with tortilla chips.

*Have everything ready so you can serve it right out of the oven, when it's best!

Recipe from: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2014/01/queso-fundido/

Photos: Elena and Maddie Faber

World's Best Bean Dip and Easy Quesadillas

Okay, so I haven't actually tried any other bean dip, as far as I can remember. But I am still fully convinced that this is, in fact, the world's best bean dip. We don't have it that often, but when we do, I eat a lot of it! It's good on quesadillas (which are also easy and customizable) or tortilla chips. Today we even figured out it's nice on pita chips too—the commissary was out of tortilla chips.

When my dad worked in a restaurant during college, he learned this recipe. Now, everyone in my family loves it...and it's so simple, only three ingredients!

First, scoop in the refried beans.

Next, the salsa.

Estimating is completely fine! I just dumped in about a 1/3 to 1/2 jar of this salsa.

Stir in a few handfuls of cheese until it's all hot and melty, and it's done!

The salsa and cheese in this bean dip can be increase or decreased according to preference. Any heat of salsa can be used, and any type of cheese. Use quesadillas, tortilla chips, or pita chips to dip in it.

Easy Quesadillas

Ingredients:

Tortillas

Cheese (Colby Jack or cheddar are best)

Suggested ingredients:

Shredded chicken

Black beans

Salsa

Sour cream

Directions:

1. Place a tortilla on a hot frying pan.

2. Sprinkle desired toppings on, and top with another tortilla. When the bottom tortilla is golden-brown, carefully flip using a large spatula.

3. When that side is also golden-brown and the cheese is melty, place on a cutting board and slice into pieces using a pizza cutter or sharp knife.

World's Best Bean Dip

makes about 2 cups

Ingredients:

1 can refried beans

3/4 cup salsa

3/4 cup cheese (Colby Jack or cheddar are best)

1. In a small pot over medium-low heat, mix refried beans, salsa, and cheese.

2. Stir frequently until cheese is melted and bean dip is hot.

3. Taste, and add extra cheese or salsa to preference.

Mozzarella Cheese Sticks

I don't know about your family, but mine loves mozzarella cheese sticks...there's never any extras. To make these ones, we bought out the last string cheese in the commissary, and Mom looked in multiple stores to find eggs (a lot of stores in Russia are closed on January 2).

I'm so glad Damon was here for these. I don't actually like to fry things because the oil is so hot, but Damon volunteered before I even asked him! It's like he read my mind. Our cheese sticks were insanely melty, more like cheese piles than cheese sticks, so it was a mess to dip them in Mom's delicious homemade pizza sauce!

The original recipe uses panko bread crumbs, as they are more light and flaky. We didn't have any bread crumbs at all, so we just crumbled and toasted some regular wheat bread.

To make them real mozzarella cheese sticks, you have to use mozarrella cheese, of course. We just got whatever string cheese the commissary had left, and they turned out great!

Be careful not to get the oil too hot, otherwise they will burn. Ours took less than a minute in the oil, and the cheese melted fast, so our oil probably could have been cooler. It probably would have also helped if I had put the cheese sticks in the freezer for 20-30 minutes, but I was excited and we wanted to eat them as an appetizer and not after pizza!

I forgot to add the parsley flakes since we made our own bread crumbs, but they still tasted good.

This recipe got a definite yum!

Mozzarella Cheese Sticks

Ingredients:

16 pieces string cheese, removed from wrappers

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

2 whole eggs

3 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes

2 cups Panko bread crumbs

Canola oil, for frying

Marinara Sauce, for dipping

Directions:

1. Slice string cheese pieces in half, for a total of 32 pieces.

2. Place flour in a small bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs and milk.

4. In another separate bowl, combine panko bread crumbs with parsley flakes.

5. One by one, roll mozzarella sticks in flour, then dunk in egg/milk mixture, then place in panko crumbs. Use your hand to sweep crumbs all over the mozzarella stick. Gently remove and place on a tray or cookie sheet. Repeat until all mozzarella sticks are coated.

6. Place tray in freezer for 20 to 30 minutes to flash freeze.

7. Heat 1 1/2 inches canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, add mozzarella sticks 8 at a time. Watch closely and turn over to evenly brown, cooking less than 2 minutes. Do not allow cheese to bubble and leak.

8. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Serve immediately with warm marinara sauce.

Recipe from: http://tastykitchen.com/blog/2010/05/panko-mozzarella-sticks/