Dreamy Hummus, Ezme Salad, and Gunshot Induced Insomnia

Come spring, I love to savor fresh vegetables. Hummus is one of my favorite ways to make that happen. I have been working on perfecting my traditional hummus recipe for years, but have never been able to get that perfect silky texture I seek. Today, I found the secret.

In the words of my future father-in-law, ‘Prepare to be bonerized.’

… remove the skins from the chick peas. Pinch the beans between your fingers and a thin film will come off. That’s it! So simple! I can’t believe it took ten years to figure it out! I also like to add a little Greek yogurt to take my hummus to a whole ‘nother level.

Enjoy this dreamy hummus with spicy ezme salad. This is basically Mediterranean salsa, and it is a fantastic condiment with kabobs and sandwiches too.

Creamy Dreamy Hummus 
*vegetarian

1 15oz can chickpeas, drained with skins removed

2 cloves garlic, crushed

4 TBS lemon juice

4 TBS Tahini

4 TBS olive oil

2 TBS Greek yogurt

1 tsp ground cumin

½ tsp ground coriander

¼ tsp ground pepper

Place all ingredients in a food processor. Process until blended into a smooth consistency. Garnish with paprika and Greek feta. Serve with pita chips and dipping veggies.

Turkish Ezme Salad
*vegan

2 dried ancho chilies, soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes, deseeded and chopped

1 serrano, chopped with seeds

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 medium white onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 handful Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped

1/3 cup olive oil

1 TBS lemon juice

3 TBS tomato paste

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

½ tsp paprika

Place all ingredients in a food processor. Process until blended into a salsa consistency. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with pita chips and dipping veggies.

***While writing this post, I was interrupted by the sound multiple gunshots outside. I called the police and then went back to my blog about the realities of domestic bliss. Bill, the cats and I are now huddling in the dark away from windows. The joys of Cincinnati living!

Vegetarian Soup for the Soul and Get Your Goat and Beet It Salad

After a long week of being emotionally drained, another meltdown was inevitable. It came Thursday after a particularly long day that left me feeling completely burned out and in general very apathetic about life. I’ve been struggling with what has become a mundane day-to-day routine filled with unnecessary stressors and a lack of inspiration.  At the brink of a nervous breakdown, I expressed my urge to take drastic life changing measures on an unsuspecting Bill.

Instead of arguing, Nugget took the loving partner approach. He validated my mounting stress and acknowledged my need for a soul-nurturing environment. Without completely uprooting our small family, Bill came up with an incredibly insightful albeit simple plan of action. Instead of leaving our evenings open ended with the possibility of dwelling on the stress of the day, we will set goals to nurture our mind, body and soul each day.   

Today, this translated into cooking a nutritious meal. I bring you:

Vegetarian Soup for the Soul and Get Your Goat and Beet It Salad

Vegetarian Soup for the Soul
*vegan

1 Tbs. olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 15-oz can diced tomatoes with Italian herbs in juice

4 cups vegetable broth

2 cups water

1 small butternut squash, chopped

3 bunches multicolored carrots, chopped

1 jalapeno, diced

½ small red cabbage, chopped

½ bunch purple kale, chopped

1 handful of chives, chopped

1 15-oz can white beans, rinsed and drained

1 Tbs. balsamic vinegar

Ground pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in a stockpot with steamer insert and sauté onions until soft. Add the can of tomatoes, vegetable broth, water, butternut squash, carrots, jalapeno, and cabbage. Bring to a simmer over medium heat.

2. Place the kale and chives in steamer insert. Set steamer inside stockpot and steam for 5 minutes. Remove insert and add kale, chives, beans, and vinegar to soup.

3. Continue to simmer soup until carrots and squash are cooked through. Season with pepper to taste.

Get Your Goat and Beet It Salad
*vegetarian

1 bunch green lettuce, chopped

½ small red cabbage, chopped

½ bunch purple kale, chopped

1 handful of chives, chopped

1 bunch golden beets. peeled and chopped

1 bunch red beets, peeled and chopped

As much goat cheese as your heart desires

Olive oil to taste

Balsamic vinegar to taste

Ground pepper to taste

1. Toss lettuce, cabbage, kale, and chives in a large bowl.

2. Assemble lettuce mix on a salad plate. Sprinkle beets and goats cheese on top. Drizzle with oil and vinegar and top with ground pepper.

Beet Pasta & Uncontrollable Sobbing Over A Stockpot

Most of you who know me, know that punctuality is not my gift. So, when I was asked to bring a dish to my friend’s dinner party last weekend, I knew I needed to pad in some extra time for preparations.

I planned to make a pasta dish from one of my favorite recipe publications, Vegetarian Times. I woke on Saturday (afternoon), wrote my grocery list, and then got completely lost in Netflix while unpicking an old pair of jeans for a project that I will probably never complete.

I figured that I needed an hour and half to go to the grocery store and make the dish. That meant I had to get off the couch by 5:15pm in order to get to the dinner party at 7.  Completely unaware, 5:15 came and went. I had forgotten that the living room clock was still an hour behind due to daylight savings and my procrastination. When I came to this conclusion, it was 6:30 and things quickly spiraled out of control.

Anxiety, depression and PCOS do not make for balanced hormones, and I spun into an all out PMS rage. Pots and pans flying, bubbly water splashing, cats bolting, a meltdown ensued. ‘I can’t do it all! What am I doing with my life! I’m so sad all the time!’ Bill slowly backed out of the kitchen and left me to my angry sobbing while I tried to throw together some pasta with whatever I had in the fridge. This is what I ended up with…

Beet Pasta & Uncontrollable Sobbing Over A Stockpot 

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 TBS Olive Oil

Ground thyme to taste

Basil to taste

Crushed red pepper to taste

¼ cup lemon juice

1 TBSP apple cider vinegar

1 large beet, chopped

3 small golden beets, chopped

8 carrots, chopped

18 oz can artichoke hearts – quartered

1 bag frozen peas

1 box Rotini pasta

Ground pepper to taste

Shaved Parmesan blend

11. Heat oil in stockpot and add garlic, thyme, basil, and crushed red pepper. Cook 30 seconds until fragrant. Add lemon juice, vinegar, beets, golden beets, carrots, and artichoke hearts. Cook 10 minutes at medium heat.

22. In separate pot, cook pasta according to package directions.

33. Add peas to vegetable mix. Cook for 5 minutes or until peas are heated. Add pepper to taste.

44. Drain pasta and mix with vegetables.

55. Serve warm and garnish with shredded Parmesan cheese.

We still showed up late, but the pasta was a success!

Later in the week, I decided to go to the grocery store and make the Fusilli Col Buco with Braised Spring Vegetables that I originally planned for the potluck.

Fresh herbs and a hearty broth made this recipe much more delicious and complex, but I’m still proud that my rushed beet pasta was edible. Happy Spring Cooking!