Homemade Hummus

homemade hummus / homemade pita

I really like hummus :) so for today's 'tasty tuesday' I'm sharing how I make them. The word "hummus" is actually an Arabic word for "chickpeas" ... how appropriate, right?! I eat hummus just about any way they are to be eaten - as a dip, in a pita, as a spread, a side dish/condiment, and sometimes just by the spoonful. For a bit of trivia, visit this HUMMUS wiki page ... I thought it was very interesting and besides, it contains a few nice photos of various ways hummus can be served.

For those who cannot view the video below, here is the recipe in print:
Ingredient list:
3 1/2c chickpeas/garbanzo beans (rinse and drain)
1/4c tahini
1/4c fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4c packed fresh parsley
1/8c braggs liquid aminos (or 1t salt)
1T extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic (crush or press)

Blend all in a vitamix or food processor till smooth.
Serve as a dip or sandwich/pita spread.
Feel free to change / add / or leave out various ingredients.
For example, add 1t cayenne, a little cumin, omit the parsley and stir in when done, etc.

This is a very healthy dish, easy to make and tastes great. Enjoy!! 

2014 Garden Update

Well, things are going along nicely for our little garden this year. I probably mentioned before that we were not going to have a country garden this year but instead do only what I think I can handle by myself ... and if someone helps, great! But if not, I can still take care of it alone. This has worked out wonderfully ... and usually I have some help too ;) Here are a few photos, more for my records than anything else!

Oh yes, and on a side note, Tylor did plant some corn and blue lake bush beans at the Sarcoxie Nursery ... so I guess we do have a little bit of a 'country garden' this year, though I am not sure how that's going. I'll try to get over there to take a photo soon, or see if someone else can.

We have no easy access to water at our garden because it is so far away from our house ... there is a road and the church in between the garden and our home. We've been filling up 5 gallon buckets and using the wheel barrel to transport the water, but those days are over now thanks to Corban's rig. He attached a spigot to this old barrel with the top cut off and then put the barrel on his lawn mower. This morning was our first time using it and we were so thankful for it :)

watering rig

cucs and zucchini

herbs - dill, cilantro and basil

jalapeno and cayenne peppers

sweet peppers of various kinds

pole beans

one of our potato beds

one of our tomato beds

Here is a photo looking from the garden to the church (The Church of Monett) ... those are our peach trees that are not producing fruit this year due to a late frost. We tried to save them but I guess our efforts did not work. Oh well! One of the apple trees in front has a lot of little apples on it though :)

Here I doctored up the above photo ... maybe we'll put it on the church website?

Have a great day!

Homemade Pasta using a Kitchenaid

For today's "tasty tuesday" I am excited to share that after years of thinking/debating, several hours of research and the encouragement of some brethren that know me very well, I have finally invested in a kitchenaid mixer and am VERY happy with it. I got a refurbished one - these are factory refurbished with a 6 month warranty for the same price as what used ones were going for on craigslist (though none in my area ... the closest being 5 hours away) ... delivered right to my door for free. Once I learned what a refurbished model was and read many reviews it was easy for me to choose that over a used one on craigslist. If you are curious, I purchased the mixer off "overstock.com". Just type in "refurbished kitchenaid".

I have made pasta several times now -- fettuccine and lasagna -- and am very pleased with the results. I watched several videos on how to make pasta and of course all the kitchenaid ones make it look so easy :) and it IS as long as the dough is the right texture.

My most favourite 'how-to' video though was from a man that used a hand-crank pasta roller (but the technique is the same regardless of hand or machine powered). I'm glad I ran in to him because he also has many fabulous recipes on his youtube page and I appreciate his style. And too, he's just plain fun to listen to and watch!!

Here is the 'how-to' video:


Brianna took a short video of me using the pasta attachment. She took this for our old-lady friend Christine who just loves to see what we are up to when not at her house :)

Here is a video of a recipe I made the other night ... very tasty!! This is the same guy as the 'how-to' video.


And last - a video of something I am going to try very soon (with as little cheese as possible) ... once again, the same guy. I think he's great! We enjoy trying to imitate his accent.

Cauliflower Pudding?

Yes, I was skeptical but I HAD to try it ... and I'm glad I did. When simmered till soft with vanilla, lemon zest and almond milk, cauliflower actually becomes a great base for dairy-free pudding. I found the recipe here but will put a copy of it below (the site has good photos though, so check it out). If you try it be sure to pay attention to the tips and cautions given.
Now I am going to experiment further and try to create my own flavours. Cauliflower is so good for you but it's just not something I eat an a regular basis. Maybe now I will? I have just never thought of using it as a cream sauce! I'm excited.

Ok, now for the recipe. I used honey for the sweetener and had to simmer the cauliflower about twice as long as suggested.

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TIPS/CAUTIONS:
Make sure you weigh your cauliflower or, if you don't have a scale, only roughly chop the florets, measure and then cook.

If you do not have a powerful blender like a Blendtec or Vitamix, opt to finely grind your cauliflower before cooking so that it is easier to puree.

 Ingredients:

• 3 cups (350 grams) of roughly chopped cauliflower
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• zest from 1 large lemon
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (NOT the bottled stuff)

Directions:

Add cauliflower, almond milk, sugar, extract and zest to a medium sized saucepan. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat, uncovered. Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 5-7 minutes, until cauliflower is very soft. Remove from heat.

Add in lemon juice and pour into the bowl of your food processor or blender. Blend on high for 1 minute, or until very smooth. Pour into a clean bowl and allow to cool at room temperature. Cover and refrigerate overnight, for at least 18 hours. Refrigeration helps the bold lemon flavor subside and really transforms this pudding. Do not skip this step!

Substitution notes:

• Feel free to use any type of non-dairy milk you have on hand. I like using unsweetened almond milk for my dessert recipes because it's naturally sweeter (and lower in fat and carbs) than other non-dairy milks.
• Any type of sugar would work here. White, brown, coconut sugar...

Challah!

Brianna and I had a lot of fun today making challah (pronounced [khah-luh] like you are trying to clear your throat or something ...). We each did a 4 and 7 plait loaf and also a round one. Brianna took the extras and made a 5 plait loaf. Here are the before and after photos (no 'before' picture for the 5 plait); the recipe I used will be at the end.

Now for the recipe. This makes all that you see in the last picture above, so it's a rather large recipe. I got it FROM HERE and followed it pretty close for the first time. My changes: I used honey instead of sugar and palm shortening instead of oil. Also, I added an extra egg, used 4c whole wheat, and used more flour [which is normal in a bread recipe!] ... and next time I know to use even more flour. I let it rise twice before shaping. Oh yes, and I did not follow the Jewish law of saving back a piece as a burnt offering.

Tips will be included at the end.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons active dry yeast 4 cups warm water 2 tablespoons salt 1/2 cup white sugar 1 cup vegetable oil 4 eggs 12 cups all-purpose flour

1 egg 3 tablespoons water 1/2 teaspoon vanilla sugar, or vanilla extract 1/4 cup sesame seeds

Directions:

1.	In a large bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the water. Let stand for about 5 minutes to dissolve the yeast. Stir in the salt, sugar, oil and 4 eggs until well blended. Gradually mix in the flour. When the dough becomes too stiff to stir, turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes. Place dough underneath the bowl to rise until double. Or, you can place the dough in the bowl, and cover with a towel.
2.	Punch down the dough, and divide into 6 or 8 even pieces depending on what shape you want. Remember to take a small piece off and make a blessing (Jewish law). Roll the pieces into ropes. Braid into two loaves, or one really big 6 piece braid - but only if your oven is large enough. Or, you can make the spiral shape challahs out of each rope. Tuck the ends under, and place on a baking sheet to rise until your finger leaves a small dent when you gently poke the bread.
3.	Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Whisk together the remaining egg, water and vanilla sugar. Brush over the tops of the loaves. Sprinkle sesame seeds over the top.
4.	Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until the bread is deep golden brown. Wrap the small piece of dough that was blessed in aluminum foil, and burn in the oven as an offering while the other loaves are baking.

And now for my own tips ...

It helps to have a bit firmer dough, however if you get it too firm the end result will be heavy bread. Our dough was on the softer side, though JUST firm enough to work with. A firmer dough will also help the finished loaf to be higher instead of flatter. Next time I know to use a bit more flour.

This recipe is said to yield 6 loaves of challah bread or, as said in step number 2, two loaves or even one large loaf. I believe the large one would be much too large ... I'm not sure my oven would even hold the pan required to fit a loaf that large! Baking two loaves seems a lot more realistic, however I decided to break them down even further than that. If you'd like to control the size of your loaves a little better it would help to use loaf pans.

I weighed out my dough to what I thought would be a good size for the chosen plaiting and I am happy with the results. Obviously weighing the dough is not a requirement, however this is just how I like to do things to keep it all decently uniform.

Because this recipe is so large it might not bake as nice or uniformly in the oven (unless maybe you have a nice convection oven). We have access to two ovens and we still found it a challenge to get it all baked to our liking. We rotated the various pans a few times each during baking ... left to right and top to bottom. The gas oven cooked the bread quicker than the electric oven.

The baking stones worked nicer than the metal 'air bake' sheets. This does not surprise me but I thought I'd share anyway.

Tasty Tuesday: Bulk French Toast Tip

When we have an excess of eggs, I make large batches of french toast. I cool the toast off completely and then freeze individually on wire racks. Once frozen, they stack nice in a used bread bag and will not stick to each other. (If you put them in the bag before they are frozen it will be much harder to get them apart when needed.)

Now when you need a quick breakfast or snack, simply take out enough pieces to feed your family and either heat them in a regular toaster or put them in a covered dish of some sort and heat them in the oven. Here is a photo of the french toast  right out of the freezer, ready to bag up:

This is an excellent gift to give to a busy mother, a sick mother, or a mother who has just had a baby. They are also great to have on hand for busy days in your own home or days when you just do not feel well (let's face it, it happens!). It's healthy and tastes good too!