How to make Hummus: part 1

Reading Andie's blog post on her favourite healthy foods, she made me think about my favourite health kick these days and I came up with: chickpeas!

You can make....

• Chickpea puree 
• Chickpea Tajines 
• Chickpea salad
• Chickpea pasta
• Chickpea con carne
• many other things that my mind can not think of at this second....

Or ... a million different types of hummus! Maybe some of you don't know this, but hummus is made with chickpeas, pureed chickpeas to be precise. And then you add whatever you feel like adding, that very moment.
As I know that a few of our readers are beginning cooks, I thought to have a little cooking series especially for them. This series is about 'how to make hummus'. We start of with part 1, making a very simply classic hummus. Then while we proceed in time, we are going to add spices, herbs and other kind of things to make hummus even more exciting.
By the end (if there is such a thing with cooking) you will be dreaming how to make hummus, and most of all, you will be craving hummus at a weekly base like I do.

Ingredients:

• one can of drained chickpeas 
• 2 tablespoons of tahini (sesamepaste) --> invest in this one as you will be needing it during the course!
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• 0,5 clove of garlic 
• 1 tablespoon yoghurt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• pinch of chilipepper
• pinch of salt

How to make it:

It is the most easy thing ever!

Make sure you rinse the chickpeas after having washed them to take away most of the sodium that accompany canned foods.

Chuck everything in a high container.

Blend it down to a puree....taste.... add whatever YOU feel is missing... blend.....

Outcome: classic HUMMUS!!!

Get ready for part 2 next week or so; we will be adding some more exciting spices!

Hummus

Buon Appetito

Chef Steph

Fusion: Chickpea puree with grilled asparagus & tuna

Bonjour from rainy Milan!!

Must be honest that the rain is bringing a breath of fresh air, so it's not too bad...Because it has been quiet hot & steamy around here the last couple of days!

Don't have a lot of time because I am crazy busy with a million things but wanted to give you a treat of my cuisine happenings lately. I got the inspiration for this one, out of May's issue of the dutch delicious! Instead of combining the vegetables with meat, I went for tuna.

Ingredients: serves 2

• can of chickpeas 
• salt and pepper
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon kurkuma
• 250 gr asperges
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tuna steaks

How to make it:

boil the chickpeas for 5-10 minutes in a bit of salted water. Drain them and puree 3/4 of them with a blender or whatever you have at hand. Add the spices and mix some more. At the end you add the whole chickpeas you kept aside, to give the puree an extra bite.

In the meanwhile you cut the asperges in 5cm pieces and grill/ bake them in a heated skillet. It takes around 7 minutes to cook. But it depends on your taste, I like them crunchy.

Last but not least, grill the tuna that you salted and peppered, for a couple of minutes. Again, this depends on your taste. I like my tuna pink on the inside!

Outcome: easy fast, midweek or busy weekend dinner. But good and special enough to make your day end well! 

Chickpea Puree with grilled Asperges & Tuna

Buon Appetito

Chef Steph