A Tasty Twist to Hummus

We have a place in town run by a 1st generation Lebanese family. The husband and I go there for lunch every so often and if you are not there at just the right time, you will end up waiting a long time for a table. They have a little counter with about 5 stools and about 8 tables. It is a tiny place filled with wonderful aromas. Their hummus is, by far, the best I have ever had. Everything in this restaurant is home made...their flat bread...OMG. Most of the time I have a large order of hummus. I eat part of it for lunch and share the rest with my hubby. His favorite is the peas and rice or kidney beans and rice. YUM...I am drooling on the keyboard just thinking about the food. In the summer, they make koosa, which is a small green summer squash that is stuffed with ground lamb, rice and spices. These are tricky to hollow out and you need the right tool to do that. But it is sooooooooo good! Anyway, back to the hummus. I have had the store bought hummus and well, it just doesn't have the same taste and consistency as the homemade kind. Do I buy it? Sure. In a pinch it has to do. But we do make our own once in awhile. This is a twist on plain hummus and adds some sweet sundried tomatoes to the mix. I like using the ones packed in oil as they add more flavor. This is a great appetizer and I just set out some flat bread to use as dippers. This is a healthy appetizer and can also be used as a spread on sandwiches!

Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus

INGREDIENTS·

1 16 ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed·

1 cup of sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained (or rehydrated dried sun-dried tomatoes)·

1/2 cup (1 large bunch) fresh parsley, washed and picked·

2 tablespoons lemon juice·

3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped·

1 heaping tablespoon tahini·

salt and crushed red pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Place garbanzo beans and sun-dried tomatoes in a food processor and blend into a paste. You may have to scrape down the sides of the food process and add lemon juice to keep the mixture moving. Mix in lemon juice, garlic, tahini, salt and crushed red pepper. Blend until smooth, using more lemon juice if consistency is too thick. Transfer to medium sized bowl.

2. Coarsely chop the parsley leaves. Fold the parsley into the hummus, reserving some of the parsley to sprinkle on top for garnish.

Berry Trifle

I am a berry-a-holic! I guess that is better than other types of addictions, right? I have posted other recipes using berries and they are, by far, my favorite types of fruit because they are easy to eat and bake with! This is a nice dessert because you can make it kid friendly or kick it up for adult servings. It is very pretty in a trifle bowl. This can also be a great dessert at Christmas because of the red and white colors. Also, if you want, you can use both red raspberries and blackberries. So, to make this a nice weekday dessert, use cranberry juice cocktail to sprinkle over the pound cake. Or for an adult dinner party, sprinkle your poundcake with Chambord. This is a lovely, smooth raspberry liqueur. You can garnish the top with some fresh raspberries or even red sanding sugar. Either way, this will go fast.
Double Berry Trifle
Yield: 15 servings
Ingredients:
12 oz. pound cake, cut into 10 slices
3 tablespoons cranberry juice cocktail
2 packages (10 oz. each) frozen raspberries
2 tablespoons sugar
2-1/2 cups cold milk
2 packages (3 oz. each) vanilla instant pudding and pie mix

1 container (8 oz.) frozen cool whip topping, thawed
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Directions:
Arrange cake slices on bottom of 13x9 inch baking dish. Drizzle cranberry juice cocktail over cake slices. Top with frozen
raspberries, separating as needed. Sprinkle with sugar.
Pour milk into large bowl; add pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk 1 minute. Gently stir in 1 cup whipped topping. Spoon mixture over raspberries; top with remaining whipped topping. Refrigerate until serving.

Beer not served in a mug!

I don't own a bread machine and have never wanted to own one. I have heard the pros (homemade bread all the time, the house always smells so good) and the cons (I gained weight from eating and smelling the homemade bread all the time, it takes up space and now I don't use it anymore). I don't love working with yeast dough so I was really happy when Panera's moved into town a few years ago. But every now and then I come across a recipe that does not require yeast and is easy, good and not a sweet quick bread. This is one of those recipes. A couple of the home parties I have attended have these Beer Bread mixes that are convenient and good, but still have those pesky preservatives. And they want you to pour a whole lot of butter over the top, so that makes it even less figure friendly.

This particular recipe is quite nice for a weeknight dinner and doesn't require a lot of work or time. I have mixed all the dry ingredients together in the morning and covered the bowl or put them in a zip-loc bag. When I get home, I only have to grease the pan, add beer to the mix, pour into the loaf pan and pop into the oven. In an hour I have a nice fresh bread to go with a salad, soup or stew. You can even add some dill to this or some crushed red pepper for some kick and it is really good. And depending on the kind of beer you use it will take on a different flavor. So experiment! And the bonus is that you know what went into this bread with no preservatives!!

Beer Bread

Stir Together:

3 cups unsifted white flour

3 Tbsp. sugar

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1-1/4 tsp salt

Gradually add:

12 oz. beer at room temperature

Pour into a well greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until loaf is brown on the bottom and sounds hollow when you thump it.

Using Pumpkin...in April

The sun is shining and the trees are in bud and the forsythia is in bloom. And this is not the time of year to be thinking about pumpkin. But, one of the women in my department was celebrating her 10 year company anniversary today and her favorite sweet is pumpkin pie. Well, I didn't want to do the traditional, so I pulled out the recipe I got from http://dozenflours.com/and whipped it up for today. Awhile ago, I made the plain Snickerdoodle Bars off her blog and commented on how great they were. She wrote back to say if I liked those,I should try them with the pumpkin. All I can say is that this has the WOW factor. The fact that the recipe looks long belies the actual time to prepare it. It goes together easily and the house is fragrant with the baking spices. When it was cool, I drizzled it in a crisscross fashion with the white chocolate glaze and put it in the fridge overnight. It was gone in 2 hours today...clean plate! It was a hit and a lot of people were asking for the recipe. So I am definitely putting this in my fall folder of wonderful desserts. I could see this with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream on top and drizzled with caramel sauce....like a brownie sundae. Plus it is a great alternative to pumpkin pie.

NOTE: For the drizzle, I filled my Pampered Chef little decorator with the glaze and used the small tip. I went back and forth over the top in a diagonal fashion and crossed it the opposite way....quite pretty.

Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodle Bars

Snickerdoodle Layer

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup butter, at room temperature

2 eggs, at room temperature

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Pumpkin Pie Layer

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup white sugar

1 stick butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

2 eggs, at room temperature

1-1/2 cups Libby pure canned pumpkin

2 tablespoons white sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 oz white chocolate, chopped

1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch pan and lay a piece of parchment paper across the pan, so that it extends the pan slightly. The parchment paper is an optional step, but it will make it easier to get the bars out later.

To make snickerdoodle layer: Sift together flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. In large bowl, beat together butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the flour mixture until well blended. Spread evenly in prepared pan (mixture will be thick and cookiebatter-ish.)

In a mixer bowl (you can use the same one you used to make the snickerdoodle batter) with a paddle attachment, mix together all ingredients until well combined. This layer will be less thick and more pourable. Pour over the snickerdoodle layer, smoothing out the top.

Combine white sugar and cinnamon in a little bowl. Evenly sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture over the top of the batter.

Bake for 33-40 minutes (maybe more depending on your oven) or until a toothpick inserted into the *center* of the pan comes out clean.

Let the bars cool completely (about an hour). They will deflate a bit and remain a bit pie-like on the top layer. The bars that are closer to the edges of the pan will be more firm, but are still equally as yummy.

After the bars are completely cool, place the chopped white chocolate into a bowl or zip-lock bag and melt on low power. When it's completely melted, add the pumpkin pie spice and mix (or knead if using a zip lock bag). Use a spoon or cut a small corner off the bag and drizzle the melted chocolate over the top of the bars and let it cool and harden. Use the parchment paper to lift the bars out of the pan. Place on a cutting board and cut into bars. Store in a covered container.

Go Green..... Eat Your Asparagus

Now that spring is here and the tender shoots of asparagus are showing up more frequently in the market, I have found some interesting and different ways to use it other than as a side for dinner. Our favorite way is to just roast it in the oven with some olive oil, salt and pepper. But to jazz it up a bit, I found a recipe that used roasted asparagus but with a delicious sounding dressing made from good Parmesan cheese. I also found a great appetizer that uses blanched asparagus spears. Making food fun and interesting is what will set you apart from the crowd and with your kids. Especially with the kids, if you find something they like and can incorporate it with something new (especially if they helped select it) they are more likely to try it. I did not like asparagus until about 8 or 9 years ago. Why? I don't have a clue. Mostly it was a fear of trying something new. It so happened I was at a dinner party where it was served with a lovely light lemon sauce. So I branched out and tried it. What? I loved it! Why didn't I try this before? So my taste expanded. Now I am no longer afraid to use this springtime delight in many different ways. Here are a couple of ideas for you to try that have been successful for me.
ASPARAGUS SALAD

3 1/2 cups of Parmesan cheese, thinly shaved from a block of cheese. (You cannot used the grated stuff from the store)
1 1/2 cups water
5 Tbsp minced shallots (about 2 large)
2 Tbsp Champagne vinegar
2 lbs asparagus, trimmed and thick stalks removed (use all green or green and white)
2 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Simmer the cheese and the water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Simmer until a milky liquid forms. Stir occasionally for about 10 minutes. Strain the liquid into a small saucepan and discard the solids. Boil until liquid is reduced to about 1/2 cup (8-10 minutes).
Transfer to a small bowl and add 3 Tbsp. minced shallots and vinegar.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Cook all the asparagus in a pot of boiling salted water.
Transfer to bowl of ice water and cool completely. Drain.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place asparagus in single layer on rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with 1 Tbsp olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 10 minutes until crisp tender.

Meanwhile heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in small skillet over medium heat. Add 3 Tbsp shallots. When asparagus is done, place on a platter and sprinkle shallots and dressing over. Sprinkle with a little more fresh cracked black pepper.

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ASPARAGUS SPEARS WRAPPED IN PROSCIUTTO
1 lb. fresh asparagus
6 oz. thinly sliced prosciutto

5.2 oz pkg Boursin cheese

1/4 cup honey mustard Black pepper

Snap tough end off asparagus, peel and remove 3/4 -in from bottom ends and trim into a point. Place asparagus in a deep skillet of boiling salted water for about 2 minutes until crisp tender. Carefully drain and rinse under cold running water. Blot dry.

Separate slices of prosciutto and cut each slice in half, lengthwise.

Place one strip of prosciutto on a flat surface and spread with 1/2 tsp Boursin cheese, 1/2 tsp honey mustard and freshly ground black pepper.

Place asparagus spears at a 90 degree angle on the shot end of the prosciutto strip. Carefully roll up as tightly as possible. Place on a platter and serve.

Chocolate Malt Cheesecake...Happy Birthday to my Husband

Yesterday was the husband's birthday. He didn't want a party, but I did arrange for dinner with some friends at a favorite local restaurant. After a birthday toast and a great meal, we headed on over to our house for dessert. A few posts ago, I talked about chocolate malt cupcakes. This time I made a chocolate malt cheesecake. It was easy, rich and had the wow factor! I baked this the night before so it had plenty of time to cool and live in the fridge to set up nicely. A few hours before dinner, I crushed some malted milk balls and liberally sprinkled them on top. Then I melted some chocolate chips and drizzed a basket weave pattern on top of the crushed candy.

YUM! So that and a platter of grapes, blackberries, strawberries and fragrant coffee topped off our evening. We laughed and talked...mostly about our grandkids. It was a fun night. Happy Birthday, honey!!

CHOCOLATE MALT CHEESECAKE

Crust:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1/3 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

Filling:

3 Pkgs (8 oz each) cream cheese (1/3 less fat is fine)

1 can (14 oz)sweetened condensed milk

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup chocolate malted milk powder

4 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

Combine crust ingredients; pat firmly in bottom and about 1/2-in up the side of an ungreased 9-inch springform pan; chill. Combine chocolate and sweetened condensed milk in top of double boiler over boiling water. Stir occasionally until melted. Let cool.

To make the filling, beat cheese until fluffy; add eggs and malted milk powder and blend well. Blend in melted chocolate mixture and the vanilla. Pour into prepared crust. Bake at 300 degrees for about 65 minutes or until filling shakes only slightly near the center when moved. Cool, chill thoroughly.

Garnish with chocolate curls or crushed malted milk balls or drizzle with melted chocolate if desired.

Blueberry Cream Pie Not for Throwing!

I was able to pick up some frozen pie shells for $1.00 a package (for 2) at a local co-op. These provide an easy way to whip up dessert in a hurry! It was a great find, so now I am looking through my recipes to find things that I haven't made in awhile. This is a nice recipe, especially in the summer when local blueberries are so plentiful. We put blueberries on cereal, in fruit salad, muffins, breads, pancakes and pies. Blueberries are chock full of antioxidants, have twice the capacity of spinach and 3 times that of oranges. They are rich in pectin and are a soluble fiber that has been shown in studies to help lower cholesterol. Fresh blueberries are higher in Vitamin A and C than frozen and canned. This recipe is a twist to the traditional blueberry pie and is also a pretty presentation. I like to add a bit of cinnamon sugar to the pecan topping. Just NO THROWING these cream pies...why waste those good blueberries?

Blueberry Cream Pie

Makes 8 servings
Ingredients
1 cup sour cream
3/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh
1 pie crust, 9"
3 tbsp flour

3 tbsp margarine
3 tbsp pecans

Directions

1. Mix first six ingredients with electric mixer until smooth.

2. Fold in blueberries.

3. Pour into unbaked pie shell. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.

4. Mix last three ingredients. Dot over top of pie and continue to bake for 10 minutes.

5. Cool and serve.