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    Ready for the Weekend

    Posted by Jonathan on May 11th, 2012 (All posts by )

    hummus fixins

    Chicagoboyz are loaded for action.

     

     

    This entry was posted on Friday, May 11th, 2012 at 6:35 pm and is filed under Photos, Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

    14 Responses to “Ready for the Weekend”

    1. Sgt. Mom Says:
      May 11th, 2012 at 7:00 pm

      Oddly enough, I see hummus in your future:

      1/3 c. sesame tahini
      2 (15 oz.) cans garbanzo beans (chick peas), well drained
      1/4 c. lemon juice
      5 cloves minced garlic
      5 drops Tabasco sauce
      1/4 c. water
      1/2 tsp. cumin

      Combine all ingredients and blend until the desired consistency; an electric mixer works well. Serve as a dip or is really good with wedges of pita bread.

      Yeah. I lifted the recipe from Cooks.com… but it looks like where you are heading. Don’t forget the pita chips.

    2. Jonathan Says:
      May 11th, 2012 at 7:21 pm

      And note that the tahina is a Texas product with a kosher certification from the Chicago Rabbinical Council.

    3. Dan from Madison Says:
      May 11th, 2012 at 8:02 pm

      As you told me a while ago, the tahina is the secret for good hummus.

    4. Bill Brandt Says:
      May 11th, 2012 at 8:11 pm

      Where’s the Newcastle Brown?

    5. Gringo Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 1:47 am

      Powdered garlic and not the fresh stuff?

    6. Jonathan Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 7:55 am

      Fresh garlic has to be chopped finely. If you just throw it into the food processor with the other ingredients you get random garlic chunks and the garlic taste doesn’t disperse. Maybe if you ground the garlic in the machine as a first step it would work better. Or if you used an old-fashioned blender, which grinds more finely and IME makes the best hummus. But both of these alternatives add a lot of work to the hummus process. Garlic powder, if it’s finely ground and reasonably fresh, works OK and saves time and effort.

    7. Gringo Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 1:06 pm

      I use a garlic press. Years ago I bought one from Taiwan, which failed within a year or so. I then bought an industrial strength garlic press from Italy, which has been good for 15-20 years. Much better design. Currently I imagine only garlic presses from China are available. It would take less than a minute to crush the 5-10 cloves of garlic used in hummus.

    8. Jonathan Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 1:12 pm

      I’ve never gotten good results with those things but maybe that’s because I never had a good one.

    9. Gringo Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 2:09 pm

      As I bought one garlic press that failed, I can concur with your comment about problematic results with garlic presses. What garlic presses I see for sale online appear to be too damned complicated in their design- at least compared to the one I have. What I have used for upwards of 20 years is the Brevetatto garlic press. The design is simple, yet elegant, resulting in a very durable object. It is easy to clean. Finding it for sale online might take some time, and might be deemed not worth the effort.

    10. Jonathan Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 2:44 pm

      Hmm…

      http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kitchen-Garlic-press-Crusher-Presser-screw-squeeze-Peeler-Mincer-Twist-Tool-/170780781941?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27c353ed75

      “The Garlic Presser is an attractive and innovative garlic tool.”

    11. John Burgess Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 5:56 pm

      I usually just mash the garlic with the side of my knife. Adding a bit of salt lets the grinding go faster and you get a somewhat smoother paste.

      Have you tried other beans? I’ve found that both black beans and Great Northern make for interesting variations. Keep the rest of the recipe the same, though.

    12. Jonathan Says:
      May 12th, 2012 at 7:29 pm

      I’ve tried favas, kidneys, black beans and maybe others I don’t remember. 1:1 favas/garbanzos was the best alternative mix to my taste. 100% fava was a bit too strong in taste. Maybe 1:2 would be better. YMMV

    13. Robert Schwartz Says:
      May 13th, 2012 at 12:01 am

      I find Sabra brand packaged hummus to be completely satisfactory.

    14. Brooks Says:
      May 13th, 2012 at 12:39 am

      The best way I’ve found to puree garlic is to use a mortar and pestle with a little bit of salt.

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