I signed up to get an account on Pinterest this week but I’m still on the waiting list. I’m pretty sure I could have made an appointment with and seen my old orthodontist by this point. I figured I’ll just share my obsessions here until I get an account.
Raw desserts. Even better if they contain cocoa powder. Ever since starting a plant-based diet I’ve convinced myself if it’s made of nuts and agave it’s practically health food. Please don’t argue with me; I have nothing to back that up with.
Chickpeas. It’s not just the curry. I don’t remember the last proper meal that I ate without them. Send help. Or an industrial sized can of chickpeas.
The Royal Wedding. I don’t care that it’s over; I still want to talk about it. I’ll watch any television program that talks about it. In fact, I bet 60 Minutes will do a report on it and can’t wait to hear what Andy Rooney has to say. Plus, we still have the Royal Honeymoon, Royal Baby-making, and Royal 401k to track. Oh wait, they’re rich. And British. Scratch that last one.
Chocolate. Always chocolate.
Doctor Who. Holy intensity, Batman. I’ve watched one episode so far and this already looks like the best season yet. Except I can only remember half of it—I wonder why? If you ever feel compelled to email me about fictional alien conspiracy theories, please do. That’s what the Contact page is for, after all. Just no spoilers.
Adele. She’s the best thing to come out of the UK since Doctor Who and the Royal Wedding. If you haven’t listened to her 21 album yet, don’t; you’ll never stop.
Kombucha. I know some people are freaked out by this drink but I just love it. It’s probably because I don’t drink alcohol so it’s the closest thing to a buzz I’m getting that’s not a haircut. The long, stringy bacteria thingy(a technical term) is my favorite part.
What do you love lately?
I get on food kicks on occasion. Most of the time it’s chocolate. This week it’s still chocolate, but it’s also Thai and coconut. Bear with me. It will be gone soon.
I love food you can slurp, especially food that has a sauce that makes you want to lick the bowl clean. That’s probably why I shouldn’t eat in public. Anyhoo, that’s part of why I love curries. The coconut milk is cool and refreshing but spicy at the same time; it makes me want to eat every last drop. This recipe uses chickpeas for the protein which is more an Indian flare, but you could add in browned beef, fried tofu, or baked chicken cutlets instead. Just make sure it’s cooked through before adding it to the broth.
Chickpeas In Green Curry
Ingredients(for 2 people)
-
1 onion, diced
-
1 red pepper, julienned
-
1 green pepper julienned
-
3 Tablespoons neutral oil
-
1/2 cup coconut milk
-
1 Tablespoon green curry paste
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1 can of chickpeas, drained
-
salt to taste
Heat the oil in a large pan. Add in the cut vegetables and sauté for a few minutes until the oil gets absorbed and the onions turn translucent.
Pour in the coconut milk.
Add in the green curry paste(a blend of garlic, curry, salt, lemongrass and a few other ingredients) and mix it into the broth.
Let the broth boil for 2-3 minutes until it thickens up slightly. Add in your protein for the last minute to heat. Serve hot with rice or greens if desired.
I definitely licked the bowl clean.
This recipe would be perfect for Valentine’s Day. Or for a Pepto-Bismol themed brunch. After the last hummus recipe I wanted something that didn’t quite have the same overpowering savory taste of olives and garlic that instead would be suited for Springtime. This is definitely the kind of hummus I’d plop on a salad and eat with vegetables since the flavor is so light. It’ll definitely draw eyes with a color like that.
Sweet Beet Hummus
Ingredients:
- 2 cups chickpeas
- 1/2 cup beets, loosely cut
- 1/2 Tablespoon vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- ~2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons honey
Pour the chickpeas into the food processor.
Add in the beets, honey, and salt and begin to blend. While blending, slowly pour in the vinegar and olive oil until the hummus becomes smooth and runny.
I’m not sure if it can cure nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach, or diarrhea, but if you’re eating hummus to begin with that’s a pretty good start towards your health.
Get the Altoids ready because this one’s a nightmare on your breath but it’s worth it.
Chickpeas and olives are two of my favorite foods; I think they deserve their own food group. This has a strong flavor of a tapenade but with all the creaminess of a hummus. It’s definitely a winning potluck recipe.
Black Olive Hummus
Ingredients:
- 2 cups chickpeas
- 1/2 cup black olives, pitted
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3-4 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Dumb the chickpeas into a food processor.
Add in the olives, garlic, and salt and begin to process.
As the hummus is blending, slowly pour in the vinegar and olive oil until it takes on a smooth consistency.
Garnish with sliced olives to warn any olive haters.
Somebody pass the [gluten-free] pita because it’s on.
Today is April 2nd and there is snow on the ground.
But on Wednesday it was bright and sunny at the temperature almost hit 50! That’s about as close to any dog day we’ve gotten. I spent the day in Boston with one of my best friends from high school. After about 3 hours of walking, we stopped at The Asgard in Cambridge for lunch.
I scoped out the one thing on the menu that was vegan/gluten-free and ordered that(I’m not vegan, I just pretend to be 90% of the time). When I asked for a salad without meat the waitress was shocked. Apparently pubs don’t get a lot of vegetarians(again, I’m not, I just pretend).
The salad was really good. It came with chickpeas and grilled vegetables. The reduced balsamic vinegar made it all come together.
Of course after 3 hours of walking there was no way I wasn’t ordering pub fries.
These were definitely the best part of the meal, especially smothered in salt and ketchup. They should just add a french fries salad to the menu and I’d be all over that.
I promise I was much more happy than I look.
And then there were actual dogs!
We borrowed these dogs from their owner and walked them around Cambridge and Boston. They had much more energy than we did. I was tempted to steal one but something about running down Comm. Ave holding a dog with people chasing me would have been a little obvious. We gave them back and the dog day was over, and everyone sang Florence and the Machine happily ever after.
I’m overwhelmed by the number of comments on this post.
I’m overwhelmed by the number of you who have tried this recipe and told me you love it.
And after not having made this recipe for 3+ months, I’m overwhelmed by how delicious it still is.
A lot of people have asked if you have to peel the chickpeas, which can feel overwhelming given how many there are to peel. The answer is no, you don’t have to peel them for this recipe any more than you do for any hummus recipe. But peeling the chickpeas will make any hummus incredibly smooth and is worth the effort in my opinion.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Dessert Hummus(Original post)
Ingredients:
- 2 cups chickpeas
- 1/4 cup natural peanut butter
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/2 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips
Add all the ingredients into the food processor(I used some brown sugar because I was low on maple syrup).
Puree until smooth.
Add the chocolate chips and fold them in.
I’d like to be able to suggest serving this with banana chips, graham crackers, Nilla wafers, or something else fun. But really the only way I can suggest is with a spoon.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m about to go be overwhelmed by how much hummus I can eat in one sitting.
Here’s to March being the best month of the year. Since my birthday’s at the end of March, I figure there will be a lot of cake and cupcake recipes around then so I might as well start the month with something healthy.
Matt has mentioned on his blog and in his e-book about the combination of a grain, a green, and a bean. Well, my favorite grain is quinoa, bean is chickpea, and green is kale, so I thought I’d make a recipe with those three ingredients. And a little butter and honey never hurt.
Chickpea, Quinoa, and Kale Medley
Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):
- 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and drained
- 1 can of chickpeas, drained
- 1 1/2 cups chopped kale
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Cook the quinoa completely either in a rice cooker or over the stove. Make sure there’s no excess water in the pot with it.
Add in the chickpeas and kale.
Next add to the pot the butter, honey, salt, and vinegar.
Stir until the butter has melted and it’s all one dish. Serve hot or cold as leftovers.
I don’t know whether it was because I was getting over the flu and started getting my appetite back or because I just love honey + butter but I think I broke a world speed record eating this.
Yeah, I hated it.
“These chickpeas have sole, and they’re super bad”(bad as in good)
Sometimes when you make a winning dish, you know even before tasting it that you’ll make it again and again. Since sole is on sale, I used it to make a comforting bowl of food one night that won me over with all its merits: it takes 10 minutes; it’s healthy; it’s flavorful; you really can’t overcook any of it; the ingredients list is short and simple. You can even adapt the recipe by using a different fish, a different bean, or a different green. I omitted the dill because I didn’t have any on hand but that’s one of my favorite flavors for fish when I have it and I think it’d add another layer to this.
Chickpeas With Sole And Spinach
Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):
- 1/2lb sole(or any other flaky white fish)
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cups of spinach, chopped
- 1 can of chickpeas, water drained
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill(optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat.
Add in the fish fillets to cook through, about 90 seconds on each side.
When the fish is fully cooked, add in the spinach and chickpeas.
Stir the pan and continue cooking until all the ingredients are warm and the oil has been soaked up.
Season with salt and dill before serving.
Maybe it’s because I’m part Italian but all fish needs a little lemon to make it complete.
I made this several times over the weekend because I couldn’t get over how fast and easy it was, yet still nutritious. Even though the fish is broken up you still get that fishy flavor in every bite. It was just as good as leftovers with a little salsa on top for some added flavor.
If you’re a longtime reader, then this recipe will look familiar. This single-handedly changed how I thought of hummus in general when I first made it over the Summer. After listing it on my Top 10 of 2010 list, I knew I wanted to make it again. So now I’m reposting the recipe with new step-by-step pictures, because I have nothing better to do now most days than cook and take pictures of my food(I know, it’s a rough vacation). Enjoy! And do try this because it never disappoints; it makes even the biggest skeptics believe that hummus has a place in dessert.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Dessert Hummus
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 0 minutes
Ingredients(Makes about 3 cups):
- 2 cups chickpeas
- 1/4 cup natural peanut butter
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/2 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips
Method:
- Drain, measure, wash, and peel your chickpeas. Peeling them isn’t absolutely necessary but it makes for the creamiest hummus and really is worth the effort.
- In a food processor, add the first 4 ingredients and process until the hummus is smooth and emulsified(the one thing no one wants for dessert is chunky chickpea pieces in their dessert).
- Remove the blade and fold in the chocolate chips. Move into a deep serving bowl and serve with graham crackers or baby carrots.
“How can that possibly be good?” you may be wondering. The maple syrup makes this deliciously sweet; and the chickpeas, peanuts, and syrup all have a same earthiness that pairs with one another really well. The result is a creamy dip reminiscent of cookie dough only with healthy fats and fiber.
Who’s ready to dig in?
