Tag: chickpeas

Appetizers, Recipes

Cilantro Lime Hummus

Sarah

So, over the weekend, I hosted a baby shower for my friend Susan. Susan and I actually met through blogging–last summer, she saw a post I wrote on Today’s Housewife and emailed me to say that she was moving to Bloomington for her husband to attend graduate school. We emailed back and forth a bit, until finally Susan moved to town and we met for the first time. Ben and I had Susan, her husband Mike, and their baby boy, Jacob over for dinner and as we were getting everything ready, we started to worry…

Why did we invite strangers that we met on the internet over to our house?

What were we thinking?

Let’s hope this isn’t the most awkward evening ever.

Turns out it wasn’t, and we all enjoy hanging out together… So when a mutual friend suggested we cook up a baby shower for Susan [she’s expecting a baby girl in August!], I was super excited. The shower was on Saturday, and sadly, pretty much the only pictures I took were of these  gorgeous flowers from the local Famer’s Market.

I’m not sure what I was thinking, not taking pictures… but thankfully there were some food pictures I took before the party got started so I can share some of the awesome things we had to eat! My favorite new recipe of the night had to be this Cilantro Lime Hummus. It was absolutely perfect, so I couldn’t wait to blog about it. And I promised the recipe to the soon-to-be-mom-of-two so I had to follow through, huh? This hummus is a creamy, dreamy spicy, fresh dip that was perfect with salty blue corn chips, crackers, or fresh veggies.

I’ll admit, putting a green dip in a yellow bowl does not make for a super amazing photograph, but I hope you’ll look past looks and concentrate on the most important thing… how this dip tastes! If I do say so myself, it’s pretty incredible. Cilantro-lime is a pretty classic flavor combo, popularized by a certain Mexican burrito joint, and though it may sound a little strange in hummus…. it works. Just like peanut butter and chocolate work in Cookie Dough Dip… except this is savory. Do you follow? Umm, alright, well maybe they aren’t really the same at all, except for that common ingredient, chickpeas. I’ll admit that I’m usually a storebought hummus girl, but these unique flavors may have converted me! In fact, I think I’m going to go enjoy some leftovers right… about… now! Enjoy!

What’s your favorite flavor of hummus?

Cilantro Lime Hummus [adapted from How Sweet Eats]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 1 large bunch cilantro, rinsed and roughly chopped [remove most of the stems but don’t worry about perfection]
  • 3 15-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 3 tablespoons tahini
  • 6 cloves garlic, crushed
  • zest and juice of 3 limes
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Combine cilantro and chickpeas in a food processor, then add tahini, garlic, lime juice, and zest. Process until well combined, then stream in oil and pulse until mixed. Add red pepper and salt, then adjust seasonings if needed. Serve with blue corn chips, pita chips, or veggies.

Time: 10 minutes.

Yield: about 4 cups.

Appetizers, Recipes

SRC: Smoky Fried Chickpeas

Sarah

It’s Secret Recipe Club time! If you’ve missed my other SRC posts, the premise is this: you’re assigned a different member’s blog every month. You visit their blog, choose any recipe you want, then make it and share it on your blog. Then, everyone posts about their assigned blog on the same day. It’s so fun to try out new blogs. If you have a blog, definitely check it out and consider joining! I highly recommend it.

This month I was assigned Susie’s blog, Eat Little, Eat Big. Susie lives in Maui [jealous!! Can you even imagine?] and has tons of fresh, tasty, and creative recipes on her blog. I have several new things on my to-make list including Three Cheese Mini Macs, Avocado Dressing, and Pear & Prosciutto Appetizers. As tasty and intriguing as those treats sound, I decided to try out her Smoky Fried Chickpeas. Guess I was in a savory mood when recipe selecting, huh?

I had previously made roasted chickpeas, but never fried… and boy were they tasty! [edited to add: I must have had “roasted chickpeas” on my mind as I worked on the photos… see above! Whoops!] These chickpeas just required five simple ingredients: chickpeas [duh], olive oil, smoked paprika, chipotle chile powder, and lime zest. Oh, and salt. Six. I lied. Nevertheless, not a whole lot of ingredients, but a whole lot of flavor!

This simple appetizer is such a treat, with the smoky/spicy contrasts drawn from smoked paprika and spicy chipotle chile powder that is livened up with a hint of lime-salt goodness. Since we almost always have some chickpeas in the pantry, this may just be my new go-to snack. Sweet! Or, should I say… savory? 🙂

Smoky Roasted Chickpeas [from Eat Little, Eat Big]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 can [15 ounce] chickpeas [garbanzo beans]
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons lime zest [about 1 lime]
  • salt

Directions:

In a large skillet set over medium-high heat, heat olive oil. Meanwhile, rinse, drain, and pat dry chickpeas. Add to skillet and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until brown, stirring occasionally.

In a small bowl, combine paprika, chipotle chile powder, and lime zest.

Remove chickpeas from pan and drain on paper towels. Then place in a bowl and toss with spice mixture. Salt to taste. Serving with paper napkins for greasy fingers suggested. 🙂

Time: 15 minutes.

Yield: 3 servings.

Note: I halved the original recipe, so you can easily multiply this but just check out the original for adjustments to cooking time/method.

Check out other great Secret Recipe Club posts here:


Appetizers, Recipes

Snacky-Snack! | Balsamic Roasted Chickpeas

Sarah

So, I love snacking. I think I prefer eating a little bit of this and a little bit of that to eating full meals. While I don’t snack as much as I did while in college [tacos at midnight, anyone?], I still do my fair share of snacking, especially when I’m relaxing at home on the weekends. Some of my favorite simple snacks include peanut butter toast, hummus and veggies, crackers and cheese, and fruit. Sometimes though, I’m in the mood for something a little more complex, with a little extra something to it. Something a little more adult, ya know?

Balsamic Roasted Chickpeas | thepajamachef.com Featuring the classic combos of herbs and spices and oil and vinegar, these Balsamic Roast Chickpeas are just the ticket to a satisfying grown up snack.

I cannot take credit for the recipe [we can all thank Diana at The Chic Life for that], but I just had to share it with you all. These chickpeas are really simple to make–the prep time is less than 5 minutes, and they bake in 30 minutes. Perfect to whip up before a movie or your favorite TV show, light enough to not spoil your dinner, and tasty enough to enjoy! My mom even made them for a party. They were a huge hit–just be sure to make a double or triple batch, because once you start digging in, you can’t stop! Trust me! 🙂

Balsamic Roasted Chickpeas

  • Servings: 4
  • Print

from The Chic Life

Ingredients:

  • 1 can chickpeas [garbanzo] beans, drained
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon rosemary
  • 1/4 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon thyme
  • dash garlic powder
  • dash cayenne pepper
  • sprinkle salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place chickpeas in a medium size bowl. In a measuring cup, combine olive oil and herbs/spices and whisk together. Pour over chickpeas, stirring gently to coat. Spread chickpeas on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, flipping after 15 minutes or so.

Question of the Day: What’s the best snack you’ve been enjoying lately?