Turmeric Hummus & Pita Chips

This month we are focusing on the spice turmeric!  Here is a new one from Dish Deanna:

Turmeric is typically used in a lot of curries, can be used as a substitute for saffron and apparently has great health benefits. It is very vibrant, adding color to any bland-looking recipe and it even has anti-inflammatory properties, helps detoxify the liver, and is a natural pain killer. As I was doing research about this interesting spice, I was reading that many people put it into capsules and ingest it daily. This might be something worth looking into further! I do have to say though, when I heard that Turmeric was the theme of the month I panicked a little. I had no idea what kind of recipe to make. I knew that it is used in many curry recipes but I wanted to do something different. As I was browsing some vegetarian recipes, I came across one for hummus. It didn’t have turmeric in it but I improvised a little and came up with something that I think is pretty damn creative.

Ingredients for the hummus:

• 2 (15 oz) cans of chickpeas (or garbanzo beans)
• 3 or 4 garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ cup olive oil

Ingredients for the pita chips:

• 1 pkg of pita pockets
• Garlic powder
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

You will need:

• A food processor or blender!
• An oven or toaster oven

To start, strain the chickpeas and rinse them with water. This will take off any liquids that are still clinging to the chickpeas from the cans.

Measure out all of your ingredients and toss everything into the food processor. Pulse until the mixture is smooth. You may want to open the food processer intermittently and see how your hummus tastes. I found as I was making this that it was very experimental. In order to get the creamy texture I wanted I had to add just a little bit more olive oil. Feel free to be liberal with your measurements – you can’t really mess this up!

After you’ve finished with your hummus, place it into a bowl. I prefer my hummus at room temperature but if you like it cooler, throw it in the fridge! To start on the pita chips, first preheat your oven or toaster oven to 350 degrees. Cut one pita pocket into 4 even triangles and peel apart each side. Lay them flat on tin foil on a baking sheet. You should then brush one side only with olive oil, and sprinkle garlic powder and salt over the pita. Toss them in the oven for approximately 5 minutes (maybe even less). I wouldn’t walk away from the oven because you want to take them out as soon as the edges turn golden brown. I burned the first batch!

When they look about ready, take them out and let them cool. Then get ready to enjoy. You’ve just made homemade hummus and homemade pita chips! CONGRATS!!

*** serve with veggies or save for later to use as a spread for sandwiches!***

 

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Japanese Curry

From Dish Erin:

A few months ago I took a Curries of Asia class at the Brooklyn kitchen, which was fascinating because it completely changed everything I know about curry. In the West curry usually means the yellow powder, which is actually a blend of many spices that includes the curry plant, and it’s often an acquired taste. But in the East, the term “curry” refers to any dish that includes the actual curry plant in it, and is used similarly to how we use the terms “soup” and “stew” in the West. It’s completely subjective to the region, the ingredients available, and the cook that’s preparing it. There are literally billions of types of curries. One of the most interesting ones to me was Japanese curry because it’s still spicy but it has a bit of sweetness from an unexpected and secret ingredient.

You’ll need to make a roux for this dish, which is a fancy word for a mixture of flour and butter that is used as a thickening agent. This roux naturally has an Asian influence with tonkatsu sauce, which is halfway between a Japanese ketchup and oyster sauce. You can find it at most Asian grocery stores, but if you can’t find it, use oyster sauce instead. Garam masala is similar to curry powder, and available at most Asian and Indian grocery stores. If you can’t find it, you can use curry powder instead.

For the roux:

3 tbs butter
1/4 cup flour
2 tbs garam masala or curry powder
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tbs ketchup
1 tbs tonkatsu or oyster
Make the roux first:

Melt butter on low heat, stir in flour and curry powder until a thick paste, add cayenne, black pepper, ketchup and tonkatsu, cook until crumbly (will look like a dry paste), remove from heat. Set aside. (This roux can be used immediately, kept in the fridge for 3-4 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.)

For the curry:
2 tbs oil vegetable or peanut oil
2 large onions sliced thin
1 package extra firm tofu cubed
3 carrots cubed
enough water to cover veggies
2 large Yukon gold potatoes, cubed
1 Fuji apple micro planed
1 pack white beech mushrooms
1 Japanese eggplant, diced
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp garam masala
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup frozen peas

Sauté onions in oil until caramelized. Add carrots and stir to coat, then water and bring to a boil.

Lower heat and add potatoes, apple, mushroom, eggplant, salt, tofu and garam masala. Stir to incorporate.

Whisk 1 cup chicken stock into roux to reconstitute it and pour into the curry pot. Stir until mixed in thoroughly and cover.

Simmer until potatoes are tender, about 30 min. About 5 minutes before removing from heat, add peas, stir and cook for another 5 minutes.

Serve over jasmine rice.

Note: the longer this cooks, the more fragrant it becomes, so you can absolutely cook it really low for 1-2 hours in a slow cooker.

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Plum Chutney

From Dish Amelia:

Late summer into fall is as exciting to me as early spring. Spring’s bleak odorless stage features the easily spotted first-time life sprouting pale crisp colors into the air. The transition to fall gives us robust summer bounty which is almost bittersweet, and there is a pressure to make the most of it. Honeycrisp apples appear, and the first yearning to make cozy dishes, like oatmeal, pumpkin soup, and mushrooms on polenta. You can make anything in the fall and spring, just like you can wear anything you like, flip-flops or boots, jackets for chilliness or fashion. You can make light bright food with huge basil, heirloom tomatoes, and shaved vegetables galore. It’s a toss-up whether I’ll go for hot coffee or iced. On a recent shorts-and-sweatshirt clad trip to the farmers market, I discovered piles of oval Italian plums. Not seeing a ton of other fruits I figured I would just cook with these somehow and I went on my way. Once home I washed and split the plums and tasted them to see what I would do. Six or seven plums later I had to act so as not to make myself sick, and so I would cook with them as I had told myself I would. Man they were SO good. Luckily I made an excellent plum chutney which lasted longer than the fresh fruit, but not by much.

Adapted from Susan Spungen from Bon Appetit/Epicurious

6-7 plums (Italian or otherwise) pitted and chopped (I did not peel them)
1 small red onion, finely diced
3 carrots, peeled into thin strips and finely diced.
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 T chopped garlic
scant 1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1 T mustard seeds
a few liberal shakes and grinds of cumin, cardamom, coriander and black pepper
1 bay leaf
kosher salt
1/4 cup water



Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a saucepan. Cook the onion and the carrot until they begin to soften, and add brown sugar, water, vinegar, spices, garlic, mustard, leaf, and salt. Cook until this becomes very fragrant, then add plums, cover and simmer gently for 8 minutes. Uncover, stir and cool until thickened, about 20-25 min. Taste and adjust seasoning. Cool.



Apply to anything and everything. I ate this several times on a tortilla with scrambled eggs and arugula. Revel in the sun and clouds of the season, before they slip away.

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