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SUN-DRIED TOMATO HUMMUS



    Living in Middle East for number of years, I have learned a lot about the rich Arabian heritage and food culture. I learnt how to make a classic hummus from a Lebanese friend of mine who is a great neighbour – we exchange a lot about history and cultures of our homelands. I added a different spin with the sun-dried tomatoes, to make it different from the usual creamy hummus. This version works so well as dips and in wraps! Trust me, hummus is a staple dish that everyone who lives in the Middle East must know how to make – a mezze platter is never complete without a beautiful and rich homemade hummus!


    Recently hummus has gained a lot of popularity for being vegan-friendly and rich source of protein, and the best part is that it's easy to change it up and experiment with delicious new flavours! Check out the recipe for my Classic Hummus here, and my Basil Pesto Hummus here.



    PREP TIME: 10 minutes

    MAKING TIME: 5 minutes

    YIELDS: 500g approx./ one medium serving bowl



    INGREDIENTS

    • 1x400g can chickpeas

    • 2 cloves garlic

    • 2-3 tbsp tahini paste

    • 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

    • 1/4 tsp salt or to taste

    • 1/4 tsp paprika

    • 2 tsp lemon juice

    • 1 tbsp brine water in which chickpeas are preserved/ fresh water

    • 7-8 sun-dried tomato halves

    • 2-3 sprigs of thyme leaves

    For garnish:

    • 3 sun-dried tomatoes, cut into strips

    • 1 tbsp chickpeas for garnish

    • 2-3 sprigs of thyme leaves

    • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil


    METHOD

    1. Drain the chickpeas from the can and reserve the water and a tablespoon of chickpeas.

    2. In a food processor bowl, add chickpeas, garlic, tahini, sun-dried tomatoes, thyme leaves, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, paprika and reserved water. Blend them together until slightly textured and not silky smooth. Add an extra tablespoon of reserved or fresh water if you find it too thick to blend.

    3. Take out in a serving bowl, swirl with the back of spoon to make a well in center. Drizzle the olive oil, and garnish with sun-dried tomato strips, thyme leaves and chickpeas. Serve


    COOK'S NOTES

    • Classically hummus is made by boiling the overnight soaked chickpeas with water and a bit of salt. Let them cool and using the rest of the recipe’s ingredients to make the classical hummus.

    • Reserve the water from the boiled chickpeas to adjust the consistency of the hummus or the brine water from the canned chickpeas. Add a tablespoon extra if you find chickpeas are clogging to loosen up the consistency to blend better.

    • Boiled chickpeas can be puréed and preserved by keeping it in airtight ziplock bags for later use.

    • Defrost or thaw the chickpea purée before blending with other ingredients to make hummus.

    CLASSIC HUMMUS



      Living in Middle East for number of years, I have learned a lot about the rich Arabian heritage and food culture. I learnt this recipe from a Lebanese friend of mine who is a great neighbour – we exchange a lot about history and cultures of our homelands. Trust me, this is a staple recipe that everyone who lives in the Middle East must know – a mezze platter is never complete without a beautiful and rich homemade hummus!


      Recently hummus has gained a lot of popularity for being vegan-friendly and rich source of protein, and the best part is that it's easy to change it up and experiment with delicious new flavours! Check out the recipe for my Sun-dried Tomato Hummus here, and my Basil Pesto Hummus here.



      PREP TIME: 10 minutes

      MAKING TIME: 5 minutes

      YIELDS: 500g approx./ one medium serving bowl



      INGREDIENTS

      • 1x400g can chickpeas

      • 2 cloves garlic

      • 2-3 tbsp tahini paste

      • 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

      • 1/4 tsp salt or to taste

      • 2-3 dash of freshly cracked black pepper

      • 3 tsp lemon juice

      • 1 tbsp brine water in which chickpeas are preserved/ fresh water

      For garnish:

      • 1 tbsp parsley, chopped

      • 1 tbsp zereshk berries (optional)

      • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

      • 1/2 tsp sumac



      METHOD

      1. Drain the chickpeas from the can and reserve the water.

      2. In a food processor bowl, add chickpeas, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and reserved water. Blend them together until slightly textured and not silky smooth. Add an extra tablespoon of reserved or fresh water if you find it too thick to blend.

      3. Take out in a serving bowl, swirl with the back of spoon to make a well in center. Drizzle the olive oil, sprinkle parsley, Zereshk and sumac. Serve


      COOK'S NOTES

      • Classically hummus is made by boiling the overnight soaked chickpeas with water and a bit of salt. Let them cool and using the rest of the recipe’s ingredients to make the classical hummus.

      • Reserve the water from the boiled chickpeas to adjust the consistency of the hummus or the brine water from the canned chickpeas. Add a tablespoon extra if you find chickpeas are clogging to loosen up the consistency to blend better.

      • Boiled chickpeas can be puréed and preserved by keeping it in airtight ziplock bags for later use.

      • Defrost or thaw the chickpea purée before blending with other ingredients to make hummus.

      SIMIT BREAD



        Turkish breakfast was served to the family on the weekend as I was so tempted to try making this Simit bread which was always at the back of my mind since I visited Istanbul few years back. You will see those street vendors standing or rolling up their carts through the streets or bazaars to sell this amazing looking bread which is their livelihood.


        Simit is a twisted circular bread, typically dunked in molasses and encrusted with sesame seeds or, less commonly, poppy, flax or sunflower seeds. This is found across the cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire, and the Middle East. Its also known as Gevrek, Bokeh, or Koulouri. The size of the bread, its crunch, chewiness, and other characteristics vary slightly by region. They are typically served in the breakfast with lebnah, salad, fresh fruit jams, honey, olives etc.


        I made the classical version of this bread, encrusted with toasted sesame seeds. Served the Simit with the Turkish lebnah which was dabbed with chilli infused burnt butter. Alongside that was the shakshuka made by my daughter. Man the whole combo was delicious!


        Saffron, rose petal and camomile infused tea was also served in the Turkish tea glasses. Bought these beautiful hour glass shaped tea cups(very typical to Turkey) back in Sydney from a Turkish grocery cum crockery shop. Had them with me over 2 decades, still pretty intact after number of transits and so many years of traveling to different continents and countries, but as soon as I finished shooting for the spread, one of the saucers broke. It was heart breaking! 😔


        Follow the step by step recipe below and try making these interesting looking delicious breads at home which is pretty simple and easy to make. Bake your own bread at home during these interesting times. Stay home, stay safe!



        YIELDS: 10

        PREP TIME: 20 minutes

        BAKE TIME: 25 minutes

        PASSIVE TIME: 1 hour


        INGREDIENTS


        • 2 cups warm water

        • 1 tbsp sugar

        • 1 tbsp instant yeast

        • 5 cups all purpose flour plus 2 tbsp extra for dusting and kneading

        • 2 tsp salt

        • 1/4 cup olive oil

        • 250g/ 1 cup sesame seeds, lightly toasted

        • 3 tbsp pomegranate molasses

        • 2/3 cup water, extra



        METHOD


        1. In a stand mixer bowl, fitted with the hook attachment, pour 1 cup of warm water, add sugar and yeast, let it rest for 10 minutes until the yeast becomes foamy.

        2. Add olive oil and the second cup of warm water to the foamy yeast water and add 2 cups of flour. On a medium low speed, mix the dough until no dry bits of flour are visible. Let it stand for 20 minutes.

        3. Now gradually add rest of the flour in increments along with salt until a dough ball is formed wrapped around the hook. If required, add bit more flour to the dough if your dough is bit loose and sticky.

        4. Remove it on a lightly floured surface, knead it for 5 minutes to smoothen it. Tucking the seam side down, place the dough in a lightly oiled large bowl. Cover with damp kitchen towel or lightly oiled cling film. Leave it for an hour at a warm place in kitchen and let it rise double in size.

        5. Once the dough is fermented, transfer it to the lightly floured surface, divide the dough in 10 equal parts. Cover them with a kitchen towel to prevent them from drying.

        6. Take a piece of dough, drop it on a non-floured surface. Now roll it back and forth with your hands and make a long thin rope, about 2 feet long. Bend it in half from the center and hold the two loose ends together in one hand and twist the rope with your other hand to make the twisted rope. Now join the two ends together, slightly overlapping each other and make a circle/ring. To secure the loose ends, hold the dough ring from the top with one hand and with the other hand roll it back and forth to make it tight and secured.

        7. Repeat step 6 with rest of the dough pieces. Cover with kitchen towel and while working on the other pieces of dough.

        8. In a large bowl, mix pomegranate molasses and water to prepare the bath for the bread.

        9. Now dunk the bread in molasses water bath and dip them in toasted sesame seeds on both sides. Place it on the baking tray. Repeat the step for the other breads and let it prove for 30 minutes.

        10. Bake the bread in preheated oven at 180° C for 25-30 minutes.



        COOK'S NOTES:


        • Serve these with chilli infused burnt butter lebnah, olives, jams, honey and shakshuka for a scrumptious Turkish breakfast.

        • Make the healthier version of the same bread by replacing the all purpose flour with the wholemeal flour.


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