Homemade Hummus

Shall I open this post with a line from "Friends"? I think so!

"God bless the chickpea."

Alright, "Friends" fans. Who said that? It is the one person who guested on that show that I don't immediately associate with the show. It was... George Clooney! Love that episode. I was torn between that quote and another hummus quote from the show. I bet fans know which other episode I'm referring to ;)

I love hummus. As a child, I don't think there's a person in the world who could have got me to try it. It's just as well, I probably wouldn't appreciated the chickpea goodness. As an adult though, hummus is something I love to keep around. It's a great snack, low in calories, and may help lower cholesterol and risk of cancer. It's a great veggie dip, good in pitas, and occasionally, makes a satisfying dinner.

During the summer, one of our favorite hot weather meals is the hummus plate. We whip up a batch of hummus, and serve it alongside toasted pita wedges, sliced tomatoes and olives, and crumbled feta.  Holy yum! Talk about a light, refreshing, yet filling meal.

You can always find hummus at the store these days, even at my small-town grocery store. However, I have never found a grocery store hummus that I like. I'm not sure what the problem is, but it just tastes wrong. In fact, for a long time I thought I didn't like hummus because I'd only had store-bought hummus. This all changed the day the hubby made a batch of homemade hummus. Wow. Talk about good stuff! That was years ago, and hummus and I have been going strong ever since. I still haven't found a store-bought brand that I like. Good thing this recipe is super easy...

If you have a food processor or blender, you can make hummus. It takes all of 5 minutes. I'm such a cheater and I use canned chickpeas, but you could, by all means, prepare your own dried chickpeas. I just happen to have a fairly good stockpile of canned chickpeas to use. Chickpeas, by the way, are an awesome item to keep on hand. You can put them in salads, pastas, soups, dips, roasted on their own as a snack... They are incredibly versatile.

I'm excited to have a chance to bake this afternoon. The hubby and I have been pretty busy as of late, and I've been having baking withdrawals. Time to take care of that today! I'm baking Blueberry Lemon Cupcakes, and I'm oh-so excited. I think they are going to be amazing and bee-u-tiful!

Oh, and one last note. Summer has basically arrived here, as it supposed to be 87º today! I'm stoked!

Happy Wednesday!

Ingredients:

1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1/3 cup lemon juice

1 tbsp garlic, minced

1 tsp kosher salt

1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

1/2 cup tahini

2 tbsp water

garnish: olive oil and paprika

Directions:

1. Place chickpeas through salt in food processor. Pulse until smooth.

2. Add Greek yogurt through water to food processor. Pulse until smooth. Taste test. Season with salt to taste.

3. Move hummus into a serving dish. Drizzle with a good quality olive oil and sprinkle with paprika. Chill in fridge until ready to serve. Serve with pita wedges, tomatoes, kalamata olives, and feta. Keeps in fridge up to 2 weeks.

Printable Recipe

Recipe adapted from Dede's Mediterranean Kitchen.

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday

Raspberry Mint Ice Pops

All right, so it's after Labor Day. Which technically signals the end of summer. Malarky, I tell you. It's supposed to be in the 80's the entire week here, with nary a drop of rain. If that doesn't sound like summer, I don't know what does. And that in itself justifies one more teeny, tiny popsicle recipe :)

These are by far my favorite popsicles that I've made. Yes, better than the winesicles and the gummy bear popsicles with their booziness! Now, I may be slightly partial to the raspberries, but it always says something when I prefer fruit to booze. I highly recommend making these with your end-of-harvest raspberry bounties, you won't regret it.

Now, where was I yesterday and Monday? On Monday (the holiday), the hubby and I discovered that someone had dumped 2 very young puppies near our property. Never one to refuse caring for a fur baby and seeing how the animal shelter was closed for Labor Day, I didn't even think twice about boarding these guys for the night. It was a hot day, and we were headed to my sister-in-law's for a family cook-out. We decided to put them in the basement. It was hot that day, the basement is cool, and it has concrete floor (easy cleaning). I set them up with newspapers, food, water, toys, and blankets. I think they did ok while the hubby and I were out of the house, but they did not enjoy being in the basement that night. They cried all night long. I felt like slime. As soon as day broke on Tuesday, I moved them to the front porch. And suddenly, the world was right. The pups settled right down, passed out, and didn't make one peep from the porch. Sheesh. Should have put them there all along. Anyhoo, the hubby and I got them to the animal shelter yesterday. The employees told us that since the puppies were so young, they shouldn't have a problem finding homes. I hope so. They were sweet puppies, but you could tell they were going to be HUGE. I don't know what they were, they appeared to have some shepherd or maybe some Rottweiler in them.

So, that adventure is over. My dogs are exhausted today from "guarding" the house :) I'm having my morning coffee, and hoping these cuties find a good home. Maybe I'll have a popsicle later? Hard to say :)

Ingredients:

1/3 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup mint leaves
4 cups raspberries
1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

1. In a small sauce pan, combine water, sugar, and mint. Cook 4 minutes, or until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, allow to sit for 15 minutes. Strain liquids through a sieve, discard mint leaves.
2. Combine sugar-water, raspberries, and lemon juice in a food processor. Pulse until smooth.
3. Divide mixture among popsicle molds (makes 8 popsicles). Insert craft sticks, freeze pops overnight or until set.

Recipe courtesy of Cooking Light

Drunken Gummy Bear Popsicles

Do I ever have a Thursday treat for you!

Don't worry, I'm almost done with the popsicle recipes. I've only got this one, and one more to share. I'm just trying to get them all in before the end of summer. Summer is seriously winding down here, the temperature and humidity are already greatly reduced. I just love the summers here, I'm sorry to see fall start to descend. And why not watch summer head for the hills with a spiked popsicle?

For those of you who know me, you know I have an extreme weakness for gummy candy. My biggest weakness is sour gummy candy, but gummy bears take a quick second. I always have gummy bears on hand. It's a habit I haven't been able to grow out of :) Of course I saw these popsicles on Pinterest, but I actually saw the recipe that featured a photo of soap. Tsk, tsk people. I'm so glad I use my own photos. So while my popsicles don't look like that picture, it's ok. Mine are actually edible!

As I mentioned earlier in the week, vodka does not freeze. I decided to soak my gummy bears in vodka overnight before I put them in the popsicles. Only problem? I accidentally left them for 2 days, and those little bears drank all the vodka! I guess I used college age bears, hehe. I soaked them in about a cup of vodka, these popsicles pack a serious punch in the face. Perfect for a Labor Day get together. That is, if you have to spend Labor Day with family...

Ingredients (makes 4 popsicles):

1/2- 3/4 cup gummy bears
1 cup vodka
7-Up

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine gummy bears and vodka. Store combination in fridge 24-48 hours (soak longer for a "stronger" popsicle).
2. Divide gummy bears amongst a popsicle mold. Fill popsicle mold full with 7-Up. Place sticks in popsicles, freeze for 24-48 hours (due to the alcohol content, these popsicles take significantly longer to freeze).
3. Run mold quickly under warm water, slide popsicles out of mold. Store in a ziploc bag in freezer.

Red Winesicles

Calling all red wine lovers!

I saw winesicles on Pinterest the other day, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about  them. What an interesting idea. I think these would be just perfect for an adults-only summer evening.

Ok, here's a couple of things I learned while making these popsicles. Now, as any college grad worth his/her weight in gold would know, alcohol does not freeze. So for all of you college freshman out there thinking the only thing better than ice in your vodka is ice made out of vodka, throw in the towel now. It ain't gonna happen. Wine and beer on the other hand? We all sure as heck know that if you leave a Pabst in the freezer for too long, it will explode. But that's a can, not a popsicle. These popsicles don't get as frozen as other popsicles, I believe due to the alcohol involved.  So when you are removing them from the mold, you don't have to run under warm water for a terribly long time. Another thing- because they aren't as solid as other pops, be careful when you are wiggling the pop out of the mold. It is possible to pull the stick out of the pop. And let me tell you, once you pull the stick out, you can't get it back in. Refreezing will not make the stick stay. You'll also need to lick fast, as they melt pretty fast.

I decided to just make a wine pop, but you can go ahead and toss diced fruit into these pops to make it a sangria pop. You'll note from this recipe that there isn't a ton of wine in these, so I'd say you aren't shknockered from these. But they do taste just like wine, which makes them good, ol-fashioned fun. If you are a wine-o and you want to make a fun, novelty item for your wine-guzzling buddies, I'd say go ahead and try these.

And, because you are going to be licking these down, use a good quality wine that you actually like to drink! I used one of my favorite red wines.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 tbsp sugar
3/4 cup red wine

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, heat orange juice, lemon juice, and sugar over medium-high heat. Cook 2-3 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. Set aside, let cool to room temperature.
2. In a pourable container, thoroughly stir together the juice mixture and wine. Pour mixture into popsicle molds, place handles on popsicles. Freeze at least 8 hours before serving, or overnight.

To Hunt... A Grasshopper

On the prowl...

Is that a grasshopper over there?!

Why yes, yes it is!

You think you can hide from me??

Got em'!

Crunchy...

And delicious!

All right, who's next???

The Weekly Score

Tuesday:

Haloti, 8
Grasshoppers, 0

Wednesday:

Haloti, 2
Grasshoppers, 0

New Playlist: 8/10/13

I'm loving summer music right now! I think this summer has been one of the top summers for music. There hasn't been summer music this good since Katy Perry's "California Girls". That was the same summer that Eminem's "Love The Way You Lie", Usher's "OMG", Ke$ha's "Tik Tok", Travie McCoy's "Billionare", and B.o.B's "Magic" hit the airwaves.

I know what you are thinking. How do I know that? I'm obsessed with music. Every song on my iPod reminds me of something. A memory is attached to every one. Seriously. Play a song on my iPod, and I can tell you what it reminds me off. All the songs I listed above, I remember for one reason. That was the summer that the company I used to work for sent me on my first business trip. It was to Jacksonville, Florida in June of 2010. It was my first time flying by myself, renting a car by myself, staying in a hotel by myself, etc. After meetings and classes all day, I would return to my hotel room, open a bottle of wine, settle down with a tabloid, and put on my iPod. Hence, listening to all of my summer music that year.

I can already tell this summer's music is going to be around for quite a while for me. I am still freakin' obsessed with "Blurred Lines", in all of its controversary-causing glory. Well, yesterday I stumbled on Flo Rida's "Can't Believe It". I cannot get enough, that song is on repeat around here! It's been great fun bumping that song in the new car. Speaking of that song, it's time to go get my run on :)

Hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend!

Rotini with Salsa di Limone

So... the hubby's got a little thing for Giada. As in, Giada De Laurentis. Yes, from the Food Network. As I'm sure most men do, the hubby listens intently whenever Giada is on TV. He's also a fan of her recipes. Back when I hadn't seen every episode of Giada's shows (back before I hadn't seen every episode of Anne Burrell, Ina Garten, and Paula Deen's shows, for that matter), I picked up this recipe. Needless to say, that was a few years ago. At least more than 4, to be exact. How do I recall this? I made this dish for the hubby and I's wedding dinner. I think I even have a picture of me making it...

If you are asking yourself why in the world I would be making food for my own wedding, I'll tell you now that my wedding was completely unconventional. I'll leave it at that :)

This is a perfect dish for a light summer dinner, perhaps a "Meatless Monday" entree or side dish. Use a good quality mozzarella, the mozzarella really pulls the dish together. I've also added basil to my version, but seriously, who isn't tempted to throw basil in a dish with mozzarella, olive oil, and tomatoes? A disturbed person, that's who.

I hope everyone is having a fantastic Monday!

Ingredients:

8 oz rotini

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp olive oil

3-4 plum tomatoes, deseeded and diced

1 yellow tomato, deseeded and diced

8 oz fresh mozzarella, diced

1 large lemon, zest and juice

1/4 cup basil, chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:

1. Bring a pot of salted water to boil on the stove. Add pasta, simmer for 9-10 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water. Drain pasta and return to pot. Toss with 1 tsp olive oil. Set aside and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, combine pasta, tomatoes, mozzarella, lemon zest, and basil. Add cooled pasta a small bowl, whisk olive oil with 2 tbsp lemon juice. Drizzle over pasta, add salt and pepper to the bowl. Toss to combine. Slowly add pasta water if pasta is too dry. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

3. Serve!

*Recipe adapted from Food Network*

Blackberry Popsicles

Popsicles are not just for kids my friends! I love popsicles. I have since I was a kid. My favorites were the long, skinny Welch's Fruit Juice popsicles in- what other flavor is there?- raspberry. Yummy.

Popsicles always make me think of summers during my childhood-

--Playing outside all day long. At least until the sun went down at what seemed to be 9 pm--

--Riding my bike to the park with friends, wind in my hair, helmet occasionally sliding down over my forehead, riding so fast I imagine I'm going to break the sound barrier--

--Trips to the community pool to wait in line for the water-slide, slip-n-slide mat wrapped around my waist, brave smile on my face--

--Begging my parents to let me sleep a tent in the backyard, armed with nothing more than friends, a flashlight, and a very friendly dog--

--The days when my only responsibility was to vacuum the entryway stairs or clean a bathroom. Funny how that one chore always seemed to be a huge, time-consuming obstacle. The one thing standing in the way of my over-indulgence in the summer sun--

--Neighborhood wide games of "Capture the Flag"--

--Counting down the days of August, dreading being forced back into that claustrophobic classroom--  (Can you tell I didn't like school?)

Well, you know what? Popsicles aren't just for kids. I still love them. They are one of the healthiest desserts, consisting of mostly fruit and a little sugar water. They are super-easy to make, delicious, and a great use of summer berries. And you know what? They taste so much better than store-bought!

Ingredients (makes 5-7 popsicles):

1/3 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
3 cups blackberries
1 tsp lemon juice

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, heat water and sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, and let cool.
2. In a food processor, pulse blackberries and lemon juice until completely smooth. Pour blackberry mixture through a fine sieve to strain out seeds.
3. Put de-seeded blackberry mixture back in food processor. Add sugar water, and pulse again until smooth. Pour mixture into a pourable container.
4. Pour blackberry mixture into popsicle molds. Place a wooden popsicle stick in the middle of each and place each mold in the freezer for 4 hours. Popsicles are ready to serve after 4 hours.

*Recipe courtesy of Picture Perfect Meals*

-You can also find this recipe over on The Country Cook's weekly linky party!

Pizza Sauce

Those tomatoes just keep on comin'! A couple of days ago, the hubby's uncle brought us 3-4 lbs of tomatoes. I'd just finished up with my previous 4 lbs, what the heck was I going to do with even more? Pizza sauce, I thought, pizza sauce. The hubby hates my go-to fast and easy sauce, Ragu. It was a much better plan to make my own sauce, freeze it in little portions, and just use those when I make pizza. So that's what I did.

I ended up getting 7 (1-cup) portions of pizza sauce, which I froze in food-saver bags and then tossed in the freezer. That's a lot of pizza. It's ok, we love pizza in this house. I usually make a couple a month. Plus, we'll be getting more tomatoes. I may be back in the kitchen, pureeing up more sauce before it's all said and done.

This sauce is super-easy to make, and tastes so fresh! I was very pleased with the sauce. I simmered mine on the stove for 2 hours to let all the flavors meld together, and the house smelled delish all day. I know it's so easy to buy pizza sauce at the store, or even order a take-out pizza, but at least when it's homemade you know what's in it. And then you know exactly what you are feeding your family :)

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic
4 lbs tomatoes, deseeded and diced
1 (15 oz) can tomato paste
1/3 cup chicken broth
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp black pepper

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large, wide-side pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add garlic. Saute for 30 seconds, or until toasted. Add tomatoes to pan, saute 5 minutes or so. Add tomato paste and chicken broth to the pan.
2. Add kosher salt through pepper to the pan. Bring to a simmer, cover pan, and lower heat. Simmer for 2 hours, stirring every half 30 minutes.
3. Taking an immersion blender to the sauce, puree until sauce is very smooth. Remove pan from heat, and allow sauce to cool before storing. Makes about 7 (1-cup) portions. Can be store fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days, covered tightly.

Orecchiette with Roasted Peppers and Spinach

You may not be familiar with orecchiette. I wasn't familiar with it until a few years ago. It's also referred to as "Little Ears" pasta. Once I discovered this pasta, it quickly became one of my favorites. Orecchiette has a thicker, almost chewy texture compared to traditional pasta. The "scoop" shape allows the sauce to hide in the crevices of the pasta. Yummers.

A couple of things I've learned about orecchiette. It's very important to treat orecchiette delicately. I find the pasta loses its mystique if it breaks. Therefore, treat the dried pasta gently. Do not crush the pasta, don't toss it around, and stir gently when preparing. I brought some orecchiette from Oregon across country when we moved, and needless to say, the pasta was in pieces by the time we got to Kentucky. It just didn't taste the same. Big disappointment, as this pasta can be hard to find in the rural grocery stores here.

This dish is perfect for summer, capitalizing on fresh grape tomatoes, peppers, and spinach. Instead of a heavy marinara or cream-based sauce, this is made with a light vinaigrette. It makes for a light, one-dish, meatless summer meal. Something the hubby and I both appreciate on these hot summer days :)

Ingredients:

1 yellow pepper
1 red pepper
8 oz orecchiette pasta
1 tsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced (divided)
8 oz grape tomatoes, halved
3 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp black pepper
3 cups spinach
Shredded parmesan cheese (garnish)

Directions:

1. Preheat broiler on oven. Cut peppers in half, remove seeds and membranes. Flatten halves, and place under broiler. Broil 10-15 minutes or until peppers are blackened. Remove from oven and place in a ziploc bag for 15 minutes. Remove from bags, peel off skins, cut peppers into slices, and set aside.
2. Cook pasta according to directions. Retain 1/3 cup of cooking water. Set aside.
3. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 clove garlic to skillet, toast for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes and bell peppers to skillet. Cook 4 minutes, or until tomatoes are tender.
4. In a small bowl, combine remaining garlic, vinegar, and next 5 ingredients. Whisk throughly.
5. Add pasta and vinegar mixture to skillet. Toss to combine. Add spinach to the pan, stir just to combine. If pasta feels too thick, drizzle some reserved pasta cooking water over the pasta, stir to combine. Remove skillet from heat, and garnish with parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light

Summer in Kentucky: Around The House

I just love the summer's here in Kentucky. Yes, there is almost 100% humidity from July through September. Yes, it's usually in the upper 90's most days. And yes, we do have huge thunderstorms a couple times a week. 

My hair hates the humidity, along with my makeup and freshly showered skin. But the temperature? Love it! The sun is amazing and wondrous here, especially to a girl who spent 27 summers in Oregon. I love you Oregon, but seriously, your weather is the pits. Summers with weeks of gray, rainy weather are common in the Willamette Valley (where I grew up), but even sparing a couple weeks of your summer when you don't see the sun for 9 months is unbearable! My body likes all the vitamin D I get here, because I definitely notice less headaches on sunny days.

Our property is a veritable quandary of flora and fauna. We've got a deer that comes to feed in our backyard most evenings around 7:30. There are bunnies everywhere. I see frogs and toads all the time. Unfortunately, I see lots of raccoons, possums, and coyotes as well. Our grass is making progress (those thunderstorms are good for something!).

Oh, and the pups are enjoying the summer as well :)

 Butterfly in our driveway// Scary thunderstorm blowing in// Lawn in front of the house// Lawn on the side of the house// Big branch that fell too close for comfort// Our makeshift fire pit (from said branch)// Weeds starting to grow on the fire pit// Daisy// Another weed// Pecan Tree! (I think)// Looking down the lane at our house// Field across from our house// Haloti at his watch post//Gizmo wants the watch post// Gizmo gets the watch post// The dogs are shedding like wild men!

Happy Hump Day everyone!