Ever since we visited the middle east last year, we’ve been Hummus addicts. Instead of trying to find the best hummus around town (mostly unsuccessful) we decided to make our own. It turned out to be very good and extremely satisfying.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of dry chickpeas soaked in water overnight  (alternatively, you can get a can of chickpeas, but the dry chickpeas are better).
• 1 cloves of garlic (optional)
• 1/3rd cub tahini (available at most local middle eastern and/or major grocery stores)
• 1/4th tea spoon salt
• 1/4th tea spoon paprika
• pinch of  black pepper powder
• 1/4th tea spoon lemon juice (optional)
• Za’ataar (optional)
• 1 tea spoon of olive oil

Method:

1. Boil the chickpeas until they are soft.
2. Save a few boiled beans on the side.
3. Crush the garlic cloves in a blender.
4. Add a few chickpeas and crush them.
5. Add the tahini and the rest of the chickpeas, black pepper powder, paprika, salt,  olive oil and lemon juice.
6. Blend until desired consistency is received. If required, add a little bit of water and blend.
7. Transfer the contents from the blender to a serving bowl and garnish with the beans that were set aside and some olive oil and paprika and/or za’ataar.

Serve with warm pita bread!

I have been meaning to put up this recipe ever since I found out that my family and friends love it when they come over and I make it. Before coming to the US, I had never heard of avocado, but after coming here I’ve probably consumed a few gallons of it!

Avocado has a smooth, creamy, greenish-yellow flesh with a high concentration of dietary fiber, vitamins and potassium. It also has fat – mostly monounsaturated fat.

While shopping for avocado, make sure it is ripe, especially if you plan to use it the same day. The unripe one’s are very hard, whereas the ripe ones can be gently pressed.

When cutting the avocado make sure you cut it in the middle, but do not attempt to cut the seed. When both parts are apart, just scoop it up with a spoon. The flesh is typically greenish yellow when ripe and oxidizes, turning brown very quickly after exposure to air. To prevent this,lemon juice can be added to avocados after they are peeled.

Let’s make the dip now.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Serves: 4 people

Ingredients:

• 1 Avocado

• 1 slice of onion

• 1 slice tomato

• 1 very small garlic bud (optional)

• 1/4th tea spoon lemon (adjust as per taste)

• Jalapeño (as per spice tolerance)

• Salt and Pepper as per taste

Directions

1. In a blender add the onion, garlic, tomato and jalapeño, and blend all of it.
2. Take the avocado in a bowl, add the above mix, salt, lemon and pepper and mix it with the help of a fork.
3. Enjoy it with tortilla chips.

Note:

1. If you do add garlic, add very little, since it has a very strong flavor.
2. Mixing with the fork is important as it gives the “chunky look”.

Dalia is also known as roasted chickpeas or “bhuna chana”. It is a roasted lentil used to make condiments like chutney or can it be added to snacks like mamra (a puffed rice preparation) . If it is ground to a flour, it can be used to make tomato omelets or can be added to yogurt to make kadhi. In Rajasthan there are lot of savory dishes made from the chickpea flour.

Since we made Rava Dhokla for our Saturday morning breakfast and Rahul likes this chutney a lot, I decided to make this chutney.

It has a flavors of ginger, chilly and tamarind (optional). I do not add many other ingredients like cilantro, coconut, yogurt etc. since they overpower the simpler tastes.

Preparation time: 5 mins

Serves: 2 people

Ingredients

• ¼th cup dalia (roasted chickpea)
• ¼th teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 inch ginger
• 1 green chilly (or as per spice tolerance)
• ¼th cup water (or as per consistency preference. More water = more liquidy chutney)
• ¼th tea spoon tamarind paste (optional)
• Salt as per taste

Directions:

1. In a grinder, grind the dalia, cumin, green chilly, ginger and salt.
2. Now add water and tamarind paste (optional) and until you get a smooth paste.

Note:

1. Add the tamarind paste if you like a more sour flavor.
2. Add water to adjust the consistency as you like.

Cilantro and mint chutney is like a dip for Indian appetizers. I like it a lot for it’s spicy, minty and lemony flavor that goes well with pakoras, samosas, bhel-puri, sev-puri, aloo tikki etc. It is also very easy and quick to make.

Serves: 4-5 people

Preparation time: 10 mins

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Cilantro (coriander)
• 1 Cup Mint
• 1-2 green chillies (as per spicy tolerance)
• 1/2 inch ginger
• 3-4 tea spoon lemon juice
• 1/2 tea spoon cumin seeds
• A pinch of asafoetida (optional)
• Salt as per taste ( usually 1 tea spoon)

Directions

1) Mix all the above ingredients in the blender and make a smooth paste. If required, add about 1-2 table spoons of water to get a smooth texture.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1-2 green chillies (depending on taste)
1 medium garlic clove
1/4 cup boiled potato, cut into small pieces (Freshly boiled, but not warm or hot)
1/4 teaspoon salt (or as per taste)
Directions

1) Mix the cilantro, chillies, garlic and salt with 1-2 table spoons of water and grind it in a grinder/mixer until you get a fine paste.

2) Add the potato to this paste and grind it again until you get a fine creamy texture. Ensure that this paste is not too watery, otherwise the sandwich will be soggy. However, if it seems too thick add another tablespoon of water.

Enjoy the chutney with an Indian Sandwich or just apply on a slice of bread to eat a chutney-sandwich!