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Andie Yancey

Updated: May 4, 2024



As a kid, I don’t think I ever saw garbanzo beans outside of a salad bar at a restaurant. All the adults would say, ‘Oh, I love these little chickpeas,’ but for the life of me, I could never understand why because they simply tasted like little balls of flavorless sand. Looking back, I don’t remember anyone buying them for home use either, as whole beans or as hummus. I’m sure there was hummus and garbanzo beans sold in stores at the time, but it wasn’t something people really did outside of the cities in the 70s/80s. Sadly, it would be more years than I care to admit before I would truly explore the many wonderful uses of garbanzo beans and the MANY health benefits that come with them.

Consumers of chickpeas and/or hummus have been shown to have higher nutrient intakes of dietary fiber, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin C, folate, magnesium, potassium, and iron as compared to non-consumers. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27916819/

While garbanzo beans (chickpeas) are used in a number of countries for everything from flour to vegan mayo and dairy-free baked goods, to flour and curries, today we’re going to focus on one of the easiest and most well-known in America: hummus. Hummus is a wonderful tool that every chef, caterer, and/or home cook should know because it’s inexpensive to make, can easily be made in large batches, takes mere moments to make, and it can also be dressed up in endless ways.

Hummus

Serves: 8

Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Cooking Time: 25 Minutes


Ingredients

  1. 15 oz canned chickpeas with liquid reserved separately *

  2. 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

  3. 1/2 cup tahini (roasted sesame paste)

  4. 1/4 cup lemon juice

  5. 3-4 cloves of garlic, finely minced, about 1 tablespoon

  6. 1 tablespoon lemon zest, for garnish

  7. 1/4 cup pine nuts, for garnish

  8. 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda, divided in half.

Instructions

  1. Dump the chickpeas into a medium-sized stock pot that is large enough to hold the beans, the baking soda, the chickpea canning liquid, and enough water to cover them by about 1 inch. Canned chickpeas are already cooked, but for extra smooth hummus, you'll want to cook them until they are extremely soft and about to burst. To test doneness, randomly pick up 3 chickpeas and smash them with your fingers. If they easily mash up, resembling mashed potatoes, they're done. This step will take about 15-20 minutes on medium-high heat. Once complete, separate the chickpeas from the liquid and allow them to cool to room temperature. Remember to reserve one cup of the cooking liquid. Once cooled you would normally remove the skin of the hummus to make it extra smooth, but I find that if you use canned chickpeas most of the chickpeas skins are already removed. 

  2. Dump the cooled, drained chickpeas into a blender along with 1/2 cup of the canning liquid, olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Blend until smooth or until you achieve your desired texture.

  3. Next, add the tahini paste and blend again until it becomes fully smooth.

  4. Transfer your hummus to a serving dish, smoothing the top to create a somewhat flat surface. **

  5. Drizzle olive oil over the hummus and sprinkle pine nuts on top.

  6. Add a pinch of za'atar for an extra bit of authentic flair. (Also, a few of the softly cooked, un-smashed chickpeas also is a traditional garnish.)

Notes

You can use canned white beans in place of chickpeas if someone has a chickpea allergy. Also, you can use unsweetened organic peanut butter if your store does not carry tahini pate.


* If you decide to use dry chickpeas add 1 tablespoon of baking soda to the bean soaking water. Discard this water, rinse the chickpeas before boiling them.  Then change the cooking time from 20 minutes to about 40 minutes, or until the chickpeas smash easily with 2 fingers. (Slightly overcooked is ideal.)


** If you do not plan to eat your humus right away make sure to cover it with a bit of plastic wrap to prevent it from developing a film on the top.


In the images below, I served my hummus topped with olive oil and a pinch of za'atar. The sides are olives I stuffed with feta cheese crumbles, a smoked jalapeño and garlic tapenade, marinaded artichoke hearts and a little blue cheese with feta crumbles to round things off. The bread is a sour dough, but you could use whatever bread you'd prefer. The roman leaves are for those wishing to to be gluten free, or prefer a low-carb option. 

Did You Make This Recipe?

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Updated: May 10, 2024



With the rise of social media over the last decade or so, I’ve seen a 500% increase in kitchen “tools” hitting the market. From a $150.00 “multi-function” pan that only lets you make one item at a time to countertop ovens that cost more than the security deposit I’ve paid for most of my condos, while limiting to a single cooking method, to the rise of the silicon coatings on everything… While these tools are often beautifully designed and the technology in some is impressive, the truth is 90% of them you simply do not need to cook the majority of dishes you will prepare throughout your life.


Even I have fallen prey to this more than I care to admit… At this very moment, I have a whole set of knives that I RARELY use, for the simple reason that they’re too expensive and fussy. They’re beautiful knives, carbon steel, wood handles with polished steel inlay. However, they MUST be cleaned very quickly after every use, and often times when I’m in the kitchen, I’m doing multiple things like discussing database migrations, replying to support tickets, testing a recipe. (I know, I know, slow down and smell things, but as a single career gal, I’m always on the move!) I admit that sometimes it takes me a moment to finish the cleanup. 😉


Many find it shocking to learn that most chef’s kitchens aren’t packed with fancy tools or gadgets. In truth, the most heavily-used tool in my kitchen over the last 10 years was a BPA-free rectangle ice container I purchased at the flea market in Tallahassee, FL while shopping with my mom. It’s a wonderful tool to use for defrosting in the fridge, filling bags for the freezer, or small-batch sous vide cooking. It resists stains, repels oils, is dishwasher and microwave safe, AND the narrow profile allows me to use vertical space that we often can’t… The best $7.00 I’ve ever spent!


Another shock to a great many people is my 2nd most used tool, which is a mini silicone whisk I’ve purchased from Dollar General of all places, and they cost a whopping $1.25 cents each and come in multiple colors. What I love about them is that they are actually metal whisks coated in food-grade silicone. So it doesn’t matter if I’m mixing up thick liquids, like honey for example — the whisk has enough strength to blend it while being easy to bend back into shape if it’s bent. It works wonderfully well in all pan types from non-stick to cast iron… And best of all, these are inexpensive enough that you’ll actually use them, and not only on special occasions. The truth is, I find myself reaching for these whisks more than my “pro chef-designed” whisks. (Pause to gasp while clutching pearls here.)


I don’t by any means wish to imply that all kitchen tools are useless gadgets destined for the back of your closet, only to see the light of day when you bring out the holiday decorations. In fact, if the tool inspires you to get into the kitchen and explore the many, many, many flavors, smells, and textures the world of food has to offer, then I ENCOURAGE YOU TO BUY IT. I would rather have you feeling confident in the kitchen than worrying about being “extra”. However, I do encourage you to do your research on the subject. Find a low-cost version that may not have all the bells and whistles. Allow yourself to explore without breaking the bank. I am slightly ashamed to admit I’ve wasted a small fortune on expensive gadgets only to realize that I absolutely hate them and everything about them.


You can also often find great tools at your local thrift store. This was one of the main places my mom would find new things for the kitchen while buying new school clothes for all us kids. When buying items from thrift stores, I do keep a few personal rules in the back of my mind. I don’t buy tools that are porous. For example, I would NEVER buy wooden tools because I would never feel 100% safe that I “cleaned it”. I also NEVER buy any items made of clay that appear homemade because the clay could hold countless um, unknown wonders. (You also could never be sure that any glazes used are food safe!)


If you are a blogger, food stylist, or even a new startup restaurant, the thrift store is a wonderful place to find unique one-off plates and silverware for marketing and social media content. And I’ve even found some really amazing cookbooks to expand my skills in other cuisines.


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Andie Yancey

Updated: May 10, 2024


Your first impression of using fermented foods and condiments might be a little off-putting, but think of the many ways we use ingredients like wine, yogurt, soy sauce or vinegar to add complex flavors, and with healthy benefits. One of those complex flavors is umami, the smooth, meaty, mouth-filling sensation that makes good food taste better by adding glutamates and proteins. In Korea, China, and Southeast Asia, the preferred seasoning to add salty, rich umami to meats, soups and sauces is fish sauce. It substitutes for soy sauce, especially in Thai, Vietnamese and Korean cuisine, but with a lighter, briny flavor.


The ”virgin olive oil” of fish sauces is Red Boat Fish Sauce 40°N, produced in Vietnam from the most basic ingredients imaginable. Nothing but wild-caught black anchovies and sea salt are aged and extracted to produce this grade-A enhancement for so many dishes. It’s first-press, with all its natural flavor and complexity undiluted or thinned out by salt water. The color is golden, and the flavor is intense and smooth.


Don’t get me wrong, this sauce tastes strongly of salt and fish. But the rich glutamates produced in the aging process makes Red Boat a little bit of magic that will give your Asian dishes and even more Western soups, dips and salad dressings an indescribable balance of flavors. Use a dash or two at first– you won’t need to overpower your recipe to give it a kick up to the next level.


The Good:

  1. Rich smooth flavor

  2. Versatile

  3. All natural, no additions or preservatives

  4. Readily available

  5. Long shelf life (More than a year in refrigerator, 3 years in unopened bottle)


The Bad:

  1. Relatively high price

  2. Salt bomb

  3. Fishy odor (at first impression)

  4. The bottle opening is a bit large, so carefully pour a little into a spoon to avoid using too much in your recipe



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