Sasha's Kitchen: Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

I love hummus, one of my favorite Israeli foods.  Eating hummus always takes me back to the summer I spent in Israel. It's not really necessary to make your own as you can get delicious hummus at pretty much any grocery store. But I figured I'd give it a try since it's not very hard. I also figured it would be a great way to use my new Strawberry Casserole Dish from Le Creuset that I got in a promotion from CSN Stores. I love Le Creuset for the colors and quality of the cookware and this strawberry dish is perfect for serving delicious dips and sauces.

For my first time preparing hummus, I decided to make a roasted red pepper flavored hummus, which was quite delicious. It's very simple to make as long as you remember to soak the chickpeas overnight. The rest is done using your blender. This probably isn't the most authentic Israeli version but it has the consistency and flavors right. It would likely taste delicious with homemade falafel, as well.

Sasha's Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

8 oz chickpeas (soaked in water for at least 12 hours)

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp chile powder

1/3 to 1/2 cup olive oil

1/3 cup tahini

1 tsp diced garlic

3 roasted red peppers

1 T chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender, except for the olive oil. Blend until combined. Blend, adding the olive oil (between 1/3 and 1/2 of a cup total) until the hummus is smooth and has the right consistency. Serve as a dip with vegetables or with falafel and pita.

Sasha's Kitchen: Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Sasha's Kitchen: The Use Of A Molcajete In Preparing Guacamole

This post perhaps comes a bit late.  I am not the biggest football fan, and this year my husband (who is) and I watched the Superbowl from home, with our pug Dakota on the couch by our side.  I did, however, prepare my classic guacamole for us for the Superbowl, using a molcajete.  A molcajete is basically a mortar and pestle made out of volcanic rock, and is an essential kitchen tool for making high quality guacamole.  The molcajete was first used by the ancient Aztec and Mayan cultures (and might even go back further than that in different forms), and is most commonly used today (primarily in Mexican and South American cooking) to grind spices, and prepare salsas and guacamole.  It works because the basalt (the volcanic rock) provides an excellent porous grinding surface,  Basically, the guacamole acquires the perfect texture by grinding the avocado into the basalt.  You can get one at either Crate & Barrel (where I got mine as a wedding registry gift a few years back) or William Sonoma.

The guacamole was the perfect Superbowl dish as we watched the Saints bring the Lombardi Trophy to the City of New Orleans.  Here's how I make my signature guacamole:

2 medium sized avocados
1 tomato, diced with the seeds removed
1/4 of a small to medium sized onion, diced
2 T lime juice
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (this is not an especially spicy guacamole, if you prefer more heat, add more red pepper flakes or use cayenne pepper)

First, mash and grind the avocados using the texture of the molcajete.  Let the air bubbles in the volcanic rock do the work.

Dice the tomato and onion and mix both of those ingredients in the mix.  The season with salt and pepper, and add the red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper to add the desired heat.  Finally, my secret ingredient here, cumin, is actually an Indian spice - I always add about half a teaspoon.  This may sound strange with guacamole, but let me assure you that it tastes amazing and is well worth trying out.  I prefer my guacamole without cilantro (although I love cilantro in salsa).

Enjoy, for the next big game.  For Eric's chicken fajitas with guacamole, click here.  If you are reveling in the Saints victory and are ready for Mardi Gras to start early this year, check out my recipe for New Orleans beignets (creole doughnuts), or Matt's recipe for Cajun Jambalaya.

Sasha's Kitchen: The Use Of A Molcajete In Preparing Guacamole

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Guacamole & Chicken Fajitas (Super Bowl Special)

This post is really more about the Guacamole than the Fajitas as we were just trying to use up some leftover Grilled Chicken plus everyone seems to really like my Guacamole. It's a recipe that started as my Mom's but I have evolved it over the years a bit and I honestly think she likes mine more than her own now... I figured this is a good time to post my Guacamole recipe so that people can hopefully enjoy it during the Super Bowl!

These are the ingredients I use for my Guacamole:
2 ripe Avocados
1/2 medium to small tomato, seeds removed and diced
1/4 medium Vidalia onion, minced

1 clove garlic, minced
1 handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Some sort of hot sauce or red pepper flakes
Fresh lime juice

I find that if you don't remove the seeds of the tomatoes it get can a bit too watery. I also insist on mashing mine up with just a fork instead of a food processor since the flavors remain more in tact and the consistency feels more natural to me. As long as the avocados aren't under-ripe, this should never be a problem.

The lime juice is probably the second most important step since it also helps to keep the color of the avocado from going brown if you have to set it aside for a while. I've also heard that keeping bits of the rind in your guacamole helps but not sure how true this is...

When it came time for my fajitas I just reheated my leftover grilled chicken with some sliced Pepper Jack cheese and then sauteed some mushrooms and onions. We also added some roasted garlic Green Mountain Gringo salsa, which is by far my favorite salsa.

In the end we had a delicious meal that certainly didn't feel like leftovers.

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Guacamole & Chicken Fajitas (Super Bowl Special)