Saturday 23 November 2013

Beetroot hummus, tzatziki and dried tomato pesto with arabic/asian salad

Today, I wanted to make hummus. I love beans, I love hummus and sometimes I buy it in supermarket, but today I decided to try myself, and I'm not kidding, is super fast!!
Beetroot season is almost over so wanted to use the last bits of fresh beetroot, and seemed a good idea to mix it with hummus, and it was!
So the idea was to make this three delicious side dish sauces and with a bit of leftovers I did an amazing salad! I have to confess that coriander and I weren't good friends, but I'm starting to appreciate the little spicy aromatic kick of this plant.

Ingredients

Beetroot hummus 

  • 150g chickpeas
  • 1 lime
  • 1 small finely grated beetroot
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • salt
  • pepper 
  • 1 nail garlic

Dried tomato pesto

  • 10 dried tomatoes
  • 8-10 roasted hazelnut
  • 100g grated parmesan cheese
  • 1tbsp olive oil
  • 1 nail garlic

Tzatziki

  • half lime
  • 2tbsp thick yogurt
  • 200g finely and medium grated cucumber
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 nail garlic
  • olive oil

Salad

  • 50g green pepper
  • 50 g chickpeas
  • 180g kidney beans
  • 20g couscous
  • 20g sunflower seeds
  • half small onion
  • half thick grated carrot
  • half thick grated cucumber
  • coriander
  • half lime
  • olive oil

Preparation

Beetroot hummus

From a can of chickpeas, use 3/4, aprox 150g (dried weight) and rinse it with water, then pour them into the food processor or blender.
Grate finely a peeled beetroot and put it together with the chickpeas. Add 1 lime juice and olive oil.
I use lime because I like it much better than lemon, which I find too strong taste and somehow masks all other flavors.
Give it couple minutes in the blender and try it. Put black pepper and salt as desired as well as water if you prefer a less thick hummus.

Dried tomato pesto

Again, with a blender or food processor, add 10 dried tomatoes, 8-10 roasted hazelnuts (I didn't have pine nuts but roasted hazelnuts taste amazing) 100g finely grated parmesan cheese and a bit of garlic and olive oil.
Couple of minutes in the blender and it is ready. 
IF you want to freeze this for another occasion, like that is perfect, otherwise add more olive oil before serving.

Tzatziki

In a bowl, add 2 big table spoons of thick yogurt, juice of half a lime, grated cucumber (most of it finely and a bit quite thick) a crushed garlic, 1/2 tea spoon of sugar, 1 tea spoon of salt and stir it till it becomes homogeneous. Taste it and add more lime juice, salt or whatever you like best and in the end add the olive oil.


Asian/Arabic salad

Ok first of all, there is no name for the salad, I just started adding things I had and thought would go together.

In a serving bowl, add the leftovers of chickpeas, open a can and rinse it of kidney beans and pour it too. Grate in the thickest size, half a carrot and half cucumber. Chop really small half a small onion and green pepper and add it to the serving bowl.
For the couscous, a bit more boiling water than amount of couscous, 1:1,5 I use. In a bowl, add the couscous, a bit of salt, black pepper, olive oil and a bit roasted curry powder (careful it is strong stuff). Then add the boiling water, give it couple of stirs and place a dish on top of the bowl so the steam can't escape. Live it rest for 5 min. When ready pour it to the serving bowl.
For finishing, add the sunflower seeds, chopped coriander, olive oil and half lime juice. Mix it together and it is ready!


For serving we had pita bread; take it from the bag, splash some water in top, 30seconds microwave and good to go!



 
Hope you like it!
Mr South

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