Hummus and Pita Chips

I have a crush on hummus. It only developed recently. I used to think it was gross. Turned my nose up at it. And then, I gave it a chance. It had something to do with the 3 months straight where they had hummus samples at Costco...and that was when I fell. I love it. It is a healthy yummy mid-afternoon snack! Especially with some home-baked pita chips. Just so you know, it doesn't smell that great. But it tastes delicious!!


Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

1/2 a red pepper
3 T lemon juice
1/4 cup water
6 T tahini (found by the peanut butter in the grocery store. Or try a health food store)
2 T olive oil
1 can chickpeas
1 garlic clove
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne

Turn your oven broiler on. Slice your red pepper into 3 or 4 wedges and place them on a baking sheet with the inside of the pepper facing down. Broil for 3-5 minutes, until the skin begins to blacken. Set aside to cool.

Combine lemon juice and water. In another bowl, whisk the tahini and olive oil.

Process the chickpeas, garlic, salt, cumin, and cayenne in a food processor. Slowly add the water mixture. Slowly add the tahini.

Once the pepper has cooled, slide the skin from the meat of the pepper and discard it. Add the remaining pepper wedges to the food processor and process until smooth.

Chill for 30 minutes. Serve with pita chips!

For homemade pita chips, buy a bag of pitas (I love the whole wheat kind!). Slice the pockets open and cut each pita into wedges. Drizzle with olive oil or spray with Pam and shake garlic salt over the top. Cook in a 300 degree oven for 20-30 minutes, until they are as crispy as you like.

Enjoy!

Ultimate Spicy Beef Nachos

SALSA

1/2 small red onion

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

1 TB fresh lime juice

1 garlic clove, peeled

2 TB canned pickled jalapeno chile, drained

1/4 tsp salt

1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes drained

REFRIED BEANS

1/2 cup canned refried beans

1 ounce pepper Jack cheese, shredded (about 1/4 cup)

1 TB chopped canned pickled jalapeno chile

SPICY BEEF

2 tsp vegetable oil

1 small onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 TB chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

12 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp salt

1 pound 90 percent lean ground beef

2 TB tomato paste

1 tsp brown sugar

1 medium canned chipotle chile, chopped

plus 1 tsp adobo sauce

1/2 cup water

2 tsp fresh lime juice

ASSEMBLY

1 9 1/2 ounce bag tortilla chips

16 ounces pepper Jack cheese, shredded (about 4 cups)

2 jalapeno chiles, sliced into thin rings

Sour cream (optional)

Diced avocado (optional)

cilantro sprigs (optional)

1. For the Salsa: Pulse the onion, cilantro, lime juice, garlic, jalapeno, and salt in a food processor until roughly chopped, about five 1 second pulses. Add the tomatoes and pulse until chopped, about two 1 second pulses. Transfer the mixture to a fine mesh sstrainer and drain briefly; place in a small bowl and set aside.

2. For the Beans: Pulse all the ingredients in the food processor until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap.

3. For the Beef: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Cook the onion, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, and salt and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the beef and cook, breaking the meat into small bits with the wooden spoon and scraping the pan bottom to prevent scorching, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain grease if there is any. Add the tomato paste, sugar, chile, and adobo sauce and cook until the paste begins to darken, about 1 minute. Add the water, bring to a simmer, and cook over medium-low heat until the mixture is nearly dry, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and transfer the mixture to a plate lined with several layers of paper towels. Use more paper towel to blot up excess grease.

4. To assemble: Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Spread half of the chips on a large, oven-safe serving platter or a 13 x 9 baking dish. dollop half o the bean mixture over the chips, then spread evenly. Scatter half of the beef mixture over the beans, top with 2 cups of the cheese and half of the jalapenos. Repeat with the remaining chips, beans, beef, cheese and jalapenos. Bake until the cheese is melted and just beginning to brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Top with the salsa and garnish with sour cream, avocado, and cilantro leaves if desired.

From Best of America's Test Kitchen, 2008

Healthy Ranch Dip

I'm not kidding. This stuff is great. You can smother your veggies in it without feeling guilty!! I love it.

I don't have an actual recipe (or pictures) but all you do is put some cottage cheese in the blender, add a little milk, and some ranch dip powder.

I used about a half carton of cottage cheese (the small carton) and maybe I'd say a tablespoon or two of milk, and then I just poured in some of the powder, I think I used about a third of a packet of powder. The dip will thicken up in the fridge so it's okay if it starts out a little runny.