Homemade Hummus Topped with a Simple Israeli Salad

An essential dip is taken up a notch by topping it with a simple salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion.  Once you make the homemade version of hummus you won't ever go back to store bought!

Homemade Hummus Topped with a Simple Israeli Salad

Hummus is a very popular dish and it's quite healthy to eat.  Even better when it's topped with a a wonderful salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion!  All you need to make this is a few ingredients such as chickpeas (garbanzo beans), tahini, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, Sriracha, and olive oil.  With the exception of the tahini you probabaly have all the other ingredients.  

Oh and I forgot to mention....It's so EASY to make!

We eat hummus as a snack in our house all the time.  It's great as an appetizer as well.  With the addition of the salad you can turn this dish into a light lunch, or a side dish with dinner like we do.  This would also be great for game day or BBQs in the summer.  You could even make these into individual portions by serving them in clear party cups with a wedge of pita tucked inside.  Too cute! 

 

What Ingredients do I need?

• Canned Chickpeas or Garbanzo beans
• Tahini - sesame seed paste found in the grocery in either ethnic foods, or with the condiments
• Olive oil
• garlic
• lemon juice
• cumin
• Sriracha (optional) for heat
• salt & pepper

Substitutions and Variations

This is a base recipe for hummus. You can make variations by adding different ingredients to change the flavor such as:

• roasted red bell peppers
• avocado
• black beans instead of chickpeas
• eggplant
• sun-dried tomatoes
• mashed sweet potatoes
• fresh spinach and feta cheese
• lemon and cilantro

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• start with quality ingredients - since there are only a handful buy the best you can find. (fresh garlic, real lemons etc.)

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Homemade Hummus Topped with a Simple Israeli Salad

serves 6-8

Hummus:
1 15 oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 cup tahini (ground sesame paste)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice 
3 tablespoons chopped garlic 
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon Sriracha
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon Kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Salad:
1 large English cucumber, unpeeled, halved, and diced
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
3/4 cup red onion, diced 

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/3 cup olive oil

Toasted naan or pita bread, for serving 

Place the chickpeas, tahini, 1/2 cup lemon juice, garlic, cumin, Sriracha, in a food processor.  Add in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper.  Process until the mixture is smooth.  If this is too thick to spread add in a few tablespoons of water until it is spreadable.

In a large bowl add the cucumber, tomatoes, and red onion.  Add 1/3 cup olive oil and the 1/4 cup lemon juice that remains.  Stir to combine.  Season with salt & pepper to taste.

Spoon the hummus onto a large serving platter creating a raised edge on the sides.  Using a slotted spoon, top the hummus with the vegetable salad leaving an edge of hummus all around.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Serve with mini naan bread or pita.

Winter Fruit Salad with Lemon Poppyseed Dressing

A handful of winter fruits turn in to an outrageously good fruit salad.  Top it with a sweet/tart lemon poppyseed dressing and you'll be craving this dish all winter long!

Winter Fruit Salad with Lemon Poppyseed Dressing 

Fruit is essential in our house, and we eat a ton of it.  We are in heaven during the spring and summer months due to the abundance of fresh fruit, but come wintertime we feel a little cheated.  That is until I came across this recipe for a winter fruit salad.  The salad has a combination of pears, apples, tangerines, bananas, kiwis, and dried cranberries.  If that isn't good enough it is topped with this amazing dressing that includes lemon juice, honey, oil, and poppyseeds.  This salad is sooooo good that I've made it three times in that last 2 weeks!

This salad is perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch, and snacks.  Because of the lemon in the dressing the apples and pears don't turn brown so this would be great for a picnic in the park. 

However you decide to serve it make sure to do it quickly.  If you love fruit, this is going to be a new favorite in your household too!

When do I serve fruit salad?

• Brunch or breakfast
• Snack time
• After school snack
• Dessert
• Lunch as a side dish
• Use this to top waffles for breakfast or dessert
• Top Greek Yogurt with a big scoop
• Top ice cream for dessert
• Perfect over pound cake or angel food cake

What Ingredients do I need?

• apples
• pears - we love D'Anjou
• kiwis
• bananas
• tangerines or mandarin oranges
• dried cranberries
• lemon
• poppyseeds
• honey
• canola oil

Substitutions and Variations

• add dried cherries instead of cranberries
• add pomegranate arils
• use fresh orange juice in the dressing instead of lemon
• any of the fruit may be left out
• substitute you favorite pear
• use a tart apple instead of a sweet one
• add grapefruit segments instead of tangerines
• add orange segments instead of tangerines
• add blood orange segments instead of tangerines
• swap out pineapple for any of the fruit

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• Double the recipe to serve a larger group
• This best eaten the same day however, the fruit salad will keep an extra day in the refrigerator but the bananas may tend to get a little mushy.
• The lemon juice in the dressing will keep the apples and pears from browning
• To make ahead prep the tangerines and kiwi, but I would cut the apple, pears, and banana pretty close to serving.

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Winter Fruit Salad with Lemon Poppyseed Dressing 

serves 4

Dressing

1 1/2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1 1/2 Tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon poppyseeds

3 Tablespoons canola oil

Pinch of sugar

Salad

1 Envy apple, cored and diced

1 D'Anjou pear, cored and diced

1 banana, sliced

2 kiwis, peeled and diced

2 tangerines, peeled and segmented

1/3 cup dried cranberries

To make the dressing: In a small bowl or jar whisk together lemon juice, honey, poppyseeds, sugar, and oil until well combined.

For the fruit salad: In a salad bowl toss together all of the fruit then pour just enough dressing over top to coat.  Start out with about 1/2 and add more if needed.  Toss to coat gently.  

Serve immediately for best results.

adapted from:  Cooking Classy

New Year's Brunch: Eggnog Pancakes with Cinnamon Syrup

Soft and fluffy pancakes laced with the flavors of eggnog and nutmeg are doused with the most sinful cinnamon syrup.  The perfect way to start off a New Year!

Eggnog Pancakes with Cinnamon Syrup

Truth be told every Sunday is brunch day around our house.  MGG and I love to have a leisurely brunch with eggs, bacon, toast, fruit, and yogurt most weekends but we also love to throw in a wonderful treat of pancakes or waffles every now and then.  Pancakes are a favorite of ours and these eggnog pancakes are something special.  The eggnog and a hint of nutmeg give these pancakes such a delightful flavor.  Top them with a cinnamon syrup and you have one comforting dish!

The perfect way to ring in the New Year by serving these during a holiday brunch!  They would be equally special during the winter months while eggnog is still available.  

Soft and fluffy Eggnog Pancakes – worth waking up for!

What goes in eggnog pancakes?

• flour
• baking powder
• baking soda
• salt
• store bought eggnog
• vegetable oil
• egg
• freshly grated nutmeg
• sugar

Pancake Toppings, Substitutions and Variations

• Butter and maple syrup – the classic!
• Drizzled with honey
• Dusting of cinnamon and sugar
• Fresh fruit –  piled over pancakes with whipped cream!
• Rich sauces – like caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, butterscotch sauce...

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• Stir the batter until just combined.  The batter will be lumpy, so don't over mix!
• Whisk your dry ingredients together to distribute them evenly before adding the wet ingredients.
• Use a 1/4 measuring cup to scoop batter out of the bowl and onto the skillet or griddle.  Makes for even pancakes, and is handy too!
• Watch for the bubbles!  That's the sign of when to flip.
• Keep you heat on medium - medium-low to ensure they don't brown too quickly.
• To avoid keeping them warm in the oven, get two skillets going!
• If you are making a lot, keep the finished ones warm in a low oven.  Place them on a sheet pan, don't stack them or they will become soggy, until you are ready to serve.

EGGNOG RECIPES

In case you bought several cartons of eggnog because they were on sale and you couldn’t resist… (oh wait, that’s me!)

• Orange Eggnog Waffles
• Eggnog Muffins
• Eggnog Waffles

pancakes, pancakes, pancakes

• Pumpkin Pancakes
• Banana Walnut Pancakes
• Snickerdoodle Pancakes
• Pecan Pancakes with Chocolate Sauce
• Chocolate Chip Pancakes with Cinnamon Cream
• Blueberry Pancakes
• Streusel Apple Pie Pancakes

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Eggnog Pancakes with Cinnamon Syrup

Pancakes:

1 cup flour

2 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup eggnog

2 Tablespoon vegetable oil

1 egg

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Syrup:

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

In a medium bowl, add flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and the nutmeg. Stir to combine. Make a well in the middle and add the oil.

In another bowl whisk together eggnog and egg. 

Add to dry ingredients and mix together until just moistened. Batter will be lumpy.

On a preheated skillet, ladle batter onto skillet for each pancake. Cook until golden brown and holes begin to appear on top. Turn on the second side and cook until golden brown.

Meanwhile pour the syrup into a microwave proof bowl and add the cinnamon.  Stir until combined.  Microwave in 30 second increments until warm.

Serve pancakes with butter and drizzled with warm syrup.