Indian Chickpea Dish

Day one

leftovers

Here is another chickpea dish. We are new to eating Indian dishes and when kept seeing recipes calling for garam masala we were not really sure what it was but thanks to the Internet you can find out anything. Well we do have a little Indian grocery in Jackson and was able to locate some. By the way it is a combination of spices. We like it and used it as a side dish the first day and the next day we added some chicken to it and again placed it in a pita pocket. This was again from our favorite recipe go to place the Zaar. By Sue

2 medium onions chopped
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (we used powder as that is all we had)
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
½ inch cinnamon stick
2 medium tomatoes chopped
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon turmeric
salt to taste
¼ -1/2 teaspoon cayenne( we added more we like it hot)
2 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans rinsed and drained
½ 1 teaspoon gram masala
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice.

In a large saucepan over med heat, heat cumin seeds, bay leaf and cinnamon until very fragrant, stirring to keep from burning( This really smells the house up!!!)
Add ginger and garlic cooking until you can smell them then add onions. (my mother in law has lost her sense of smell and some of her taste after a bad cold I know this has to be a sad thing because the smell is wonderful.)
Saute onions stirring and adding a few drops of water to prevent sticking, cook till they are translucent.
Add tomatoes,coriander,turmeric,salt and cayenne. Taste and adjust according to what you want more of.
Bring to a boil then add garbanzo beans,cover and reduce heat and simmer on low for 10 to 15 minutes.
Stir in gram masala and lemon juice just before serving.
Garnish with cilantro and serve with rice or Indian bread or pitas

Spicy Chick Peas and Couscous

We have a jam night about once a month and everyone tries to bring something. As our host are now on a low fat and low cholesterol diet we have brought out our low fat cookbooks and found this one to try. It was a hit but again we our taste buds are jaded and felt like it really needed more kick. It is really a colorful dish.

1 can (about 14 oz) vegetable broth
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon hot pepper sauce
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup julienned carrots
1 can (15 oz) chick peas, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup uncooked quick cooking couscous
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint or parsley for garnish.
Combine vegetable broth,coriander, cardamom,turmeric, hot pepper sauce salt and cinnamon in a large sauce pan and bring to a boil over high heat. Add carrots and reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.(The smell is to die for) Now add chick peas and peas, simmer for 2 minutes uncovered.
Now stir in couscous. Cover, remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Sprinkle with mint or parsley.
Now what can we bring next time?????

Hummus our take on the dip

We found a bunch of hummus recipes out there and kind of took a little of this and that to create our own.
I must say the first time we made it we must have had a bad batch of tahini because it was just nasty so it has been a while since we tried again but after our meal at the Greek fest we decided to give it another try. This time we used Krinos brand tahini and this one was much better.

3 cans garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon tahini
3-4 cloves garlic
juice on 1/2 lemon (we added a little more)
1/2 teaspoon cumin (may add more to taste-we did)
3-5 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt to taste
3-4 tablespoons yogurt
1 roasted pepper from jar.
we also added a little chipolata chili powder
paprika, fresh basil or Italian parsley to garnish also can use cilantro or mint. what ever you prefer.

Combine chickpeas with all ingredients except water and olive oil.
We used a food processor.
Mix till mixture becomes somewhat smooth. Add water as necessary to help with the blending, at end add olive oil and blend just to incorporate.
Serve with pita chips, pita bread or even corn chips