Tomato Chutney

I had tomatoes from my garden sitting in my freezer from last year. I wanted to make chutney but wasn’t sure how it will taste. I was surprised that it tasted so good.  As the day pass by, the flavor got enhanced, we ate that every day for a week.

Yields: 6 to 8 Servings

 

Ingredients

3 pounds tomatoes (frozen)

1 piece of fresh ginger

Mustard seeds:  ½ table spoon

Cumin powder:  ¼ table spoon

Coriander powder: ¼ table spoon

Turmeric: ¼ table spoon

Cooking oil: 3 table spoon

Red dry chilli (2)

Salt to taste

Directions:

Puree tomatoes (frozen) with ginger in a blender and set aside. 

Heat oil in a pan, crack mustard seeds, and add red dry chili. Add  tomato puree and stir occasionally. Add salt to taste, cumin-coriander powder, and turmeric powder. Turn the heat to medium and cook until the mixture is thick and oil starts to separate.

       

Turn off the heat and let it cool down until you serve. It’s a tasty side for rice and curry. Enjoy!

Hummus

Hummus is a Middle Eastern food dip made from cooked garbanzo beans blended with tahini , olive oil, lemon juice, salt and  garlic.  I used to buy it once in a while in a grocery store until I figured out how simple and easy it is to make it at home.

Yields: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients:

Garbanzo Beans: 1 Cup (soaked dry beans overnight)

Sesame Seeds: ¼ cup (roasted)

Garlic Clove: ½ large clove minced (optional)

Cumin powder: 1/8 table spoon (pinch of it)

Olive Oil: 3 table spoons

Lemon Juice: (1 medium lemon)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Boil the soaked garbanzos beans until they are soft and tender. Allow it to cool, rinse it and keep it aside.

In a blender, blend the roasted sesame seeds to powder .You have to make it to a powder first. If you mix the seeds with lemon juice and oil and try to blend it, it won’t be a puree. Add lemon juice, salt, cumin, garlic, pepper and a spoon of oil to the powder and blend it to make a puree ( Tahini).Keep it aside.

In a food processor/blender, combine the puree ( Tahini), add half of the beans then process for a minute.  Add 2 table spoons of oil, remaining beans and process until it becomes thick and smooth. If the mixture is not smooth, slowly add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water until the desired consistency is acquired. 

 Scrape the hummus in to a container then drizzle some olive oil over the top.

 Enjoy the hummus with Pita Bread or any type of  vegetable chips or bread of your choice.

Garbanzo beans Curry

This is a regular curry that I cook often in my kitchen. Once in a while, I keep switching the spices and ingredients though. Sometimes I use store bought garam masala or use lot of spices. Recently, I have been cooking most of the dishes with less spices and without onion and garlic.  I feel no difference in terms of experience and fulfillment. In fact, I like it more :)

Yield: 4 to 6 Servings

Ingredients

Garbanzo Beans: 2 cup (soaked dry beans overnight or canned)

Tomatoes:3 (medium size)

Mustard Seeds:  ¼ table spoon

Cumin Powder:  ½ table spoon

Coriander Powder: ½ table spoon

Turmeric: ¼ table spoon

Cooking Oil: 3 table spoon 

Cloves (5)

Bay Leaves (2)

Cilantro for garnish

Fresh Ginger (small piece), few Green Chilies (optional)

Salt to taste

Directions:

Combine ginger and tomato, blend it to puree, put aside.

Heat oil in a pressure cooker. You can also boil garbanzo beans until tender and cook in a pan.  I normally use pressure cooker as it is convenient for me and is quicker to cook. 

Crack some mustard seeds, add cloves and bay leaves. Add tomato puree, turmeric powder, cumin-coriander powder and stir occasionally until the oil starts to separate. Add garbanzo beans, salt to taste, chilli and mix until all ingredients are well coated.

Add a cup of warm water and close the pressure cooker and cook in medium heat for 7-8 minutes or until 4-5 whistle. Remove from heat and let it sit for a while until the steam is gone.  

 Garnish with cilantro and serve it hot with rice or roti. Enjoy the curry with cilantro rice and tomato chutney.