Tag Archives: tahini

Summer Squash Hummus (Bean-less, Gluten-free)

Posted on July 3, 2012 by She cooks...He cleans | 2 Comments

I find myself with a surplus of white, patty pan squash. I have roasted it, baked it in a casserole, and eaten it sliced and sauteed in butter. It’s all good – but I know there are gardeners (and cooks) out there that are looking for more things to do with their bounty of summer squash.

I have seen recipes for raw zucchini hummus, so it only seemed logical that other varieties of summer squash might work just as well. What do you know – the patty pan squash worked just great. This recipe is especially good for people that like hummus but don’t tolerate bean dips well – and of course it is handy for people following a low-carb diet or paleo / primal diet. Just look at the carbs in a half cup of chickpeas (22.5) vs a half cup of summer squash (2.5).

Serve this with raw vegetables, gluten-free crackers, or even use it as a salad dressing. You will need a food processor or a powerful blender to get a smooth texture. For this recipe, I used a good-sized patty pan squash that I somewhat peeled (it is hard to peel around all the curves on this space-ship shaped squash). Don’t worry if you leave some peel on! Also, since this squash was biggish, I cut it in half and scooped out the seeds and pulp, using only firm, white flesh for the hummus.

Ingredients:

3 cups peeled, de-seeded and chopped summer squash (I used patty pan, but other varieties of summer squash can be used.)
1/3 cup lemon or lime juice
3 tablespoons good quality olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 cup tahini
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
3 tablespoons almond flour (optional, for added texture)
a few shakes of smoked paprika
a few shakes of cayenne pepper

Add all the ingredients to the food processor except for the tahini. Blend well, until smooth. Add tahini and blend for several minutes until the hummus is very smooth, scraping down the sides occasionally. Adjust seasoning, to taste. I think that allowing it to mellow in the refrigerator for a while improves the texture and taste. Serve drizzled with more olive oil or sprinkled with a little paprika.

Two from the incredible Albert King today, focusing on his great work in Memphis! First up, a new reissue of his classic ’70s album I’ll Play the Blues for You. Backed up by The Bar-Kays and the Memphis Horns, this is soulful blues that only Albert could play.

Born Under a Bad Sign has King recording with Booker T and the MGs, and the title track and “Crosscut Saw” became staples of Albert’s live set for years. A classic!

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Posted in Appetizers, Side dishes, Vegetarian

Tagged appetizer, beanless, dip, easy, garlic, gluten free, grain free, hummus, lemon, olive oil, paleo, patty pan, pitty pat, primal, raw, recipe, side dish, side dishes, spread, squash, summer squash, tahini, too much squash, vegan, vegetarian, zucchini

Roasted Eggplant and Sweet Pepper Dip

Posted on April 17, 2012 by She cooks...He cleans | 12 Comments

Back when I played tennis, which was one broken ankle and more than a few years ago, my team may not have always have won the match but, by god, we always had a great table of food. Not being one of the best players on my team, I liked to think that I somehow made up for having lead feet by bringing a homemade offering of something tasty . Making “dip” was my favorite contribution – it doesn’t sound like much, but hey, they kept me on the team! I wish I had known about this dip back then, although it might have been too distracting to the people on the court for all the oohing and awing that would have ensued.

This recipe is a hybrid of Ina Garten’s Roasted Eggplant Spread and a basic recipe for baba ghanoush. I couldn’t decide which recipe to go with, so I came up with a blend of the two. Call it indecision or call it inspiration – as long as you call me when it’s ready! (Har…) I roasted the vegetables in the oven, but this would be even better with grilled vegetables! We ate this as a mid-afternoon snack with some gluten-free almond crackers; you can be sure it would disappear equally fast with pita triangles, vegetable sticks, bread of any sort, or even as a topping for pasta or zucchini noodles.

Be sure to pour some high quality extra-virgin olive oil over the top – the sweet fruitiness of the olive oil contrasted with the more earthy and spicy eggplant and peppers is phenomenal! I highly recommend Kotinos Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Kasandrinos Imports. (Join their facebook page and look for special deals.)

Seriously, you may want to double this recipe – or if you are taking it to a tennis match, triple it and keep some at home for yourself!

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant
2 red bell peppers, seeded
4 garlic cloves, whole, peeled
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (to start with…)
1 teaspoon kosher salt; freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons tahini paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
cayenne pepper, to taste
juice of one lemon
lots more good extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 400F.

Cut the eggplant up into 1-inch square pieces. (Before cutting, I like to take off some of the skin in stripes around the eggplant. Up to you.) Cut the red bell peppers into 1 inch strips. Toss the eggplant, peppers, and garlic in a large bowl with olive oil, salt, and several grindings of pepper.

Spread the vegetables on a parchment-lined baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 35-45 minutes, tossing once during cooking, until the vegetables are soft and lightly browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

Place the vegetables in a food processor; add the tahini, cumin, cayenne, lemon juice, and another glug (or two) of olive oil. Process in pulses until blended. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Try to avoid over-processing or it will become paste-like in texture.)

Drizzle with more olive oil on top, and serve warm or at room temperature.

Today we hail the “corndog from Pedro”, Mr. Mike Watt! Originally a Minuteman with D. Boon, Mike has been one of the busiest players in the punk rock scene for many years. I interviewed him in 2001, and found him to be as nice a guy as you can find in the business. Since then he’s played bass for the reformed Iggy and the Stooges, among others. The band he formed after the D. Boon’s tragic death called fIREHOSE has been the subject of a reissue, lowFLOWs: The Columbia Anthology (’91 – ’93) (2 CD), and it gives you a glimpse of his energetic trio in all their glory.

Second up is a interesting piece of work, Spielgusher. Watt on bass, and rock journalist Richard Meltzer on “spiels”…its a rambling, woozy affair with an eclectic backing, from punk rock to surf music and all in between.

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Posted in Appetizers, Entrees, Sauces, Marinades, and Rubs, Vegetarian

Tagged appetizer, dip, easy, eggplant, garlic, gluten free, grain free, hummus, Ina Garten, Kasandrinos, Kotrinos Extra Virgin, lemon, low-carb, olive oil, paleo, pasta sauce, pepper, primal, recipe, red bell pepper, roasted, sauce, spread, tahini, tennis match, vegetarian

Seared Tuna with Mixed Greens and Lemon-Tahini dressing

Posted on June 16, 2011 by She cooks...He cleans | 8 Comments

A week or so ago, I was rushed for time at lunch, so I picked up a little tray of seared tuna from the sushi station at Whole Foods and I ate it at the kitchen counter while unpacking my groceries. To paraphrase Ulysses Everett McGill in O Brother, Where Art Thou?, that small taste of tuna only managed to arouse my appetite without bedding it down. The next trip to the grocery, I picked up a nice tuna steak!

Like a lot of people, I grew up eating tuna that came out of a can – and it usually ended up in a nondescript casserole (remember Tuna Helper?) or a mayonnaisey salad. Who knew that it existed as a deep-red, meaty steak? A good piece of tuna doesn’t really require anything – in fact, cooking it manages to dry it out and render it tasteless. I like it quickly seared on both sides and rare in the middle – which adds a little flavor from the toasted coating but allows the meat to retain all the delicious properties of raw tuna.

For this meal, the tuna was coated with a mixture of seeds before searing it in a hot, hot pan. I sliced it up and served it with a mixed greens salad with diced cucumber, diced red bell pepper, and lemon-tahini dressing. Add anything you wish to the salad (avocado and tomatoes sure would be good…), but don’t skip this tasty dressing. I had to (again) restrain myself from drinking it, it’s so good!

Ingredients:

~1 pound tuna steak, about 1 inch thick (select steaks that are deeply red with no off-color patches)
1 tablespoon toasted pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon flax seeds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (or pepper blend)
oil suitable for high-heat cooking
Mixed salad greens and fixings (red bell pepper, cucumber, avocado, tomatoes, carrots, asparagus, etc.)
Lemon-Tahini dressing (see below)

Using a small food processor (such as the bowl attachment that comes with some immersion mixers), briefly pulse the pumpkin seeds and flax seeds to a coarse meal. (Alternatively, the seeds can be chopped fine by hand with a knife.) Do not over process or you’ll have seed-butter. Add the 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds to the mixture and stir together.

Rinse the tuna steak with cold water and dry thoroughly with paper towels. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Gently press the sesame seed mixture on both sides of the tuna steak, using your fingers.

Gather the salad ingredients and prepare the lemon-tahini dressing. Searing the tuna only takes a few minutes and you need to serve it immediately when done.

Heat a cast-iron or other heavy frying pan over high heat until searing hot (the hotter the better). Drizzle a thin film of oil in the pan and immediately add the tuna to the pan. Sear undisturbed for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, then flip and sear the other side for 2 minutes.

Remove seared tuna to a cutting board and slice into 1/4 to 1/2 strips. (It does not need to “rest”.) Plate with the mixed salad greens and vegetables, as desired. Drizzle with lemon-tahini dressing and enjoy!

Lemon-Tahini Dressing Ingredients:

1 egg
Juice of one lemon (about 1/4 cup)
3 tablespoons tahini paste
1 tablespoon honey
1 clove garlic, smashed
2 teaspoons ginger
1/2 teaspoon tamari sauce, coconut aminos, or soy sauce
1/2 cup almond or macadamia oil
kosher salt and lemon pepper, to taste

Add the egg, lemon juice, tahini paste, honey, garlic, ginger, and tamari sauce to a food processor or blender. Process until smooth. With the processor running, slowly pour in the oil in a thin stream. Process for around a minute longer until creamy. (It will be a relatively light consistency.) Season to taste with kosher salt and pepper. Store in refrigerator until ready to use.

What a tasty treat that meal was! I could eat that every day…!

Don’t know how I missed this early album from Rodney Crowell, but once we started listening, song after song were familiar. “Shame on the Moon” was a big hit for Bob Seger, “Til I Gain Control Again” was a great Emmylou/Willie Nelson moment. This is available along with another good Crowell album on But What Will the Neighbors Think/Rodney Crowell. Highly recommended!

Now here’s a record everyone should have, the first solo album from Leon Russell. What a talent! Great songwriter, piano player and vocalist. The songs on here- “Delta Lady”, “A Song For You” and more are classics, and if you haven’t heard this one in a while, treat yourself!