Three seed hummus

Initial taste of this pre-chill is yummy!

In the food processor:
- 16 ounces chick peas
- juice of one small lemon
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin cold pressed olive oil
- 2 teaspoons tahini
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon dill Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon cashew butter
- 1 pinch cumin
- 2 teaspoons roasted sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon unsalted sunflower seeds
- 2 teaspoons flax seed

Vegan gluten-free falafel

I have a good friend who's gluten intolerant and in the past I had an employee who also had gluten issues. For some reason, this came to mind when I saw this vegan recipe on another friend's blog:

http://leangreensuburbanmachine.com/2011/04/04/30-days-of-vegan-day-4-baked-falafel-with-tahini-miso-sauce/

With my daughter's dairy-free stint, and with a bad history of making falafel (despite a love of it) I decided to try it, and make it gluten free.

Why?

Not sure.

I strayed from the recipe so this is what I think I mixed up:
- 30 ounces chick peas imported from Lebanon
- 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- 1 tablespoon cornmeal
- probably 4 tablespoons chopped chives frozen from last year's garden
- 2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon parsley
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon roared sesame seeds
- 2 teaspoons cold pressed extra virgin olive oil

Hummus

I hope I already posted my normal hummus recipe because today's was a thrown-together affair. I threw into the food processor:

• one can chick peas. They should be drained well. I apparently did not drain mine well enough. So my hummus is a tad runny.
• roasted red peppers. I added close to a cup
• fresh parsley from the garden. Yeah, it's now November and I still have parsley growing in my backyard.
• one large clove garlic
• one tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• two tablespoons, or maybe a little more, lemon juice. The juice of half a fresh lemon might be perfect, but I don't have a lemon
• one heaping teaspoon cashew butter. A whim.

And normally one would add tahini or toasted sesame seeds but I forgot them.

Homemade Hummus

My daughter had another huge bowl of cream of wheat for breakfast, followed with some of my homemade granola at 9 a.m. We stopped by her daddy's office and got invited to share the leftover covered dish items from the luncheon yesterday, which included my spinach dip. Primarily, my family enjoyed ham and spinach dip (though I didn't touch the ham). My daughter ate at least a cup, if not two, of spinach without dipping it in anything.

My original plan for lunch had been peanut butter and jelly on the potato wheat bread my father-in-law gave us last week and carrot sticks with blue cheese dressing and fruit juice to drink. But the surprise lunch out got me thinking... I want hummus for dinner.

My husband bought sesame bagels over the weekend at the grocery store so hummus would be perfect. The carrot sticks will also go well. And the green pepper I bought a while ago will be a nice addition.

I discovered my hummus recipe online about ten or so years ago. A guy had made a chart of hummus and its variations. The basic recipe is as follows:

In the food processor, blend:

Three cloves garlic, minced;
16 ounces chick peas;
1/2 cup lemon juice or juice of 1/2 a lemon (I used all);
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (fry briefly in skillet until aromatic) and/or tahini (I forgot the exact volume of tahini but I would say at least a tablespoon or two);
1 teaspoon salt;
1 teaspoon olive oil;
1/4 teaspoon cayenne;
cumin if desired;
parsley if desired.

Chill thoroughly before serving to allow flavors to blend.