It's Recipe Sharing Sunday but first this message

It's been a quiet week. Not much happening on the job front, although I did get a good lead from a friend and I've applied, we'll see if anything comes of that.

The SU was invited to a First Communion ceremony for the daughter of a co-worker and friend of his. The SU is a Muslim so, of course, he'd never been to one before. I'm not catholic but have family members that are, so I've been to a couple of them over the years.

We purchased a small silver cross as a gift for the young lady (she is only 7) and headed out Saturday for the ceremony. The family made a huge deal over the event, which I guess it is for those of the faith. The Communion mass was followed by a small gathering of about 150 people to help the young lady celebrate her First Communion. And her father spared no expense. The food was top notch. The family is of East Indian descent so the food was an Indian buffet, the DJ played great music all evening, the booze was free and plentiful and the company outstanding.

We forgot our camera though, we just not photo people I guess.

We met a lovely couple, also Indian, that it turns out live only around the corner from us. We had some great conversations with them through the evening. They have lived such lives so far, growing up in India, living 17 years in Saudi Arabia (so the SU and they had much to discuss) and then after sending their 2 sons to North America to study, they followed so the family could be closer together.

Overall we had a great evening and really enjoyed the festivities. We were even given a small gift as we left the party (each guest was given a momento) which was completely unexpected.

A big Thank You to our hosts and congratulations to a lovely young lady.

Recipe Time

I've though about which recipe to share this week. Something complicated? Something simple? Something versatile (gotta love versatility - especially in a man but that's a different topic all together).

In the end I decided on a simple Hummus Recipe.

Hummus is a chick pea dip or spread that is used throught the Mediterranean and Middle East. Each region has their own version of this simple staple. The version I am sharing today is generally how the SU and I would prepare it for breakfast. A simple Middle Eastern breakfast is often boiled eggs, Hummus and fresh Pita (at least it was in the SU's home - can't speak for the entire Middle East, of course).

Hummus is also a very flexible dip, in that it can be tweaked in so many ways, add hot peppers to make it spicey, add roasted red pepper for a sweeter peppery taste, add more or less garlic, fresh herbs, dress it up or dress it down, it's versatility is almost endless. The chickpeas in Hummus can be either canned or dried. The version used here uses canned.

Here is our Basic Hummus recipe

1 19 (20?) ounce can of Chick Peas
2 cloves of garlic (use more or less depending on your taste)
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon of Lemon rind
2 tbsp Tahini sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste

Empty the chick peas into a pot (with the liquid - some recipes recommend not using the liquid but we find that it's just fine to do so). Bring to a boil and cook until the chickpeas are heated through and tender (only a few minutes for the canned chick peas - longer for dried).

Remove from heat and allow to cool a few minutes and then empty the pot into the bowl of a food processor.

Add the garlic, lemon juice, tahini and lemon rind. Add a pinch of Salt and Pepper at this time. Blend until desired consistancy. Some prefer the Hummus to be completely smooth, others prefer a bit of texture. Try both to see which you would prefer.

If you want thicker Hummus, add another tbsp of Tahini paste. Careful though as the Hummus will thicken as it cools (somewhat).

Taste the hummus and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper to your taste, pulse for a few seconds on the food processor to mix in the salt and pepper.

Serving Suggestions

Serve with a vegetable tray or with sliced pita.