Red Pepper Hummus and Pita Bread

We both absolutely loved this recipe... and having the pita bread made in the bread machine! soo easy! if you don't like your hummus spicy don't add the jalapenos.

Red Pepper Hummus

Ingredients
6 garlic cloves
2 cups canned chickpeas, drained, liquid reserved
1 1/2 teaspoons salt and pepper
1/2 cup seasame seeds
3 tbsp seasame oil
6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
2 tablespoons water or liquid from the chickpeas
1 or 2 jalapenos
1 red bell pepper, diced

Directions
Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add bell pepper and garlic and saute till soft. While that is cooking, mix seasame seeds and seasame oil in a small bowl and rest for 15 min before using. Turn on the food processor (or blender!) fitted with the steel blade and down the feed tube. Add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor and process until the hummus is coarsely pureed. Taste, for seasoning, and serve chilled.

Homemade Pita Bread

INGREDIENTS
1 1/8 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

DIRECTIONS
Place all ingredients in bread pan of your bread machine, select Dough setting and start. When dough has risen long enough, machine will beep.
Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently roll and stretch dough into a 12 inch rope. With a sharp knife, divide dough into 8 pieces. Roll each into a smooth ball. With a rolling pin, roll each ball into a 6 to 7 inch circle. Set aside on a lightly floured countertop. cover with a towel. Let pitas rise about 30 minutes until slightly puffy.
Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C). Place 2 or 3 pitas on a wire cake rack. Place cake rack directly on oven rack. Bake pitas 4 to 5 minutes until puffed and tops begin to brown. Remove from oven and immediately place pitas in a sealed brown paper bag or cover them with a damp kitchen towel until soft. Once pitas a softened, either cut in half or split top edge for half or whole pitas. They can be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for 1 or 2 months.

Apple Pie Oatmeal

Phil doesn't like oatmeal and he will even eat this....!

I absolutely love it.... a way to spice up oatmeal! This recipe makes the oatmeal melt in your mouth because it is so creamy and smooth being made with milk instead of water..! If you love apple pie, you will love the oatmeal. The oatmeal still tastes great without the foam.

Ingredients:
For the Oatmeal
1 cup whole rolled oats
2 cups milk
1 apple, cored and chopped
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp nutmeg

For the Almond Foam
1 cup skim milk
1 tbsp almond butter (Or a sprinkle of almond extract)
1 tbsp brown sugar

Directions:
For the Oatmeal
Pour the oats, milk, apple, brown sugar and cinnamon into a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Continue gently cooking until it's thick and creamy, about 15 minutes. Stir every few minutes to keep the mixture from sticking to the bottom.

For the Almond Foam
Whisk together the skim milk, almond butter and brown sugar. Steam the milk using the steamer attachment of an espresso machine.
Spoon the oatmeal into 2 serving bowls and top with some almond foam. Sprinkle with almond slices and serve.

* if you are not making the foam, trying sprinkling a few drops of the almond extract in the oatmeal....

Fettunta

A tuscan summer treat.... great as an appetizer or serves 2 for a meal!

Ingredients

• 6 slices good French bread, sliced 3/4-inch thick
• 1 to 2 plump garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/2 cup good extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup thickly sliced deli meat (anything really), minced
• 1 bell pepper
  
• 1/2 cup finely grated cheese
• 3 tablespoons containing: Basil, Chives and Cilantro (You can put how much you want of each but must be 3 tbsp in total )
  

Directions

Prepare a gas, charcoal, or wood fire for grilling.

Grill the bread a few inches from the heat until golden on both sides. Place the bread on a platter and immediately rub the garlic cloves over the top of the bread's surface. For really garlicky fettunta, rub hard and use both cloves of garlic. Drizzle a generous tablespoon or more of olive oil over each slice of bread.

Cut the Pepper in half, spread oil on both sides and roast on BBQ. When done, cut to small pieces.

Combine the deli meat, cheese, pepper and herbs in a small bowl. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over each slice of bread. Return the bread to the hot grill cheese side up, cover the grill with the lid, and cook the fettunta just long enough to melt the cheese and rewarm the toast a bit, about 1 minute. Serve hot.

Homemade Veggie Soup

A lot cheaper (and better for you) veggie soup... A great way to have those that don't like veggies to eat some!

1/4 cup oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped or grated
1 quart chicken or vegetable stock
1 can crushed tomatoes (28 ounces)
Salt, pepper, Rosemary, Oregeno, Thyme (to taste)

Preparation
Pre-heat a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat oil. Add in the onions, carrots, celery and garlic, and cook for 3-4 minutes until the vegetables become soft.
Add in the stock and crushed tomatoes. Add spices to taste.
Bring up to a bubble, then reduce the heat until the soup is simmering and cook for 10-15 minutes.

To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top with the croutons, fresh buns or a handful of cheesy popcorn. Yum!

Risotto and Roasted Veggies

A favorite and easy dinner! Phil and I absolutely love both of these!

Risotto
· 1 quart chicken stock
· 2 cups water
· 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), plus a drizzle
· 1 medium onion, finely chopped
· 2 large cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped
· Salt and freshly ground black pepper, thyme
· 1 pound spaghetti, broken into small pieces
· 1/2 cup white wine
· 2 tablespoons butter
· 3/4 cup cheese (Whatever is on hand – a mix of cheddar and any white cheese is great)
PPreparation
Heat a medium sauté pan or with 3 tablespoons EVOO, 3 turns of the pan, over medium to medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic to pan, season with salt, pepper and thyme for taste, and sauté until tender 4-5 minutes. Add pasta and toast until deeply golden in color, 6-7 minutes. Stir in wine and let it cook away, 1 minute. Ladle in stock every few minutes, stirring for a good minute with each addition of stock to develop starches. Evaporate almost all of the liquid before each addition of stock. Pasta will cook up quicker then rice. Start tasting after about 8-9 minutes of cooking time once you begin to add stock.
When pasta is cooked to al dente, stir butter into the pan then stir in the cheese.
Want meat? Add any thinly sliced deli meat, cut into little pieces and add with the onions and garlic and follow along with recipe.

Roasted Vegetables
Good vegetables for roasting: peppers, onions, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, potatoes, zucchini, garlic
Preheat Oven to 400 degrees.
In a casserole dish, cut vegetables in big chunks (Big chunks because they will shrink as they roast) till the casserole dish is full. Toss vegetables either any oil based salad dressing or oil/black pepper/salt/oregano mixture. Make sure vegetables are coated well.
Put in oven and cook for 1 hour – stirring the vegetables every 15 min to get an even roast. Check at 45 min if vegetables are done as some ovens cook quicker than others!