Roasted Garlic Hummus with Pita Chips

While continuing on our healthy kick for January, healthy snacks have been difficult at times. When we decided to host people at our place to watch the Patriots play, I decided that it would be a good opportunity to try hummus and accomplish 2 things - it would be a healthy snack, and I would get to cross something off my 30 by 30 list! This recipe is originally from Cook's Illustrated, but I made a few changes to suit our tastes. If you love garlic, you will love this hummus. I can't wait to try other versions using the same basic idea. Enjoy :o)

Roasted Garlic Hummus

makes approximately 2 cups

Ingredients

2 tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

1 (14 oz.) can chickpeas

¼ cup liquid from canned chickpeas

2 heads roasted garlic (*see note)
1 clove raw garlic, minced (optional)
½ tsp. salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper, to taste
3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

6 tbsp. tahini
1 tbsp. fresh parsley, minced

pita chips for serving, recipe follows

Directions

Heat the olive oil in a small pan over medium low heat. Add the sliced garlic and cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Drain the garlic on paper towels and reserve the cooking oil. 

After reserving 1/4 cup of canning liquid, rinse and drain the chickpeas. In a food processor, combine the drained chickpeas, the roasted garlic, minced fresh garlic (this will make the hummus extra garlicky, so use with caution!), salt, and cayenne pepper. 

In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice and canning liquid. In another small bowl combine the tahini with the oil used to cook the sliced garlic.

With the food processor running, stream in the lemon/water mixture. Scrape down the bowl. Run the processor again and stream in the tahini/oil mixture. Scrape down the bowl and process again until smooth. 

To serve, top with the cooked sliced garlic and the chopped parsley. Serve with pita chips.

*note: to make roasted garlic, cut the top part of a whole head of garlic to expose the cloves. Drizzle with a little olive oil and wrap tightly in foil. Roast at 350 degrees for about an hour, or until the cloves are soft. Once cool enough to handle, squeeze the head of garlic to remove the roasted cloves. Discard any papery skins, and mash gently into a paste.

Pita Chips

Ingredients

1 package whole wheat pitas

2 tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400. Cut the pitas into 8 wedges. Combine the remaining ingredients and brush a light coating onto the pitas. Bake for 7-8 minutes or until toasted. Serve with hummus.

Croque Monsieur

Oh. Em. Gee. If you like grilled cheese, you will LOVE these sandwiches! Croque monsieur is basically a glorified French version of a kicked-up grilled ham and cheese sandwich. Layers of Gruyere cheese, ham, and decadent bechamel sauce get toasted together in a scrumptious, hand-held delight of a sandwich. (Can you tell how excited I am about this recipe?!). I first discovered "croque" at a restaurant called Aquitaine in the South End of Boston - they have a legendary brunch, and I found that each time we went (it was right around the corner from our old apartment, so we went every month) I never strayed from my good old croque with a side of watercress salad and a mimosa. Sometimes I got more adventurous and got the "croque duck", which I am sure had a much fancier name on the menu. Instead of ham, they used duck confit in the original sandwich... delightful! Is this sandwich diet friendly? No. Is it amazingly delicious? Yes! Hey, we all need to splurge every once in a while... or maybe once a year. Trust me, it's worth it. Enjoy! :o)

Croque Monsieur

Yield: 4 sandwiches

Ingredients

2 tbsp. butter

3 tbsp. flour

2 c. hot milk

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Pinch nutmeg

12 oz. Gruyere, grated (about 5 cups)

1/2 c. freshly grated Parmesan

8 slices of good, rustic, crusty white bread

Dijon Mustard 

1/2 lb. thinly sliced black forest ham (from the Deli counter)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk together for 2 minutes. Slowly whisk in the hot milk and stir constantly until the sauce is thickened, about 4-5 minutes (should coat the back of a spoon). Remove the pot from the heat and add the salt, pepper, nutmeg, 1/2 cup of gruyere, and all of the Parmesan. Set aside for later. 

Toast the bread - put on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes, turn, then bake for about 2 minutes more or until lightly toasted.

Spread a thin layer of Dijon on one side of half of the bread slices. Layer a quarter of the ham on each slice, sprinkle with half of the remaining gruyere, and top with a plain slices of bread. Arrange the sandwiches on a baking sheet and smother the sandwiches with the cheese sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining gruyere. Bake the sandwiches for 5 minutes. Turn ont he broiler and broil for 3-5 minutes or until the tops of the sandwiches are golden brown and bubbly. Cut each sandwich in half and serve warm. Yum! 

Adapted from Ina Garten

Homemade Marshmallows

Yep, I went there. I made homemade marshmallows. Our class was hosting a bake sale for an upcoming field trip and I thought it was a great opportunity to try these out - they were a hit! I am not a huge fan of storebought marshmallows (they are so powdery and plastic-y tasting) but these were soooo fluffy and delicious. My mind is spinning with ideas for the marshmallow batter - fluff and PB sandwiches, moonpies, mini marshmallows, Rice Krispies treats... oh man. I kept these simple with toasted coconut, but you could certainly just make them plain instead. If you have a stand mixer, you have to try these... yum!

Homemade Marshmallows

Makes 1  13"x9" pan

Ingredients

2 cups toasted coconut (toast in a dry pan until golden)

1 cup cold water (divided)

3 packages unflavored gelatin

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the gelatin and 1/2 cup cold water.  Allow to sit while you make the syrup.

Prepare a 13x9 baking dish by spraying with no-stick spray and then sprinkling with 1 cup of the toasted coconut. *

In a small saucepan, heat the remaining 1/2 cup water, sugar, salt, and corn syrup over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, then raise the heat to medium high and cook until a candy thermometer reads 240 degrees F.

With the whisk attachment on, slowly (and carefully) pour the hot syrup into the gelatin on low speed. Increase the speed to high and whip for 15 minutes. Add the vanilla and whip to combine. 

Pour the marshmallow mix in the prepared pan. Using wet fingers, smooth the top of the marshmallow and then sprinkle with the remaining coconut. Allow to sit uncovered overnight to set.

The next day, cut the marshmallows into one inch squares and dust the sticky edges with confectioner's sugar. Enjoy!

* If you want plain marshmallows, mix 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar with 1/4 cornstarch. Spray the bottom of a 13x9 pan with no-stick spray and sprinkle with a layer of the cornstarch/sugar mix. Proceed with the remaining steps, omitting the coconut.

Adapted from Ina Garten and Alton Brown

30 by 30

While perusing some other food blogs out there, I stumbled across this wonderful idea to make a list of 30 foods I would like to make by the time I'm 30 - kind of like a cook's version of a mid-life "bucket list"!  Some of these foods I have made before, but for one reason or another they just weren't quite perfect, while other foods on the list I have never attempted at home. My goal is to try each dish on my list, and perfect the recipe as much as possible in order to use it again in the future. As I conquer these 30 foods, I will add the recipe to my blog and link to it from this list. If you have any recipes or tips for these foods, please let me know!

October of this year I will be 30. Wish me luck! :o)

30 by 30, grouped by meal type:
 Appetizers
1. Clams Casino (tried once, needs work)
2. Spanakopita
3. Hummus
Main Course

4. Gnocchi (tried before, epic fail. I don't give up without a fight)
5. Pizza Dough
6. Beef Stew
7. Duck, any way
8. Bolognese Sauce
9. Croque Monsieur
10. Rack of Lamb 
11. Chicken Satay

12. Indian Butter Chicken

13. Pesto
14. Lobster Bisque 
15. Ravioli 
16. Chicken Soup

Sides
17. Souffle (any type)
18.Ricotta Cheese
19. Homemade Bread
20.Potato Pancakes
21. Bearnaise Sauce
Desserts

22. Marshmallows

23. Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing
24. Brownies

25. Carrot Cake

26. Creme Brulee

27. Pudding

28. Cinnamon Rolls

29. Bread Pudding (still looking for the perfect recipe)

30. Cream puffs and/or eclairs