Hummus, A Healthy Classic

Dear all,

The other day I received an email with a link to 32 different chickpea recipes ‘to dug me out of my hummus hole’. So far, I had been unaware of the existence of such a hole.

I love hummus and serve it regularly at dinner parties. Often I eat it as a healthy lunch with a little salad and some whole wheat crackers – very refreshing, especially during the current heat wave in India.

Although hummus has lost its exotic factor in the country where we live, many people still ask me for the recipe. Although it is as simple as can be, some manage to get it wrong. I think, the biggest mistake commonly made is to add too much tahini, the sesame paste from Middle East. Although tahini is wonderfully healthy, it has a strange texture. When you eat it by itself, it feels very sticky and tastes slightly bitter. Too much tahini can ruin your hummus.

Of course, you can also add to much lemon and too much garlic, although this is largely a matter of personal taste. One time, I dropped too much pepper powder in my blender. There was no way I could get rid of it, so this one time we had a very peppery hummus – my guests liked it though.

In general, I think we should eat as many legumes as possible. They provide cheap protein in combination with fibre, complex carbohydrates (the good ones) and many minerals, vitamins and phytonutrients.

Legumes are great to keep slim and fit and hummus is the perfect recipe. You can keep it up to one week in the fridge and you can even freeze it. When you open the door of my freezer, you will always find a container with hummus, next to some pasta sauces and homemade pâtés.

Wishing you happy cooking, always!

Kornelia Santoro with family

Hummus - a classic dip

Ingredients:
(for 8 servings)

• 1 cup dried chickpeas
•  2 tablespoons tahini
•  4 tablespoons lemon juice
•  3 tablespoons olive oil
•  2 cloves garlic
•  salt
•  pepper
• ½ cup cooking liquid

Method:

Spread out the beans and check them for small stones, debris and damaged beans. Wash the chickpeas and soak them in plenty of water overnight. The next day, drain the soaked chickpeas, put them into a pot, cover with two litres salt water and boil them until soft.

If you use a pressure cooker, add only one litre of water with the chickpeas and cook for 30 minutes after the first whistle. The chickpeas need to become really soft. Drain the chickpeas, but save half a cup of the liquid.

You can prepare humus either with a blender stick or in a blender. With a blender stick, mash the chickpeas first, and then add the tahini, the lemon juice, the olive oil and the crushed garlic. Combine with some cooking liquid to obtain a smooth paste.

If you use a blender, throw in all the ingredients and blend away. It is better to crush the garlic before adding it.

After the holidays, let's get rid of the pounds!

Weightloss Without Diet

Cheese, a prime source for calcium

Take your daily dose of calcium!

Calcium is one of the most important minerals for our bodies. They are needed for many different functions, but I guess the most important is the health of our bones and teeth. Teenagers especially need a lot of calcium to grow healthy bones. Also elderly people need quite a bit of calcium to avoid osteoporosis (check the list below).

Cheese contains on average around 1000 milligrams of calcium per 100 grams. If you consume 150 grams of cheese every day, you meet your daily requirements. Of course, cheese and other dairy products are not the only sources for calcium but they are the most easily available. Small fishes like anchovies and sardines deliver around 400 milligrams of calcium per 100 grams. Calcium rich foods for vegetarians are broccoli, spinach, sesame seeds and other nuts.

Our bodies absorb calcium easily when they are young. However, you need vitamin D to be able to really use the calcium in your diet. Don’t be afraid of the sun. Around 15 to 20 minutes of direct sunlight helps your bodies to perform well. Recently, scientists discovered other benefits of high calcium intake. It may prevent weight gain because it helps the body to burn fat. It also shows beneficial effects with PMS, cancer prevention, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of calcium:

Children (ages 1-3): 500 milligrams per day
Children (ages 4-8): 800 milligrams per day
Youth (ages 9-18): 1300 milligrams per day
Adults (ages 19-50): 1000 milligrams per day
Adults (ages 51 or older): 1200 milligrams per day

Ultra high fibre crackers

High fibre crackers for easy weight loss

Ingredients (for 16 servings):

• 5 cups diabetic or whole wheat flou
• 1 cup oat bran
• 5 tablespoons olive oil or cold pressed coconut oil 
•  1 cup curd
• 100 grams flax seeds
•  100 grams sesame seeds
• 2 teaspoons salt
• water

Method:

• Put all the dry ingredients into a big bowl and mix them well with a spoon. Then add the oil, the curd and enough cold water to make smooth dough. Knead the dough well for at least 5 minutes, using your hands. Consider this exercise; kneading works out the muscles in your arms. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes before rolling it out. 
• You can bake the crackers on a cookie sheet or in any pie form. I take big, stainless steel plates which I also use for making pizza.
• Dust your work surface with flour. Take some dough and roll it out as thinly as possible in the shape you require. Put the dough on the cookie sheet, pie form or plate and score lines with a sharp knife. These lines help to break the crackers after baking. The above given amount is enough to cover 4 cookie sheets or 6 stainless steel plates with 30 cm (12 inches) diameter
• Usually, I divide my round dough into eight pieces like a cake. If I make a rectangle for a cookie sheet, I divide the dough into triangles (as you can see in the picture).
• Bake the crackers for 20 minutes at 200 degrees Celsius. They should be hard, dry and slightly browned. Let them cool down on a rack, and then break them into pieces. You can store the crackers in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

 

Spicy salsa dip

Ingredients (for 4 servings):

•  4 big, red tomatoes
•  1 red or yellow bell pepper
•   4 fresh, green chilies 
•    1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar 
•     1 tablespoon olive oil
•   ½ teaspoon sugar
•   Salt
•   freshly grated pepper
•   any kind of herb you like

Method:

•  It is important to use only fully ripened tomatoes for this recipe. Put the tomatoes for 1 minute into a pot of boiling water. Let them cool down, remove the skin, the seeds and any white pieces from the stalk.
• Cut the flesh into small cubes and put them into a bowl.
• Remove the stalk and the seeds from the bell peppers, cut the flesh into small cubes and add them to the bowl.
• Slice the green chilies open and remove the seeds. Cut them into small pieces and add to the bowl.
• Wash the herbs, chop finely and add to the bowl.   
•  I use parsley and/or basil because my men don’t like fresh coriander. However, if you appreciate fresh coriander, don’t hesitate to use it in this recipe. It gives a lovely fragrance together with the punch of the chilies.
• Add the sugar, the vinegar and the oil and salt and pepper according to your taste. Mix everything well. Let the salsa marinate at least one hour in the fridge before serving.