Simple Guacamole & Hummus

Guacamole: California + avocados = awesome. For reals. The easiest way to entertain is to have a bowl of fresh, homemade guacamole and some chips, so that's just what I did. I forgot to take pictures that time, but decided to make another batch for a BBQ with friends - they spread it on the hamburgers to make guacamole hamburger - that was absolutely delicious. :)

Ingredients
3 ripe Hass avocados
2-3 fresh Roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 onion, diced (I used white, but I'm thinking red would be better).
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp black pepper

1. Cut the avocados in half, slicing around the pit. Remove the pit. Make horizontal and vertical cuts into the avocado shell, making sure to not pierce the shell itself. With a spoon, scoop out the meat in cubes. Mash with the lemon juice to keep it from turning black. You could also keep 1/2 an avocado separate from the mash, cut it into smaller cubes, and mix it in to make the guac chunky.
2. Mix in the tomatoes and onions, adjusting the amount to your taste and based on the size of your tomatoes and onions.
3. Add the spices. Adjust amount to your taste. I personally prefer a little more cayenne pepper and sometimes also a dash of paprika. Serve with chips.


Hummus: Along with guacamole, I also like making a simple hummus. I thought about adding roasted peppers, but decided to leave that for next time. I don't like garlic, so I didn't add any of that. Turns out this is a very simple dip to make, and is both healthy and cheap. I don't know why store-bought hummus is always so expensive, when the ingredients are so cheap and the process so effortless. I forgot to bring cayenne pepper & paprika when I made the BBQ's hummus though, and that changed the flavor a lot - I recommend not skipping that.

Ingredients
2 cans 16oz chick peas, or garbanzo beans
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp tahini (optional)

1. Drain the garbanzo beans. Reserve the liquid from 1 can.
2. Put the garbanzo beans and lemon juice in the food processor. Blend for a few minutes, using a spoon at intervals to mix it and make sure all the skins are being minced. Add the olive oil, spices, tahini. Add the reserved liquid a little at a time, blending in between, until you get the thickness and consistency you want. Adjust spices to taste.
3. That's it! So simple!

I keep talking about a BBQ, and thought it would be fitting to end this post with a picture of the BBQ, so here you go - open flame! (I'm starting to think I might have something of a pyro streak in me...)

Chhole-Bhatura and Aloo Shaak

Chhole is a dish of chickpeas in a tomato-based sauce, and it's traditionally eaten with bhatura, which is a fried bread made from white flour. A few weeks ago (I'm way behind on my posts too!) we made this dish with a simple potato dish. The chhole and potato recipes are direct rips from my mother's recipes. We never really made bhatura at home (my mom generally made poori instead, which is fried, unleavened bread made with whole wheat flour) to eat with these dishes. Additionally, we'd usually eat them with shrikand, which is a dish made by pressing the water out of yogurt and then adding sugar and saffron. But that process generally takes over a day so it didn't happen :)

The potatoes are made just like the aloo gobi from last month, omitting the cauliflower. I added a handful of defrosted frozen peas after the potatoes were done cooking to add some color.

The bhatura were made based off a recpie found here. The recipe turned out to make the dough waaaay too moist, so we ended up doubling the flour and the baking powder, and adding a few tablespoons of oil and water.

Chhole-Bhatura
yield: ~7 servings

For the Chhole:
4 small-medium onions, chopped
7 plum tomatoes, chopped
vegetable oil
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
3 green chilis, spliced once down the vertical center
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin-corriendar powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
3 cans chick peas

For the Bhatura:
2 cups of white all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup non-fat yogurt
Water
Vegetable oil (lots of it--for frying)

Coat a medium-sized frying pan in vegetable oil and place over medium-high heat. When the oil is heated, add the onions and stir until coated in oil. Cook the onions until translucent, about 5 minutes. Keep stirring occasionally and cover if necessary to keep from sticking. Add the garlic paste, ginger paste, and green chilis and cook for another minute. Then add the remaining spices and the tomatoes. Stir and cover. Reduce heat to medium and allow to simmer for about 5 minutes until tomatoes have reduced and the onions are cooked through. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Remove the green chilis and discard. Place the onion-tomato mixture in a blender and puree. Return the mixture to the pan (or a saucepan) and add the drained chick peas. Cover and simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes to allow the chick peas to soften slightly and absorb some of the flavor.

To make the bhatura, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Combine slowly with the yogurt and a few tablespoons of water and oil until a manageable dough forms. Set aside for 1-2 hrs in a warm place. Then break off small balls of dough (golf-ball-sized) and coat with more flour. Roll into circles about 2mm thick. Heat ~4 inches of oil in a thick-bottomed pot (eg the bottom of a pressure cooker or a wok). To test the oil, slide a tiny ball of dough (size of a whole black peppercorn) into the hot oil. If it sizzles and floats and cooks immediately, the oil is ready. Slide the bhaturas in 1-3 at a time (depending on the size of your pot). Cook on either side for a minute until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel.

Serve everything together warm, with yogurt. Make sure you eat the traditional Indian way--with your hands! :)