Spicy Hummus Wontons

Over the past few weeks I have been making these little guys for lunch for Ryan and myself - experimenting with different flavored hummus, different folding of the wonton skins, and different toppings - so now I am ready to share them.



The idea is pretty simple. Put little spoonfuls of hummus onto flat squares of wonton skin, fold, fry, and eat!

Spicy Hummus Wontons

Roasted Red Pepper and Jalapeno Hummus
Wonton skins (they usually come in a pack of 100 so perhaps use a 1/4th at a time and freeze the rest for the future)
Extra virgin olive oil
Cayenne Pepper
Shriracha

1. Using your brand new cast iron skillet (oh wait you don't have one? get one! or use what you have i suppose...) pour enough oil into the skillet so that the bottom is covered with a thin layer. Heat over medium heat.

2. Here is how you make them. Use a cookie sheet or a large cutting board and cover it with wax paper. Lay out as many wontons as you can handle (I usually do 12) and put a small spoonful of hummus on each square.


3. Fill a small bowl with water. Dip your finger into the water and gently trace the outline of half the square.


4. Fold each square in half and fold the top two corners down towards the straight edge. They should look like this.


5. When the oil is hot place as many wontons as will fit in the pan without them touching into the skillet. Cook 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until they are crispy and brown. Remove from the skillet and transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Repeat the process with any remaining wontons.


6. Serve with Shriracha and cayenne pepper and even a little more hummus for dipping.


Enjoy!

Pita Pizza with Hummus, Leeks, Spinach and Radish

Like I mentioned in a previous post - I have been getting myself to the Frederick farmers market every saturday in hopes of filling a void left from my French market days. Last week I came across these cute little radishes and thought to myself that perhaps the markets in the US aren't so different after all - oh wait - there are no pigs heads here or chickens with their feet and feathers and heads still attached!....but mostly its the same right?




I got back to the house and went out in the garden right away to snap a few pictures of them and then got to thinking - what should I do with them? In France we ate them raw - with a little butter or salt - but I wanted something a little more exciting for my meal.



Tuesday this week we went to Ocean City for the day with some friends. After swimming we chowed down on some Thrashers and then moved on to pizza. Unfortunately as I have recently cut out dairy from my diet - pizza was kinda a boring choice for me. What it came down to was a fourth of a pizza with a thin layer of tomato sauce and two or three wilted looking broccoli on top. This is no pizza - so I decided to make my radishes a topping for a satisfying "pizza."

I say "pizza" because as you can see - it doesn't look like your typical pizza.



Pita Pizza for 2

2 whole wheat pita rounds
2 leeks, sliced thin
small bunch of radishes, sliced thin
2 cups torn spinach leaves
roasted red pepper hummus
1 avocado, diced
small bunch cilantro
extra virgin olive oil
herbs de provence



1. Preheat the oven to 375. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Sautee the leeks and radishes together until the leeks begin to brown and the radishes soften. Add the spinach and sautee, stirring, until the spinach is wilted and soft. Set aside.
2. Place the pitas on a foil lined baking sheet. In a small bowl combine several soup-spoonfuls of hummus, 1 tsp of olive oil and a 1/4 teaspoon or so of herbs de provence. Spread the mixture evenly on the pitas. Top the hummus with the suateed veggies.
3. Bake the pizzas for 7-8 minutes or until the sides of the pita are golden. Top each pizza with avocado and serve with cilantro.



I left this meal totally satisfied and totally shocked that I hadn't even felt the slightest twinge of dairy desire.

Look out for some cooking with kale next week!

Atrichoke Hummus

I've been making lots of hummus based sammys lately because its filling, nutritious, and darn yummy. I spied this recipe on Pinch My Salt's Blog. After I made my ownPesto I started looking for more spreads I could make my own in the food processor. This was great.

Artichoke Hummus

1 15-ounce can of garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
6 ounces marinated artichoke hearts, drained and rinsed
1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped or pressed
2 tablespoons tahini (sesame seed paste)
juice of half a lemon (or more, to taste)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or to taste)
small squirt of Sriracha (optional)