Sprouting

The food of the month February (yes, I am a bit behind. What shall I say, three kids don’t leave much time) are sprouts! Its a great way to get some fresh foods and vitamins and it is really fun to make.
My favourites so far are Alfalfa sprouts which are great in salad and on sandwiches, and lentil sprouts which I love as some kind of spiced warm lentil salad.

It is still not clear to me if it is advisable to eat sprouted legumes raw. Beans, lentils and other legumes contain the toxin phytohemagglutinin which is destroyed through cooking  – but also soaking and sprouting are ways to destroy the toxin. I am just not sure, if sprouting is enough to remove all toxin, or how much of it is still left. For this reason, I decided to at least saute my sprouted lentils for a few minutes before eating.

I do my sprouting in a glass. I close the glass with a mesh (usually used to make window screens). Key is a good hygiene – the seeds have to be washed and watered twice a day and thoroughly drained, and the glasses and covers have to be well cleaned with warm and soapy water before and after use.

Here is the warm sprouted lentil salad:

You’ll need:

• sprouted lentils (and if you want some sprouted chickpeas)
• olive oil or ghee
• garlic
• turmeric
• soy sauce
• fresh ginger
• some water (or wine)  if needed

How to prepare:

1. Saute finely chopped garlic together with some turmeric in some olive oil or ghee on low flame for about a minute.
2. Ad the sprouted lentils and some soy sauce. Cover and let simmer on low flame for about 10 minutes (if you add chickpeas let them simmer first for 10 minutes before adding the lentils).
3. If lentils are too dry add some water (or white wine).
4. Add finely grated ginger. Let simmer for 1 minute.
5. Add salt to taste.
6. Sprincle with fresh parsley or cilantro.

Enjoy!

This post first appeared on tamtamtiger.wordpress.com.

 

Hummus

I don’t understand why hummus is not that popular in Germany. It is hard to find in stores – there is certainly no comparison to the shelves and shelves of hummus variations in US supermarkets. The hummus I did find here in supermarkets was, what shall I say, not what I had expected. So, there is only one way to a good bowl of humus: I have to making it myself. Cooking the chickpeas is not such a big deal, it is mainly about remembering to soak them over night. And whenever I make my new favorite summer dish, I cook plenty of chickpeas and turn the extra amount into hummus.

There are many ways of making hummus. I tried out several recipes, but the essential parts are chickpeas, tahini (sesame paste), salt and garlic. Many recipes add olive oil into the mix, but, depending on the oil it might give it a slightly bitter taste. Finally I found this recipe, which makes a very yummy, fresh and smooth hummus:

• 2 cups cooked, drained chickpeas (how I cook the chickpeas see here)
• 1/2 cup tahini paste
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 small cloves garlic, finely chopped or squeezed
• salt to taste
• ca 1/4 cup water or reserved chickpeas cooking water

1. The original recipe calls for peeled chickpeas. I just don’t do that. Maybe my hummus is not as smooth but certainly smooth enough for me. I just chop my un-peeled chickpeas in the food processor until they are turned into a fine powder.
2. Add lemon juice, tahini, salt, garlic and water and blend into a smooth paste.
3. Adjust the taste by adding salt, lemon juice or garlic, but remember that the garlic will intensify with time.
4. Serve with a drizzle of olive oil.

This is great with toasted pita wedges, as a dip for veggies (I mix the hummus with some yogurt), in wraps, on sandwiches, with pasta, etc….. or just by the spoonful!

Enjoy!

This is my contribution to Veggie-Thursday, and siebenhundertsachen‘s collection.

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Und nun noch fix auf deutsch:

• 2 Tassen (ca. ml) gekochte Kichererbsen.
• 1/2 Tasse  Tahini (Sesammus)
• Saft einer Zitrone
• 2 kleine Knoblauchzehen, fein gehackt
• Salz
• ca 1/4 Tasse Wasser oder Kochwasser von den Kichererbsen.

1. Das Originalrezept verlangt geschälte Kichererbsen. Aber ich spare mir die Mühe. Vielleicht wäre das Hummus dann feiner, aber so ist es auch gut genug für mich. Ich gebe also meine ungeschaelten Kichererbsen in die Küchenmachine und verarbeite sie zu feinem Pulver. (Kichererbsen kann man in Dosen kaufen oder auch ganz leicht selber kochen. Einfach Kichererbsen über Nacht in reichlich Wasser einweichen, am nächsten Tag abspülen und in reichlich frischen Wasser ca. 45 min kochen, bis sie weich sind.)
2. Füge Zitronensaft, Salz, Tahini, Knoblauch und Wasser hinzu und verarbeite alles zu einer glatten Paste.
3. Schmecke das Hummus mit Zitronensaft, Salz, und Knoblauch ab, aber denke daran, dass der Geschmack des Knoblauchs mit der Zeit noch intensiver wird, warte also erst mal ehe Du mehr Knoblauch hinzufügst.
4. Gieße zum servieren einen Schuss Olivenöl darüber.

Hummus ist wunderbar zu geröstetem Pitabrot, als Gemüsedip (ich mische es dann mit etwas Jogurt), in Wraps, als Brotaufstrich, in Spaghettisosse, usw. Oder auch einfach pur. Löffelweise!