Hummus Heaped with Summer Salad

Photo by Deb Perelman of The Smitten Kitchen

JP tells me that the tomatoes are again in abundance this week at Glade Road Growing, as are onions and green peppers, so I thought I'd come up with a recipe inspired by this picture by Deb Perelman, who notes that "throughout the Middle East, there are hummusiots/hummsias, places that serve hummus warm and freshly made, often a little softer than what we get here, usually heaped with other things."

If you live in (or near) Blacksburg and want something more special than store-bought but don't feel like baking pitas  or yogurt flatbreads, you can get great pita bread from Jess Schultz and Pete Macedo at Blacksburg Bagels at the Farmers' Market or from Aaron Grigsby at Tabula Rasa on Glade, the Glade Road Growing farm kitchen.

Perelman is somewhat "persnickety" and peels her chickpeas.  (Or since she lives in NYC, she can go over to Lexington Avenue and buy dried peeled chickpeas, say what?)  I, on the other hand, am more laid back, other than to refuse to make my hummus from canned chickpeas, which I swear a cookbook author suggested at a demo the Virginia Festival of the Book.

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Serves 4


Ingredients:

Hummus

1 cup of dried chickpeas
1/2 cup of sesame seeds
3-4  cloves of fresh garlic, smashed, peeled
3 tablespoons of lemon, lime or orange juice
1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon cumin


4 large pita breads or yogurt flatbreads

Salad

1 1/2 cup of heirloom and cherry tomatoes, chopped small,
1/2 pound of small cucumbers, washed, unpeeled, chopped small
1 bell pepper, chopped small
1/4 medium red or white onion, chopped small
1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon or lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons herbs (cilantro, parsley, mint, oregano, thyme or chives or a mixture of those), finely chopped
1 teaspoon of ground sumac (optional, if you cannot find it.)


Directions:

1.  The night before, in a heavy bottomed stainless steel pan, cover dried chickpeas with three cups of water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low, cover with lid and simmer for five minutes.  Let soak overnight.  Drain and rinse the chickpeas and repeat, but this time simmer until soft, about an hour to an hour and a half.  Drain and rinse a second time.

2.  Heat a cast iron skillet lightly coated with extra virgin olive oil until a bead of water evaporates.  Cover bottom of skillet with raw sesame seeds and toast until they just pop.  Transfer to a bowl to cool.  Repeat until all the seeds are toasted.

3.  In a heavy duty blender or food processor combine the cooked chickpeas, the toasted sesame seeds and the remaining ingredients and process until smooth.  If your hummus seems too too thick, you can thin it with cool water.  (You can also substitute water for the olive oil to make a lower fat version, but really, why?)

4.  Warm 4 large pitas or flat breads, one at a time, in a cast iron skillet and cut into wedges

5. Mix tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, bell pepper, lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper in a bowl. If you have sumac, add about 1/4 teaspoon. Stir in half of herbs, reserving the rest for a garnish

6.  Spread hummus on a large plate with the back of a spoon, creating swirls and cavities. Drizzle it lightly with additional extra virgin olive oil.  Heap salad on hummus and arrange pita wedges around the edges of the plate. Finish with a sprinkling of the remaining sumac and fresh herbs.

Fennel, Radish and Strawberry Salad with Sumac

Photo by Yuki Sugiura  for The Guardian.


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JP tells me the June 13, 2017 farm share for Glade Road Growing will include fennel, baby greens, summer squash, cilantro, beets with greens, and red radishes.

The Guardian had this lovely picture by London based photographer Yuki Sugiura of a salad with fennel and radishes with pomegranate seeds.  Given the season and what's available locally, might I suggest strawberries instead?  I've seasoned this salad with ground sumac, often added to Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking to add tartness.  While the staff at Eats told me that they don't stock sumac in their bulk spices, they suggest you might try Oasis.  You can also harvest sumac here in the fall.  (Poison sumac has white berries, but for more identification, see this post from the Ashville, NC foraging company, No Taste Like Home.)

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Serves 4

Ingredients:

3 tbsp lime juice
1 fennel bulb, about half a pound trimmed
1/2 pound of red radishes, trimmed
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cups of strawberries, trimmed and halved
1 tsp sumac (optional, if you can't find it)
Sea salt

Directions:

1.  Wash the fennel and trim the root end off the bulb and discard.  Trim off the stems and fronds and cut the bulb into quarters  and slice thinly.  Place in a bowl of cold water with 1 tablespoon of the lime juice to keep from discoloring.  Reserve stems and fronds for another purpose.  (I like to coarsely chop and steam the stems and puree them like I would celery in soups.  I like to puree the fronds with nuts, olive oil and Parmesan, Romano or Asiago cheese to make a pesto.)

2.  Wash the radishes and trim off the roots and discard. Trim off the leaves, if any and finely slice the radishes.  If there are leaves, you can use reserve them for another use.  (I like to chop and saute them, as I would turnip greens.  They also add a peppery taste to salads.)

3.  Wash the strawberries, drain immediately.  Trim off the top stem and leaves.  Cut in halves, or quarters, if large.

3.  To make dressing, whisk the oil and remaining lime juice together.

4.  Drain the fennel and toss gently with the radishes and strawberries. Drizzle over the dressing and serve on individual plates, dusted with sumac and a little salt.  Serve immediately.