Pickled Beets Recipe INGREDIENTS 1 bunch (4 or 5) beets 1/4 cup cider vinegar 1 Tbsp sugar 1 Tbsp olive oil 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard Salt and pepper METHOD 1 Remove greens from beets, save for future use (see beet greens recipe). Cut beets to uniform sizes so they will cook evenly. Steam or boil around 30 minutes or until done. (Alternatively, you can roast them by wrapping them whole in foil and cooking them in a 350°F oven for about an hour.) A fork easily inserted into the beet will tell you if the beets are done or not. 2 Drain the beets, rinsing them in cold water. Use your fingers to slip the peels off of the beets. The peels should come off easily. Discard the peels. Slice the beets. 3 Make the vinaigrette by combining the cider vinegar, sugar, olive oil, and dry mustard. Whisk ingredients together with a fork. The dry mustard will help to emulsify the vinaigrette. Adjust to taste. Add salt and pepper to taste. Combine beets and vinaigrette in a bowl and allow to marinate for a half hour at room temperature. Serves four.

Houmous without sesame seeds

1 red pepper
400g can chick peas, drained
1 large clove of garlic
1T lemon juice
1/2 t each ground cumin, ground coriander and chilli powder
A little sea salt and black pepper
1-2 T natural yogurt

1. Cook the red pepper under a hot grill, turning frequently, until the skin turns black. Place in a polythene bag. When cold, peel off the skin and deseed.

2. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend to a rough purée. Season to taste and turn into a bowl. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour to give the flavours a chance to develop.

I made houmous this morning!

I tried one of the recipes this morning and was so proud of myself. It turned out great but it was a little runny. No wonder! I mixed up cans and cups on the Silver Palate cookbook recipe. So, instead of 4 cups, I used 2. It was good nonetheless, with a slightly stronger taste of tahini than usual. I will try it again in a week or so once I've gone through all the houmus that this recipe make!

The big question is whether or not this is cheaper. Mine made 28 fluid oz of houmous but I have yet to go through and do a costing. However, I can say that it didn't take long to make - between 10 and 12 minutes.

Houmus, hummus, houmous

However you spell it, it is still a chick pea and tahini dip. According to a Guardian writer, it's easy to make and much less expensive to do it yourself. I have two cans of chick peas in the cupboard and a jar of tahini, a give away from the cupboard of a colleague. I have lots of olive oil and some lemons so I definitely feel an evening of humous making coming on. I have various recipes to choose from and here they are below:

From 'the Art of Syrian Cooking' by Zeinab Al-Abed, a former colleague:

1 lb. of dried chick peas
3 cloves of garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 lemons, juice
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 cup (4 oz) Tahini
3 tablespoons of plain yogurt
salt to taste

1. Soak chick peas overnight, then boil for 45 minutes until they are soft.
2. Put chick peas, garlic, lemon juice and 2 cups of water (not mentioned in the ingredient list!), yogurt, salt to taste and tahini in a blender and blend at medium speed for two minutes.
3. Put in a bowl and sprinkle cumin on top, then add some olive oil.
4. Eat with pita bread.

Note: If I use this recipe I will use canned beans. However, dried beans would be less expensive.

Recipe 2: From 'Moosewood Cookbook' by Mollie Katzen. I love the illustrations in this vegetarian cookbook. Recipes are great too!

1 1/2 cups (a cup = 8 fl. oz) raw chickpeas soaked and boiled (I'm sure that canned beans are fine)
3 medium cloves minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
dash of tamari (I have no idea what that is)
juice from 2 medium lemons
3/4 cups of tahini
1/4 cup (packed) finely minced parsley
lots of black pepper and dash of cayenne
1/4 cup minced scallions

1. Mash chickpeas to a thick paste, using a food mill or grinder or masher
2. Combine everything and chill thoroughly.
3. Taste to correct seasonings. Some people like extra garlic, tamari or tahini.

Recipe 3: From 'The Silver Palate Cookbook: Hummus bi tahini

4 cups (about 2 1/2 cans) chick peas, drained
1/2 cups of tahini
1/3 cup warm water
juice of 2 or 3 lemons
4 or more garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons group cumin seed
freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Combine chick-peas, tahini, warm water, olive oil and juice of 1 lemon in the bowl of a food processor (or a blender). Process until smooth and creamy, pausing once or twice to scrape down sides of the bowl with a spatula.

2. Add garlic, salt, cuminseed and pepper to taste, and process to blend. Taste and correct seasoning if necessary. Add more lemon juice to taste. Crape into a storage container, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

So, tomorrow night I will choose one of these and try it out.