Monday, June 27, 2011

My kitchen, the scene of a Hommuside

As I was waiting for a friend of mine to arrive at my little Darlinghurst studio for dinner, I found myself feeling peckish. So I rustled up what has to be one of my all time favourite snacks (aside from cheese, which in my opinion is more of a staple), Hommus. My take on this delicious dip is quite rustic (and by rustic I mean that I have yet to buy myself a stick blender so have to mash everything up in a mortar and pestle), but boy is it tasty!



Here's what you'll need:

  • 2 tins of chick peas (drained and rinsed)
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons of tahini
  • 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • the juice of 1-2 lemons
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • salt and pepper
Chuck (yes, that is the correct culinary term), the chickpeas into a bowl along with the olive oil, tahini, garlic, and some of the lemon juice. Blend ingredients with a stick blender, or any type of blender for that matter, until somewhat smooth (add some water if the consistency is too thick). From here it becomes a tasting game. Add some salt, pepper and cumin until you feel the balance of flavours is to your liking. I prefer my hommus really garlicy and lemony, but you may prefer yours to have more of a creamy, tahini kind of taste. 

*I forgot to mention that if you have the time, you can roast the garlic first in the oven until it's really soft, and then add it to the hommus for that extra punch of flavour (I'd like to thank my friend Tam for that idea).

Friday, June 24, 2011

An Eaternal Love Story

I've thoroughly enjoyed my food from the moment I was born. Eating for me has always been my most favourite past time, so it made sense that cooking would become my second most favourite. Not to say that I'm some kind of culinary genius, but I do know how to create tasty, flavoursome dishes using healthy(ish), simple ingredients.

What I think I love most about food is that eating it engages all 5 senses and that each meal can be an amazing emotional experience and not just a way to fill a hole in an empty tummy. In fact, eating is such an emotional experience for me that I have been known, on numerous occasions, to cry when I taste something that is really delicious. Only a couple of weeks ago, I had to hold back a sob in a Thai restaurant when I tasted the most amazing fermented pork and sticky rice sausages, and I'm not even that big of a fan of sausages!

My main aim of this blog is to share my love of food, some of my favourite recipes, as well as a few funny stories along the way I'm sure. So watch this space, as tasty recipes are soon to follow! :)