Hummus

Originally posted by: https://cookieandkate.com/best-hummus-recipe/

INGREDIENTS

1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas

½ teaspoon baking soda (if you’re using canned chickpeas)

¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 ½ to 2 lemons), more to taste

1 medium-to-large clove garlic, roughly chopped

½ teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste

½ cup tahini

2 to 4 tablespoons ice water, more as needed

½ teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Any of the following garnishes: drizzle of olive oil or zhoug sauce, sprinkle of ground sumac or paprika, chopped fresh parsley

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the chickpeas in a medium saucepan and add the baking soda. Cover the chickpeas by several inches of water, then bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Continue boiling, reducing heat if necessary to prevent overflow, for about 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas look bloated, their skins are falling off, and they’re quite soft. In a fine-mesh strainer, drain the chickpeas and run cool water over them for about 30 seconds. Set aside (no need to peel the chickpeas for this recipe!).

Meanwhile, in a food processor or high-powered blender, combine the lemon juice, garlic and salt. Process until the garlic is very finely chopped, then let the mixture rest so the garlic flavor can mellow, ideally 10 minutes or longer.

Add the tahini to the food processor and blend until the mixture is thick and creamy, stopping to scrape down any tahini stuck to the sides and bottom of the processor as necessary.

While running the food processor, drizzle in 2 tablespoons ice water. Scrape down the food processor, and blend until the mixture is ultra smooth, pale and creamy. (If your tahini was extra-thick to begin with, you might need to add 1 to 2 tablespoons more ice water.)

Add the cumin and the drained, over-cooked chickpeas to the food processor. While blending, drizzle in the olive oil. Blend until the mixture is super smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor as necessary, about 2 minutes. Add more ice water by the tablespoon if necessary to achieve a super creamy texture.

Taste, and adjust as necessary—I almost always add another ¼ teaspoon salt for more overall flavor and another tablespoon of lemon juice for extra zing.

Scrape the hummus into a serving bowl or platter, and use a spoon to create nice swooshes on top. Top with garnishes of your choice, and serve. Leftover hummus keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week.

Hot Mama Grade:B+

Hot Mama Notes:This hummus is good. It tastes light. After being in the frig, it does get less flat. Maybe next time I will add more olive oil. 

NOTES

Recipe adapted from Michael Solomonov, via The New York Times and Bon Appetit, and Yotam Ottolenghi. 

HOW TO COOK DRY CHICKPEAS IN A HURRY FOR THIS RECIPE: In a large saucepan, combine 5 ounces (¾ cup) dried chickpeas and ½ teaspoon baking soda, and fill the pot with water. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat and skim off the surface foam as needed. Continue boiling over medium-high, adding more water if you start running out, until the chickpeas are very mushy and falling apart, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Drain in a fine-mesh colander, rinse under cool running water, and drain well before using. Start the recipe at step 2.

Hummus Garnishes

Drizzle of olive oil

Sprinkle of ground sumac, which is gloriously sour and deep pink, or paprika, which is basically flavorless but offers a splash of color

Sesame seeds or seeded spice blend, such as dukkah

Middle Eastern hot sauce, such as zhoug or shatta

Chopped fresh pasrley

Hummus Variations

This hummus recipe is plain (and by plain, I mean delicious), but you can blend any of the following in with the chickpeas to make variations.

Green goddess hummus: 3/4 cup loosely packed fresh, leafy herbs

Kalamata olive hummus: 3/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives

Roasted garlic hummus: Cloves from 1 to 2 heads of roasted garlic

Roasted red pepper hummus: 3/4 cup roasted red peppers, drained and [ into strips

Sun-dried tomato hummus: 3/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and drained (from one 6.7-ounce jar)

Toasted sesame hummus: 1/2 teaspoon in the hummus, plus 1 teaspoon drizzled on top

Use trader Joe's tahini! 

Mom's Chocolate Chio Cookies

From : Walmart Milk Chocolate Chip Package

Hot Mama Grade:A

Hot Mama Notes: These cookies are amazing! My mom add a cup or half cup of pulverized nuts (walnuts) 

White Chicken Chili

Originally posted by: https://www.cookingclassy.com/white-chicken-chili/#jump-to-recipe

Ingredients

1 small yellow onion , diced

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic , finely minced

2 (14.5 oz) cans low-sodium chicken broth

1 (7 oz) can diced green chilies

1 1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

salt and freshly ground black pepper , to taste

1 (8 oz) pkg Neufchatel cheese (aka light cream cheese), cut into small cubes

1 1/4 cup frozen or fresh corn

2 (15 oz) cans cannellini beans

2 1/2 cups shredded cooked rotisserie or left-over chicken*

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for serving

Tortilla chips or strips, monterrey jack cheese, sliced avocado for serving (optional)

Instructions:

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute 4 minutes minutes. Add garlic and saute 30 seconds longer.

Add chicken broth, green chilies, cumin, paprika, oregano, coriander, cayenne pepper and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture just to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 15 minutes.

Drain and rinse beans in a fine mesh strainer or colander then measure out 1 cup. Set whole beans aside, transfer 1 cup beans to a food processor along with 1/4 cup broth from soup, puree until nearly smooth**.

Add Neufchatel cheese to soup along with corn, whole beans and pureed beans and stir well. Simmer 5 - 10 minutes longer.

Stir in chicken, fresh lime juice and cilantro. Serve with Monterrey Jack cheese, more cilantro, avocado slices and tortilla chips if desired.

Hot Mama Grade: A

Hot Mama Notes: This chili is good. I might make it again. My kids liked it. I added some peas later, and they were a good addition. I used a rotisserie chicken,frozen corn, and cream cheese. 

Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies

Originally from the back of the package.

Hot Mama Grade: B

Hot Mama Notes: I cut down the sugar to 1/2 c for both white and brown sugars. That was a good choice. These cookies were super sweet, they didn't need to be any sweeter. I used the amount of chips specified in the recipe, but if I were to make these again, I would use slightly less chips, and do half/half butterscotch and milk chocolate chips.  I didn't love these cookies, but they were okay. The kids liked them well enough. Still, I don't see a reason to make them again. 

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

Recipe from back of package.

Hot Mama Grade: C-

Hot Mama Notes: I was very disappointed by these cookies. I was expecting amazingness, and instead I got lackluster. One thing I didn't like about these cookies were the chunks (chips) themselves. Ick. They tasted too much like white chocolate which I don't care for at all. Secondly, I didn't bring the butter to room temperature as I should have, so I was stuck melting it on the microwave, and too much of it got melted. I think this contributed to the flatness of the cookies. Plus maybe my baking soda was old? But I don't think so. Any way, cookie FAILURE! These will not be made again, not will I buy that brand of chips again. Sigh. I feel so let down! The kids like them at least. They think I am too harsh, but really these cookies are no good. I like chocolate Peppermint Cookies, just not these!

Crock Pot Rice Pudding

Originally from: Fix it and forget it Slow Cooker Recipe Book (see image at end) 

Hot Mama Grade: D

Hot Mama Notes: This dessert was very tasty but otherwise it was a complete disaster! The rice was crunchy as it didn't cook. The mixture did not stay mixed, so it turned out more like a custard than a rice pudding. I am lucky it didn't turn out like scrambled eggs! 🙄 Next time I will make the rice pudding in a pot, the regular way so it is smooth and has the right texture and consistency! The kids did like it regardless, which makes me want to make rice pudding that is actually like rice pudding is supposed to be!! 

Italian Seasoning

Originally posted by: 

https://www.spendwithpennies.com/homemade-italian-seasoning-recipe/

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons dried basil
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1 tablespoons dried rosemary
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon red chili flakes
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Pour into an air tight container and store in a cool dark place for up to 6 months.

Hot Mama Grade: A 

Hot Mama Notes: Easy peasey. I hate buying spice mixes that I can make myself! 

Microwaved Beets

Originally posted by: https://www.cookinglight.com/cooking-101/how-to-microwave-beets-hack

Beets are way better fresh, and roasting beets can be a pretty involved, time-intensive process. Microwaving yields perfect, fork-tender beets in a fraction of the time as the oven.

Directions:

1. Trim off greens. 

2. Scrub beets with brush or scouring pad to remove all dirt. 

3. If the are smaller, then they can be cooked while. Otherwise, quarter up the beets. 

4. Pierce beets with knife to allow steam to release. 

5. Wrap/cover beets in parchment paper to keep moist.

6. Microwave until tender. 

7. Peel if needed. 

Hot Mama Grade: A 

Hot Mama Notes: Delicious and easy! I did not need to peel. There was almost no own and I scrubbed them well. I did cube them to cut down on cooking time because they were quite large (medium sized, really, but not small). I put them face down on the plated, and covered them with parchment paper and then the microwave cover. I cooked them 6 minutes, and then 6 more because they were still hard after the first six minutes. After 12 minutes, beet perfection!! :D

Baked Salmon in Foil

Originally posted by: https://www.wholesomerecipebox.com/lemon-garlic-butter-salmon-baked-in-foil/

Ingredients:

1.5 pounds salmon fillet

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cloves garlic finely minced

1/2 lemon juice only

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon salt

black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons butter diced

 Directions:

Prep: Preheat oven to 400°.  Place a large piece of aluminum foil in a large rimmed baking dish that will comfortably hold all of your salmon (the baking dish is to catch any drippings – way easier to clean than your oven!).

Season fish: Lightly grease the foil with olive oil. Place the salmon fillets on top (they can be close together if using individual fillets, just not on top of each other). Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and evenly scatter garlic on top. Drizzle with lemon juice and sprinkle with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Dot with butter. Seal foil over salmon.

Bake: Bake for 10-15 minutes (depending on the thickness of your fillet or until salmon flakes easily. Serve immediately.

You can tell the fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.

To be safe, check the internal temperature at the thickness part with an instant read thermometer – it should be 145°F to be safe.

This recipe is for pre-cut fillets here, but an entire side of salmon works great, too.

The entire side takes about 5-10 minutes longer to bake than individual fillets.

This recipe is great for those “oops” moments at 5pm: You can bake salmon from frozen!

It’s not optimal because it’s a little harder to get it done evenly, but it still works.

Simply follow the recipe, but double the baking time. 

Hot Mama Grade: A 

Hot Mama Notes: This fish was really good! Surprisingly so! I prefer my salmon grilled, but it is a hassle for me. The oven is easier. I lined a cookie sheet with foil, and then pulled another long sheet of foil to seal the fish in. I put 1T olive oil on the foil to prevent sticking. I actually ending up forgetting the butter, but I would try adding it next time. I did put an additional 1T of olive oil on the fish. I didn't have Italian seasoning, so I made some (see other recipe posted). I am sure I put way more seasoning than 1t, but it ended up being really good! Next time I would put the lemon juice (1 frozen lemon juice cube thawed) on first before the olive oil and spices. I crushed 3 large fresh cloves of garlic. I had fresh chopped basil in a refrigerated tube, so I used some of that. I put on dried oregano and thyme, plus an additional sprinkle of garlic powder. I omitted the rosemary because I didn't feel like digging through my spice cabinet looking for it, and I was too lazy to go out in the yard and get a fresh sprig! 🙄 Same with basil, I could have used fresh, but I want to use up the refrigerated paste, and it is so convenient. I sprinkled on the salt and pepper. As mentioned, I forgot the butter. I sealed up the foil packet. I baked it (1.25 lbs, thawed from the freezer, the whole side) on 400F for 25 minutes which aligned with the salmon package cooking directions. It also said to put in the meat thermometer at the thickest party and it had to be 145F. Mine was way over that, like 166F. Probably 20 minutes would have been enough, but it wasn't over done. So tasty and moist from the foil packet, and easy to clean up!

I served the fish with microwaved beets which were a HUGE hit (who knew my kids liked beets! Woo hoo!) and sliced salted cucumbers. A delicious meal that I will Definitely make again! 😁❤️

Roasted Zucchini with Parmesan

Ingredients:

Zucchini, sliced

Olive oil 

Parmesan cheese, shredded

Salt & Pepper

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400F.

Slice zucchini and put on parchment paper. Brush both sides of the zucchini slices with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Put parmesan on the slices. Roast zucchini for 20 minutes. If possible, put parchment paper with zucchini directly on oven rack. Otherwise, use cookie sheet. Directly on rack results in crispier zucchini. 

Hot Mama Grade: A 

Hot Mama Notes: Simple, easy, and tasty! I prefer directly on the rack for crispier slices, otherwise they are softer. Still good though! :) 

Crock Pot 7 Layer Bars

Hot Mama Grade: D

Hot Mama Notes: I would rather eat the ingredients individually/raw than waste them in this dessert. It was a gooey half-baked mess stuck to the pot. No thanks!