Hummos

I think one of my favourite dips would have to be hummos, and this is largely for the flavour of the chickpeas, which are one of my favourite legumes. And which I definitely don't eat enough of. Chickpeas are an excellent source of protein, are fairly high in fibre and low in fat.

This recipe is very simple and quick to make - but it helps to have a food processor or a blender.

2 cups chickpeas - I used a 375g packed of dry chickpeas, which I soaked overnight, cooked for about 30 minutes, drained and cooled - you can also used 1-2 tins of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
olive oil - about 1/3 to 1/2 cup
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/3 cup tahini
2 tsp ground cumin
very small amount of cayenne pepper
juice of 1-2 lemons (to taste)

Place everything in the bowl of a food processor and mix until the desired consistency - I like mine a little chunky. Add extra lemon, tahini, olive oil, cumin, cayenne to taste.

Serve in a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil and a dusting of paprika.

Hummos goes with so many other dishes - it's delicious:

• as a dip with crackers, pita triangles or raw veggies (such as carrot, broccoli, celery, red pepper)
• spread on bread or toast as a butter and/or mayo substitute
• with roast lamb or chicken on the side
• drizzled over a salad (add extra lemon juice and olive oil to get to a drizzling consistency) as a dressing
• with Lebanese bread or wraps and salad.

What's your favourite way to eat hummos?

BBQ Salmon - a Good Friday feast!

I had been wanting to cook a whole salmon on the BBQ for quite a while and decided that Good Friday would be the way to go! We had a friend coming for a late afternoon BBQ, and knowing how much she loves salmon, thought she would be a good guinea pig!

So on Thursday morning I wandered down to Super Butcher at Eagle Farm (yes, they now sell fish - I was intrigued - I thought I'd give it a go as their meat has always been top quality). A 4.5kg salmon later, I was home.

As I quickly realised I had overestimated how many people 4.5kg of salmon would feed, I invited a few others for our Good Friday feast! Yes, it's very convenient my brother and his family live nearby - and that they are all salmon lovers!

What do to with it was the next challenge. I decided simple would be key.

I (well, hubby) had to de-head Mr Salmon as it was too big for the biggest serving platter I had. A quick rinse later, and he was ready to be stuffed with fresh lemon (from the backyard tree), fresh dill and Italian parsley. I also put lemon, dill and parsley under and on top of the salmon so the flavours would be absorbed through. A bit of pepper, salt and olive oil and it was ready. As I was cooking on the BBQ I wanted it to be well wrapped - I used a layer of non-stick baking paper, then a layer of alfoil.

I preheated the BBQ to about 180c, put the salmon on an upturned roasting tray (so it was a few cm away from the heat), turned off the middle two burners, and closed the hood. Approximately 1 hour later it was cooked.

I served the salmon with baked potatoes and a couple of easy salads. And of course a few bottles of white wine.

Chickpea Salad
I absolutely LOVE chickpeas - and most legumes - and am determined to eat more of them. This seemed like a good excuse!

1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed well
1 red pepper, washed and chopped
1/2 red onion, peeled and chopped
150-200g cherry tomatoes
100g baby spinach leaves

Mix all together. Add a splash of olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar and some cracked pepper to taste. Mix well.

Broadbean, rocket and feta salad
I had a packet of broadbeans in the freezer that I bought to make a feta and broadbean dip. However, as another friend was bringing nibbles, I thought I'd use those ingredients in a salad instead. My sister-in-law Emma gave me the inspiration for this, as she makes practically the same salad but with peas (which I think came from a Jamie Oliver book originally). Anyway, it tasted pretty good, and I'll now be adding broadbeans to a lot more salads! Even though I underestimated the time it would take to peel them - talk about fiddly!

2 cups of frozen broadbeans, cooked according to packet and peeled
100g rocket (arugula)
100g feta cheese, crumbled

Place all in a bowl, add a splash of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, cracked black pepper, and toss to combine.

The whole meal was delicious - but as we didn't even manage to eat half the salmon, I'm looking for some creative solutions for what to do with the rest of it!

Welcome to Chocolate, Cheese and Chips

After many months of talking about starting a food blog, I finally have! I must say the biggest challenge was finding a name for it - as many of my friends are aware! I was out for a walk the other day and had a bit of a lightbulb moment - why not name it after 3 of my favourite foods! So, here we are:

Chocolate - goes without saying really. I'm definitely a quality over quantity girl, and 1-2 squares of great tasting - and great quality - chocolate is enough to satisfy even the biggest of chocolate cravings. For many years my favourite has been dark Lindt chocolate (especially the Orange Intense) and the peppermint Lindor balls. Mmmm. However, after visiting San Francisco and Ghiradelli again in 2008, Lindt face stiff competition - especially from the Ghiradelli raspberry and the Ghiradelli peanut butter. I'll be stocking up the next time I go!

Cheese - a few years ago cheese took over from chocolate as my #1 favourite food. Family legend has it that one of the first solid foods I ate was blue cheese - and it's been a bit of a staple ever since! The stinkier the better. My whole family are into cheese and there were (and still are) at least 3-4 varieties in the fridge at any one time. Sadly, cheese is not great for the waistline, so my consumption has been radically reduced in recent years! Family get togethers always, always include a cheese platter. With a bottle of red or 3.

Chips - yep, I'm a chip lover. From hot and salty chips eaten at the beach to the packet of potato chips (Kettle of course - but no relation!) eaten in front of the telly. For years I have been threatening to write a book on the best hot chips in the world - not sure how I'd get funding, but I do believe it would be a public service.

Rest assured however, dear reader, this blog will not only contain posts about Chocolate, Cheese and Chips. It will include recipes I try (and experiement with), new ingredients (well, new to me - not necessarily new to you), reviews of books, gadgets, foods and the odd eating establishment, and all my other adventures in food.

I'd love to hear what you think - feel free to comment or email.