Hummus using Chickpea

Yay It's Friday! It seemed like it took too long to get here since the last friday. With the hectic schedules, sickness loaded week, doctor's visits, sleepless nights..ufff. So this friday was so looked forward to. Not that we had to go for a trip or have fun over the weekend but just to sit back and breath. 

We usually do have family movie nights on friday's. When I say movie nights I should be specific that movies are ALWAYS animation. For some reason the lil one just won't sit for movies that has human appearance. He clearly is someone who prefers imagination over reality. Anyways, to have something to munch on while we watch the movie is a bonus. This hummus is something that is perfect for such movie nights. Healthy, easy to put together and loved by the family, what else do we need. If you have pita bread, have it toasted to pair with this dip. You could also have some veggies or chips too to go with it.

Pita Pockets/ Wraps

Being from the southern part of India, we survive on rice. But occasionally we love to have variety. Well who doesn't like variety right? These pita pockets are one such variety that we like to have for quick fix dinners. And when the name is fancy, dish is easy to put together and moreover has great taste and is healthy; we do repeat it often for dinner. Esp. in the hot summer, every single bite on the veggies that goes into the pita bread is so refreshing . They are great to be served in parties, as guests can build their own pita pockets as per their taste. Just have variety of veggie/protein filling options to be served.

Go read how I build my pita pocket in the recipe section. There are some other options that you could try too to suit your taste buds. Try it at home and come back to let me know if you liked it.

Pita Bread

My first attempt at Mediterranean food was in the initial days of pregnancy which were really hard. I ordered fancy things but I ended up eating only pita bread dipped in hummus. And then somehow I never returned to the place all throughout my pregnancy and even post that, the new mother gets so busy that somehow trying mediterranean food never crossed my mind. But in the past 2 years, we have been indulging a lot in it. Its one among our favorite cuisines to try and have whenever we think of dining out or even trying something different at home other than the daily Indian food. All of us love it.

We used to buy the pita bread from grocery stores to make our wraps. One day we thought of trying it ourselves. I had least expectation of it getting all puffed up. But surprisingly, all of them puffed up with the same perfection that I quickly made a note of the recipe. Well why not, right? Such recipes are keepers that you may always want to document it. And this recipe has never disappointed me even once. So here is it. You should think twice or may be thrice before you get pita breads from outside, when you have such easy recipes at hand :).

Tahini Dip / Sauce

Tahini dip - perfect dip for falafels, pita bread, crackers etc. It goes well as a spread for chapathis too. Such a humble dip with just minimal ingredients and little effort that goes into it, is a must try. 

You could make it in a jiffy that you would never feel lazy to start making it. And before you know it the dip would be ready.

Falafel - Shallow Fry Method

Deep fried falafel are the best anytime. These shallow fried falafel are for those days when you feel guilty of having hogged over so many fried stuff in the recent past and would want to keep a watch on the diet but yet relish what you like.

Usually falafel doesn't require any cooking of garbanzo/chickpea. But since I am using the shallow fried method I chose to cook them. These are just simple to make and are not that heavy as the fried version. Which means you could eat one or two extra to get yourself full, if that is what you are looking forward to.

Falafel ~ Fried Version

These fried goodness is a favorite at our place. These crispy falafels, when combined with the tahini dip burst out such a good combination of flavours that it's hard to not fall for it.

We serve it for tea time usually. Its superb in this rainy season. But serve it with some pita bread and hummus dip for you dinner. It would be perfect.