Hummus And Tahini Dip

This is a popular dish in the Middle East; more frequently used as a dip. This goes well with Pitta bread.

• 1 cup chickpeas
• 3 cups of water
• 1/2 a cup of Tahini
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 tablespoons of parsley; minced well
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of chili powder
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Method:

Soak the peas for 12 hours. Boil well. Keep aside a few for garnishing. Blend the chickpeas with salt, pepper, tahini, garlic and half of the chopped parsley. Add lemon juice. This paste should be thick and very smooth. Pour it into a dish with olive oil. Garnish with the remaining chickpea and parsley.

http://variety-ads.blogspot.com/2012/02/delicious-date-muffins.html

Curried Zucchini

We usually eat our vegetables curried. And all the vegetables are cooked in the same way. I have never eaten Zucchini back at home but once I came to the Middle East I started seeing more and more of these greens, which looks so much like the 'cooler' gherkins. At first I started using them in soups and as time went by, I experimented it with various other dishes. Soon we all got acquainted with this wondrous vegetable. And that's when I started cooking it with spices, herbs and coconut cream.

Cut 2-3 Zucchini into small pieces and put into a pan, with a cup of water, one small sliced onion, one chopped green chilly, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1/4 teaspoon of curry powder, one clove of chopped garlic, a slice of green ginger, 2-3 crushed curry leaves and salt to taste, boil until the vegetable is cooked. Then add a tablespoon of coconut milk powder and stir quickly so that no lumps form. Heat 1/2 a tablespoon of oil in another pan and fry the onions till it becomes quite pale in colour. Then transfer the fried onions (with the oil) to the cooked vegetable pan. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Serve with rice and curry.