Parmesan Garlic Pita Chips with Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

It's starting to feel chilly around here and I don't like it one bit. I'm not ready to say goodbye to summer! I want to do more BBQ's and picnics. The photo above was taken in July when we had our first and only picnic this year at Discovery Park in Magnolia. I believe the park is the largest in Seattle. We didn't explore much due to time constraints (we got there at 7pm), but we did manage to find a nice spot overlooking Puget Sound to have our picnic. I made pita chips and hummus to accompany our sandwiches and they were so addictive. Who needs to buy pita chips when you can make it at home yourself?  You just need pita bread and a few basic ingredients. Same with the hummus and they go so well together. 

Parmesan Garlic Pita Chips

Ingredients
4 whole wheat pitas
2-4 T olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp Italian seasoning
Grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400° F. Cut the pita rounds into 8 wedges. Toss the pitas with olive oil, parmesan, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper if desired, and place on baking sheet. Bake until golden brown and crisp, about 8-10 minutes. Monitor the pita chips in the oven because they burn easily. Remove from oven and let cool.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Adapted from All Recipes

Ingredients:
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 (4 oz) jar roasted red peppers
3 T  lemon juice
1 1/2 T tahini
1 T olive oil
2 clove garlic
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt


In a food processor, puree the chickpeas, red peppers, lemon juice, tahini, olive oil, garlic, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Process, using long pulses, until the mixture is smooth. Make sure to scrape the mixture off the sides of the food processor in between pulses. Transfer to a serving bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Honey Roasted Almonds

Lately we've been obsessing over almonds.  They are cholesterol-free and low in saturated fats and provide lots of fiber and protein to give you that "full" feeling and keep your energy up.  I even recommended this to my mom because she was complaining of feeling tired all the time.  I wonder if it's helping.

I like to buy raw almonds in bulk and roast it myself.  Saves money and you can control the amount of salt, sugar, or whatever ingredients you like to turn this into a heart healthy snack.  I found this recipe on cooks.com and it's super easy to make.

Roasted Honey Almonds

2 cups raw almonds
2 T honey
2 T water
2 T oil (I used canola)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake the almonds on a baking sheet lined with foil, for about 10 minutes.  Stir occasionally so they don't burn. Set aside and let cool.  In a small bowl, mix the sugar and salt together.  In a medium sized sauce pan, add honey, water and oil, mix and bring to a boil. Stir in the almonds until all of the liquid is absorbed. Transfer the nuts into a medium bowl and toss with the sugar mixture.  Spread back on to the aluminum lined baking sheet and let cool.

Daikon Radish Cake

My mother-in-law makes the best Chinese turnip cake or daikon radish cake.  It's usually a dim sum staple and tastes delicious pan fried to a a golden crisp on the outside after it's steamed.  I saw daikon on sale at the grocery store and thought of this dish.  I had most of the ingredients at home and it looked easy to make so I decided to give it a try.  The only thing I did not have was shiitake mushroom which hubs doesn't like anyway so I skipped it.

Daikon Radish Cake
From Nook and Pantry

Ingredients:

2 1/2 - 3 cups coarsely shredded daikon (around 1.5 - 2 lbs)
1 Chinese sausage, finely diced
3 dried shiitake mushrooms, finely diced (I skipped this)
2 Tbsp small dried shrimp, finely diced
1 - 2 green onion stalks, chopped
2 cups rice flour (do not use glutinous rice flour)
1 3/4 cups water
salt and white pepper
oil

Method:

Rehydrate the dried mushrooms and dried shrimp by soaking them in hot water for about 15 minutes. Peel and shred daikon; set aside. Mix rice flour with 1 cup of water. Heat 2 tsp of oil in a skillet or wok and stir fry chinese sausage, shiitake mushrooms, shrimp, and green onion for 2 to 3 minutes. Add daikon, 3/4 cup water, 1-2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp white pepper. Bring to a boil then remove from heat. Stir in the rice flour water mixture until it thicken then pour into a well greased round or square cake pan. Steam over medium high heat for about 50 minutes. Cool or chill overnight. After cooling, cut the cake into 1/4 inch thick slices and pan fry both sides until golden brown. *Serve with chili soy sauce.

*You can also serve the crispy daikon cake with eggs.  My husband grew up eating homemade daikon cakes this way.  Just beat an egg with salt and pepper to taste.  Then while the cakes fry on both sides, pour the egg over the daikon and let it set, turning them over so that they are coated with the egg.  Transfer to a serving plate once the the egg is set and cooked through and dip in sauce.

Roasted Garbanzo Beans

I had the munchies the other night and I just remembered reading about a quick snack you can make at home with chickpeas (garbanzo beans).  It's very easy to make and so healthy for you.  It was also very  addictive. All you really need is some seasoning blend of your choice, salt, olive oil, and a can of garbanzo beans.  We seasoned ours with curry powder and garlic salt.

How to roast garbanzo beans:

1.  Drain the can of garbanzo beans and rinse to get rid of the slimy water.
2.  Pat dry the beans with a paper towel.
3.  Lay the beans on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and drizzle a bit of olive oil.  Toss to distribute.
4.  Put in a preheated 350F degree oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown and crunchy.
5.  Remove from oven and season with salt and seasonings.

Enjoy!