TPM kitchen: Easy Hummus Recipes {Basic + Avocado}

One of the reasons that prompted me to make my own hummus is because of my daughters' gluten intolerance. I was looking for gluten free options for snacks. I wanted to serve whole foods like vegetable sticks or fruits. Something healthy and easy to prep. But it's hard to just serve them carrot sticks or cucumber slices without any dip, di ba? So hummus to the rescue! Because it just takes less than 15 minutes to make one with no cooking required.

basic hummus on the left and avocado hummus on the right

I know there are a lot of moms like me who don't want to feel like they have to turn the entire family's life 360 degrees because of dietary restrictions. It's a challenge. Because even if only two persons eat gluten free, they find it so much more difficult to follow the diet when there is baguette or ciabatta or cake in the house. So nakikisama din kami sa kanila most of the time.

What’s Hummus? 

Hummus is a Middle Eastern spread traditionally made from garbanzo beans, tahini, lemon juice and garlic. All ingredients are gluten free.

If you search online, you will find a lot of recipes for making homemade hummus, which all claim to taste better than store-bought ones. 

The hummus recipe I am using is all about convenience so it makes us of use canned garbanzos/ chickpeas, which are readily available in the grocery, and easily stored in the pantry for spur-of-the-moment hummus cravings.

I don't use tahini because it's not one of the ingredients I usually have on hand. I like hummus that has tahini in it; but for me, the flavor it adds to the dip is not something that I would not miss if it's not there. So if I don’t have it, which I often don’t, I make it minus.

I know purists will say that hummus is not hummus without tahini. But for this busy mama, a homemade kitchen hack version is still better than commercial ones that are laden with preservatives. Besides, hummus needs only a small amount of tahini. I'm sure if I buy one, my jar of tahini will just sit around in my fridge until it goes rancid. Instead, I substitute with UNSWEETENED nut butter that's readily available in my pantry like peanut butter or almond butter. I've also tried using Kewpie sesame dressing. Please do not judge me! Hahaha!

Get the kids involved by asking them to take out the skin from each garbanzo bean. My daughter loves doing this. You don't really have to do this, but if you decide to, it will result in a super smooth, silky hummus. Again, it's a matter of preference and convenience. If you want silky hummus and you have the pleasure of time, then take the skin out. If you are short on time, then keep the peel on, and just let it run on the blender/food processor longer.

Easiest Hummus Recipes

Basic Hummus

This basic hummus recipe is like a blank canvas. Feel free to mix in additional herbs, vegetables, and seasoning to flavor the hummus.

Ingredients
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzos/chickpeas
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2-3 tablespoons of drained liquid from garbanzos (or plain water will do)
3 tablespoons almond butter or peanut butter
1 1/2 tablespoons calamansi juice (original recipe calls for lemon)
1 small clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp paprika, for topping

Instructions
1. Drain the chickpeas into a strainer, reserving the liquid from the can. If time and patience allows, pinch the skins from each of the chickpeas; this will make your hummus smoother.

2. Combine the chickpeas, olive oil, nut butter, calamansi or lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and paprika in the blender or food processor.

3. Blend hummus until smooth, at least 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to integrate any large pieces.

4. Taste and adjust seasonings. If your hummus is stiffer than you'd like, blend the 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved garbanzo liquid (or just plain water) to thin it out and make the hummus creamier.

5. Transfer to a bowl and serve with pita chips or raw vegetables. Alternatively, you can also transfer to a sealed container and it will keep inside the refrigerator for one week, inside the freezer for a month.

Avocado Hummus

Avocados are in season right now, so I've been buying a lot. There are so many ways to enjoy avocado, which I've shared here.

Ingredients:
Basic hummus recipe
1 large avocado, pit removed 

chili flakes, for topping


Instructions
1. Drain the chickpeas into a strainer, reserving the liquid from the can. If time and patience allows, pinch the skins from each of the chickpeas; this will make your hummus smoother.

2. Combine the chickpeas, avocado, olive oil, nut butter, calamansi or lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and paprika in the blender or food processor.

3. Blend hummus until smooth, at least 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to integrate any large pieces.

4. Taste and adjust seasonings. If your hummus is stiffer than you'd like, blend the 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved garbanzo liquid (or just plain water) to thin it out and make the hummus creamier.

5. Transfer to a bowl and serve with pita chips or raw vegetables. Alternatively, you can also transfer to a sealed container and it will keep inside the refrigerator for one week, inside the freezer for a month.

How To Serve Hummus?

Hummus is great as a dip with raw crispy vegetables such as carrots and cucumbers. My kids would not eat carrots and cucumbers as is, but hummus makes everything tolerable.

For those of us without gluten sensitivity, we eat it with toasted pita bread or ciabatta. We love the crustiness of the bread against the smoothness of the hummus.

Traditionally, I've seen hummus topped with EVOO and a few whole Chickpeas. But, since we are making our own, then anything goes! With mine, I added Smiked Paprika and Chili flakes.

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#TPMkitchen: Ways to Enjoy Avocado

It's avocado season! Is anyone here celebrating with me?

Fellow avocado lovers, you have to agree with me that bringing home a beautiful looking one is a good fortune that should be celebrated. When I get my hands on one, I slice them, fan them out to a long line, then turn them into avocado roses. 

 I like to play with them using my sharpest knife and make them into works of art, and show them off.

#TPMkitchen: 3-Step Spinach Dip Recipe with Anchor Philippines

By now, you already now how much I enjoy my time in the #TPMkitchen. so much so that the kitchen is the place where my kids and I spend the most time bonding. If they are not helping me cook, they are seated on the stool by the kitchen counter talking to me.

A few days ago, my daughter was in the mood to make Spinach Dip. This is something that I am confident that she can make on her own. My spinach recipe only has 3 steps and is fool-proof, but it tastes super good! You have to taste it to believe it. I will be sharing my super easy, fool-proof, 3-step Spinach Dip recipe so be sure to read until the end of the post.

Spinach Dip, Fried Kesong Puti with Truffled Honey, Candied Walnuts, Baguette, GF Waffles

Gluten-free Moffles (Mochi + Waffles)

For the longest time, I have been using this recipe to make gluten-free waffles for my girls. Until the time I saw my friend, Sabrina, posts something on IG. She called her creation Ube Mochi Waffles. It's my first time to hear of that. She used glutinous rice four and coconut milk. Naintriga ako, so when I was able to get hold of ube halaya from Good Shepherd, I made sure to try her recipe.

It looks like any ordinary waffle, but when you bite into it, you will discover that it is so much better. The outside is toasted, while the inside is chewy. And please let's not forget the ube filling.

Kalbi Jim Recipe Share

I originally shared this recipe in a guest post at Momma 'N Manila.

I've known Mish of Momma 'N Manila and one-half of Mothers Who Brunch since 2013. Because of the events that we attend together and because we share a common love for our family and cooking, I have gotten to know her and her family better.

Phenomenal Tip: DIY Beef Pepper Rice

Whenever R does well in a swim meet, he always asks for his current fave food as reward.

A few weeks ago he competed in the first leg of the short course season for 2017. Although, he wasn't able to meet the time his coach set for him for 100 freestyle (his coach wanted him to clock in 58 seconds), but still he was able to finish the race in less than a minute, which is still pretty impressive.

So anyway, we went home happy with two silver medals.

{What's In My Cart} Where To Get Thai Pantry Essentials in Manila

Months after attending the Thai Cooking Classes with Chef In Stilettos, I have made the Green Curry so many times - it is that good!

I'll share a Green Chicken Curry recipe at the end of this post.  

But first let me kwento muna, ok, about how happy I am that I am now able to cook Thai food with confidence.

DIY: Yummiest Homemade Granola

I want my family to feel good about what they eat.  As much as I can, I serve homemade and nutrient packed food that also tastes great. Let's be honest, it's a challenge to come up with something that's healthy and yummy, too. It takes a lot of trial and error on my part.

This granola recipe is both yummy and healthy... and super easy to make pa. I promise you. It's everything that a granola should be: crispy, crunchy, nutty. It's also healthy, nutrient-packed and super-simple. After you make this one, you will never buy granolas again. 

My homemade granola recipe has ingredients like quinoa, chia seeds, flax seeds, tree nuts, etc and uses natural sweeteners over processed sugar. Golden slivers of dried mangoes and red gems of goji berries add a visual delight as well.

Easiest 4-Ingredient Grilled Pesto Chicken

Here is an extremely easy grilled chicken recipe. My Grilled Pesto Chicken is rich in delicious flavors and yet comes together in 20 minutes with only 4 ingredients!

{TPM Kitchen} Pink Ombre Pancakes

We all know the best pancakes are made at home!

You probably expect by now that we make our pancake mix from scratch. And you are right! It's the easiest thing to do. I can control how much sugar goes into them, and I don't have to worry about preservatives, too. Plus, I make them exactly how I want and my family can all be still be in our pajamas while we enjoy them. PLUS! If my girls feel like having PINK OMBRE pancakes, then I can definitely indulge them and be #thebestmomever in their eyes. Right?

Japanese-style Potato Salad Recipe

My kids have a new-found fondness for Japanese style potato salad.  They love the creaminess of the potatoes, the crunchiness of the carrots and cucumbers when mixed with Japanese mayo.  And they have been numerous requests for me to make more, more, more!

On the other hand, I have never been fond of savoury and creamy salads.  I prefer tossed greens (arugula, for the most part) with a simple balsamic vinaigrette.  Even if I do not share their appetite for this carbohydrate-rich salad, I cannot say no to their request.

My version of the potato salad skips over some of the usual suspects.  For instance, I just use half of the recommended amount of Japanese mayo, and substitute it with plain yogurt.  My family never notices.

Without the heavy toppings, the potato contains no fat or cholesterol and is a healthy choice in any diet. The potato is a complex carbohydrate. Foods that contain added sugars--such as soft drinks, fruit drinks, candy, baked goods and dairy-based desserts--are simple carbohydrates.

Japanese potato salad has a mild, creamy flavor; unlike American or German style potato salads, no acid/vinegar is used. It's seasoned only with salt and a little pepper, and lots and lots of mayonnaise, Japanese brand of mayo, of course.

Japanese-style Potato Salad
8 medium sized potatoes

1 medium sized carrot

1 medium sized Japanese cucumber (if I don't have cucumber on hand, I sometimes substitute with apple or pear)

6 hard boiled eggs, chopped

1 cup Japanese mayo (I use the Kewpie brand) You can add a little more mayonnaise if the dressing is too stiff to mix well

pinch of salt and pepper

*I refuse to serve that much mayo to my kids, so I have to compromise; instead of 1 cup of mayo, I use 1/2 cup mayo and 1 full sized single serve container plain yogurt. 

Topping

1 tsp black sesame seeds, toasted

Spring onions, chopped

Directions
Wash the potatoes then peel, and rinse in cold water.
Cut into about 1 inch by 1 inch cubes and rinse again.
Bring a large pot of water to a full boil, add 1/2 teaspoon salt and the cubed potatoes (add 2 cubed carrots now if desired).
Boil until semi tender (fork passes through with slight resistance).
Drain and let cool.

Make the dressing
In a medium mixing bowl mash the 1/2 cup eggs and 1/2 cup potato cubes together.
Add the mayonnaise. (finely chop 2 green onions then add now if desired)
Add the salt and pepper (start with smaller amounts and add to taste) then mix well.
Dressing should have a stiff texture.

Final Mix
Add dressing to potato mix and stir until well mixed
If desired garnish with one or two finely chopped green onions and or toasted sesame seed.
Chill and serve cold or at room temperature.

Sometimes, when I feel like indulging the kids, I add some kani cubes and bacon bits in the salad.  It makes me the "best mom ever" of course!:)

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Spinach Mushroom Dip Recipe

I am lucky that my kids are not picky eaters.  They eat almost everything. But even if I do not have any problems feeding them, I still want to make sure that they enjoy eating the food that I serve them.  One of the things that I seldom make for them is Spinach and Mushroom Dip.  I like making a big batch of this because I find it so versatile in the kitchen. 

When I make one batch, it usually lasts for about a week, and I serve it as a vegetable dip, a spread on toast, and even as a filling for chicken breast. 

Its versatility is as much loved as its ease of preparation. It's an extremely easy recipe - just combine and bake, and could easily be made ahead of time and placed into the oven just before you need it.

Spinach Mushroom Dip
*you can also just substitute the mushroom with artichoke to make Spinach & Artichoke Dip

1 cup thawed, chopped cooked spinach spinach, with the water squeezed out
11/2 cups chopped fresh white button mushroom, sauteed and cooled
1 bar (8 ounces) cream cheese
1/4 cup yogurt
1/4 cup mayo
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup grated mozzarella
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Set aside half of mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. In a large bowl, stir together all remaining ingredients, except the the red pepper flakes. Spoon mixture into baking dish. Sprinkle top with remaining cheeses. Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly and golden.

Let cool.  Store in refrigerator, covered for about a week.

*I use my Lock & Lock Boroseal oven-proof container because it also comes with a cover.  It goes from the oven to the refrigerator, and vice versa.

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DIY: OREO Bento Lunch Box

Even if I have been doing the kids lunch and merienda baon for almost a decade now, I have never tried doing a bento box before. The numerous bento tools and the supposedly long preparation of doing a bento box intimidated me. So when OREO hosted a bento making session for the SoMoms recently, you can guess who the most excited participant was. ME! 

What is a Bento?

BENTO is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento holds rice, fish or meat, with pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container.

But for most Filipinos, Bento simply just refers to an artful take on doing the usual "baon."

During the OREO Bento Together Workshop for the SoMoms, the Bento Mommas facilitated the workshop and shared their expertise with us. The SoMoms were joined by the SoKids and some other mommy friends. We were taught how to do rice and sandwich bentos.

You can buy bento supplies from the Bento Mommas. But expand your collection of bento tools slowly. Do not be pressured to buy a container full of tools. Most of the items you need to make a basic and simple bento lunch are easily available in the kitchen:
1. You can use common household items such as drinking glasses, bottle covers & different sizes of straws to cut different sizes of circles.
2. You can press slightly on the end of the straw to make an oblong shape.
3.In the absence of a rolling pin, you can also use the sides of a tall drinking glass.

{OREO Rice Bento How-To }

Just to show you how easy it is, my girls did all the work in this rice bento with no help at all from me. I was there to document their work, that's all.

OUR FINISHED RICE BENTO!

{OREO Sandwich Bento How-To }

The first thing to do is think of the theme of your bento.  In our case, we picked a photo of a kitty. This is also our entry to the Oreo Bento challenge. Again, do not limit your creativity on the number of bento tools you have. In this instance, we just used the rim of a drinking glass to cut our sandwich. You can also use the sides of the glass to flatten your bread.

The OREO Bento Challenge

The session ended with a Bento Challenge.  All the moms were asked to pick a theme for our bentos and use the materials provided on each table to make our bentos. Bento Challenge accepted!

Team Phenomenal Mama wins the OREO Bento Challenge! 

The criteria for choosing the winning bento was how creatively OREO cookies were incorporated into the bento box.  Credits to my girls for their creativity, fast thinking and our efficient team work!

photo of awarding by the Bento Mommas and OREO representatives. 

Of course my girls are as happy as me!  This is our first time to participate in a kitchen challenge and our first time to do bento.  Thanks to OREO for this wonderful experience. 

Here are some of the works of the other moms:

The tiger on the lower left is a creation of Michelle {My Mom-Friday} . The owl on the lower right is a creation of Mish {Momma 'N Manila}. The bumble bee was done by Didi  {canDIshhh} , and the ladybug is the work of Candy {The Corporate Housewife Mom} 

5 Ways To Make Bentos Fun & Healthy
1. Include Go, Grow, Glow food! Make sure to put in protein, carbohydrates (rice or bread), vegetables, and fruits in your bento box.  And to make it fun for our kids, it is also nice to add a sweet treat like Oreos. 

2. Incorporate brown rice and alternative whole grains. Rice and bread is the base for Japanese style bentos, and kids might be more receptive to eat brown rice/whole-wheat bread if it is appealing to look at.  ( Brown rice, red rice, black rice and quinoa are nutritionally superior to white rice. The same goes for whole-wheta bread over white bread)

3. Keep your bento tightly packed with vegetables and fruits to make the bento nutritious and colorful. The Bento Mommas said keeping the box tightly packed also assures that the bento stays in place.

4. Watch the cooking methods you’re using. Try to fill in as much space as you can with vegetables that are cooked using as little added oil as possible - steamed, blanched or boiled, stewed or dry-sautéed.

5. Use minimal processed food. Use less of the hotdogs, SPAM, chicken nuggets, etc. Instead use chicken, beef, fish, pork in their place.

I believe a homemade bento lunch is appealing because it is a healthy, attractive, and delicious meal, made with care and attention, that is compact enough to carry easily to work or school. A bento doesn’t have to be a work of art. The most important thing about making a bento is to make it with lots of love—and have lots of fun doing it!

We will surely be making the most use out of the Everyday Bento: 50 Cute & Yummy Lunches To Go book that we won. Don't worry I will share our future bento projects on the blog! 

If you haven't tried doing a bento before, it's time to set aside your fear.  Bento can be an enjoyable weekend project for you and your kids! Just follow the easy-peasy steps I shared with you in this post, and you can be "the best mom ever" in the eyes of your little ones!

If you want to view some more beautiful bento arangements to get inspirations, click here

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