Hummus in Cucumber Cups

In the summer, I could live on hummus. Seriously: hummus + pita bread + carrots, cucumber and bell pepper strips = lunch. Every day. There is nothing like hummus made from scratch. Sorry, I just don't like the taste of pre-packaged hummus. {Yes, I am a hummus snob}. You can use canned chickpeas but dried chickpeas are so much cheaper, and you don't have to worry about the lining of the can, recycling, etc.. Better for your wallet, better for the environment: win-win!

There are several ways to cook dried chickpeas: in a pressure cooker, on the stove, or in a slow cooker. I like the latter because that way you don't need to pre-soak them. Place 7 cups of water, 1 lb of dried chickpeas (sorted and rinsed), and ¼ teaspoon of baking soda in the slow-cooker. Cover and cook on low for about 8 hours --7 (for firmer chickpeas) or 9 hours (for softer chickpeas – ideal for hummus or chickpea salad). Drain and use immediately, or refrigerate for a few days.

The nice thing about making your own hummus is that you can customize it to your taste: some people like theirs garlicky, some like it lemony. The recipe below is just in the middle, feel free to taste and adjust as you go. Sometimes, I even throw in a few kalamata olives, or roasted bell peppers.

There's nothing wrong with serving hummus in a bowl but he cucumber cups make for a cute and fun presentation, and a nice little one-bite appetizer for a summer cook-out!

For the hummus:

• 2 cups well-cooked or canned chickpeas, drained = 450 g de pois chiches (cuits ou en conserve,  égouttés)
• ¼ cup tahini (sesame seed paste) = 4 cuillères à soupe de tahini
• 2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt (optional) = 2 cuillères à soupe de yaourt grec nature (facultatif)
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling = 60 ml d'huile d'olive + 1-2 cuillères à soupe pour la présentation
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled = 2 gousses d'ail
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste = sel et poivre
• 2 teaspoons ground paprika, plus a sprinkling for garnish = 2 cuillères à café de paprika + une pincée pour la présentation
• Juice of 1 lemon = jus d'1 citron

Put everything in a food processor and puree until smooth. If you want to serve as is, transfer to a bowl, drizzle with extra olive oil and sprinkle a little paprika on top.

 

 

 

For the cucumber cups:

• Hummus
• 2 or 3 long cucumbers
• Crumbled feta or chopped olives for garnish

Using a vegetable peeler, peel strips on each cucumber to make a stripe pattern. Cut cucumbers crosswise into ¾-inch slices. Use a melon baller or a round measuring spoon and scoop out the center of each cucumber slice to form a little cup. Fill each cup with about a tablespoon of hummus. Top with crumbled feta or chopped olives. Serve immediately or keep in the fridge until ready to serve. Enjoy!

Sweet and Spiced Butternut Squash Stew

Easy and satisfying vegan dish with all the flavors of autumn. Adjust the spices to your liking (think cumin, turmeric, curry).

Serves 4

• 1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes = 1 boite de tomates concassées (800 g.)
• ½ cup currants or raisins = 70 g de raisins secs
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger = ½ cuillère à café de gingembre
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon = ½ cuillère à café de canelle
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg = ½ cuillère à café de noix de muscade
• Dash ground coriander = une pincée de coriandre
• Salt and pepper = sel et poivre
• ½ red onion, cut into wedges = ½ oignon violet, coupé en demi-lunes
• 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1” chunks = 1 courge butternut, épluchée, dépépinée et coupée en morceaux de 2-3 cm
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar = 1 cuillère à soupe de cassonade

Place the tomatoes (and their juices) in a 6-qt slow cooker. Add the raisins,spices, salt and pepper.

Add the onion and squash, sprinkle brown sugar over the top. Cover and cook until squash is tender, about 5 hours on low or 3 hours on high.

Ladle into bowls and serve with crusty bread. Enjoy!

Slow-cooker BBQ Pulled Chicken

There are lots of recipes for pulled chicken (or pork) in the slow-cooker. They are all pretty similar in that they use a mix of chicken, spices and barbecue sauce. Beer (or sometimes Coke) seems to be that secret ingredient you can't really taste but that makes the dish extra good. I don't buy sodas but I did have beer in my fridge (oh well, what can I say!) so that's what I used. I didn't have time to make my own barbecue sauce but if you do, by all means, go for it!

You can easily go to the pool or the park while this is cooking, but I happened to be home and boy, the smell coming out of my slow-cooker was a-ma-zing! I couldn't wait for dinner!

I piled the pulled chicken on whole-wheat slider buns and served potato salad and coleslaw on the side. Delish!

Makes enough for about 4-6 regular sandwiches or 8-12 sliders

• 3 large or 4 medium skinless chicken breasts (about 1 ½ lbs) = 3 ou 4 escalopes de poulet (environ 700 gr au total)
• 1 teaspoon onion powder = 1 cuillère à café d'oignon en poudre
• 1 teaspoon paprika = 1 cuillère à café de paprika
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder = ½ cuillère à café d'ail en poudre
• Salt & pepper (about ½ teaspoon each) = sel et poivre (environ ½ cuillère à café de chaque)
• ½ cup of beer (I used JB Summer Brew) = 120 ml de bière
• 1 cup barbecue sauce (I used Trader Joe's Kansas-Style Bold & Spicy) = 240 ml de sauce BBQ

Sprinkle chicken with onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Place into slow-cooker, pour beer and barbecue sauce on top. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Remove from slow-cooker and shred on a cutting board with two forks. Return to slow-cooker, switch to keep warm and let sit uncovered for about 30-45 minutes until most of the barbecue sauce is absorbed.

Serve on buns, with additional barbecue sauce if you wish. Enjoy!

Beef Stroganoff in the Slow-Cooker

It definitely feels like fall this week. But unfortunately, the gray and wet kind of fall so out came my crock-pot (not that it was ever really put away). The slow-cooker is always a great option for cooking beef. It will make any cut tender and flavorful.

This version of Beef Stroganoff is a little bit healthier than most with only a third of a cup of sour cream and absolutely no butter or oil. I even use reduced-fat sour cream and no one can tell the difference. Yet it's creamy, tasty and perfectly comforting on a rainy, gloomy day.

Serves 4

• 1 to 1 ¼ lb beef round or sirloin steak, trimmed and sliced into ¼” strips = environ 500 g de steak, coupé en lamelles
• 1 small onion, peeled and diced = 1 petit oignon, épluché et coupé en morceaux
• 2 gloves garlic, minced = 2 gousses d'ail, émincées
• ¾ to 1 cup (low sodium) beef broth = 180 à 230 ml de bouillon de boeuf
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce = 1 cuillère à soupe de sauce Worcestershire
• 1 tablespoon ketchup = 1 cuillère à soupe de ketchup
• 1 tablespoon red wine = 1 cuillère à soupe de vin rouge
• ½ teaspoon paprika = ½ cuillère à café de paprika
• Salt & pepper = sel & poivre
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch = 3 cuillères à soupe de maïzena
• ¼ cup water = 60 ml d'eau
• 8 oz. mushrooms, cleaned, stems removed and halved = 225 g de champignons, nettoyés et coupés en deux
• ⅓ cup (reduced-fat) sour cream = 40 g de crême fraiche
• A few parsley leaves, chopped or some fresh dill = quelques feuilles de persil, ciselées ou de l'aneth fraiche
• Cooked egg noodles = des pâtes (type pappardelles) cuites

Combine steak, onion, garlic, broth, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, wine, paprika, salt and pepper, in the slow-cooker. Stir, cover and cook on low for about 6 hours.

In a small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in the water. Add to slow cooker, along with the mushrooms. Cover and cook on high for 20 minutes. Turn slow-cooker off and stir in the sour cream.

Serve over noodles, sprinkle with chopped parsley or dill. Enjoy!

Slow-Cooked Salsa Chicken Tacos

If there is a rule that says that a slow-cooker is only to be used in the fall and winter, well, I happily break it  (the rule, not the slow-cooker!).

In the summer, when it's too hot to turn the oven on, a slow-cooker is a great alternative. And how about putting your ingredients in there, turning it on, going to the pool for the afternoon and coming home to a homemade cooked dinner? Nice, huh?

This is the easiest, healthiest Mexican dinner you can make at home. All you need is a couple of chicken breasts, a jar of your favorite salsa (I love Trader Joe's fire-roasted tomato salsa), hard shells or soft tortillas and your typical taco toppings. Once the meat is cooked, bring everything to the table and let everyone build their own tacos.

Serves 4-6

• 3 boneless and skinless chicken breast (organic if possible) = 3 escalopes de poulet
• 1 16 oz. jar salsa = 1 bocal de 450 g de salsa
• Hard taco shells and/or soft whole-wheat tortillas = tacos rigides ou tortillas souples
• Toppings: shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, diced onion, roasted corn, shredded cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, sour cream, guacamole, chopped cilantro...
• Toppings: laitue, tomates coupées en dés, onion émincé, maïs, cheddar râpé, crème fraîche, guacamole, coriandre...

Pour half the salsa in the slow-cooker, place the chicken in there and top with remaining salsa. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours. Remove chicken, put on a cutting board and shred with 2 forks. Place the meat back in the slow-cooker, cover and keep on low for another 30 minutes. Turn to the “keep warm” feature until ready to serve.

Fill the taco shells or tortillas with the salsa chicken and garnish with the toppings of your choice. Enjoy!

Note: you can also make this on the stove-top. In a large sauce pan, bring the salsa and 1 cup of chicken broth to a simmer over medium heat. Add the chicken breast, turn to low heat and cook, covered, for about 2 hours.

Slow-cooked Beef Brisket with Carrots and Potatoes

I can't believe I haven't posted a slow-cooker recipe yet! I use my slow-cooker quite a bit in the winter to make comforting stews and soups, but I never completely put it away. Any time of year, it is a valuable friend on a day when I know I'll be out all afternoon. I prep everything in the morning, set it up on low and come home to a yummy homemade meal. I guess you can achieve the same results with a Dutch oven on the stove but the slow cooker gives you the convenience (and peace of mind!) of being able to step out for a few hours without worrying about burning your house down! A slow-cooker is also great for entertaining, keeping food warm during potlucks and parties.

Brisket can be tough and is therefore a rather inexpensive cut. After it's been cooked slowly for hours though, it becomes tender and succulent. Browning it first is the extra step that makes all the difference: it locks in flavor!

However tempting it might be: do not peek! Removing the lid (especially in the first hours) will release steam, lowering the temperature and messing up the cooking process.

Makes 6 servings 

• 2.5 to 3 lb. organic beef brisket, trimmed = 1.250 kg de gros bout (ou pointe) de poitrine de boeuf
• Olive oil = huile d'olive
• Salt and pepper = sel et poivre
• 1 large onion, diced = 1 gros oignon, coupé en morceaux
• 4 garlic cloves, minced = 4 gousses d'ail, émincées
• 1 14.5 oz can chopped tomatoes = 1 boite (400 g) de tomates concassées
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste = 2 cuillères à soupe de concentré de tomates
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar = 1 cuillère à soupe de cassonade
• ½ cup red wine = 120 ml de vin rouge
• 6 carrots, peeled and cut into thick slices = 6 carottes, épluchées et coupées en tranches épaisses
• 12 small red potatoes, cleaned and halved = 12 petites pommes de terre à peau rouge (Roseval ou Chéries par exemple), lavées et coupées en deux
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme = 1 cuillère à café de thym séché
• 2 bay leaves = 2 feuilles de laurier séchées
• ½ to 1 tablespoon cornstarch = ½ à 1 cuillère à soupe de maïzena

Place the diced onion in the bottom of your slow cooker.

Coat or spray olive oil in a heavy pan. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper and brown both sides in pan. Remove browned meat from pan and place on top of the onions. Add the carrots and potatoes to the slow cooker.

Fry garlic in the same pan you browned the meat in for 30 seconds and add red wine. Cook for a few minutes. Combine wine mixture with tomatoes (and their juice), tomato paste, brown sugar and herbs together in a medium bowl then add to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours – it will depend on your slow cooker, newer models tend to cook faster than older ones, even on low.

Remove the meat and veggies from the slow cooker, put on a serving platter and cover tightly with foil. Let rest for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile mix cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water until smooth. Pour slow-cooker sauce into a saucepan, whisk in the cornstarch/water paste and simmer over medium heat until sauce has thickened (about 2 minutes). Pour over the beef and veggies and serve. Enjoy!