KarmaFree Cooking

Adelia’s Roasted Pepper Hummus

Adelia was one of our hostesses during our trip to Paraguay. She is the wife of Chingolo and they have been members of our Devanand Yoga group since they lived in NYC many years ago. They moved back to their beloved Coronel Oviedo where they have several businesses including the hotel where we stayed at and they help run the Devanand Yoga Center of Coronel Oviedo too.

Adelia is one of the most welcoming people I know. She was always fixing something up for us to eat. Her kitchen may not that large, but her heart and love for cooking is immense. And she loves sharing how easy her recipes are, so we spend the better part of the two weeks we were in Paraguay exchanging recipes, or better said, she sharing and me writing her recipes so we would be able to replicate here in Puerto Rico.

One of the little treats she had for us one day was this hummus recipe… I tasted something peculiar, something I had tasted before, but I just couldn’t place in a hummus recipe. What is it Adelia??? “Oh, I just like to add some olives to my hummus recipe.” I ate this hummus every day until we finished it. I even had it for breakfast once… it is that good.

ADELIA’S ROASTED PEPPER HUMMUS

2 cans organic chickpeas, drained and rinsed well with filtered water

1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese

The juice of 2 limes

1 large roasted red pepper, I use the jarred kind

5 green olives, pitted or with pimiento

About 1/2 cup of olive oil – enough to make the mixture as creamy as possible

2 cloves of garlic, minced

¼ cup of water, optional

1 tsp paprika

Salt and pepper to taste

Place chickpeas, cheese, garlic, lime juice, roasted pepper, olives, salt, pepper, paprika and some of the olive oil in a food processor.
Process until the mixture is creamy. If the mixture looks mealy and not creamy as it should be, add the water and a bit more olive oil in small increments until you reach the creamy texture you seek.

The roasted peppers add a nice sweetness and the olives add an extra layer of saltiness that gives this hummus a different character. Let me know what you think of it.

We had this with rice crackers for a gluten-free alternative to pita chips or bread.

Tags: chickpeas, food, green olives, roasted pepper, vegetarian

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Categories appetizers

Brown Rice with Corn – Quickie Version

1 Jun

Arroz con Maíz, or Rice with Corn, is a very typical Puerto Rican dish. My granddad loved it very much… it was something my grandma would fix for the family quite often.

The traditional way to make it is to cook the rice with tomato sauce, sofrito and the corn, all together. It’s traditionally made in a “caldero” or large pot, but as you know me, I can make it in a rice cooker. My grad school roommate, Michelle, was a big fan of my Arroz con Maíz. I used to make it for her and leave it in the rice cooker for her to eat when she was back from classes in the afternoon.

And even though making rice in a rice cooker is fairly simple… sometimes I don’t plan too much ahead to make food. I tend to go with what I am craving at the moment. For that same reason, I have developed a method to get almost the same flavors of the traditional Arroz con Maíz but in a quick easy way using left-over rice.

Brown Rice, as easy as it is to make in a rice cooker, it just takes time. It’s not something that you just pull together as easy as boiling some pasta or making a sandwich. To me, it’s very easy to just make a cup or two of plain brown rice in the morning, right after I am done with breakfast, and then by lunch time figure out what I can have with it. Sometimes I have made a quick stir-fry, sometimes I stuff some peppers… sometimes I make this quick Brown Rice with Corn recipe.

BROWN RICE with CORN – QUICKIE VERSION

2 cups of cooked brown rice

½ medium yellow onion, diced

1 tsp sofrito

1 cup frozen corn kernels

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Garlic Salt – optional

In a large skillet over medium heat, drizzle a small amount of olive oil and add the sofrito and diced onions. Cook the onions for a few minutes until they begin to soften.
Add the frozen corn kernels… no need to thaw then first. Just add them straight from the bag. Mix well with the onions so the corn cooks and the flavors mix. Season with salt and pepper, or the garlic salt if using. If you have a lid, cover the skillet and let the corn cook for a few minutes.

3. Add the cooked rice to the skillet. Mix well and cover again. The steam in the skillet will soften the rice again if it’s hardened from being in the fridge. Allow cooking for a couple of minutes and turn the stove off and leave it there for the residual heat to finish heating the rice, making it fluffy again.

You’re done… now this is the perfect accompaniment to your favorite main course. I personally like to have it AS THE main course with a drizzle of ketchup on top and a salad on the side. Some sweet plantains or even some tostones – plantain or breadfruit – would work well with this too.

Tags: brown rice, corn, food, onion, vegetarian

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Categories main courses, Puerto Rican delicacies, side dishes

The Shape of Foods Help our Organs?? – FIGS

30 May

This is part of a series on how our food can help certain organs that resemble their same shape. I already shared with you how the following foods benefit these organs:

Celery, Rhubarn, Bok Choy – Bones

Beans – Kidneys

Sweet Potatoes – Pancreas

Eggplant, Pear and Avocados – women organs and issues

After discussing women issues… the guys can’t be left behind. Apparently, figs resemble the male testicles, therefore they seem to be beneficial in the production of male sperm.

Photo Courtesy of Meeta @ http://whatsforlunchhoney.net

Figs are also very effective at increasing libido in both males and females due to the high levels of amino acids, which play a vital role in normal sexual function. The fig is said to also increase sexual stamina. See? Who needs oysters when we have figs??

On a less sexual note, figs are a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps to control blood pressure. Figs, like other high fiber foods, are also helpful to manage weight and the leaves of the fig have repeatedly been shown to have anti-diabetic properties and can actually reduce the amount of insulin needed by persons with diabetes who require insulin injections. Fig leaves have also been shown to lower levels of triglycerides.

I have discovered using figs in my cooking just recently. Before, my fig intake came from Fig Newton cookies. Now I can also enjoy them in:

Spinach, Figs and Blue Cheese Salad

Tags: fig, food, vegetarian

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Categories MY EDITORIAL

Açai @ Foz de Iguaçu

29 May

One of the food trends in recent years is Açai… the power fruit of Brazil.

It’s in vogue because if all the nutritional benefits it provides – particularly for their anti-aging and weight-loss properties. The way açai is mostly served in the US is in the form of juice. Sambazon is a well known brand widely available, even here in Puerto Rico.

But açai is eaten in a very different way in Brazil… the berry pulp is provided frozen and served with granola and pieces of banana. I was expecting a fresh fruit plate but I should have expected it because the first time I had açai sorbet in Puerto Rico, I had it served to me exactly like this – with banana and granola. Actually, it was that experience that led me to know La Hogaza granola for the first time too.

Açai fruit with granola and banana is DELICIOUS!!!! It’s tangy, creamy, crunchy… it just makes perfect sense. It was a real pleasure to sit pool side at our hostel and enjoy one of the true and distinct flavors of Brazil.

If you don’t have fresh or frozen açai berries… try the combination with an açai sorbet.

Have you tried açai berries like this before?? Do you enjoy it too??? Tell me all about it…

Tags: açai, banana, brazil, food, granola, travel, vegetarian

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Categories desserts, treats

Easy-No Cook Spinach Dip

25 May

It’s been a while since I’ve given you any dip recipes… haven’t you noticed?

Partly the reason has been I am in the midst of remodeling my apartment, including my kitchen, and between that and the miles I’ve racked up in several airlines in the last few months, there’s been little entertaining at home.

While cleaning my office I ran across a few recipes I had written but have not shared with you yet. I made this originally for a lecture on Vegeterian Appetizers at the Yoga Center. This Spinach Dip is a quick put together, especially if impromptu company drops in on you. It’s made from staples I always have in my fridge and freezer.

EASY NO-COOK SPINACH DIP

1 small package of frozen spinach

1 cup sour cream

4 oz. cream cheese

¼ cup grated or shredded parmesan cheese

1 tsp Garlic Salt – optional

Salt and Pepper to taste

Thaw the spinach well and wring as much water out of it as possible. Cut it a bit with a knife or kitchen scissors to make the pieces smaller and easier to eat later on.
Mix well with the rest of the ingredients.

If you use vegan cream cheese, vegan sour cream and Rice Parmesan cheese, this recipe is suitable for a vegan diet too. It’s just a matter of knowing the right products for your diet.