Whatās good bean team!
Howās your week, boo?
Last week we cooked up some mushroom-ricotta toasties, pasta e fagioli, creamy parm-y orzo, herb-y dumplings and onions, sheet pan gnocchi, and some gritty-ass tacos.
The tacos had us drooling, for real!
My favourite, by a pretty substantial margin, was those herb-y dumps!
I canāt believe how many herbs went into that thing, but it was worth!
Combined with those slow roasted onionsā¦ *chefās kiss*
Iād die for those onions.
Iād die for any onions.
True story - during our first date (circa 2017) when I asked Meeks āwhatās your favourite vegetableā (I bet this beans cooks thing is making a hell of a lotta sense to you right nowā¦ we foodies, yo!) he responded āonions.ā
I was swooning!!
Name a more versatile, foundational vegetable.
Iāll wait.
It was love at first sight, but also love at first onion ~moment~
If youāre judging me for asking such a benign questions, our first date was a hoot!
ā¦I also then proceeded to asking Meeks 36 Questions to Fall in Love because I was a thirsty psycho looking for loveā¦
I regressā¦
HUGS!
xo, beans
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Meals of the Week
Monday: Spaghetti alla Nerano (Mr. Tucci in the house)
Tuesday: Garam Masala Tofu but make it saucy on rice
Wednesday: Rice with Chickpeas and Currants (Jerusalem by Ottolenghi p. 106) with a protein thing
Thursday: Red Lentil Curry (Oh She Glows Everyday p. 181)
Friday: Weāre out on the town!
Saturday: Tomato and Ginger Tofu Scramble (breakfast for dinner!)
Sunday: Meatballs, Beans and Lemons (Jerusalem p 196) with easy orzo on the side
Recipe of the Week
This week, itās a little olā hummus dip!
Dip it bitch!
Ingredients:
250g dried chickpeas
1 tsp baking soda
270g tahini
Lemons
Garlics
How to make:
Letās make this smooth. I donāt mind chunky hummus, but when itās smooth it just tastes better. Itās a mouth feel kind of thing I guess - no lumpies!
Overnight or in an instant pot, soak/cook the chickies until theyāre double-ish in size
Drain these when ready, and cook them over med-high with the baking soda for a few minutes, and then add in 1.5 litres of water. Boil āem and whisk away any foam and skins that come up for 20-40 mins of cooking. The chickies should moosh during a test pinch, but not by mushy on their own.
Drain and put the chickies into a blender or food pro - run it until you get a pretty stiff paste. While the machine is on, put in the tahini, lemon juice (about 4 tbsp), 4 garlic cloves, and 1.5 tsp of salt.
Just after adding the above, slowly pour in 100 ml of ice water, and blend until you get that creamy humm.
Freestyle some toppings if you want!
If you have lots of left over herbs this week and some chilis, make an easy zhug. Got extra olives from the deli? Chop and top. Feeling chilly? Roast up some chopped walnuts and dates.
So whatās the deal with some of this shit anyway? Why the baking soda? Why cold water?
Well, when youāre boiling these chickies to get them soft and ready to smoosh, the baking soda helps break down the pectin in the skins. Thatās basically it.
But what about the ice water?
Tahini is pretty much an emulsion of sesame oil and sesame pulp. If youāve ever mixed up a sauce from tahini, youāve probably noticed how it changes.
Add in a little lemon or water, and it seizes up - the water binds to the carbohydrates and clumps.
Add more water though, and it thins out - passing the hydration threshold means the carbohydrates arenāt trying to crowd the water molecules and can chill out š¤
When youāre adding the ice water, itās to keep the temp down while youāre mixing. Like adding just a little water to the tahini, adding too much heat will revert you back to a clumpy state. No bueno!
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