Chana Dal Wade AKA Chattambade

You will need
chana dal 1 cup
dry red chillies 2-3
jeera (cumin seeds) 1 tsp
curry leaves 1-2
hing (asafoetida) 1/4 tsp
freshly grated ginger 2 tsp
salt to taste

Prep
1. Wash the chana dal and soak it so that it is fully submerged for 2 hours.
Then drain the water completely.
2. Grind the chana dal together with all the other ingredients until the mixture forms a coarse paste. Add water if needed, but be careful as too much water can make it harder to form patties.
        This happened sooner than I expected and I ended up with a paste finer than I would have liked.
        The bite from dal gives great texture.

Method
1. Make flat-ish patties out of the ground mixture.
2. Heat oil in a shallow pan and place 4-5 patties in the hot oil.
Cover the pan and let it cook for about 3 mins. Then turn the patties over and fry them on the other side for 2-3 mins or until browned.
Serve with ketchup or other dip of your choice.

Hummus Tartine

Hummus is a wonderful thing. I had never had hummus until I came to the US. It soon became one of my favorite things to order in a middle-eastern restaurant. For home use, I never really took to supermarket hummus... there was something always off about it. I prefer the homemade version a lot more.

It's very easy to make.

Makes 4-5 tartines

chickpeas AKA garbanzo beans             1 15oz can
garlic                                                        2-3 cloves
extra virgin olive oil                                  1/4th cup
sesame seeds                                         1/4th cup
lemon juice                                              2 tbsp

salt, pepper, red pepper flakes to taste


Method

1. Dry-roast the sesame seeds until light brown. Put aside.
2. Chop the garlic and fry it for a couple of minutes. This is to avoid the taste of raw garlic, especially if you plan to store the hummus for a few days.
3. Blend the sesame seeds and the olive oil until the seeds are crushed and blended with the oil.
4. Blend the chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes with the above sesame paste.

Serve at room temperature.