Today I was supposed to be writing up two recipes for clients, cooking a mega-huge vegetable and chickpea tagine for two classes on Wednesday, meeting the in-laws for a late lunch, cleaning the house, and then packing my case for a morning train to London. Did I accomplish these things? Yes. Was I distracted. Of course.
I am very easily distracted. Anyone who knows me will vouch for this annoying trait. I try and cover it up by being fairly efficient, and perhaps even a little officious, but my “oh look! a squirrel!” moments burst through more often than not. It’s also why I don’t sleep well.
I have been told I think too much. About everything. Mostly good stuff though. Such as this great way to use hummus.
The idea of coating a vegetable with hummus is not original to me. I was lucky enough to catch a mention on Twitter of hummus on white potatoes, and knew I had to try this for myself. At first I was just going to try it as suggested, but the other day I decided I would try it slathered on sweet potatoes. And then I thought, why not add red onions? And if we are going to add onions, then aubergines might as well join in the hummus bath time too. This quickly progressed to thinking chickpeas roasted in this sultry, creamy potion would be the crowning glory of crispy textural nirvana. But then I saw the pomegranate…
So, in between balancing on a step ladder shooting these images, I was also babysitting a tagine for 16, editing images on my laptop, and wondering if I had money for my morning taxi.
In all the chaos of what should have been a quiet Sunday I think I may have sent my clients each others’ images and text, but at least I think I got this right. One of my better distractions. Let me know what you think.
Are you easily distracted? Do you drop everything for food? Do tell. 🙂
Hummus-Roasted Vegetables and Chickpeas with Za'atar and Pomegranate Recipe
Take roasted veggies to another level by slathering in hummus! It sounds crazy, but it really works. Think healthy, almost crunchy coating, encasing soft, baked pieces of your favourite vegetables and you will get the gist. The protein-rich chickpeas crisp up and the ruby-red pomegranate seeds provide a colourful, textural and sweet contrast. And za’atar, well if you don’t know about za’atar then we can’t be friends. Just kidding ;-). xx
One large or two small sweet potatoes, scrubbed
1 small aubergine/eggplant, washed
1 red onion, peeled
1 tin of chickpeas, drained rinsed and lightly patted with kitchen roll
4 tbsp hummus (here is my favourite recipe; add preserved lemon if you have it – mmm)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp za’atar (here is my za’atar recipe {down at the bottom}, but this dry spice, seed & herb blend is available in most large supermarkets and in many delis)
Seeds from 1/2 a pomegranate
Preheat the oven to 170C (fan)/190C/375F.
1. Cut the sweet potatoes and aubergines into fairly chunky bite-sized pieces (they shrink in the oven), slice the onion into about 12 slices (I kept a wee bit of the end attached to keep the slices intact). Pop the vegetables into a mixing bowl, along with the drained chickpeas.
2. Dollop the humus on top and mix together the olive oil and za’atar drizzle over. Mix everything with your hands and pour onto two baking sheets. Roast in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving, topped with pomegranate seeds.
3. Serve with a crisp salad, and for an even more substantial meal, some cooked quinoa or couscous. This will be delicious as leftovers too.
I, too, am a thinker… and I love it! Just as much as I love this dish, Kellie. xx
What a grand idea! Hummus is even more versatile than I imagined! Roasting veggies is always good, especially with the change of the seasons. I’m not good at extreme multi-tasking, I find it stressful. Making a list and then prioritizing keeps me sane. Distracted, oh yes. Life is filled with fabulous distractions!
Hi Kellie, thank you for the recipes and for taking the time to come into Maggie’s last Thursday to talk to our Where Now group. It was lovely to meet you in person, keep the recipes coming. Helen xx
This sounds delicious ! I too am a huge fan of hummus and roasted veggies but have never considered combining them, until now! I have all the ingredients so will be making this for dinner tomorrow! Thanks so much for the recipe!
This is such a perfect (and more importantly, EASY) fall meal. I’m adding it to my recipe folder now! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thank you! We have most of this in our garden right now. I’m doing it tomorrow.
I love that – I need a veg patch.
https://theeighthours.wordpress.com
Thank you for this recipe, I really like hummus but don’t have it in often as only I eat it, it’s tricky to get others to eat it when they aren’t keen. I also wanted to try getting into sweet potato – which I struggle with when I bake it in the oven but I know it’s good for me. I may add bell peppers…. I suppose the options could be endless 🙂
Well, your thinking-too-much trait has paid off this time. This dish could have come out of my own kitchen, I love it so much. Except I’ve never thought to mix in hummus before baking. Love the idea for adding preserved lemon. Fantastic dish!
oooo well this looks great – roasted veg is always a winner and I love this take on it.
https://theeighthours.wordpress.com
So much goodness on this dish! I am really tempted to try this. I have a few pomegranates waiting in my pantry. The addition of humus must make it very nutritious!
YUM!!!! No surprise I’d love it hey???
I used your method today to roast butternut squash, whole garlic cloves, red onion and chickpeas 🙂 nice!!!! xx
The colours in your food always make me so happy. I’m often getting distracted thinking about food too, like you it usually results in something tasty. Next time I fancy a big plate of roasted veggies for dinner, I’m slathering them in hummus 🙂
Se escucha muy rico
This looks delicious xx
Wow that looks really good! This is really creative! I only bake my sweet potatoes with salt and paper. Can’t wait to try this recipe 🙂
This sounds so delicious! I love your recipes 🙂
I am always distracted by food. Its why the to do list never quite gets accomplished – but the best ideas usually emerge this way – and this looks wonderful. Zahtar and pomegranates are some of my favourite ingredients too!
This looks so amazing.
what a brilliant idea! I’ve never heard of this technique before but it’s genius. I bet it would be amazing with beetroot humus…I too am so easily distracted, I think it’s a creative thing!
Sounds great and looks fabulous! tons of great middle eastern flavors that make any dish amazing! Wonderful
Looks Great!
Looks so good, I would love to try it.
Distraction is my middle name! And, yum-can’t wait to try this!!!
Distracted? Monkey mind? Yes and Yes. I made cupcakes for an elderly neighbor’s bday this am. I was so excited to lick the beaters, it was damn near all I could think about. As I stood there in chocolate glory, I saw the bowl of sour cream ready to go into the batter. The batter that was already spooned in the cupcake liners. Sigh.
In your case however, I think your distractedness added to this recipe -Kat
LOOKS Delicious !
This looks AMAZING and so easy to make! I will definitely be making this recipe for a delicious lunch. Easy to bring to work, and easy to prepare…love it! Great use of the extra hummus I have in my place.