Lunchopolis #56

A quartered Bartlett pear, baby carrots, olives, some Vegetable Thins crackers, homemade red pepper relish, and homemade hummus topped with red onion, olive oil, and parsley.

When I saw that pears had returned to the produce section, I had to grab some. I didn't always like fresh pears--you can see it documented here because I usually poach them--but I ended up enjoying this fruit just as it was. I'm sure I'll be poaching pears in a few months when the weather begins to cool, but in the meantime, it's nice to just eat them raw.

I had a burst of energy one night this week so I decided to use up some stuff in my fridge. I had some peppers beginning to get wrinkly and sad and a half a can of chickpeas. The red pepper relish is something I've made for many years, well before my vegan days. It's the recipe from America's Test Kitchen Cooking for Two 2010. It's always great, but this is the first time I have had it with the Vegetable Thins. (They're like Wheat Thins, but with veggies. They seem so old fashioned, somehow, and I love them.)

Sometimes making hummus is just too much, but I wanted something to do while my peppers needed me in the kitchen to stir them every so often until they cooked down to a jam-type consistency. So I made hummus. I don't have a proper food processor, just a little mini chopper, and there were still a few little bits of chickpea chunks left in it, but it tasted good. Hummus is pricey at the store for what it is so I really should make my own more often. We'll see if I can branch out to making some variations other than plain, basic hummus. I have recently ordered a high-powered blender after much agonizing over brand and price point; I'm breaking myself into the world of proper appliances with an Oster Versa. We'll see. Maybe it will make better hummus.

The fact that hummus seems so banal to me these days is pretty amazing in and of itself. I hadn't ever encountered it until I met some vegetarians in college. They introduced me to a lot of things that seemed mysterious back then and now seem like outdated fads that are so unsophisticated now. So what better thing to pair it with than old-fashioned Vegetable Thins?

Do you remember the first time you had hummus, or was it always a part of your life?

Comments

  1. This looks so yummy! You know I love my snacks mixes and this looks like a great combination. Homemade hummus far exceeds store bought but I'm perpetually too lazy to make it myself. I need to stop being so lazy though because it's so good.

    I can't remember the first time I had hummus because it's been in my life for so long. My family background has made hummus a staple for as long as I can remember so I'm lucky enough to have had it in my life for a long time. Granted I didn't like it when I was much younger but once I caught on I was hooked :)

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