Hummus and Pitta: The Next Level
Hummus and pitta go together like fish and chips, sausages and mash, curry and rice - you get the idea.
It’s become a classic snack pairing, and there’s now even a whole day dedicated to the world’s love of this delicious dip, with Monday 13th May marking International Hummus Day 2019.
Typically made from chickpeas (you can use canned or dried - if you’re using dried and soaking them yourself, a large, easy-clean saucepan would be a wise investment), tahini, lemon juice and garlic, homemade hummus is vegan, lactose-free and gluten-free, as long as you don’t add anything else.
Once you’ve made hummus for the first time, you can add it to your repertoire of basic kitchen recipes. But with a few tweaks and slightly more unusual ingredients, you can take your love for the dip to the next level. Here’s how:
Make Your Own Pitta Bread
Pitta bread requires an elastic, well-kneaded dough, which you should leave to prove for one to two hours before shaping. You can then either bake it in the oven or use a griddle pan to cook it through.
Whichever method you choose, using Circulon cookware will ensure that your dough heats evenly all over, thanks to our even thermal distribution technology. Our grill pans and baking trays are all non-stick too, so you should be able to slice into a beautifully airy pitta pocket once you’re done, without losing any dough to your cookware.
Drizzle your pittas with olive oil while they’re still warm and dunk straight into your homemade hummus, or leave to cool and fill with cold meat, salad and hummus for a packed lunch that packs a punch.
Change the Colour of Your Hummus
Hummus might be delicious, but its beige colour means it’s not the most aesthetically pleasing food. However, you can easily change up the colour of your hummus while also transforming its taste, and adding different vegetables is a great way to do this.
Turn your hummus a gorgeous orange colour by adding roasted red peppers or carrots, or make it a stunning purple by using beetroot in your recipe.
When roasting vegetables, a Circulon baking tray will guarantee even cooking. Our non-stick cookware will ensure that maximum flavour, goodness and colour goes into your hummus, without being lost to your trays.
Try a Different Pulse
Another way to take your hummus to the next level is to swap chickpeas for a different type of legume.
Depending on the type of pulse you go for, this could be another option for changing the colour of your hummus. Red lentils would provide a smoky orange colour, while kidney beans or black beans would leave you with a deep purple shade - a real treat for your eyes and your taste buds.
With different legumes, try different flavourings; while chickpeas go brilliantly with garlic, you might like to try dried chillies with black beans or perhaps sun-dried tomatoes with lentils.
If you’ve already got a supply of dried legumes, it makes sense to use those, and if you’re experimenting with different kinds, a saucepan set including several different-sized reliable pans would be incredibly useful.
Try out as many hummus combinations as you like, as you can just throw all of our pans into the dishwasher afterwards, so you really can enjoy your pitta while it’s fresh from the oven.
Experiment with Dessert Hummus
Hummus makes the perfect mid-morning or afternoon snack, and it’s lovely served with a meal, but would you eat it for dessert?
Some people like to add a spoonful of peanut butter to their hummus to bring a more nutty flavour to their dip, but sweet hummus can be taken a whole lot further than that.
Chocolate hummus takes dessert hummus several steps further, combining chickpeas with half of your usual amount of tahini, replacing the rest with maple syrup. Add cocoa powder or grated dark chocolate, plus a little vanilla extract, and whizz everything together in a saucepan using your blender.
Don’t worry about damaging your cookware, as our pans undergo rigorous testing to make sure they’re 100% scratch-proof, whatever you’re dragging along them.
Chocolate hummus could be eaten on toast or used to top a brownie, or you could even bake a slightly sweeter version of the pitta breads from earlier to dunk into it for a real sweet hit. Sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar or cinnamon onto your pitta and your usual snack will be almost unrecognisable, in the best possible way.
With confidence in your cookware, you’ll have the confidence to take your basic kitchen recipes to the next level. Shop the full Circulon collection here.