Recipes – Page 4 – Life In Limbo

Classic Hummus

May 27, 2014

Would you believe me if I told you I’ve never made my own hummus before? It’s true. There’s a small chance I’ve been present in the kitchen when my mother or one of my sisters made it, but I’ve never done it myself.

Hummus is one of those things that is very hard to come by in Korea. Even chickpeas, that typical pantry mainstay, aren’t really floating around any grocery stores. I heard a rumour that they sell the precious garbanzo beans in the basement of the biggest department store in the entire world, which is located about twenty minutes by metro from my apartment, but I haven’t ventured there yet to find out. Suffice it to say, they are rare here. Fortunately they’re not rare on iHerb, and I have eagerly awaited my order full of chickpeas, quinoa, and eco-friendly beauty products so that I could whip up a batch of hummus. My carrot sticks were getting lonely.

What took me so long!? Homemade hummus takes approximately 5 minutes (45 if you need to cook your chickpeas yourself, as I did) and is utterly delicious. I’ll have you know that I am very happily munching on it as I write this. You’re probably not jealous though because hummus is everywhere in North America, lucky ducks. When I lived in Canada, it wasn’t rare for me to have 2 containers of it languishing in my fridge at any given time. But if you live in Korea or somewhere else on earth where hummus is scarce, you’ll understand my quiet joy.

This is how we make hummus in Korea. In a saucepan, with lots of freshly squeezed lemon juice and a hand blender. (PS. I’d like to kiss whoever invented hand blenders. It’s such a great kitchen tool for those of us with tiny kitchens.) I sometimes make a mess, but it’s okay.

I used a recipe from Oh She Glows for classic hummus. Angela has never once steered me wrong with her recipes, they are all excellent and always work out perfectly. This hummus is no exception.

I mean, just look at that beautiful pile of mashed up yumminess! Gorgeous. Flawless. Ready to be scooped up in obscene quantities.

Case in point! In this photo, I’m double-dipping like it’s my job. Not even a little sorry about it.

I’m excited to put this stuff on everything. I can sense that there are homemade tortillas with hummus in my very near future. Go make some of your own! Enjoy.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream

May 13, 2014

I’m over at Guinea Pigging Green today sharing the recipe for this absolutely delicious, healthy, sweet treat. How did it take me so long to try making banana ice cream? The texture is exactly like soft serve, and it doesn’t even taste that much like bananas! I’ve been craving ice cream so much lately, and eating this feels like I’m tricking myself. It’s an absolutely perfect, no-guilt-needed dessert. And the best part? It couldn’t be easier! It takes about two minutes to make (not counting the time needed to freeze the bananas, of course) and I can make it in my tiny little kitchen using my hard-working little immersion blender. Check plus.

It’s been kind of fun to try to make new recipes in a new space with less equipment than I’m used to having. I created a Pinterest board for things I want to try to cook this year without an oven, food processor or even a proper mixing bowl, and it’s really been inspiring me. I’ve been learning lately that having restrictions actually makes me more creative. It’s funny how that works.

You can find the “recipe” here!

White Bean Garlic Dip and Homemade Tortillas

April 29, 2014

I’m over at Guinea Pigging Green today with the recipe for a delicious white bean garlic dip I threw together last week. It wound up being so yummy I just had to share it! No doubt it can be improved upon (my tiny Korean kitchen, while growing, is still not completely stocked) but it was the perfect addition to some light, fresh veggie wraps.

The same day, I made tortillas by hand for the first time. At the risk of sounding like a complete and total loser: it was so much fun! Not only did I feel like a domestic goddess extraordinaire, but the tortillas were so tasty and came out perfectly. I was following a recipe from Oh She Glows (all of her recipes are always awesome) using regular flour instead of the spelt flour she recommends.

You would have laughed to see me – I was covered from head to toe in flour, rolling out tortillas using my water bottle then whipping around to drop them into my little frying pan, doing a little dance back and forth the whole time. But it was fun. So far, my 24 before 24 list has been feeding me well – literally and figuratively!

Check out the recipe (and some other ideas for what to put in these tortillas) here!

Vegan Peanut Butter Cups

April 15, 2014

I’m over at Guinea Pigging Green today sharing a recipe for homemade, raw, and vegan peanut butter cups! I’ve already eaten four from the batch today, so it’s lucky they’re rather small.

These peanut butter cups are pillowy, naturally sweetened, nutty, and delicious. They’re a great little sweet treat and miraculously I was able to make them in my tiny Korean apartment without a real mixing bowl (I used a shallow bowl I got when I bought strawberries off the street), or a muffin tin (I used an empty plastic egg carton), or an oven (they’re raw)!

It felt good to mix ingredients up in a bowl, to use strong cinnamon, and to take food photos in a new space with new light. Baking while photographing the process is one of my favourite things to do but I always seem to forget how much I love it until I’m doing it again. Today I was reminded that I can always make good things happen for myself, even in a small space in a foreign country. It comforts me to think that as long as I have peanut butter and a wooden spoon, I can feel like I’m home.

Check out the recipe here!