Chipotle Beef Stew with Root Veggies

It's a been a while since I posted and lots of things have changed for me.  I have joined the working outside the home world.  My first foray into the working world since becoming a parent was at the flailing JCPenney.  After that got tiresome I started applying to positions that interested me much more.  I got hired on at my local co-op.  I love it there.  I work in the education and outreach department mostly behind the scenes for the cooking classes.

I am learning all kinds of things and getting to rub elbows with fantastic cooks and chefs. Ergo I am more inspired to be in the kitchen.

Tuesdays dinner plan that turned into lunch was a goal to use up some things:  an unlabeled roast with little marbling and a nice fat cap,  local peppers, sweet potatoes and some celeriac.



2lbs roast - I trimmed the fat cap off and cut into cubes
2-3 tbl - local lard
1-2 cups beef broth
1 chipotle in adobe sauce from the freezer - roughly chopped
1 yellow onion cut in to quarters
salt an pepper for the beef

My plan was to pressure cook the beef so it would be tender and juicey for a stew or beef tacos.  I seasoned the beef cubes with salt and pepper and browned them in the pressure cooker in two batches in lard.  Then added them back into the poth with chipolte in adobo sauce and onion the topped the cube off with about 1.5 cups of beef broth cubes that were in the freezer.  Got the pressure cooker to pressure and cooked for 15 minutes and waited for it to cool down naturally.

1 yellow onions  chopped
1 tbl oregano
2 tbl tomato paste
3 peppers both red and green chopped
4 cloves of garlic minced
about 1/2 cup celeriac  chopped medium fine
more beef broth to cover the veggies and beef

When the beef was done I prepared the above veggies.  I pulled out my 6 quart enamel dutch oven and sauteed the onions until mostly translucent then added the garlic and oregano then the rest of the veggies and cooked a bit more.  Then added the tomato paste, beef and most of the pressure cooking liquid.  I over salted the beef and the broth was quit rich so I saved back some of it and put it in the freezer and topped off the stew with more beef broth in the pantry. I brought the stew to a simmer and had it for lunch.

I thought is was pretty good even if a bit salty and had a nice smokey flavor and heat from the chipotle.



You could top it with some fresh cilantro like I did for leftovers the next day.

Foodie Friday: Slurp, Crunch and Chew

Slurp:

Japanese Sweet Potato Soup

We had this soup with some oven roasted chicken and roasted eggplant for dinner on Sunday. The Japanese Sweet potatoes give it a roasted chestnut flavor that is oh so yummy.

A recipe of sorts as I'm taking a guess at what Stephen tossed together in the pot:


Rich and Creamy Japanese Sweet Potato Soup

ghee or butter to cook the leeks and veggies
4 Japanese sweet potatoes - peeled and rough chopped
3 leek whites - cleaned and roughly chopped - great tips on how to clean leeks here
2 carrots roughly chopped
a teaspoon or so of chicken better than bullion  - This stuff is salty so a little goes a long way.  I noticed at my local market that they do have a lower sodium version that I want to give a try. I also noticed it contains sugar so maybe I need to make more chicken stock.
6 cups water or stock to cover the potatoes and leeks
salt and pepper to taste
A little bit of milk or cream about 1 cup

Saute the leeks in some ghee or butter, then add the sweet potatoes and carrots.  Then cover with water and bullion or stock.  Let cook until soft.  Run though a food mill or use a hand blender.  Add some cream or milk at the end.

Crunch:

Sweet Potato Chips

I followed the directions I found here which has you cook them at 400 deg for a short period of time.  I sliced mine up in my food processor which worked fine.  I forgot to salt mine and wish I had.  They were good but I think salted a head time they would have been better.  They didn't get as crunchy as I would have liked.  Oddly the got a bit crunchier after I took them out of the oven. Next time I'm trying a lower temperature for longer and see how that works.

Chew:

Monday's dinner: Dad's Pork Chops topped with some kale chips, roasted okra, feta-basil-garlic-tomato salad

This was my first time cooking up pork chops in a long, long time.  I was a vegetarian for several years.  Even though I've been an omnivore again for quite some time,  I avoid cooking cooking meat and let my husband Stephen be the adventurous one.  Since I do most of the cooking during the week and our current diet require more meat protien I need to just do it.  So I did.  The chops turned out good and would have been even better if I had cooked them a little less.  It was a tasty meal anyways.

Feta-garlic-basil-tomato salad
One pint cherry tomatoes chopped
purple basil as much or as little as you want
2 cloves garlic minced
salt and pepper to taste
a drizzle or so of olive oil
top with feta when you serve

Bon Appetite!

Foodie Friday: Another Mexi Meal and Veggies

1/2 cup red beans
2 oz of  Local Marquez Lamb and Beef Sausage -  No sugar!
This sausage is good even better than the chorizo.  My go to way to cook this and any similar sausage it to pan brown it with a little oil then put it into 350 deg oven for about 20 min.
1 cup steamed yuppie veggies (see below)
topped with some of the husk cherry salsa




Yuppie Veggies include: carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, and until summer is over local zucchini.  We stole the veggie mix name and idea from the no longer in operation Paradise Bakery & Cafe. If any of you local and far remember the goodness of the cafe you can now prepare it in your own home with their cookbook!

We eat these veggies either steamed or sauteed with many of our meals.  Sometimes I jazz it up with a basil vinaigrette or top with some pesto.   Since it's all cut up there is no excuse not to eat veggies every day. We go through about 2 heads of cauliflower and broccoli, 3-4 carrots and 3-5 zucchinis each week.  That's in addition to all the other veggies we eat during the week like okra, eggplant, green beans etc.  If the kids start eating as much veggies as my husband and I are we will need even more.

Sip It Saturday: A Double Pils and Roasted Okra

Last Saturday I indulged in a few beers.  I haven't any beer in several weeks and this was refreshing.  My husband makes fun of me these days as I tend to prefer the lighter less hoppy beers.  I think it's been the heat that did it too me.  Yet tastes do change.

I had one while I chatted with Stephen while he was preparing our dinner and another with this delicious meal.



Bunless burger topped with cheddar cheese and onions with a side of roasted okra.   I'm in love with roasted okra!

Roasted Okra
Pre-heat Oven to 425 Deg
Cut the okra 1/2 in or so.  About 1/2 to 1 cup per person
Drizzle with olive oil
toss with some salt, garlic and onion powder/granules.
Cook for about 12 minutes

Foodie Friday: Husk Cherry Salsa

Have you ever heard of husk cherries?  They are new to me.  They look like mini tomatillos and they are a relative.  They are cross between sweet and tart.  I tried some at the farmers market last Saturday and fell in love.  So of course I bought some and came home and made this fresh salsa.



1/2 pint husk cherries cut in half
4 small tomatoes finely chopped
1/2 red onion finely chopped
2 small cloves garlic finely diced
juice from 1/2 a lime
1 jalapeno finely chopped
salt to taste



If I had bought some cilantro I would have added some but sadly I did not.  It was sweet, a bit spicy and delish on some Silva's corn chips.  Yum!

Snack Time Crunch Time

I keep finding yummy things to make and share so I think I'll starting posting some Foodie Friday on Wednesday too.  I don't want anyone to miss out on the local farmers market bounty.

One of the things I like about about corn chips, pita chips, or wasabi peas are the crunch. Since I am abstaining from them at the moment I've been craving something to crunch and for some reason nuts and seeds just don't do it for me.   So when this buzzfeed link, 25 Baked Alternatives To Potato Chips And French Fries,  went across my facebook feed I had to take a look.  It was the answers to my crunchy craving.  So today I made kale chips and some zucchini chips too. 

The kale chips I cooked in my lower oven at 325 deg which is both convection and regular oven.  A fan goes on when it's just in the regular oven mode.  I think having that air circulation helped these crisp up.  I wonder if using convection would do even better?  I'm getting ahead of myself. 

I washed and veined the kale as a friend of mine said she found the veins didn't get very crispy.  Patted them dry and tossed them with some olive oil, salt, and garlic powder.  Basically cook until crisp.  I checked on mine every 5 minutes or so. They took about 10 plus minutes.



I tried this zucchini chip recipe.  As the recipe suggested do go light on the spices since the slices shrink quite a bit so it gets very concentrated.  So next time I plan to spice them near the end of the cooking to see if that helps. You cook these slowly at 225 deg for about an hour so plan ahead if you want some. 

These veggies chips are just the tip of the iceberg.  I can't wait to try some winter squash chips and maybe some beet chips too.  I'm not a beet fan.  Beets are so beety. I'm sure for a treat I'd love the ones here covered in bacon!

Foodie Friday: Steak Tacos

 85% local dinner, sometime in 2010 that is!  I planned to post it but never did.  Maybe it can inspire you if you are in a food rut.  Might have to make changes because tomatoes and tomatillos aren't sadly not in season.  Bummer.  Cabbage is still easy to find and maybe some really good jarred salsa would do in a pinch.

Steak Taco's



12 plus ounces of Kansas Grass Fed Angus Flank Steak Cut with the grain. Marinated in lime juice, garlic, and cumin. Then cooked.



Tomatillo Salsa


Local Roasted tomatillos, one ear
local sweet corn, small onion, local purple pepper, salt. This was so good it didn't last for dinner. So I made some Pica Da Gillo to make up for it. 2 Local tomatoes, 2-3 gloves crushed garlic, one ear local sweet corn, one small onion, one local anaheim pepper, salt.



Marinated Red Onions: vinegar, sugar and red pepper flakes or jalapeno for spice.  Cabbage slaw:  cabbage of course, grated carrots, vinegar, salt.

Italian Inspired Phyllo Triangles

The veggies contents of the fridge that needed eatin' on Thursday.



preprepared phyllo, broccoli, spinach, misc greens, green onions, squash, ricotta, cooked red pepers and onions that were used for tacos earlier in the week.

A lot of the ingredients I have are leftovers from making a greek spanakopita. Last time I made that dish I threw away the ricotta because it got bad before I figured out what to do with it. So I am set out to make an Italian inspired spanakopita.




So I chopped up the red peppers and onions as well as the basil and green onions. I cooked the spinach and other greens down just enough and let them drain for a bit. Then mixed it all in a bowl with some crushed garlic about 4 cloves. I also added some marjoram.



I added the rest of the ricotta and 1/4 cup plus if shredded Parmesan cheese.



Then mixed that all together. Now on to the fun part of making the triangles. I melted about 1 stick of butter for brushing the phyllo pasties. I would have used olive oil but we didn't have enough. Also preheat your oven to 425 deg F.

Lay one phyllo sheet on a cookie sheet and brush with butter. Lay one more sheet down and brush with butter again. I used two sheets for each triangle. Then fold the two sheets in half the long way.



Place a dollop of the filling on the bottom. Then begin to fold it into a triangle.







Brush the top with butter and set aside on another baking sheet. Repeat until the triangles are done. Cut a small slit on the top of them. I don't know if this is really necessary or not but I did it. Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes. I like to turn the pan in the middle so they brown evenly. Take them out and them cool for a bit then devour!



What did I do with the broccoli and squash? Stay tuned for another post someday, maybe.

Raspberry Crisp

Inspired by the recipe found here

1 cup (2 cups would be better) raspberries plus 1-2T of sugar
3T Flour
3T Oats
2T Brown sugar
pinch of salt
4T Butter
1/4 T crushed toasted walnuts

Mix dry ingredients, cut in the butter, add walnuts. Pour berries in to pan then top with crisp mixture.

Bake in preheated 400 deg oven for about 10 minutes.


Oops forgot to take a pic before is was slurped up!

Sort of Sweet & Spicy Peanut Pasta Stir Fry

I say sort of because I didn't use pasta and didn't use peanuts. I made this before exactly and it's fabulous. My favorite part is the sauce. I followed the recipe from the February 2010 Merc Newsletter. Follow the link, down load the February 2010 Newsletter. Recipe is on page 7.

I followed the sauce recipe exactly.






I added some cabbage so there would be plenty of leftovers. I added some green onions on top after it was cooked because we had some from the farmers market that needed eatin'





Finally I steamed up some Edamame to top it with on the table since I didn't have any peanuts. My original plan was to have a bit of sliced beef in the stir fry but I forgot to thaw it soooo beef was not for dinner.



No pics of it all together. We ate it over rice rather than on noodles but it is really good over noodles. Try it you'll like!

Italian Lentil Soup

How authentically Italian this is I don't know but I'm going for an Italian taste.

1 - 28oz. can ground tomato
6-8 C - Chicken broth - How much depends on how thick you like your soup. You can also adjust the lentils. I was going for a lighter soup rather than a thick stew so I did about 7 C broth
1 onion chopped
1 large carrot chopped
2 stalks celery sliced thinly
1 red pepper chopped
.25 pound spicy Italian sausage cooked then chopped
4-6 cloves garlic crushed
1 T oregano
1 tsp marjoram
1 C Lentils
1/2 - 1 C red wine (optional) - Idid use red wine but if I had had some hand I would have.




Heat the oven up to 350 deg F then quickly sear the sausage in an oven safe skillet on the stove. Then place sausage in the oven for 2o min. I cooked up two sausage links but save one back for later this week with pasta.

Sauté up the veggies starting with the onions then adding celery, carrots, and peppers. This will take about 10 min. Add garlic and other spices.

Add the canned tomatoes, broth and lentils. Cook until lentils are tender about 1- 1.5 hours. Add wine some where near the end of the cooking time.

Mmmmm... Smells good!


Serve up with the some fresh bread and a salad.

The Boy Kid's Salsa

The Boy Kid's Salsa
1 28 oz can Fire Roasted Tomatoes
1 28 oz can Diced Tomatoes
We used Muir Glenn but use what you have on hand. I do think the fire roasted really makes the salsa extra good.
1 med- large onion coarsely chopped
2 jalapeño peppers seeded coarsely chopped
6 med garlic cloves crushed
a pinch or so of chipotle chili pepper ( the more you add the smokier and hotter it will be)
1 teaspoon or more red pepper flakes
salt to taste

Put the tomatoes in a large bowl and give a quick blend with a hand blender or a few pulses food processor. Put tomatoes back in bowl if you used the processor.

Add the onions and peppers to the food processor and give a few pulses so the onions and pepers are a finner. Add that to the tomatoes. Then add the garlic, chipolte chili powder, red pepper flakes and salt to taste. Mix well.

Then grab a bowl of corn chips and try not to eat too much!



The boy kid can't wait until the tomatoes and peppers are all local and fresh so he can make this again.


Note: I made a mistake get 28oz cans not 24oz cans. Basically the large cans of tomatoes.

Pesto Quinoa Salad

I interrupt Knit and Crochet Blog Week with a recipe because food is good for you! (To be honest I won't answer the rest of the questions because I just really don't want to.)




Spinach pesto
One bunch spinach
6 cloves garlic crushed
1/2 cup olive oil more or less - I started with 1/4 cup this bunch of spinach was on the large size so I needed more
a pinch of fresh basil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup toasted walnuts

Blend all ingredients up in your favorite food preprocessor.

Pesto Quinoa Salad - Serves one 1-2
1/4 - 1/2 cup cooked red quinoa
1/4 - 1/2 cup broccoli cut small
1 T shallot only because I had some and it need to be used up
1/4 -1/2 cup carrots diced
small amount mesculan salad greens
a dollop of pesto

I steamed the carrots and broccoli just a bit to make them more tender.

I mixed the quinoa and the veggies in a bowl, topped it with a bit of fresh salad greens and a dollop of pesto.

Hmmm, Hmmm, Good!

Foodie Friday: Sausage Fry

Yummy sausage of your choice. I cooked up 4 Beelers Brats. I give them a quick brown on the stove then put them in 375 deg oven for about 20 minutes or so.

After the sausages were done I also started some Basmati rice. You can use any rice you want but Basmati sounded good to me. I went the extra step and toasted the grain in some olive oil before adding the water. Hmmm, It smells so good that way. If you haven't done this before add the clean Basmati rice to a bit of warmed olive oil and toast it until you smell popcorn. At least that's what toasted Basmati smells like to me. Then add the water. I do almost 2:1 water to grain. 1.5 cups of dry rice takes about 30 plus min to cook. I'm pretty cautious and check often after about 25 min. You know it's done when you lift the sauce pan and the rice doesn't slide down.

You can use really any veggies of your choice. I'd have added carrots to the mix but were are low and I want it for stir fry for our next meal.



2 onions thinly sliced
2 red peppers or peppers of you choice thinly sliced
1/2 cabbage thinly sliced
4 or more coarsely chopped toes of garlic

With luck this will serve 4 plus extra. Most likely the girl kid will only eat the veggies and the boy kid will refuse to try it. After fixing this up I really needed the carrots 2-3 or the rest of the head of cabbage to have the ratio of sausage to veggies I'd like.

While the sausages are cooking I prepare the veggies above. After the sausages are done I start cooking the veggies. Sometimes I wait until the husband gets home so the food is all warm and yummy and then he helps cook too.



Start by cooking the onions and when the look almost done I added the garlic. This was a new addition to my sausage fry. I haven't used garlic before but it sounded good tonight. Then add the peppers, then the cabbage. When things look almost cooked to your taste toss in the sausage I like to chop mine up before adding it. Then let it cook for a bit more with a lid so the sausage can add some flavor to the fry and warm up. Salt and pepper to taste while cooking or not.


Mea culpa for the blurry photo but it looks a wee bit tasty yes?


Serve up with the rice and optional sauce below.

3 tbl olive oil
2 tbl rice vinegar
1 tsp yellow mustard (I used dijon this time)
1 tsp tamari
1/2 tsp sugar or honey

I kind of like this sauce on the sweet side and use more honey than suggested above. This is the same sauce I use on the Chick Pea Potato Salad. I don't normaly use sauce on my sausage fry and depend on the flavor of the onion and sausage. Since the kids don't like the sausage there was a request for a sauce. So there ya go. I decided against a sweeter sauce and a drizzled it on the fry was really good.

Black Bean and Squash Burritos

I don't have a pretty picture of them but they are good. My daughter loved them so that makes them double good.

I loosely followed the recipe here. I used butternut squash because that's what I had. I peeled it before I baked it. I passed on the coriander but added a wee bit of chipolte chili powder. Just a pinch because it's spicy, if you like it hot feel free to add more.

Take Stock in Stock

Ideally I like to make my own stock because it's less salty than bullion and it's way cheaper than the stuff you get in cans or aseptic container. If I just take them time it's really not all that hard.



I keep a bag of leftover veggies scraps from meals in the freezer. When that gets full I put it all in a pot with anything else I have on hand, fill the pot up with water...

Here's a basic recipe and how to if you are a stock virgin. Inspired from New Recipes from Moosewood.

Veggie Stock
2 large unpeeled potatoes and quartered
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced thickly
1 large onion and quartered
1 celery stock chopped
1 apple or pear seeded and quartered
1 bay leaf
12 peppercorns
10 cups water about 2.5 quarts

For a spicier stock add garlic cloves skins and all and a small amount of tomato. I always add garlic. I also will toss in onion peels and not always peel the other veggies I add. I always wash everything well.

Bring to a boil and simmer for about an hour. Strain the veggies out and put them in the compost if you have one. Then you are ready to use the stock or put in the fridge for the next day. If you don’t think you will be able to use it right away you can store in the freezer. Some can be put in ice cube trays so you can use a few cubes when you are cooking up some rice. After they are frozen place in a plastic bag.



You can measure out larger amounts and put it in a Rubbermaid container then after it freezes transfer it to plastic bags so you can have the container back.

If you want a chicken stock just save up your bones and skins as well in the freezer and add them to the veggies.

Very Creamy Potato Cheese Soup

(adapted from New Recipes from Moosewood)



Makes one dinners worth and depending on the size of you family several bowls for lunch. In my family the first time I make this in the winter it disappears that evening. The secret ingredient for this is the cream cheese.

6 or more T butter
3 onions chopped
3-4 or more! garlic cloves minced or pressed
6-8 large potatoes coarsely chopped
2 large carrots peeled a coarsely chopped
5-6 cups vegetable stock or chicken stock
(I use better than bullion veggie or chicken bullion but I also make my own stock in the morning if I have the veggies on hand to do it)*
2 ts dried dill (4 T of fresh dill)
8 ounce cream cheese
3 cups milk give or take
1 cup grate sharp cheese
salt and pepper to taste

In a large soup pot sauté the onions in butter until the onions are soft. Add the garlic and sauté for a bit more then add the potatoes and carrots and sauté for 5-10 minutes. Add the dill and sauté. Then add the stock water. Simmer until all the veggies are tender.

Puree the veggies with the cream cheese and milk. I use a hand blender right in the pot. You can use a food processor or a blender. Return the soup to heat and add the cheddar cheese.

Sometimes I cook up some bacon or ham to sprinkle on top. Topping it with fresh steamed veggies is probably healthier but not always as tasty. Serve it up with some yummy bread and dig into a carborific meal!

*Check back later for how I make my own stock. When I use the Better than Bullion I don't use the proportions suggested on the jar. I do about 3t to the 5-6 cups of water suggested. Overall I like the chicken bullion better for this than the veggie bullion. If I want a veggie base I prefer to use my own stock.

Chick Pea Potato Salad

I made Chick Pea Potato Salad for dinner tonight but instead of using a basic potato I used purple potatoes and sweet potatoes. The sweet potatoes gave the salad more flavor and made it purdy too especially topped with some local greens and green onions. The original recipe called for red peppers too but alas I did not have any.



Cooked Chick Peas- you can use canned but I used some I cooked in my pressure cooker - you'll want 1/4 or so per serving (If you are interested in cooking your beans in a pressure cooker: Check out this link here and this one here for cooking times for various beans. )

2-3 medium size sweet potatoes cubed
3-4 small purple potatoes cubed
handful of ground cumin and a few pinches of salt
3-4 T olive oil

Optional toppings
green onions
red peppers
salad greens

Tamari Mustard Dressing - I usually double this when I make it:
3T Olive Oil
2T rice vinegar (I like using red wine vinegar too)
1t mustard (I use dijon)
1t tamari
1/2t sugar ( I like to use honey and use more than this recipe recommneds)

Preheat oven 400 deg F

Heat a skillet then add olive oil. Add the potatoes both sweet and purple. Saute then add the cumin and mix, sprinkle with salt. Cook a for another minute stirring to mix the cumin on the potatoes. Transfer to a baking sheet and place in the oven for 20 minutes or until cooked through.

Place some of the potatoes on the bottom of a bowl, top with 1/4 cup or so of chick peas, chopped green onions, red peppers, salad greens, crushed corn chips, and dressing.

Pour a nice glass of red wine if you want. I had some Yellow Tail Shiraz from down under. Then sit down for a lovely treat if I do say so myself.

Edited to add some info about pressure cooking beans see above.

What's for Breakfast

So I guess a little break from all the healthy eating I've been doing. These started with a chunk of Artisan Bread 5 minutes a day dough that was already in the fridge. I highly recommend you use cold dough for this as it's easier to handle. With lots of flour and some patience you can use fresh dough. I find I need lots of lour even if the dough is cold so it doesn't stick to the table. Just go here for the basic recipe. This bread recipe is awesome because you don't have to knead it. Really!


Sans Icing

It took off a fairly big chunk about 1/3 of the recipe. I rolled out the dough so it was less than 1/2 thick. Then spread soften butter over it about 4 tablespoons. Then sprinkled it with cinnamon sugar, about 1/4 cup sugar to one teaspoon or so of cinnamon. I used organic sugar rather than brown sugar because I really like how it tastes. Then roll it up and pinch it closed. You can put it back in the fridge for about 10 minutes so it would be easier to cut but I don't always do this. I put a piece of parchment paper on my peel then places the cut rolls not quite touching on the parchment and covered them to rest for about 30 minutes. Then I put them in a 350 deg oven for 20 minutes or so.

I make the icing while they are cooking. When they come out of them they get iced immeduialtey so it melts and they rolls are super gooey.

Icing Recipe, just cream together the following then ice the rolls when they are hot
2T butter
2T cream cheese
1t vanilla
1t milk
1/2 cup or so powdered sugar


Iced and Super Yummy!

I made these yesterday and since dh didn't get any I made more for breakfast this morning. It was pretty hard not to eat them all but we manage to save back a few for the kids who are not up yet.

So have a yummy, virtual, cinnamon roll. The good thing is there are no calories so you can have as many as you want.

Foodie Friday - Hummus Pocket

It's been a while since I shared any recipes. A few days ago I made the most delicious hummus pocket which I thought was a great cool summer type food.

Here's what I used but add more to your liking. It's a great user upper of odds and ends from the garden this summer.

I forgot the lettuce in the pic- oops!

Pita Bread

• This is ideal but you could substitute tortillas to make a wrap or bread for a sandwich
  
• I like to warm up my pita by toasting it a bit with a little olive oil. If you use a tort it's a good idea to warm it up a bit too so it doesn't break when you wrap. I'd like to toast up bread if I used it 'cause I like things crunchy.
  

Hummus

• I bought mine pre-made at our local co-op but you can make your own. There are lots of recipes on line just get your google on.

Veggies -these were what I used

• lettuce- shredded
  
• cumbers - thinly sliced
• carrots - grated
  
• red onion- thinly sliced
  

You could also use:

• squash - thinly sliced or grated
  
• red pepper - thinly sliced

I like to add some chili garlic sauce for some zing. If you do use this remember a little goes a very long way, it is very spicy.

Cut your pita in half then fill with the above goodies of your choice. One half is about good for a light lunch, eat both halves if you are really hungry.