Expat Essentials – Hummus & Pitta Bread *

Yeah, yeah, I know you can find hummus here – there’s a great Turkish community after all, so you will find it sold on quite a few food stalls in town.   But, you can’t just walk into any old supermarket and find it,  never mind in different flavours like you can at home – which is a problem if you live outside of town and happen to have two children weaned in the UK and addicted to the stuff! The mass-produced hummus you can occasionally find often has the taste and texture reminiscent of playdough (I did accidentally consume some once when my two were much smaller!), and the shop bought pitta breads aren’t usually up to much.  But fear not, unless you have a fabulous Turkish emporium on your doorstep, why would you want to buy either when they are equally simple to make yourself, and taste sooo much better??

For the Lime & Coriander Hummus:

1 Can of Chickpeas;
1/3 cup of Tahini;
3tbs Olive Oil;
1 Clove Crushed Garlic;
Half a Lime;
Good Pinch of Salt;
2tbsp Water
30g Fresh Coriander.

Drain the chickpeas, rinse, and leave to slightly dry off in a sieve.  Then using a food processor, add the tahini, chick peas, olive oil, crushed garlic, and the lime juice (adding enough until you get the taste you like).  Add tablespoons of water until you get the desired consistency.  Chop the coriander and add it at the very end.  Leave some to garnish.  

For the Pitta Breads*:

225g white organic bread flour;
1sp Salt;
5g dried yeast (or 15g fresh yeast);
140ml lukewarm water;
10ml Olive Oil.

Sift the flour and salt together in a bowl. Mix the yeast with the water and olive oil, and stir until the yeast has dissolved. Slowly beat the flour and yeast/water/oil together and knead to make a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for a further 5 minutes. Quickly oil a large bowl with a drop or two of olive oil, chuck the dough in and leave to rise in a warm place for an hour. Knock back and divide into 6 equal balls and leave to rest for a few minutes.   Roll out each ball of dough into an oval shape around 5mm thick and 15cm long. Place on a clean floured tea towel and cover with another. Leave for a further 20-30 minutes until risen.  Preheat the oven to 220degC, and place the trays you will use to bake the pitta bread on in the oven. When the oven has reached temperature (and only then) place two pitta breads on a tray and bake for 4-6 minutes until baked – they should puff up! Transfer to a rack to cool until you can eat them, and then serve with the hummus and watch both disappear!

* The Hummus recipe is my own, but the pitta bread recipe is slightly adapted from my bread bible –  Bread by Christine Ingram and Jennie Shapter- a must for any Expat shelf!