Homemade Hummus

I've made hummus before with canned garbanzo beans. Since my goal is to see just how cheaply I can keep my lunches I decided to go full tilt and try it with dried beans.Obviously the first difficulty is making sure you plan ahead and soak the beans. The second issue I had was compensating for the fact that since they are packed in liquid i need to add a bit of moisture to the mix. Neither of these were big enough problems to put me off using dried beans. 

 As far as a recipe I just kind of throw things in to a food processor. Of course tahini is a must, then I added garlic, a bit of chipotle powder, some nutritional yeast, and some Bragg's liquid amino acids for a bit of salt.

I had totally forgotten about these mini Ball jars in my cupboard, but they are the perfect size for lunch time portions of hummus. Plus they're wicked adorable.

Orange Mascarpone Stuffed Dates

I made these stuffed dates at work for our full serve case. During the holidays we sell dates stuffed with gorgonzola, but I wanted to try something lighter for the warmer weather. 

These are Medjool dates stuffed with Vermont Butter and Creamery Mascarpone, fresh squeezed orange juice and orange zest, and crushed pistachios.

I'm really happy with the way these turned out. They're a bit labor intensive since I have to pit the dates. But once you get going they are totally worth it. I would suggest only making them in large batches, they go fast and its a bit of work for a small snack.