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For Starters: Whiskey Sour and Hummus with Vegetable Crudite

6 min read
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Whiskey sour

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Whiskey hummus

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Hummus

‘Twas the day after Christmas and all through the house…

You can fill in the blank with the appropriate response for you personally, but it is indeed the day after Christmas. I hope that you had a very merry holiday with family, friends, and loved ones. I also hope that it was full of presents and of course delicious food.

The great thing about this time of the year is that it becomes almost like one holiday after the other. It begins with Halloween and then Thanksgiving, which leads into Christmas Eve and then Christmas Day – but it doesn’t end there.

We now have the start of a new year to look forward to and with that comes it’s own set of unique customs and celebrations. I like both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day a lot. Aside from the pork, lentils, and other traditional foods I also look forward to the thought of all of the new exciting things a new year will bring.

If you think back to one year ago, when the calendar was changing from 2013 to 2014, I’ll bet quite a few things were different for you. They certainly are for me, and whether you hold the belief that you had a fantastic 2014 or a not-so-fantastic 2014, it’s time to put it behind us.

You can choose to either pick up in 2015 where you left off in 2014 or you also have the ability to choose to start over with a clean slate and make 2015 your best year yet.

Personally, I like to start looking ahead a month or two earlier. I start building momentum for the new year sometime in November so that when the calendar strikes January I’m ready to hit the ground running at full speed. Like I said earlier, I look forward to New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day and the hope and excitement a new set of 12 months brings.

For this weeks recipes I took all of this into account. I had to think about Christmas being just behind us and also about New Year’s being right in front of us. I knew that a complicated set of recipes was out of the question.

We are between two very food rich holidays so I thought that my best course of action would be a set of recipes that are easy, simple, a bit on the lighter side, but still delicious.

I wanted to share a set of recipes that I really enjoy and also a set that I could imagine myself enjoying both between and on the two major holidays. I also wanted the hors d’oeuvre to be on the healthier side to help those of you with the New Year’s Resolution to drop some unwanted pounds. Why wait until January 2nd to get started when you can come out of the gates strong with a recipe that you actually enjoy eating?

If you think that my criteria is kind of restricting and possibly even more on the wishful thinking than realistic side, then you aren’t alone. When I looked at what I wanted to create I knew it was an ambitious idea, but I did believe that it could be done.

After some serious thought and research, I finally hit pay dirt. It almost made too much sense when I stepped back and looked at the recipes. They are both extremely classic and even common recipes that I really enjoy sipping and eating together. They work and, in my personal opinion, fit every criteria that I previously laid out.

The hors d’oeuvre recipe that I chose to feature is hummus. I love hummus and yes I do make mine a little different than the ultra traditional recipes that you will find, but feel free to doctor yours up however you personally enjoy it.

I know it’s almost a crime to some people, but I don’t particularly enjoy a lot of tahini in my hummus. Tahini is a paste made from ground, hulled sesame seeds and is a staple in traditional hummus. I don’t dislike tahini, however I don’t appreciate when it’s flavor asserts itself over everything else in the hummus.

I like my hummus to have a nice depth of flavor from all of the elements involved. The garlic, lemon juice, cumin, and extra virgin olive oil really create a delicious combination of flavors inside the smooth creamy chickpea puree. I also like to add some mayonnaise to my hummus to give it a little extra richness in flavor and a little extra creaminess in texture.

I chose to pair crudités or raw vegetables with my hummus for dipping. I did this for the textural crunch which provides a nice contrast to the creamy hummus and also because vegetables are healthier than pita or pita chips. If you would rather use another dipping food for your hummus delivery system from bowl to mouth, then by all means go for it.

The cocktail I chose to pair with my hummus is the classic Whiskey Sour. I really like how the slight tartness and acidity from the fresh lemon juice in the cocktail marries with the lemon juice and slight acidity of the hummus. I also really enjoy bourbon and feel like they Whiskey Sour is a really complete, delicious, and classic cocktail that is easy to make and can easily be enjoyed by all.

To make the simple syrup for the cocktail recipe simply combine equal parts sugar and water in a saucepan, bring it to a boil to dissolve the sugar, remove from the heat, and chill. Simple syrup is used for this cocktail and can also be used for many other recipes.

I hope that you enjoy these classic recipes both between and during the holidays this year and in the future. These recipes aren’t only good for use right now; they are great all year long.

Enjoy the recipes and enjoy the rest of the holiday season. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! I’ll talk to you in 2015.

Mario Porreca of Belle Vernon is an entrepreneur, author, lifestyle solutions expert, and the host of Just Cook It Radio. He can be reached via his website at: www.MarioPLS.com. Twitter: @MarioPorreca

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