Hummus Bowls with Spiced Ground Beef and Tomatoes can be made with a trip to your pantry

Having trouble finding a cheap, filling dinner on the table? Head straight to your pantry (and fridge), and hopefully you can make this dinner from what you have in there. This week’s recipe, Hummus Bowls with Spiced Ground Beef and Tomatoes, is a hearty, flavorful, simple dinner that won’t take much time. Hopefully you have a bit of pita bread, but honestly, you could eat it with any bread — or even without bread.

You may have had Hummus Shawarma at a Mediterranean restaurant. In that dish, there are also sautéed onions mixed in with the beef or chicken, and I recommend using onions. Also, the tomatoes are sautéed in the restaurant version. It’s delicious either way, but maybe for these colder temps, throw those tomatoes into the pan.

Hummus makes a creamy, delicious base for this bowl, and the spiced ground beef turns an appetizer into an irresistible main dish. I recommend spending the few minutes it takes to make your own hummus. My hummus recipe follows, and it’s the “quick” version using canned garbanzo beans. The traditional way is soaking dried chickpeas overnight and boiling them.

If you do get out, stop at an international market for supplies: aleppo pepper, tahini, pita bread and the crispy pita chips can all be purchased there. You won’t regret sourcing these ingredients from there.

One last addition to this recipe would be toasted pine nuts for garnishing and that added nuttiness and crunch. I love the simplicity of this recipe and also love that you can add things to it. Another garnish if you like heat would be pickled jalapenos or pickled beets.

I hope your food, homes and hearts are warm in these days to come.

— Epicurious.com

This recipe originally published in the Wichita Eagle.

This story was originally published December 30, 2022 at 8:23 AM.