More From Top Chef

Other recipes we've been working on at Top Chef are panzanella (Italian bread salad) and hummus! This salad recipe is a great way to get kids to eat their veggies; everybody wants to dive right into the salad that they made with their own two hands!


Hummus becomes extra magical when Auritte explains the ritual consumption in her homeland of Israel. Wipe it up with pita or spread it on a whole wheat dinner roll.


We make hummus at home from dried garbanzo beans, but canned is easier for the kids, and you might find out the same. This simple recipe has great results.


Hummus is a middle-eastern dip made with chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans), seasonings, and tahini (sesame seed butter). The dip is often served with raw vegetables, spread on pita bread, or schmeared on a sandwich.

Drizzling in the olive oil helps us to understand the process of emulsification. Think about what happens when you try to mix oil and water. The oil will float to the top and will not mix in with the water. Emulsification is the process of blending the fat and liquid together. By drizzling the oil into the machine while it is running, we can emulsify the oil and create a smooth, homogenous dip.

Serves 6 people as a dip

1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, drained
2 cloves garlic, smashed
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons olive oil
Olive oil for drizzling
Paprika for sprinkling

1. Put chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and tahini in a food processor. Process until slightly smooth.
2. With the machine running, slowly stream in the olive oil.
3. Continue processing until hummus is smooth.
4. Taste for seasoning. Add more salt or lemon juice if necessary. Garnish with olive oil and paprika.


Whole wheat dinner rolls
Makes 12

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast
1 cup warm (105 to 115°F) milk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour

1. In a large bowl, stir together whole wheat flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Stir in milk, butter, and egg. Beat until the mixture is smooth.
2. Add all-purpose flour and mix again until the batter is smooth.
3. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours, or until it has doubled in size.
4. Stir the batter to deflate it slightly. Grease the muffin pans with pan spray. Scoop even amounts of batter into each muffin cup.
5. Cover with plastic and set aside. Proof for about 1 hour, or until rolls have grown up over the top of the muffin pans. Set the oven at 400 degrees.
6. Bake rolls for 15- 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm with homemade butter.

4 Grain Tortillas

On Thursday night, I had the great pleasure of spending the evening with Chef Becca. Becca is a personal chef here in San Francisco who teaches cooking classes at Glide Memorial Church. The fascinating thing about her classes is that the students are young kids from the impoverished SF neighborhood known as the Tenderloin. Becca teaches this magical bunch how to cook with the vegetables they have grown on the rooftop with the help of Maya Donelson. The program is primarily funded by donors. If you are interested in helping out, please visit the church's website. It's truly a worthy cause.

Upon my arrival at home, I opened the door to the sights and smells that most every wife out there would be envious of. In the kitchen stood my husband -- flank steak and onions in the skillet, avocado sliced alongside jalapenos, cilantro and onions, Tecate poured...and inside a small, rainbow-colored, Mexican basket there was a steaming pile of freshly cooked tortillas. Ay, Dios, que marido tengo yo!

It is not necessary to have a tortilla press. You may use a rolling pin, still keeping the dough pressed between wax paper to avoid sticking. Fashion your own press by using a flat baking sheet with a weight on top. Ben insists that if you are feeling abuela-like, you may also pat them out by hand -- although this technique does require a certain amount of practice.

Makes 10 small tortillas

3/4 cup Maseca
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup spelt flour
1/4 cup rye flour
salt, to taste
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon water

1. In a medium bowl, combine all of the ingredients and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon. When the dough starts to form a ball, turn the dough out on the counter, and begin kneading with your hands. Knead for approximately 2 minutes or until the dough is smooth.
2. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat while you begin pressing tortillas.
3. Tear off two sheets of wax paper. Lay one sheet on the bottom of a tortilla press. Place a ball of dough the size of 2 teaspoons on the wax paper. Lay the second sheet over the top. Press down tightly with the press until the tortilla is as thin as you can make it, about 4-5 inches in diameter.
4. When the skillet is hot, lay the tortilla in the pan with your hand. To do so, place the tortilla on the palm of your hand. Using a quick flick of the wrist and an upward swooping motion, turn your palm downward, sending your pinky finger up in the air. (Just try it - you'll see what I mean.) Cook for approximately 1 minute or until the tortilla starts to brown in patches. Flip, using your fingers or a pair of tongs, and cook for 1 minute on the other side.
5. Transfer the tortillas to a towel lined basket, stacking them up as you go. Cover with the towel; the residual heat will steam the tortillas.
6. Enjoy!

The picture above is one of my favorite photos shot by Ben. We were learning to make tortillas at La Villa Bonita.

One Irish Breakfast, Hold the Heart Attack

Last week's Thursday brunch was more practice for "Unprocessed". Traditional Irish breakfast includes baked beans, brown bread, a fried egg, broiled tomatoes, and a several big, greasy sausages. I lightened it up a little. Baked beans included homemade ketchup -- recipe to come. It's easier than you think! Our egg was poached, and we eliminated the pork fat all together. There's nothing I love more than lard encased in intestine (seriously), but it doesn't seem to fit into daily eating. Brown bread was surprisingly easy. I borrowed a recipe from Mark Bittman's blog, Bitten.

Margaret Hickey’s Irish Brown Bread
Yield 1 loaf

Ingredients
3 cups extra coarse wholemeal flour
1 cup oat bran
3 tablespoons wheat germ
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg, beaten
2 cups milk

Method
1. Combine first seven ingredients and fluff together with hands to mix in the baking soda and baking powder completely.
2. Add egg and milk and stir to combine until it has the consistency and appearance of oatmeal.
3. Spray and flour a 9” round baking pan. Pour in batter and score the top with a cross. (“You’re wishing the bread well as it goes into the oven,” says Margaret.)
4. Bake at 380 degrees for one hour. Cool on a rack completely before cutting. Can be kept out for a day or two, but otherwise needs to be refrigerated or frozen.


I took their suggestion and substituted buttermilk for the milk, giving it a slightly zippier feeling. I also subbed out 1/3 cup of whole wheat flour and instead used ground flaxseed. Flaxseed is high in fiber, omega-3s, and phytonutrients -- making it great for your digestive tract, skin, hair and nails. Use it in baking recipes like this one or sprinkle it on oatmeal or yogurt. I store mine in the freezer to extend the shelf life. Even with the best of intentions, it's difficult to eat a 14 ounce bag before it would go rancid sitting on the counter. Brown bread is the perfect treat when you are looking for a compact, efficient colon broom!

Just in case you think we've lost our midwestern sensibilities, note the pint of Guinness -- requisite for breakfast.