Feb 23
2009

Easy Peasy California Cuisine: Balsamic Vinaigrette & Black Bean Hummus

in Appetizers, Beans & Legumes, Recipes by Type, Salads, Sauces & Condiments

Hi Fujiphiles! My name is Julie, and I will be sharing some recipes with you today. Both of these recipes have that distinctive California Cuisine taste, which I just love and hope you will too.

Balsamic Vinaigrette
First up we have a really fast and delicious balsamic vinaigrette, which is fantastic on salads or for dipping fresh bread into. You will need:

1 shallot
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup olive oil
6 sprigs of fresh thyme
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 pinch of black pepper

1. Chop the ends off of your shallot and peel off the outer, papery layer. Chop the shallot into large chunks, then mince in a food processor.
2. Pick the little leaves off of your sprigs of thyme, and finely chop them. You should have about 1/2 tsp after chopping.
3. Add the shallots, thyme, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper to the vessel that you will be storing the dressing in and shake.

This will yield 1 1/4 cups of vinaigrette, perfect for a family, or a small dinner party. Keeps in the refrigerator for one week.

Black Bean Hummus
I like to serve this as an appetizer or as a side with tortilla chips at lunch. It’s a real crowd pleaser, and is a good one to keep in mind if you entertain vegan friends. You will need:

1 – 15 oz can of black beans, drained
3 tbsp chopped cilantro
1 pressed clove of garlic
1/4 cup diced tomatoes
1/2 serrano pepper
1 tsp lime juice
2 pinches of cumin
1 pinch of cayenne
1 pinch of salt

1. Cut the leafy tops off the stems of your cilantro. Roughly chop the leaves, for an equivalent of about 3 packed tbsps.
2. Cut your serrano pepper in half, width-wise. You only need one of the halves for this recipe. Cut the remaining half in half, length-wise, and remove seeds. Chop the pepper.
3. Roughly chop 1/4 cup of tomato (about 1/2 of a small tomato)
4. Add the cilantro, tomato, serrano pepper, garlic, spices, and drained beans to a food processor. Squeeze the lime juice into the processor as well (1/4 of a juicy lime will yield about 1 tsp of lime juice). Puree.

This will yield close to 2 cups of hummus, which is about 4 servings as an appetizer. Serve with tortilla chips or pita bread.

Thanks for hosting me, Fuji Mama, and congratulations to the whole Fuji Family on their new arrival!

{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }

Bob February 23, 2009 at 11:27 am

Sweet, I’ve been looking for a good vinaigrette recipe. Thanks!

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Sophie February 23, 2009 at 2:48 pm

This is a classic dressing & I love it! Your black bean dip looks so delicious! It is easy but made with good ingredients!!! MMMMM…

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Jen Sue Wild February 23, 2009 at 9:06 pm

That dressing sounds very yummy!

I have never had black bean hummus.
This resipe looks very easy.

I cant wait to try them!!

Reply

M February 25, 2009 at 7:02 am

Just stumbled across your beautiful blog. I’am now runnig to get something to eat just got hungry after reading all the recepies.

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LollyChops February 25, 2009 at 7:48 am

The hummus sounds so good! RonChops and I made Fuji pasta last night and it was amazing!! Thanks for all the great recipes and tips Fuj.

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mamakd February 25, 2009 at 10:10 pm

Mmmmm…I have a couple more recipes to try! I love that these are two that I could use all the time, thanks Julie!

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Thomas Preston August 23, 2022 at 4:08 am

Thank you for this great contribution, I find it very interesting and well thought out and put together. I hope to read your work in the future.

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Elza Leuschke February 16, 2023 at 4:24 am

“Great information joy & hope and peace all is so nice advice for us , thanks for sharing it give us the first opportunity to visit this website along with you .

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