Spanish Tortilla

I regularly read and cook from Cook's Illustrated, but it's rare for an issue to contain a recipe that I was just looking for. But that's exactly what occurred with the current issue (#99) -- we were just talking about tortilla española and low and behold a recipe for it shows up. Of course I also studied the recipes in Anya von Bremzen's incredible book The New Spanish Table (thanks, Laurie!). Somewhat surprisingly, the recipes were similar, both suggesting Yukon Gold potatoes and similar technique. CI's basic recipe uses roasted red peppers and peas which isn't particularly authentic and I didn't have peppers handy, but I got inspired by their chorizo and scallions version; instead I added 4 finely sliced scallions and 1/4 tsp. chipotle chile (a bit more next time!) to the egg mixture. I cooked the potatoes in a 10-inch non-stick skillet as they recommended; however, it was clear that more volume would be necessary to avoid making a mess once the egg was added, so I switched to a 12-inch skillet. The only issue with this was that the tortilla was then exactly the diameter of my dinner plate, so flipping was a bit challenging, but worked just fine.

Hummus

I found this recipe for my favorite hummus in the Fall 2004 issue of Savor Wine Country that I picked up somewhere in my travels. The recipe comes from Chris Hanna of Hanna Winery who hails from Syria. Since her website doesn't include this recipe, I've included it here, with my variations:

Ingredients

1 16-ounce can garbanzo beans (Trader Joe's organic)

1/4 cup liquid from garbanzo bean can

Juice of one lemon (see Notes)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 Tbs. tahini

1 garlic clove, crushed (if 1 is good, isn't 2 better?)

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (I use chipotle chili powder)

1/4 cup olive oil (I end up using 1/2 to 3/4 cup)

1/4 tsp. paprika (optional)

Instructions

Drain garbanzo beans (and rinse) and place in a food processor. Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper, tahini, garlic, cumin, and cayenne. (I give it a quick spin to combine and start the chopping of the garlic and beans.)

Turn the food processor on and add olive oil in a thin stream. Taste for seasoning adjustments.

Serve with a drizzle of olive oil on top and a sprinkle of paprika for color.

Notes:

I didn't have a lemon this time, so used 1/4 cup of Italian Volcano organic lemon juice that I think I got from Costco. When I have an actual lemon, I throw the lemon zest in, too.