Spiced Beef with Hummus

You know what happens when you don’t pay attention? You spill water on yourself at minimum of three times a day [I really could use a bib].

You can also gain an inch or two in various places when you don’t pay attention because you’ve been too busy vacationing and generally living a DGAF (don’t give a f**k) life in regards to what you’re eating. I haven’t stopped working out [except when I was in Italy, Cabo, and Vegas], but I have definitely been eating and drinking a lot in the last two months. It hasn’t been all bad foods, but it’s just a general increase in quantity. I’m giving my metabolism a high five for trying to keep up, but it didn’t stand a chance against this voracious stomach. Time to reel it in, but not in a crazy-diet-must-count-calories-workout-till-you-drop kind of way. I’ve been there, done that. Well, minus the diet part. I’ll never do that. But it’s definitely high time for a reality check. This isn’t sustainable, nor is it all that fun anymore if I’m honest. Ignorance is bliss, but you can’t ignore the tape measure. Time to return to my regularly scheduled life.

That said, this week’s smoothie—coconut milk, Greek yogurt [we’ll see if I break out or not], frozen raspberries, flax seeds, chocolate chips. Decadent and awesome.

If you’re not paying attention, you can also mess up a fine batch of hummus. You see, three tablespoons of canning liquid does not equal all the canning liquid. As soon as I poured it in, I realized my mistake. I double checked what I was doing, and yep. Hosed. It didn’t change anything except for the consistency. It was definitely the runniest hummus I’d ever made/had, but it was still more than edible. It still tasted like hummus. I called it hummus sauce. Don’t make my same mistake. Unless you like hummus sauce, of course. Hummus is the base for this super simple spiced ground beef [you could totally use lentils]. It uses a few simple spices to yield a Lebanese-like flavor. I added spinach because you know me and greenery. The result was really good, and with real hummus? Probably 10x better. Just pay attention.

Inspiration: Stonesoup

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, diced [or thrown in a food processor]
  
• 1lb ground beef
  
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 bunch fresh spinach
• 1 batch of hummus [see below if you want to make it vs buy it]

Preparation

1. Spray a pan with oil, and heat on medium.
2. Add the onion to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for about five minutes.
3. Add the ground beef. Turn the heat up to high. Stir to break up and mix in with the onion.
4. Once the meat is browned, stir in the spices [drain your beef if necessary, but I didn’t need to]
5. Reduce heat to medium low and stir in the fresh spinach.
6. Stir occasionally until spinach is wilted.
7. Serve with hummus and/or pita.

HUMMUS — You’ll need 1 can of garbanzo beans, 1-2 garlic cloves, and 3 tablespoons of the following–canning liquid, lemon juice, and tahini.Toss all ingredients in a food processor. Process until smooth. Taste and add seasoning as you see fit.