Challenge 16: Chickpeas: Nachos with Cheats' Salsa & Mojito Hummus a.k.a. What I Had For Lunch

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(click image for a much bigger version in which you can actually see how garlicky I like my salsa because you can see all the motes of garlic in it)

If there's one thing I can't bear it's guacamole. Luckily, if you're having nachos you can substitute Other Things for the traditional guacamole; this is one of my solutions.


Cheats' Salsa

Ingredients

1 400g tin of tomatoes
Garlic to taste (I like LOTS)
Zest of 2 limes
An onion (red if you're feeling fancy)
A pinch of salt
A slug of hot sauce (I favour Encona Extra Hot)
2 chopped baby sweet peppers

Method

Throw everything in a pan EXCEPT the peppers.
Reduce till it's about half the original amount.
Turn the heat off and leave to cool.
When cool throw in the chopped peppers


Mojito Hummus

Ingredients

1 400g tin chickpeas, drained of liquid (save the liquid for meringues later, if you so desire)
Garlic to taste (I like LOTS)
Juice of 2 limes
1/4 teaspoon chili powder (you just want a touch of warmth to this)
A big handful of fresh mint from the garden (or from somebody else's garden. Look, the stuff is mega invasive, nobody is going to be cross with you for pinching it, you're doing them a favour, I promise).

Method

Put it all in a blender and blend till smooth


Putting it all together

- Preheat your oven to 200
- While the oven is preheating, grate some cheese over some tortilla chips in an ovenproof bowl - something like a lasagne dish. I favour a nice mature cheddar over Doritos Hint of Lime, but whatever you prefer and/or can get hold of is fine. You want a lot of cheese, and if you're doing a big batch you may want to do it in layers, so the tortilla chips at the bottom are not cheeseless.
- Put the dish in the oven. DO NOT BE TEMPTED TO MICROWAVE IT. That way leads to soggy tortilla chips and a disappointing experience. I know that it takes longer in the oven. It's worth it, I promise.
- When the cheese is melted, remove from the oven, apply salsa and hummus to taste, enjoy.


Any leftover salsa and/or hummus can happily be stored for future use in Jars. They want to be kept in the fridge and used within 3 days.