Fatet Hummus (Tiseeya bil samneh)

recipe by Abu Ramy

Ingredients
1/2 pound dried chickpeas
1 bag Arabic bread, cut into 1-inch pieces

Yogurt Mixture
2 1/2 cups plain yogurt
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cup tahina
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Combine all yogurt mixture ingredients in a bowl and chill until ready to use

Garnish
1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley
1/3 cup slivered almonds
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon, plus 1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt, to taste

Optional Garnish
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds
1 cup ground beef or lamb, fully-cooked and browned (about 1/2 pound before it is cooked)
3 tablespoons samneh (ghee) or butter
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper


Cover chickpeas in cold water. Let soak for several hours or overnight. Drain chickpeas and discard water. Toss chickpeas in a medium stockpot and cover with cold water, about 5 cups (there should be 1-2 inches of water more than the chickpeas). Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Allow the chickpeas to completely soften and a broth to develop. If chickpeas are still not tender, you can add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda to the cooking water to help the process. Be careful not to over-cook the chickpeas, you want them tender not mushy.
*You could technically use one 28 ounce can of garbanzo beans instead of the dried beans, but it would not produce a broth like the dried beans will. If you do decide to take this shortcut, pour the beans and liquid from the can into a medium saucepan, add several cups of water and simmer for about 20 minutes. The downside to this method is that the broth will be thin and have a synthetic or preservative taste.

Most of the chickpea peels will fall off, scoop out an discard any that you can fish out. Its alright if some peels remain, it wont hurt anything.
Spread out cut bread on a roasting pan and place in a 350 degree oven for 5-10 minutes. Allow bread to dry out, but not become completely toasted. If the bread is too dry it will absorb too much liquid.

Finely chop parsley...or have your mom come in and re-chop it after your father already considered it "finely chopped."
Heat up some butter, oil, or ghee in a small saucepan and add slivered almonds and pine nuts. continue to stir until light golden brown. Do not leave it for a second, it will burn as soon as you take your eyes off of it.
Drain nuts using a strainer. You can always dry roast the nuts in a pan or toaster oven, but that's no fun.
Carefully ladle chickpeas and broth, while still hot, over prepared bread.

Continue to ladle, even if your sister is trying to distract you and get in your shot.

Continue to use all the broth and chickpeas, reserving about 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas for garnish.
Allow bread to soak up all the broth, about 5-10 minutes. There should be slightly more liquid than bread, you may need to add some boiling water if it is too dry.
Sprinkle bout a tablespoon of cumin and1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt over the bread mixture (to taste).
As you can see, much of the liquid is already absorbed.
Gently mix it all up.
Pour yogurt mixture over top, without disturbing the bread mixture below.
Smooth yogurt mixture evenly over top.
Sprinkle toasted nuts over yogurt.
Sprinkle paprika and remaining 1/2 teaspoon cumin over top.
Sprinkle chopped parsley over the whole thing. Garnish with reserved chickpeas.
Here is where the option come in...

Sprinkle some pomegranate seeds (if available) over top. We usually add about a cup of sauteed ground beef or lamb over top, but we didn't have any on hand. Traditionally, we melt a few tablespoons of samneh and add about half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper for about 30 seconds. Once its bubbling hot, drizzle the samneh over the top. That's actually WHY it is called Tiseeya bil samneh, however, it was omitted here because my mother was feeling cholesterol-conscious.
Serve immediately. Enjoy!