A Lesson in Gratitude: Laundry Then and Now

Home Washing Machine & Wringer, c.1869, lithograph, Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/pga.03845/ 

As we had a brief discussion on laundry rooms the other day, I thought you might be interested to read what laundry work was like during the Victorian era, 160 years ago. Our modern complaints about doing laundry include small work spaces, glitchy mechanisms, flooding possibilities, and the necessity of using paid laundry facilities at times. Mrs. Isabella Beeton's The Book of Household Management, 1861, gives us insights into just how difficult this "women's work" once was.

When we think of hired help in our times, we often assume that the hiring household is somewhat well-to-do. In the mid-1800s, that wasn't necessarily the case. The cost to employ household help was very low, due to a large pool of laborers combined with no minimum wage laws. Middle class households often had at least one domestic servant, an all-purpose maid who attended to all manners of household cleaning for the family, including the laundry.  It was assumed that Mrs. Beeton's instructions for the laundry-maid were written for the mistress of the household, so that she could instruct her hired help.

It's interesting to note that while country or village households favored the use of servants for managing laundry, affordable commercial laundries popped up in cities in the later 1800s, appealing to middle class households as a send-out option for at least part of their laundry. 

"DUTIES OF THE LAUNDRY-MAID.

The laundry-maid is charged with the duty of washing and getting-up the family linen,—a situation of great importance where the washing is all done at home; . . .In country and suburban houses, where greater conveniences exist, washing at home is more common,—in country places universal." 

Today, we feel blessed to have one small room dedicated to washing, drying, and perhaps ironing. In the Victorian era, tackling a country home's laundry was a big enough undertaking to require several rooms. Fortunately, an English country home would have the available land to build the needed rudimentary structures, which were often detached from the main home. 

"The laundry establishment consists of a washing-house, an ironing and drying-room, and sometimes a drying-closet heated by furnaces. The washing-house will probably be attached to the kitchen; but it is better that it should be completely detached from it, and of one story, with a funnel or shaft to carry off the steam. It will be of a size proportioned to the extent of the washing to be done. A range of tubs, either round or oblong, opposite to, and sloping towards, the light, narrower at the bottom than the top, for convenience in stooping over, and fixed at a height suited to the convenience of the women using them.

"Adjoining the bleaching-house, a second room, about the same size, is required for ironing, drying, and mangling. The contents of this room should comprise an ironing-board, opposite to the light; a strong white deal table, about twelve or fourteen feet long, and about three and a half feet broad, with drawers for ironing-blankets; a mangle in one corner, and clothes-horses for drying and airing; cupboards for holding the various irons, starch, and other articles used in ironing; a hot-plate built in the chimney, with furnace beneath it for beating the irons."

Not only did a household's laundry necessitate several rooms or buildings, but the process of washing, drying, and ironing required numerous contraptions and pieces of equipment. Irons were, of course, non-electrified and needed periodic heating throughout the process of ironing all of the linens and clothing. We may have just one iron in our modern home. Before electric irons, a household would have a minimum of two irons (one in use while the other was on the hot-plate or range to ready). Flat irons were made in a couple of different sizes and weights, the largest and heaviest could weigh as much as 9 pounds. A mangle was a contraption that we might think of as just a wringer, with 2 wooden rollers turned by a crank for removing water from washed linens or clothing. This contraption was also used as a crude pressing instrument to be used after laundry had dried.

Some of us might choose one day per week to launder all of our family's clothing and linens with the help of modern automatic equipment and targeted cleaning agents. In Victorian times, depending on the size of a household, laundry could take most of the week.

"The laundry-maid should commence her labours on Monday morning by a careful examination of the articles committed to her care, and enter them in the washing-book; separating the white linen and collars, sheets and body-linen, into one heap, fine muslins into another, coloured cotton and linen fabrics into a third, woollens into a fourth, and the coarser kitchen and other greasy cloths into a fifth. Every article should be examined for ink- or grease-spots, or for fruit- or wine-stains. Ink-spots are removed by dipping the part into hot water, and then spreading it smoothly on the hand or on the back of a spoon, pouring a few drops of oxalic acid or salts of sorel over the ink-spot, rubbing and rinsing it in cold water till removed; grease-spots, by rubbing over with yellow soap, and rinsing in hot water; fruit- and wine-spots, by dipping in a solution of sal ammonia or spirits of wine, and rinsing."

I like how Mrs. Beeton is quick to point out that the inexperienced servant just doesn't quite know how to do laundry like the seasoned laundry maid. 

"Novices in the art sometimes rub the linen against the skin; more experienced washerwomen rub one linen surface against the other, which saves their hands, and enables them to continue their labour much longer, besides economizing time, two parts being thus cleaned at once."

We rely on manufacturers to create detergents and laundry aids for our different laundry needs. The Victorians relied on knowledge gained through apprenticeship or oral teachings of various chemical compounds, temperatures of water, and the use of light vs. shade for items' different laundry needs. Laundry detergent would not be invented until the early 1900s.

"In order to remove every particle of soap, and produce a good colour, they should now be placed, and boiled for about an hour and a half in the copper, in which soda, in the proportion of a teaspoonful to every two gallons of water, has been dissolved. Some very careful laundresses put the linen into a canvas bag to protect it from the scum and the sides of the copper. When taken out, it should again be rinsed, first in clean hot water, and then in abundance of cold water slightly tinged with fig-blue, and again wrung dry. It should now be removed from the washing-house and hung up to dry or spread out to bleach, if there are conveniences for it; and the earlier in the day this is done, the clearer and whiter will be the linen.

"Coloured muslins, cottons, and linens, require a milder treatment; any application of soda will discharge the colour, and soaking all night, even in pure water, deteriorates the more delicate tints. When ready for washing, if not too dirty, they should be put into cold water and washed very speedily, using the common yellow soap, which should be rinsed off immediately.

"Woollen articles are liable to shrink, unless the flannel has been well shrunk before making up. This liability is increased where very hot water is used: cold water would thus be the best to wash woollens in; but, as this would not remove the dirt, lukewarm water, about 85°, and yellow soap, are recommended. When thoroughly washed in this, they require a good deal of rinsing in cold water, to remove the soap.

"Greasy cloths, which have soaked all night in the liquid described, should be now washed out with soap-and-water as hot as the hands can bear, 1011first in one water, and rinsed out in a second; and afterwards boiled for two hours in water in which a little soda is dissolved. When taken out, they should be rinsed in cold water, and laid out or hung up to dry.

"Silks, when washed, should be dried in the shade, on a linen-horse, taking care that they are kept smooth and unwrinkled. If black or blue, they will be improved if laid again on the table, when dry, and sponged with gin, or whiskey, or other white spirit."

When I finish laundry for the day, the extent of my clean-up work is to close the lid to the washer and put the detergent away. Imagine if we also had to wash out the washer and dryer and scrub the floor to complete the day's work.

"The operations should be concluded by rinsing the tubs, cleaning the coppers, scrubbing the floors of the washing-house, and restoring everything to order and cleanliness.

Thursday and Friday, in a laundry in full employ, Are usually devoted to mangling, starching, and ironing."

Excerpts from THE BOOK OF HOUSEHOLD MANAGEMENT

by Mrs. Isabella Beeton, 1961

https://fiftywordsforsnow.com/ebooks/beeton/bohm7.html#sec2373

I don't know about you, but reading Mrs. Beeton's manual reminded me of just how fortunate I am.

A Mid-Winter Pick-Me-Up

My neighbors have been doing something sweet to cheer us all up throughout this pandemic. 

They've been painting rocks and placing them along the walkway in our neighborhood. Sometimes, a painted rock shows up in front of our house.

And I decided I would join them. I have the rocks, paint, and sealer, so why not?

I did a handful yesterday and placed them in a pile near the corner of our driveway. The neighbors know that they're there for the taking.

Clearly, I'm thinking about Valentine's Day!

My Laundry Room: The Good, the Bad, and My Wish List

My laundry room is a working space. It doesn't look like those seen in magazine spreads, featuring images of gorgeous rooms to be shown off to guests. Nonetheless, I'm extremely grateful to have a laundry room. For the eight years that we lived in rentals, I hauled our laundry to a nearby laundromat on a twice-a-week basis, even with all of our babies in cloth diapers. So, to even have a spot in the house where a washer and dryer could be hooked up is fantastic. I'll tell you a little more about my laundry room, some of the frugal things that transpire in there, and what I'd like to change about it.

The Good

My laundry room is between the kitchen and the garage, which makes it easily accessible for my work.

The laundry room also has a half-bath attached which is primarily used for visitors. 

I think the previous owners used these hooks on the wall for jackets, hats and scarves. We use them for a variety of hanging needs -- hanging some of our laundry to dry, the occasional umbrella, and to hang a couple of bags to hold dirty rags and used latex gloves until I can wash a load.

About the latex gloves -- we're continuing to wear gloves when we go out to get necessities, unload the trunk of groceries from curbside pick-ups, travel on public transportation, work in-person for my daughters, as well as when cleaning the house. I bought 2 boxes of gloves in the spring. When I realized how quickly we were going through them all, I began washing them after each wearing. 

After we use a pair of gloves, we put them in the bag on the wall hook along with the cleaning rags. Rags and gloves get washed in hot water together. The gloves are pulled out of the washer and placed on top of the dryer to air dry, while the rags dry in the dryer. After the gloves have dried, I put them in a jar labeled "clean gloves" which normally is kept on a stand by the door. We don't want to use up supply that is needed by health care workers, so are willing to wash, dry, and reuse the gloves that we did buy. Wearing gloves may seem like overkill, but no one really knows how the new variants are more contagious, just that they are. Our family chooses to be more cautious.

Our washer and dryer are 26 year-old Maytags, made back when Maytags really were Maytags. Who remembers the lonely Maytag repairman? The guy was lonely because he was rarely called out for repairs. My husband has done the very few repairs that have been necessary. We intend to keep these running for as long as possible. 

There's a 5-inch gap between the two units. Not terribly attractive, but this is where we stash the tabletop ironing board, a sweater drying rack, a broom, and the Swiffer mop. I'm trying to make use of the available space.

There are two jugs of laundry detergent/soap kept on the dryer. The smaller one (yellow cap) is commercial detergent that my daughter bought in order to keep her newest white t-shirt white. The larger one is full of homemade soap. I melt a bar of ivory soap in a pot of water on the stove, then I thin with lots of water and add a small amount of commercial detergent or liquid dish soap to boost cleaning effectiveness. (We acquired a bunch of samples of fragrance-free detergent last year. I add 2 sample packs to each bottle of melted soap.) My husband says he prefers the homemade soap mixture. I prefer it on towels, sheets, underwear, socks, and t-shirts. It keeps those items super soft. I should mention, we have soft water here. I suspect that melted bar soap would not clean as well in hard water.

This is one of two laundry racks. We keep the other in a corner of the kitchen for drying sweaters, large plastic bags, and tablecloths. In summer, I use both of the racks to dry additional items in the sun on the deck.

The cabinet in the laundry room is an all-purpose cleaning supply and household stuff cabinet. 

These are our cleaning rags. They include worn clothing items, old bathroom and kitchen towels, and a couple of microfiber towels. I don't bother to fold them simply because I'd rather do other things with my time. I just stuff them into the space -- it works for us.

As you can see, I have an assortment of cleaning supplies, from bars of soap, hand sanitizers and rubbing alcohol, to Mrs. Meyer's sprays, bath and tile sprays, sponges, and jugs of bleach.

On the bottom shelf is a rubbermaid container used for making bleach wipes for wiping the knobs and switches in our house. There's a pair of heavy duty gloves sitting on top of the container for wearing when using the bleach wipes. 

The previous owners had painted the laundry room blue. About a dozen years ago, I painted the walls pale yellow and trim white. With so many of our days feeling dark to me in the PNW, I thought pale yellow would feel like the sun was shining, even when it's not.

The Bad

The laundry room is small and doesn't have a door to close off its noise from the rest of the house.

The access to the powder room is through the laundry room.

The only counter area for folding clean laundry is on top of the washer and dryer. And clean, dry laundry often sits in a basket on the floor for days before any of it is folded.

There's no space for a sorting area, so we keep our dirty laundry in other spots in the house. But maybe that's a good thing, as guests have to go through the laundry room to access the half-bath.

It needs something to liven it up.

I need to organize the cabinet space better. The second to the bottom shelf has cans of paint, car stuff, and other items that could really be stored elsewhere. I just need to do the work.

My Wish List

I'd like to add some shelves or a cabinet on the wall above the dryer. Any suggestions?

I'd also like a larger window above the washer. The current window is small and a bit high on the wall.

And I'd like a better storage place for the mop and broom, perhaps on the inside of the door of the tall cabinet.

Obviously, I'd love a larger laundry room, with space for a waist-high countertop and a bench to sit and take off shoes or boots. But that's much more than is possible, given our space.

Tell me about your laundry space -- the good, the bad, and your wish list.

Four DIY Cloths to Use with Swiffer Mops: Three That Are No-Sew

With Christmas decorations put away, it's time to give the hard floors a thorough cleaning and get those dust bunnies out the corners.

I was gifted a Swiffer mop by a visiting family member about 20 years ago. At first, I bought the refill pads/cloths. Then I realized I could make my own. Here are 4 cloths that will work on the Swiffer Dry + Wet Floor Mop tool.

Wet Mop Pads

1  This was my first DIY mop head replacement. I still use this today for heavy-duty cleaning of my kitchen floor. It's thick and absorbs a lot of liquid, making it ideal for large floor areas.

I took an old hand towel, folded it over lengthwise, then folded that into almost thirds, leaving enough of an overlap to stay on my Swiffer, but not too much so that it would be difficult to get the Swiffer head inside. I sewed the ends to hold these folds into place.  

To use, I spray a diluted solution of Mrs. Meyer's all-purpose cleaner (50% water, 50% cleaner) all over a section of flooring, then use the mop to spread and clean that section of floor.

2  Here's an easier mop "pad" which is simply a standard washcloth wrapped around the Swiffer head and poked into the tabs/clips. 

I use this for a pad when I'm cleaning a small area, like a bathroom, or the other (blue) head is in the laundry. I use it in the same way, just spray the floor with 50/50 solution of Mrs. Meyers and mop up. 

3  On a couple of occasions, I needed to clean up a spot for which I really didn't want to use fabric/reusable cloths, due to germs (someone was very sick with norovirus and lost it on the kitchen floor) one time, and tiny glass particles on another. I used disposable pads made from ordinary paper towels. 

With a roll of Target brand Brawny-type paper towels (thick), I folded over 2 large squares of paper toweling, then wrapped them around the mop head and poked portions into the tabs. I sprayed the paper-covered mop head with cleaner and used the mop for a final cleaning of the floor. Paper toweling used as a Swiffer mop pad is an option for someone who just wants to save money over buying wet mop pads.

Dust Mop Pads for Dry Use

4  I use polyester fleece cloths, cut to the size of standard washcloths, for dust-mopping wood floors or when I don't want to wet-mop other hard floors. 

My cloth, here, is a scrap leftover from making hats for my daughters and a niece about 17 to 18 years ago. Any scrap of polyester or acrylic fleece will work to attract and hold dust and dirt. Notice, there is no sewing involved. Just cut to size, wrap around the Swiffer head, and poke the cloth into the tabs/clips.

With both the wet and dry fabric cloths/pads, after each use I throw them into the bag of dirty rags for laundry later in the week. So very easy and saves serious money.

Hacking My Cosmetics

I really didn't know what to write about today. But because I'm such a vain creature . . .

I've written about blending together Vaseline with lip balm and lipstick in a small dish to make tinted lip gloss. Today I'll tell you about 2 other makeup hacks that I've been using.

In the early months of this pandemic, I took a holiday from cosmetics other than moisturizing cream, lip balm, and the occasional under-eye concealer. But I have wanted to wear something sheer to even out my skin tone and add a pinch of pink to my pale winter cheeks. Doing so just makes me feel better when I glance into the mirror. And I'm hopefully more attractive to look at for the rest of my family.

My normal foundation is actually a tinted moisturizer. That sounds really light and sheer. On me, it feels heavy and like I have a lot of make-up on my skin. What I've been doing the past few months is making an even sheerer tinted moisturizer. 

You know those small plastic containers that come filled with condiments from take-out restaurants. I save them, give them a good washing, and reuse them for all sorts of purposes. In one of these small containers, I used a toothpick to blend together a small amount of my regular tinted moisturizer with an equal amount of my daily moisturizing cream. 

The resulting product is rich enough to add a layer of protection to my skin, while adding very sheer coverage to even my skin tone.

just a hint of coverage
(excuse my old lady,
wrinkly and veiny hands)

My other issue with my skin is that I'm normally quite pale. The blush I have is a hard-pressed powder. When applied on top of moisturizing cream, powder blush is difficult to get to go on smoothly. It streaks in places and in general looks too made-up on me. 

My solution has been to make my own cream blush, blending together my basic moisturizing cream and bits of my powder blush in a small container. I can apply this blush with a fingertip just after applying the ultra-sheer tinted moisturizer. I use a toothpick to pick out a small bit of the blusher from the compact and drop it into the small take-out container. Pressed powder blush can be grainy, so I then use the back of a spoon to crush the blush to a fine powder before blending in some moisturizing cream. 

I use a rubber spatula to then push all of the new cream blush into a lump, then cover the container.

my "new" cream blush adds
 barely-there color to my cheeks

Since I may change my mind or my skin may change it's needs, for now I'm just making small amounts of tinted moisturizer and cream blush.

Prior to hacking what I already had, I had been thinking about buying some cream blush. I had also searched for even more sheer tinted moisturizers than I normally wear. The thought of making something myself and saving some money really appealed to me. But the primary reason I decided to try blending my own products is that I already know that the products that I have at home work for my skin. At the same time, I could control the amount of coverage or tint that was in the final product. On days when I choose to add color or coverage to my skin, I simply use these hacked products in place of my regular moisturizing cream. So this has also simplified my routine.

Hacking makeup products isn't a new and novel idea. Only they didn't used to call them hacks, just sensible use of what one had. I remember my mother blending lipsticks together when she tried a new shade that didn't quite look right with her skin tone. I must have gotten my common sense use of my own cosmetics from her.

Today, hacking cosmetics has opened a new leg of the beauty industry. You can buy tints (shade adjusters) to customize your liquid products, and you can even buy empty palettes in which to put your customized blends. While I'm not inclined to go all in on this trend, I do like the idea of using a shade adjuster to correct the tone of a product that I've already bought if it's not right for me. And I will continue to mess around with the products that I already own.

Anyway, so much about my vanity.

Making Budget Foods and Recipes More User-Friendly: Cooking Dried Beans and Making Hummus

As I wrote last week, a friend of mine recently made a wise observation. She noted that a lot of folks weren't raised learning basic frugal cooking skills. Instead, in their family homes of origin, a lot of foods that they consumed were what we'd recognize as convenience foods, such as boxed meal helpers. There's nothing at all wrong with that scenario. However, they now find themselves (through no fault of their own) on a very limited budget, unemployed or forced into early retirement due to this pandemic, struggling financially right now and looking for help so that they can help themselves. Enter Basic Frugal Foods Made Easy, my weekend version of this blog that goes back to the basics to help others make very delicious foods while sticking to a tight budget. Remember, once you learn a piece of information or a new skill, you own that information to use over and over again. 

When you ask what types of foods are considered frugal, dried beans pop up in the top 10 of just about every list. And they are frugal, at about 6 to 11 cents per serving. They're also mostly fool-proof to cook from scratch. If you compare cooking dried beans to, say, making a cake from scratch, you're going to have far more success on your first try with the beans over that cake. Plus, beans are extremely versatile. Add a cup or two of cooked beans to a basic vegetable soup (even canned), and you've turned a light soup into something substantial. Throw some cooked beans in with raw vegetables or grains and you've completed the nutrient profile for a salad. Stew beans with seasonings and tomatoes to serve over plain rice. Bake beans in the oven with onions, spices, and a piece of ham for a hearty comfort food. Mash and season beans for using in Mexican meals. Puree beans with stock to make rich soups. Or use your food processor to make flavorful dips and spreads. Beans are delicious and cost-effective.

Using basic equipment   There are a few ways that home-cooks cook their dried beans. Some use a crockpot, others use an instant pot, while still others use an old-style pressure cooker. Today, I'm going to discuss the most basic way to cook dried beans, requiring only a stove burner and a large pot.

I like to keep several different varieties of dried beans in the pantry.
I opt for 1-lb bags of the types I won't be using up as quickly.
I buy varieties that I use frequently in larger quantities.

Tip for bean newbies: If you're new to cooking with dried beans, start with small bags, like 1-pound bags. You'll still save a chunk of change compared to buying meat or even canned beans, but you won't be buying more than you can cook within the best-by dates. Yes, dried beans have a best-by date, not due to spoilage, but because dried beans continue to lose moisture as they age. And the more moisture they lose, the more difficult it is to get them rehydrated (meaning, if they're old enough, dried beans can remain hard little pellets even after long cooking).

I bought these garbanzos in late spring,
 and they have a best-by date of Mar 2021.

So, check the sell-by/best-by date on the package before buying. If that date is somewhere in the past, move on and check the packages of other types of beans or look for beans in a store that appears to have a high turnover of dried beans and grains.

If once you've bought the beans, you realize that you're right around that best-by date or before, go ahead and use the quick-soak method for rehydrating beans. If the beans are more than 6 or so months past the best-by date, use the long-soak method. If your beans are a couple of years past the best-by date, you could try soaking a cup of beans overnight, then cooking to see if they'll be usable. If they don't soften, use them as pie weights or in a lovely bean mosaic.

Merits of the two soaking methods  Quick-soak means that if you forget to soak beans overnight, you can do so the day you will be cooking. Long-soak means you don't need to watch a pot come to a boil, then shut off heat. If your beans are within the best-by date you can really choose either method with no difference in outcome.

Depending on bean type (and how well they fit together), a 1-pound bag of dried beans contains roughly 2 1/2 cups, dried, which will yield about 6 cups of beans, cooked. A serving of cooked beans is about 1/2 cup, which is about 1/4 cup dried. The protein content in that amount of most beans varies between about 7 and 11 grams of protein. For four servings, you'll want to cook 1 cup of dried beans.

Preparing your beans for cooking

Cooking dried beans is a two-step process. First, the beans need rehydrating through a soak, then afterward the beans are cooked.

In a shallow bowl, pick over your beans and remove any clumps of dirt, pebbles, or badly discolored or shriveled beans. I typically find between 1 and 4 beans that fit those categories in 1 cup of dried beans.

Cover your dried beans with a couple of inches of cold water and agitate for a minute. Drain and repeat once more. Drain.

Soaking Beans (choose one method)

• Long-Soak Method  Place rinsed beans in a large container and cover beans with about 3 to 4 inches of cold water. Allow to soak for 8 to 12 hours. Drain and rinse.

• Quick-Soak Method   Place rinsed beans in a large pot. Cover the beans with about 3 inches of fresh water and bring to a boil on HI. Allow to boil rapidly for 2 to 3 minutes, then turn the burner off. Set your timer for 1 hour. After 1 hour, drain and rinse the beans and the pot.

Garbanzos after the quick-soak hour, just before draining

Cooking the Beans

After the soak/drain/rinse period, cover the beans once more in plenty of fresh water, about 3 inches above the level of the beans. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer* and allow to cook until soft, anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 or 3 hours, depending on bean type, length of soak time, and age of beans. Once cooked to soft, drain and rinse. Beans are ready for use in recipes or freezing in meal-size portions for future cooking.

*for reference, a simmer is just below the boiling point (which is 212 degrees F), a range from 185 to 205 degrees F.

Do not add salt or acidic ingredients until beans are cooked. Salt and ingredients such as tomatoes, vinegar, and molasses can prevent softening of the beans. You can add onions, garlic, and herbs to the cooking water, however, if desired.

It's important to throughly cook beans. According to Iowa State University Extension, even just a few undercooked beans contain enough toxic lectins to make one sick. This is especially true for kidney beans. Beans should be cooked until soft enough to mash easily with a fork.

Cook Times (after Soaking) for Some Common Beans

Garbanzo -- 1 3/4 to 3 hours
Pinto, Navy, Small White, Kidney -- 1 1/2 to 2 hours
Black -- 1 1/2 hours

Great Northern --1 to 2 hours

Hummus

A great bean dish for cooks new to working with dried beans is hummus. It's relatively uncomplicated, bursting with garlicky richness, familiar to many regardless of their income (meaning it doesn't seem like "poor people's food"), and it has broad appeal, making it a welcome addition for gatherings and potlucks.

The traditional beans for hummus are garbanzo beans. For the creamiest hummus, garbanzos should be slightly overcooked. 

If you choose to use canned garbanzo beans, you'll want to rinse the canned beans, then simmer in water for about 20 minutes for that slightly overcooked texture. Overcooking the beans not only softens them to a creamy consistency, but it also helps separate some of the skins from the flesh.

Garbanzos cooked to skins slipping off and slightly overcooked,
 just right for creamy hummus

Once fully cooked to near falling apart, drain the beans in a colander and rinse. Pick out any loose skins and discard. 

Optional: for ultra-smooth hummus, gently rub beans between fingers and remove additional skins. This is all up to you how much skin you want to remove. Removing the skins makes for a smoother hummus and easier digestion for some. It takes me about 15-20 minutes to slip the skins off of the beans. But, if you want to just skip this step, garbanzos with skins intact will make a perfectly fine hummus. Just pick out any loose skins before processing.

To the left, beans with skins removed. To the right, the skins.
More digestible for me and smoother texture to hummus. 

Making Traditional Hummus

you'll need:

a food processor for pureeing the cooked beans and toasted sesame seeds

about 3 cups thoroughly cooked/overcooked garbanzo beans (start with 1 cup dried), OR, 3 cups of canned beans may also be used, with the above suggestion to simmer the canned beans for 20 minutes, then drain  --  set about 1 tablespoon of these completely cooked whole garbanzo beans aside for garnish, if desired

a shy 2/3 cup hulled sesame seeds (about 3 ounces), toasted

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced

4 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

2 ice cubes

garnish: reserved cooked garbanzos, olive oil, paprika, minced herbs, sprinkling of kosher salt

before toasting

after toasting

To toast sesame seed:

Spread sesame seeds out on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 8-9 minutes, until golden around the edges. Allow to cool on the pan for 5 minutes. 

Process and pulse toasted sesame seeds in a food processor along with 2 tablespoons of olive oil until creamy. 

Tahini substitute: ground toasted sesame seeds with olive oil

Mince 1 to 2 cloves of garlic. Drop into a cup with 4 tablespoons of lemon juice. Allow to stand for 3-5 minutes. The acid in the lemon takes the edge off of the fresh garlic.

Meanwhile, process the garbanzo beans along with the sesame paste until you have a thick paste, scraping sides of food processor bowl periodically.

Add garlic, lemon juice, salt, and cumin. Process until smooth. Taste and adjust salt, lemon, and/or cumin.

to the right of the mass of hummus is an ice cube

Here's the trick to fluffy hummus -- add 1 ice cube and pulse/process until it has been blended in. Add the 2nd ice cube and do the same. It isn't just about getting water incorporated into the mixture, but getting ice cold water incorporated. My thought is the melting ice chills the starch from the beans and thickens the mixture just slightly, while at the same time, whipping air into the hummus.

And it's done! See how easy it is to make hummus?

Spread the hummus in a shallow dish. Garnish with about 1 tablespoon additional olive oil, the reserved garbanzo beans, some paprika, minced green herbs (such as parsley or even garlic chives), and a tiny sprinkling of kosher salt. 

Serve with pita bread triangles, Italian bread (like the 2-hour, no-knead bread that we made last week), crackers, or raw veggies. Or, use hummus as a spread for Mediterranean vegetarian sandwiches, along with roasted red pepper strips and eggplant, lettuce, and thin slices of tomato. Hummus can be a side dish, or it can be the main protein source for a meal with pita and veggie sticks.

The sesame seed/olive oil paste is a common substitution for tahini. On buying sesame seeds -- best prices are not in those tiny bottles in the spice department of your grocery store, but in bags from bulk e-stores, such as nuts.com ($3.99/lb) or in bulk bins from your grocery store.

You can also make hummus without sesame paste (tahini) and substitute another highly-flavored item, such as a roasted red pepper, peeled and pureed into the mixture, or a half-cup of cubed and roasted eggplant, pureed, or a half-cup of drained, pitted kalamata or black olives, pureed into the beans and seasonings. With any of these substitutions add about 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil to compensate for the fat missing from the tahini.

The cost  of dried garbanzo beans is $1.18 at Walmart for 1 pound, at 9 cents/serving, compared to 58 cents for 15.5 oz can of Great Value garbanzos, at 17 cents/serving. Either one is a pretty good bargain, though, when compared to the price per serving of meat.

I was able to make a little over a pint of hummus for around $1.50 to $1.60. The bulk of that cost was in the sesame seeds (75 cents worth at $3.99/lb). A comparable amount of hummus would cost between $4.50 and $5.00 at the grocery store. Served with carrot chips and slices of homemade Italian bread, this is a nice and inexpensive option for a mezze plate. (Carrot chips are thin slices of carrot cut on the diagonal.) The amount of hummus from this recipe serves 6 to 8, with about 44 grams of protein in total (the equivalent of 7 large eggs).

There are also legumes that don't require a soak period. These include black-eyed peas, split peas, and lentils. I have a great lentil and vegetable soup recipe to share in a coming week. Stay tuned.