Hommus, Hummos or Hummous? Don't Forget The Pita

No matter how you spell it, I just love it!  Oh how I love thee, let me count the ways...with tons of garlic, roasted red pepper and a myriad of other flavors.  Of course, nothing compares to the classic dish traditionally made with chickpeas, blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic. 

Its no secret that Detroit is a city with many cultures which includes a significant Arab American population.  Its no wonder why this Lebanese delight has become a signature dish of the city.  "Cliff" note:  I say Lebanese, but apparently there has been some debate on that as well.  Our Lebanese friends are trying hard to have the world recognize this (among other middle eastern specialties) as Lebanese cuisine.  Click here to check it out.

You can't have hummus without pita!  Well I suppose you can, but not my preference.  To me, its like peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese, Captain and Tennile.  Stuff it or dip it, you decide.  Let's see, you have the puffy dough bread types (the kind that use to be at LaShish if you remember that), regular flat, mini, toasted chips, strips...the variations are almost akin to the hummus ones.  Traditionally, pita is a round pocket bread.  The "pocket" in pita bread is created by steam, which puffs up the dough. As the bread cools and flattens, a pocket is left in the middle.  According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first mention of the word in English was in 1951, with references to Balkan, Greek, and especially Arab cuisine in the next three decades.  The American Heritage Dictionary traces the word's origin to modern Greek for "pie," "cake," or "bread." In Serbian, the word usually means pie in general.  Who knew?  Thank you Wikipedia.

Several store bought options can certainly satisfy.  Thankfully, we are fortunate to have many local restaurant options.  My "research" this week has taken me to a few places and I know there are probably 50 more.  Since the comments were posted, it thought I'd check out the places that were suggested.  Cedar Palace and Grape Leaves.  Yup...they were both right.  Delightful hummus.  Each has its own unique taste.  I am partial to garlic so Grape Leaves fits the bill and I really like their pita.  Since I am an eastsider, I had to try Cedar Palace.  I can't believe I've never been.  Yum!   Like I said before, I'm not critiquing per se so I'm not sure if I have much to say beyond "its really good".  You'll just have to take my word for it.  I decided to create a page to track a few my favorites.  So visit and see what you need to be trying according to me.

What's next?  Ball Park Franks