Tisiyeh / Fattet Hummus (Garbanzo beans and pita bread in a tangy tahini yogurt sauce)

This dish is a Syrian staple mainly made for breakfast, and sometimes as a light supper. In the month of Ramadan its almost a requirement to have on the table for any dinner party. My experience has been that both kids and adults enjoy eating tisiyeh, so its something I make pretty frequently. It comes together relatively quickly and I usually have all the ingredients on hand. 

Syrian's are the kings of fatteh (any dish that includes pita bread soaked in a hot broth and topped with a sauce like the yogurt one provided below) and varieties include a version made with the garbanzo bean broth, oil and garlic and another made with pureed garbanzo beans and tahini. Today I'm sharing my family's favorite way to eat fatteh, which is with the a yummy, tangy, yogurt-based tahini sauce. 

Of course the traditional way to make this is with a POUND of clarified butter swimming on top, but with that exclusion it is a dish full of fiber, protein and essential carbs to start off the day.

Serves about 2-3 adults

Ingredients
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-1 15 ounce can garbanzo (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
-4 cups water
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-2 pita bread loaves, pieced into 1x1 inch squares

-2 cups yogurt (of course this tastes best with full fat yogurt, but if I'm not making this for guests I use nonfat )
-1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
-1 1/2 tablespoons tahini paste (you can add an additional 1/2 tablespoon, but taste it first)
-1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses (optional but I strongly recommend)
-1 teaspoon salt
-1 clove minced garlic (optional, and often times I don't use this)

*optional garnishes:
-1 teaspoon Sumac
-1 teaspoon ground coriander
-1 teaspoon red chili powder or paprika
-2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
-2 tablespoons fresh pomegranate seeds
- 2 tablespoons toasted sliced almonds or pine nuts


To make
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-In a medium saucepan combine rinsed and drained garbanzo beans, water and salt. Bring water to a boil and then reduce heat to medium and let simmer for about 30 minutes (or until the beans are as soft as you like them)
-While the garbanzo beans are simmering, place the cup of bread in a deep medium sized serving dish and set aside.
-Place the yogurt in a bowl and stir to make smooth. Add the lemon juice, tahini, pomegranate molasses, salt and optional garlic and whisk together until well mixed. Taste the yogurt sauce with a piece of bread and make sure the salt is adjusted to your liking. You may choose to add more tahini for a thicker sauce, pomegrate molasses for a sweeter taste or lemon for more of a tang.
-Bring your serving dish with the bread inside over by the stove and ladle out 1 cup of the hot water from the garbanzo beans. Stir the water and bread around until the water absorbs the bread. Give it about a minute to see that the water has absorbed into the bread. You want the bread to get wet and soft, without dry pieces of bread or excess water. You can add a little more bread if you put too much water or a little more water if your bread is still dry.
-Using a slotted spoon, scoop out the garbanzo beans and add to the wet bread mixture. Stir together gently. You can save 1 tablespoon of the garbanzo beans as an optional garnish at the end.
-Add the yogurt sauce and mix to combine. Some methods of preparing tisiyeh do not mix the yogurt and just spread it in a layer over the bread and garbanzo beans. I like to mix it together.
-Garnish with optional spices and toppings and serve hot or at room temperature with pickles and black tea. Don't worry if you don't have all the garnishes, I got lucky for this photo and typically  I only make it with the spices and toasted nuts on top.
-Enjoy!

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