COOKSTUFF : Humm Style

Hmmm. What’s the plural of hummus--hummi? Anyway, now that Americans have discovered the traditional hummus, we apparently want more. A brand called Time of Two Sheiks Hummus makes not only regular hummus and an extra-lemony version (quite traditional in the Near East), but also dill, roasted garlic, scallion, cracked chile pepper, roasted red pepper and 40 spices flavors. The roasted garlic and the 40 spices (distinct flavor of one spice--cumin) seem the best of the new varieties; the roasted red pepper chunks are on the sweet side. Packed in eight-ounce cartons under kosher supervision, they are available at Ralphs, Vons, Smiths and Hughes.

Coffee to Go

Some hotels put a little device for making instant coffee in your room. Big whoop. The coffee-loving traveler wants more.

Hence the Traveller Set, from the Swiss firm Bodum. It consists of a French-style plunger pot coffee maker, a glass coffee mug with a spoon, a jar big enough for half a pound of your favorite ground coffee (from the instructional diagram we learn that this jar is called a Beholder in German) and an electric kettle, all in a carry-on bag about the size of an old-fashioned toaster.

The kettle is what makes the kit so interesting. Plug it in and it will bring the water to a boil and then automatically switch off. It holds enough water to fill the mug four times. Around $50, at Bristol Farms Markets and other retail shops.