Simple Yet Delicious Hummus

In our never-ending bid to eat healthily, we have started eating more alternate proteins. One such example is chickpeas. A nutrient-dense and inexpensive food, we now always have chickpeas on hand. While we eat them in many different ways, the most common is in hummus. 

Hummus is a simple spread made from chickpeas and oil that is perfect for putting on Pitas, raw vegetables (carrots, celery, bell peppers), or eaten plain. We do enjoy eating it with meats as well, and it pairs nicely with a lite chicken or grilled beef. If we’re sticking to the theme, then we recommend serving it with kabobs. 

What you need to make hummus is good chickpeas, oil, and a food processor. If using dehydrated chickpeas, rehydrate them overnight. To rehydrate, leave the chickpeas in water overnight. Rehydration will cause them to double in size. If using canned, make sure they are fully drained and cleaned before using. The oil should be a good grade of olive oil. The food processor can be a blender instead-but beware of over mixing. If you have neither mashing together the ingredients can work in a pinch. 

Our Recipe

1 Can Chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans)

1-2 Tablespoons Olive oil 

2-3 cloves of garlic (we like our’s extra garlicky)

2-3 Tablespoons of Tahini (optional)

1 large lemons worth of fresh juice

Cumin to taste 

Salt and Pepper to taste

Hints for best results :

• Add cold water at the end of processing to increase smoothness
• Use Fresh Lemon juice, bottled messes with the flavor
• Top with paprika or more olive oil
• Add roasted peppers to processing for a different taste
• Add Tahini for more flavor (we don’t have it on hand often, so we usually omit) 

To make, add half of the chickpeas to the food processor with some lemon juice. Blend till smooth and add the rest of the chickpeas and garlic. Then alternate adding the olive oil, and lemon juice until desired consistency is reached. Season at the end to taste.