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Yay! A girly food blog where we can share all our recipes! :D

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Ordinary Everyday Hummus

For the amount that pre-packaged hummus costs in a grocery store, maybe you'd expect it to be a little more difficult to make. But that is not so!

First, make sure you have a food processor.
Then, purchase or reaffirm possession of your ingredients!

1 can of Chick Peas, aka Garbanzo Beans
1-2 tablespoons of Sesame Tahini
1-2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
1 teaspoon of Lemon Juice
1-3 cloves of Garlic
1/2 teaspoon of Cumin


"...that's it?"
Yep!


Start by draining the liquid in the can of chick peas into a small bowl. Put the chick peas in the food processor and add about a third of the reserved liquid. Then, add one heaping spoonful of tahini. Just start with that for now - you can always add more to taste later.
Grind up those beans! While they're spinning, pour in one or two teaspoons of olive oil. The balance of olive oil, tahini, and chick pea liquid defines the texture of the final hummus, so don't be afraid to play around a little bit (I like to use more oil and tahini for a creamier, thicker hummus).
Chop/mince/grate up the garlic (start small, maybe one clove...you can always add more) into an appropriate size based on the power of your food processor and your desire for chunks. Throw them into the food processor along with about half a teaspoon of lemon juice - just a couple squirts to get a tangy flavor in there to cut through the thickness of the sesame tahini.
Now, add the cumin. This spice is an important one! It conjures up the smells of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food, and is the "secret ingredient" that some more basic homemade hummus misses. Don't add too much in the beginning - it's easy to overdo it with this powerful spice.

Grind it all up and taste! If the flavor is off, compensate with garlic, cumin, or lemon, or try adding a pinch of salt. If the texture isn't quite right, play around with the tahini, oil, and chick pea liquid.

Voila, basic hummus :D

It's extraordinarily versatile; you can put it on sandwiches, plain with pita, pair it with lamb or beef, dip falafel in it, or a mixture of any of these! A pita sandwich with falafel, hummus, lettuce and tomato? Yes please.

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HUMMUS EXPANSION PACKS!!!

You can add all sorts of things to hummus as long as you reconcile the texture of the added ingredient with the original recipe. For example:

Roasted Red Peppers - so very tasty, but they add a lot of liquid. Don't add the chick pea liquid til after the peppers are in the mix, and only add it if the hummus is too sticky.

Black Beans - replace the chick peas with black beans, and the lemon juice can also optionally be replaced with lime juice for a more classic flavor combo.

Peanut Butter - I know it sounds weird, but if you're in a pinch and have run out of sesame tahini, then natural peanut butter is a great replacement. They have mostly the same texture, with the peanut butter being perhaps slightly more chunky, but peanut butter and cumin is quite an adventure. In a good way!

You can experiment with your own ingredients as well. On my list to try:
Avocado Black Bean Hummus with Lime
--Same as above, just add some avocado! At what point does this become a fancy salsa?
Sweet Blueberry Hummus
--Perhaps some mango instead of garlic for this one...
Strawberry Nutella Hummus
--Actually, you may want to try this with bananas for a better texture - I just can't because I'm allergic :(