Hummus- a Middle Eastern dip

A very inexpensive way to make salads or dippers fun and filling is to make some hummus.  Hummus is made from garbanzo beans (also called chickpeas) and tahini (sesame paste).   It is delicious, in-expensive (especially when you buy the dried beans and cook them yourself), versatile and packed with protein.  We change the flavor by adding different spices or vegetables when we make hummus.

I learned how to make hummus by watching a video on You Tube (my husband and I also learned how to knit that way, but that is another story altogether).  I'll explain the recipe below, but if you have trouble with it and you have access to the internet, google hummus and you'll find some excellent recipes out there!

Recipe:

• A couple of cups of cooked garbanzo beans (you can make a "raw" version of this by soaking then sprouting the garbanzo beans-- it changes the flavor a bit)
• 1/4 cup Tahini
• 2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
• 3 - 5 TBS lemon juice
• A couple of garlic cloves
• Sea salt or Bragg Liquid Aminos to taste
• Water as needed

I really don't measure things too often and once you get the hang of making this, you'll know how much of each you prefer.  Some like more tahini and some less (the flavor will dictate).  Some like more water and some less (the texture will dictate).

Put garbanzo beans, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt or Braggs and minced garlic into either a food processor or blender.  Use a spoon in between pulses to stir and mix evenly.  Add water as needed for desired consistency. 

In the picture below, we added raw spinach to the above mixture, which didn't change the flavor and provided extra raw greens!  I often garnish with sun-dried olives (more on these another day-- they are AWESOME!)

The 2 pictures below contain lettuce leaves and celery stuffed with red pepper hummus.  Taylor made the carrot "roses" (he loves that little tool).

Carrot "rose" maker

Left over hummus can make a great after-school snack for the kiddos or a great light lunch for the office.

I usually make a big pot of garbanzo's so I can reserve some to use the next day to garnish our salads.  We call it "Garbanzo Delite".  Note:  soaking them overnight before cooking them cuts down on the gas-producing effects :)