Hummus
If you are not familiar with hummus, it is a delicious spread or dip made from chickpeas, tahini, garlic, lemon and spices. I think hummus is the best stuff on earth! Chickpeas are definitely my pantry essential; I use them for salads, soups and hummus, so I never leave the grocery store without grabbing a couple of cans. I also have dry garbanzo beans in my pantry at all times. I wasn’t passionate about cooking them before, but ever since I got an Insta-Pot, thanks to my friend Preeti, I love cooking them. I love their texture and taste so much more.
Some people don’t use tahini (a paste made from roasted sesame seeds), but in my opinion it is a key ingredient and it improves the taste dramatically. So make sure to buy good quality tahini.
For extra creamy hummus, I peel the skin off the cooked chickpeas before I puree them. The best way to do that is to put a small amount of drained chickpeas between two paper towels and rub them vigorously.
Ingredients:
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, rinsed - reserve the water
1/3 cup good quality tahini
juice of 1 lemon
2-3 Tbl olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp paprika, more for topping
Instructions:
I like to start with processing garlic in the food processor. Then add tahini and olive oil, lemon, cumin, salt and paprika. Puree until smooth.
Add chickpeas and puree for 3 minutes, adding chickpea water by tablespoon at a time, until you reach desired consistency.
Taste and season with additional salt, cumin or pepper if needed.
Serve as a dip with veggies, as a spread on sandwiches or wraps, or with chips.
There is so many variations of hummus. Beet hummus is one of my favorites. Beets are packed with essential vitamins, minerals and plant compounds, some of which have medicinal properties.
Follow the recipe above for the regular hummus recipe and add one roasted beet.
I roast them in 400 F. It depends on a size of the beet, but usually it takes about 25-35 minutes for them to be roasted. Peel the skin off and blend it in a food processor with prepared hummus.
I hope you enjoy it !!
