Hummus

Great as a snack, starter, dip, or even a side--hummus is nutritious and easy and fast to make. It's one of those great dishes (like pesto), were you can just throw everything into a food processor--so it takes literally seconds to make. I love hummus as a dip for fresh veggies--especially carrots or celery. I also like to put hummus on pita bread with feta cheese.

Hummus is popular throughout the Mediterannean. My roommate prefers chunky hummus, so the hummus that I made is a chunky, peanut butter hummus. Hummus is traditionally made with tahini (seaseme seed paste), but since I had peanut butter in my pantry, I opted to go with the peanut butter hummus. I'll include a traditional hummus recipe below as well. Again, like pesto, this is one of those recipes that don't really require a recipe--just add however much of the ingredients to your liking.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Difficulty: Super Easy

Recipe- Hummus (with peanut butter)

1 15 or 16 oz. can of garbanzon beans (a.k.a. chick peas), drained (with liquid reserved)

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced

2-3 tablespoons of smooth peanut butter

1 tablespoon chopped, fresh parsley

1 lemon, zested and juiced OR 2 lemons juiced

1/3 cup Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground corriander

1/4 teaspoon paprika

salt and pepper to taste

Chop the garlic, beans, and half of the reserved liquid in a food processr until desired consistency. Add the peanut butter, parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, cumin, corriander, and paprika. Process until it forms a paste. Salt and pepper to taste. May need as much as a teaspoon or more of salt. Add enough salt until you can taste the flavors--stop adding salt JUST BEFORE the hummus tastes "salty." Drizzle with olive oil and garnish with parsley.

Recipe- Traditional Hummus

1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

1 garlic clove, minced

6 tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, divided

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

Puree beans, garlic, lemon juice and 3 tablespoons olive oil in bleder or food processor until creamy. Add remaining oil, sugar, and cumin. Puree until very smooth (about 2 minutes). Season with salt and pepper.