Hummus

Today I am going to share with you a basic recipe for hummus. I love hummus, it is a perfect thing to have in the fridge for a snack, or part of a sharing platter. You can dip so many varied things in it, from healthy options such as vegetables, or more carby options like pita bread or tortilla chips. I have to admit, I usually reach for the latter two!

As with a lot of foods, hummus is so much healthier when homemade, which is why I much prefer to make my own. I also think it is much tastier, and you can season it to exactly your taste.

There are hundreds of recipes out there for weird and wonderful flavours of hummus. Even though a lot of them are delicious, I usually resort back to good old plain hummus. 

The quantities of some of the ingredients below are completely flexible, depending on your preferences. Feel free to put slightly more, or less in of garlic and lemon. I tend to put the juice of 1.5-2 lemons in as that is what I prefer, although I realise that isn't to everyone's taste.

Ingredients:

2x400g can chickpeas

4 tbsp tahini

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp sea salt (rock or flakes)

1 lemon

2 cloves garlic 

3-5 tbsp water

Toppings:

Cumin or paprika (or any others you prefer!)

Fresh coriander
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil (optional)

Tahini is sesame seed paste. Most people will not have heard of this until they make hummus, which was certainly the case for me. These days it is easily found in supermarkets.

Before you do anything, please note that if your chickpeas come in water, you may want to save this water to use as the water listed in the ingredients. It is usually quite merky which puts me off using it, although it is completely fine to use. I prefer to use tap water, but it is entirely up to you what water you use. 

Drain your cans of chickpeas and wash thoroughly under cold water.

Add the washed chickpeas into your food process (or into a bowl if using a hand blender). You can choose to save a handful of whole chickpeas now, to add onto the topping later. I admit I forgot to save any! Add the tahini, ensuring to mix well in the jar first as it separates out. It can sometimes be quite stubborn to mix, just do your best. Crush the two gloves of garlic, or chop finely if you do not have a garlic crusher, and add into the chickpeas. Add in the salt and the juice of 1 lemon (just add 1 first and try before adding more).

Start your food processor on the slowest setting. You will probably notice that it isn't mixing too well and is possibly struggling, as the mixture is quite dry. That is because you are yet to add in the moisture. After about 30 seconds, without stopping the processor, slowly add in the oil then water.

 It should be mixing fine now, although if not, slowly keep adding in water until you get your desired consistency. After a minute or so, now is a good time to do a taste test so you can add in more lemon or garlic as you wish. Just remember that more lemon means more liquid, so will make your humus more runny - don't go too lemon crazy!

Once you have got it tasting just how you want it, transfer however much your want to serve into the tableware of your choice. Whatever hummus is not served up can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge happily for a few days. If you are not serving up your hummus immediately, then I advise not to add your topping now. Add it before serving. You may not even want to add a topping, and be satisfied just how it is!

However, for all of you who are ready to add the topping. If you saved some whole chickpeas, now is the time to put them on top, to give a slight crunch and different texture to the top layer of hummus. Tear off the leaves from the stalks of the coriander. The amount you need depends on the amount of hummus you are serving up, so only you are the judge of that. Chop the coriander leaves up finely and sprinkle over the hummus. Next, you need a light sprinkling of a herb of your choice. Two of my favourites are paprika and cumin (not together!). Paprika gives a smoky flavour, and you can buy paprika in a range from mild to hot, so buy as you prefer. Cumin on the other hand, gives an earthy taste. Both work really well as a hummus topper. Sprinkle as much, or as little, on to your hummus. I went with paprika this time.

You can also add a swirl of your oil on top. I usually leave this out to try and be a little more healthy, as oil was already added into the hummus.

Now you can prepare whatever you have chosen to serve your hummus up with. I chose to have mine with pita bread today. As mentioned earlier, another favourite of mine is tortilla chips. If you want to be healthy, then chop up some raw vegetables to dip in. Some good ones are carrots, peppers, celery, cucumber, broccoli, and cauliflower. One last option is rice cakes.

What flavours of hummus are your favourites? I want to try making one with beetroot in, as the colour it turns is just beautiful. There really are so many flavours you can add in to your hummus, so I definitely want to experiment and discover some new flavours!