Hummus just may be the easiest and healthiest dip of all time. We wish we knew who to thank for coming up with this amazingly delicious and satisfying creamy spread, but the origin of hummus is disputed. If you aren’t familiar with hummus, it is made from cooked garbanzo beans, otherwise known as chickpeas. Chickpeas are actually a vegetable rather than a bean, and their nutrient content is pretty impressive. Hummus offers an interesting blend of flavors from tangy (from the lemon) to fruity (from the olive oil) to nutty (from the tahini, or sesame paste) to spicy (from the garlic and cayenne. You could use jalepeno or serrano instead, if you prefer). This spread is so easy because there is no cooking involved, you simply toss about 4 ingredients into a food processor to blend and serve with pita bread, pita chips or (our favorite,) grilled naan. It can be served immediately or a day or two later chilled straight from the fridge, making it so easy to bring to or serve at a party because it isn’t time or temperature-sensitive. If you haven’t tried hummus before, we plead with you to do so now. You will be glad you did and your body will thank you for providing it with such a vitamin-rich, complete protein. Whether to the peoples of the ancient Middle East or Mediterranean, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Tips (unsponsored): We enjoy our hummus with very thinly sliced red onion and cucumber (a mandolin makes this a very easy task). We really love both the wheat and regular naan we get at Trader Joe’s, and it is fabulous grilled. If you want to make a real snack of it (and we’ve even made a whole lunch of it before), they offer a good variety of accompaniments, such as the tabouli salad pictured here, feta and kalamatas. Look for baba ganoush and mediterranean tapenads as well. The tahini at Trader Joe’s is our favorite. You can find it in the refrigerated section.
Have your kids help you dump ingredients into the food processor. As you prepare and enjoy this dish with your family and friends, teach them about the benefits that the ingredients are providing their bodies:
- Chickpeas are high in iron, which helps to keep your energy levels good, and vitamin C, which you need to fight off viruses.
- Sesame paste (or tahini) provides your body with good fatty acids, which your body doesn’t produce on its own, and which help keep your heart healthy.
Since hummus is widely thought to have Egyptian origins, let’s learn a few things about Egypt and it’s people:
- Kids in Egypt don’t have to go to school till they are 6 or 7 and only attend for 6 years, if they attend at all.
- Most kids in Egypt cannot read. Aren’t you grateful that you can experience such wonderful things through the books you read?
- Kids love to shoot marbles in Egypt.
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 can garbanzo beans, drained
- 1 T Tahini
- 1 T lemon juice
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground black or white pepper
- cayenne, to taste
- Add all ingredients to food processor and puree,* gradually adding enough olive oil until the mixture reaches the desired smooth consistency.
- Add more salt and lemon juice to taste if needed.
- Place Naan bread on hot griddle or grill until warm and grill marks appear. Serve with hummus.
- *For roasted red pepper hummus add ¼ cup roasted red bell peppers before pureeing.
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