Hummus

During the winter, roasted vegetable and hummus pitas are a staple in our house.  It is pretty easy since you can use whatever vegetables you have on hand.  Most of the time is spent waiting for the vegetables to roast so there is plenty of time to make hummus from scratch.

Before roasting

Last week we had a luncheon at work.  I came home with the leftover raw veggie platter that had cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, broccoli and cauliflower.  I was also given the leftover, store-bought hummus.  I added onion,  potato and garlic to the vegetables, sprinkled them with oil, salt, pepper and the juice of half a lemon.  They roasted at 450 degrees for about an hour.  Since we were given hummus, we used that.  Both Bill and Kayleigh took one bite and said that they liked my hummus better.  While I'm happy for the compliment, free hummus is free hummus and I'm not letting it go to waste!  I'll make plenty of the homemade kind this winter.

After roasting

Since it seems to be so popular, though, I thought I'd post the recipe.  The store bought is much thinner than this recipe and that seemed to be the main complaint.  Plus, it doesn't have that touch of honey.  If you don't eat honey (I know that is a hot topic!), agave nectar can be used.  I've used it in the past with good results.

The container that caused disappointment!

Hummus

1/4 cup tahini (see note below if you want to use sesame seeds instead)
15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 tablespoons honey (or agave, or leave it out if you don't want the touch of sweetness)
Paprika and olive oil as garnish

Add all ingredients to a food processor and pulse until everything is combined and just slightly chunky.

Transfer to a bowl and drizzle with olive oil and paprika.

Makes 2 cups.

NOTE:  I used to be very much against buying tahini because I only used it in hummus and we didn't make it very often.  Once we started eating more hummus and finding new things to put tahini in, I started buying it.  Before that, I used 1/2 cup sesame seeds and 4 tablespoons olive oil.  I would toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan until toasted, stirring constantly.  Then I'd put them in the food processor with the oil and pulsed until the seeds were coarsely chopped.  I added the rest of the ingredients and pureed further.  Sometimes I still do this because it is a little bit different and nice for a change.