Hummus, that creamy dip that hails from the Middle East, has a reputation as amazingly healthy food. It deserves it. All the main ingredients are superfoods in their own right. It’s got chickpeas, sesame paste, garlic, and olive oil in most traditional versions. Have with sliced vegetables, pita, or pita chips…
Ingredients:
- 1 cup dried chickpeas
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- Juice of 1 1/2 large lemons (about 1/3 cup), more to taste
- 2 to 4 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 ¾ teaspoons kosher salt, more to taste
- 1 cup sesame tahina
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin, more to taste
- Paprika, for serving
- Olive oil, for serving
- Chopped fresh parsley, for serving
Preparation
1. In a bowl, cover chickpeas by at least 2 inches of cold water. Add 1 teaspoon baking soda and let soak at room temperature overnight. Drain and rinse.
2. In a medium pot, cover soaked chickpeas by at least 4 inches of water. Add the remaining teaspoon baking soda and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-high and let cook at a vigorous simmer until chickpeas are quite soft, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. (Overcooked chickpeas are the secret to creamy hummus, so don’t worry if they start to break down a little.) Drain.
3. While chickpeas are cooking, make the tahini sauce. In a blender, combine the lemon juice, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Let the mixture sit 10 minutes. Add tahini, remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and the cumin, and blend until thick paste forms. Add 1/3 to 2/3 cup ice water while the blender is running, a little at a time, until sauce is smooth. You’re looking for a perfectly smooth, creamy sauce.
4. Add the warm, drained chickpeas to the blender with tahini mixture. Blend until perfectly smooth and not at all grainy, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl occasionally. This blending may take upward of about 2 minutes; just keep going until the mixture is ultra-creamy and fluffy, adding a little water if you need it to make the contents of the blender move. Taste for seasonings, adding more salt, lemon juice and/or cumin as needed.
5. To serve, spread the hummus on a plate, dust with paprika, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with parsley.
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