Crazy-Smooth Crazy-Good Hummus ♥

Crazy-Smooth Crazy-Good Hummus ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, simple hummus, perfected with three special techniques. Vegan and lower-fat.
graphic button small size size 10 An old-but-new quick appetizer, a homemade hummus that's perfect for a light holiday appetizer with a few veggies but also, of course, for year round. I use three special techniques that yield an extraordinary hummus – even without added oil. (Yes, you read that right, this hummus recipe has no oil!) Not just vegan, "Vegan Done Real". Weight Watchers Friendly. Naturally Gluten Free. graphic button small size size 10

I've made plattersful of hummus over the years, always with canned chickpeas. But once I discovered an easy cooking technique that tenderizes the chickpea skins, creating an ultra-smooth, ultra-rich (but lower-calorie) hummus, it became a kitchen staple. The fridge rarely is without a batch of hummus!

THREE SIMPLE BUT SPECIAL TECHNIQUES
Jerusalem Chickpeas, dried chickpeas cooked especially for hummus.
Long runs in the food processor, one or two ingredients at a time.
Using water, not oil, to finish the hummus – and while we don't mind skipping all those calories, we do this for taste and texture, first. The taste of the chickpeas really comes through!

IDEAS FOR A MEZE PLATTER Even for just the two of us, some times for dinner I'll put out a big platter filled with small servings of simple Middle Eastern-style foods. It's called meze [pronounced MEZ-zay], the Arabic tradition of gathering small plates on a large communal platter. It's a convivial way to eat, a small bite here, a morsel of conversation there, a sip of wine along the way. For a party, a small meze of two or three small, light appetizers is a welcome way to help guests stave off hunger until dinner moves to the table. Here are some ideas, I didn't realize I already had so many in my recipe collection!

Red Pepper Hummus (pictured)
Olives from the olive bar (pictured) or Olivada, an olive paste
Roasted Roma Tomatoes or strips of roasted pepper
A few pickles or cucumber slices
Roasted Eggplant “Hummus" (Eggplant & Chickpea Dip & Spread) or Baba Ganoush, another eggplant spread
Toasted almonds
Fattoush (Traditional Middle Eastern Salad)
Fresh warm pita, cut in triangles
More Ideas for a Meze from The Kitchn

RECIPE for CRAZY-SMOOTH CRAZY-GOOD HUMMUS

Hands-on time: 15 minutes
Time to table: 15 minutes
Makes about 1-2/3 cups

Plan ahead! This recipe calls for cooking dried chickpeas ahead of time in a special way that tenderizes chickpeas' tough outer skins, I call them Jerusalem Chickpeas, dried chickpeas cooked especially for hummus. For this recipe, you'll use the equivalent of a 16-ounce can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained, that's about 271 grams of cooked chickpeas.

1 small-ish clove garlic
scant 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
271 grams cooked Jerusalem Chickpeas
1/4 cup (60g) tahini
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1-1/2 tablespoons ice water + more as needed
Toasted white and black sesame seeds, optional

In a food processor, first process just the garlic and salt together, mincing the garlic down to tiny-tiny bits; if needed, add just a few chickpeas to help grab onto the garlic. Add all the chickpeas and process until very, very smooth; take your time, really let the food processor work, you'll probably need to scrape the sides and the bottom two or three times. Add the tahini, again, really work it in, let the food processor really combine and smooth out these two ingredients.

Add the lemon juice and ice water, process until smooth. A teaspoon at a time, add more water until the hummus reaches the desired consistency.

Transfer to a refrigerator dish and refrigerate until ready to serve.

MAKE-AHEAD TIPS This will keep in the fridge for a week or so.

ALANNA's TIPS & KITCHEN NOTES
TAHINI I love the toasty taste of tahini! It's made from sesame seeds, once I even tried DIY Tahini, the flavor was great but my home-kitchen food processor just couldn't achieve the smoothness that's so appealing. Be sure to keep an open jar of tahini in the refrigerator, you'll want to use it within a couple of months of opening. Tahini does sometimes go rancid,give it a sniff before using it. Do know that tahini separates and once it does, you'll need to blend it back together before using it. The only way to re-combine the thick paste on the bottom and the oil on the top is to run it through a food processor. (If you're making hummus, do this first, then just carry on, no need to wash the food processor before making the hummus.) Afterwards, I transfer the tahini from its original tall jar that's so hard to stir in, even with a long spoon like an iced tea spoon, into a jar with a wider mouth. After that, there's usually no more need to go back to the food processor although a heavy stir may be needed.
MISS THE OLIVE OIL? I did too, once. So I spread the hummus in a small, flat serving dish and drizzled a little oil and a few chickpeas over top. Just a touch of oil mouthfeel and very pretty! You'll get the idea here, Pumpkin Hummus with Honey. But mostly, no, I don't even notice that my favorite hummus is made entirely without oil. There's plenty of richness in the tahini, really!



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Alanna Kellogg
Alanna Kellogg

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

Comments

  1. Very delicious and easy to make recipe.
    Something new to make on this weekend.
    Thanks for sharing with us.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am definitely going to try adding water next time rather than more oil!

    ReplyDelete

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Thank you for taking a moment to write! I read each and every comment, for each and every recipe, whether a current recipe or a long-ago favorite. If you have a specific question, it's nearly always answered quick-quick. ~ Alanna