hummus

Pretty much every deli, drug store, and street vendor now has hummus readily available, and while I do enjoy a nice thing of Sabra, nothing beats homemade. I've been making hummus for years and it's easy, cheap, and tasty - but I recently found the secret to making it fluffy, and not heavy like homemade hummus can be. It's super easy - water. Instead of just pouring in the olive oil until you having a smooth hummus, I start w/ several tablespoons of water, then supplement with some good extra virgin olive oil. It's lighter, fluffier, and healthier. Below is the breakdown. I just made some for the office so we can have a nice Friday afternoon snack. Janet kindly brought in some pita chips - thanks Janet!

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas
1 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)
quarter or half a lemon to taste
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
several tbsp water
a couple tbsp extra virgin olive oil
pinch of cayenne pepper
salt

Directions:
Put garlic, chickpeas, tahini and water in a blender and blend. Add lemon juice and salt to taste, along w/ enough olive oil to make it smooth. Add salt/lemon juice as needed and a sprinkle of cayenne pepper and blend until smooth.

For roasted red pepper hummus, start w/ roasted red peppers, blend them, then add the rest but don't use as much water - the peppers add a lot of moisture. I also like adding a little chopped basil to the roasted red pepper hummus. It's not a classic hummus, but it's a nice change.