Homemade Hummus

Hummus is very simple to make and tastes much better when it is homemade. Plus, for those of you on a tight budget, it is a lot cheaper than buying hummus in the store. 

It is very simple to make variations of hummus. I advise making the original a few times first. Play around with the amount of salt, water, lemon, etc. to make it exactly how you like it. Then, try some of the variations I have listed below. Once you do I am sure that you can come up with some hummus recipes of your own. Let your inner-chef come alive. This is an easy way to introduce that creative mind of yours to the kitchen.  Good luck!

Original 

Makes a big batch- feel free to cut the recipe in half. The photograph above is only a small portion of what this recipe will yield. 

-2 cups of canned chickpeas, drained and well rinsed- preserve a bit of the water

-1-2 garlic cloves

-1 tablespoon of extran virgin olive oil

-1/3 cup tahini

-Juice of 1 large lemon

-1 teaspoon of cumin

Pinch of salt  and white pepper

-1 tablespoon of olive oil, pine nuts and dried mint leaves for garnish 

Place garlic and olive oil into a food processor. Blend until garlic is smooth. Add the remaining ingredients. As you blend, add some of the water from the chickpeas until the mixture has enough liquid to blend (make sure to add little-by-little so that your hummus does not become too liquidy). Blend until hummus is smooth and creamy. I like to blend the mixture for about five-eight minutes so that it becomes nice and creamy. Add salt and white pepper to taste. Transfer into a bowl and garnish. 

Healthier choice: I use the water from the can of chickpeas instead of using canola oil, which is healthier. However, this water is very high in sodium. If you want to cut down on the sodium, simply use plain water. 

You can easily make several variations of hummus. I made a roasted red pepper hummus just the other day. Below I have created several variations for you all to try. 

Sun-dried tomato hummus: follow the recipe above and add 2 tablespoons of sundried tomato packaged in liquid. Put in food processor with other ingredients. I like to add half a tablespoon of the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes. 

Roasted red bell pepper hummus: follow the recipe above and add 1 roasted bell pepper and 1 teaspoon of paprika. To make it spicy, add ½ teaspoon of crushed red pepper.

Artichoke Hummus: follow the recipe above and add 5 hearts of marinated artichoke in food processor. 

Cucumber Dill Hummus: follow the recipe above and add 1/2 cucumber, pealed and chopped, and 1 teaspoon of fresh dill. Cucumber holds a lot of liquid so take out the water in the original recipe. 

Black bean Hummus: follow the recipe above but substitute the second cup of chickpeas for cooked black beans. If you get them from a can make sure to rinse well. 

You get the idea... You can also make cilantro hummus by adding a handful of cilantro and substituting lime for lemon. Or make a basil hummus by simply adding a handful of basil. Make an edemame hummus by adding 1 1/2 cups of edemame in place of the second can of chickpeas and adding a tablespoon of cilantro. Play around with it. This is an easy way to improvise and impress your guests.