Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Hummus

We've really been trying to cut back on our budget so I thought I'd save a few bucks by making hummus from scratch, versus paying top price for a small, ready-made container.

Johnny and I absolutely love hummus, but I've never made it before. I did a quick google search and picked the one with the shortest ingredient list and 5 star reviews. I wasn't looking for anything crazy, just a basic hummus.

15 oz. can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
1/4 cup liquid from the can
3 Tbsp of lemon juice (more if desired)
2 Tbsp tahini
3 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
dash black pepper
dash of cumin
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
red pepper flakes or cayenne (optional)

Drain the chickpeas and reserve 1/4 cup of the liquid from the can. Combine all of the ingredients except the olive oil in a blender or bowl. (Try not to drink the tahini straight from the jar.)

Blend until everything is smooth (I did this with my hand blender). *Pause to admire my 10¢ thrift store spatula*

Place in a serving bowl and make a shallow well in the center of the hummus. Add the olive oil in the well.

This will keep in a covered container in the fridge for about a week. If the hummus begins to dry out during storage add more olive oil.

Serve with pita bread, or our personal favorite - fresh veggies!

8 comments:

your brother said...

use fresh garbanzo beans if you can find them. GREEN ones. it makes a complete difference! blanch them, then do all the same stuff.

Christina said...

they're in our produce section - I'll try them next time! Thanks brah!

Debbi Does Dinner Healthy said...

I LOVE homemade hummus but have never tried tahini in it. I need to buy some though. I usually just use a bit of sesame oil. I love how you just used a bit of olive oil. I've seen recipes with a TON! Thanks!

Christina said...

thanks Debbi! The original recipe called for 2 Tbsp, but I cut it down to 1 Tbsp. And you're right - I saw a couple recipes w/ like 1/2 cup of oil or tahini.. I wanted mine to be healthy!

Simply Life said...

nice work -looks like it came out great! Also, nice steal with the spatula!

sophia said...

wow, they look nice and smooooooth~
To cut even more costs, I use dried garbanzo beans. I cook them in the rice-cooker, so they barely need any effort to cook!

Anonymous said...

Love your brothers suggestion! I've never even seen fresh garbanzo beans before!

The only pricey thing about homemade hummus is the tahini, but a little goes a long way.

Looks delicious!

Christina said...

Ohh good idea Sophia! Thanks my frugal sister! ;)

Biz, I got that jar of tahini for about $6 in the ethnic aisle. Also, the green garbanzo beans are at our Jewel. They're in the produce section kind of by the snap peas and string beans. They're packaged in the flat styrofoam containers wrapped in saran like the meat is.