Hummus is one of those things we always have in the fridge at my house because it is a great snack with raw veggies or crackers. I typically buy the pre-made hummus at the grocery store, but it always has this metal taste or mass produced taste that just kinda bugs me. SO…I started messing around with recipes to see if I could make my own and I came up with a perfect, quick, EASY recipe for homemade hummus.

As I have said before, I am not one of those moms that makes everything from scratch because it is better for my precious babies. NO, I make stuff from scratch because it tastes better-forget the kids! 🙂 BUT, I am not going to raise my own chickens to have fresh eggs or make my own yogurt. I draw the line at ease. It must be easy for me to make it from scratch. Very rarely do I tackle a complicated recipe so you can rest assure that this hummus recipe is easy and will take you about 4 minutes to make and it tastes SO much better than the packaged stuff.

Once you get the main recipe down you can add whatever extras you like such as roasted red peppers (those come in a jar-do not roast your own for this), pine nuts, pesto (again jarred unless you have basil on hand), avocado…. the possibilities are endless.

A quick note about the olive oil you use-buy the very best oil you can afford for this recipe since it is not going to be cooked the raw taste is going to come through in the hummus. The best way to find out what you like is to buy a few bottles and just taste the oil on a plain piece of bread. Some oils will taste bitter or smooth or “green” or well rounded. Just choose the one you like! Be sure to buy olive oil that comes in dark glass containers and store it away from heat and light so it does not go bad.

Enjoy and send me your thoughts and questions!

Hummus

Makes about 2 cups

1 can chickpeas, drained (reserving liquid)

1/2 cup tahini paste (be sure to stir to mix in the oil that has settled at the top of the jar)

1/4 cup olive oil (use your very best olive oil)

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 lemon, juiced

Salt and pepper to taste

Parsley leaves, chopped, for garnish

Place everything (except the parsley) in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth.

If it is too thick add the reserved chickpea liquid to get the consistency you prefer.

Pour into a bowl and drizzle extra oil and garish with parsley. Serve with raw veggies or pretzel crackers.

Notes:

*Use the very best olive oil you can afford. Since the oil will not be cooked in this recipe it is important to have the best tasting oil you can find.