Hummus

Serves a party
Vegan

This hummus is really, really delicious. I learned the recipe while traveling in Israel, so you know it’s the real deal. Make up a huge batch and keep it in your refrigerator for up to a week. It is great for snacks, parties, and spread on any vegetable or flat bread.

1 head of garlic
lots of olive oil
1 can of garbanzo beans
½ cup tahini paste
3 or 4 lemons
hot sauce (your choice)
salt an pepper
fresh or dried herbs of your choice (fresh parsley, dried thyme, fresh cilantro…etc.)

Preheat you oven or toaster oven to 400°.

Cut the head of garlic in half. Sprinkle a little olive oil over the garlic and wrap it up in some foil. Place the garlic in the oven until it is roasted (this should take about 40 minutes, but it may take longer. Just keep an eye on it and don’t let it burn).

While the garlic roasts, add the garbanzo beans, the tahini paste, the zest and juice of two of the lemons, the hot sauce, lots of salt and pepper, and any fresh or dried herbs you chose to a food processor. Process the ingredients until smooth.

TASTE IT! If it is bland, add more lemon juice, salt, pepper, herbs, or hot sauce. If it is too zesty, add more tahini paste to flatten-out the taste.

Once the garlic has roasted, and is cool to the touch, squeeze the cloves into the hummus. Process the mixture. Taste again for seasoning.

Try serving the hummus with raw vegetables like carrot and celery sticks, tomatoes, raw onion or avocado. For a no-cook dinner or lunch, try stuffing some pita bread with hummus, fresh vegetables, olives and feta cheese.

Some adaptations of this recipe include adding:
sun dried tomatoes
fresh basil
roasted bell peppers
artichoke hearts
jalapenos
pine nuts
parmesan cheese
fresh herbs like cilantro, basil, and parsley
olives