Hummus for Dinner
Yesterday was a hard day. Yancey was gone for 24+ hours on his first firefighting shift (which went well, by the way), and I guess the kids and I weren't ready to be yanked out of vacation mode. I know I wasn't, anyway. And I felt lonely. Also, impatient. Especially with Loretta, who was a little dictator all day. A few times I seriously questioned my ability to hold it together until bedtime. I went into my room at one point, shut the door, looked up to the sagging popcorn ceiling, and said, "Help." It's funny how much that actually did help. I waste energy by trying not to get so desperate sometimes.
Another thing that helped was making this hummus while Loretta was sleeping and Wyatt was playing computer games. Cooking really is soothing for me--it gets me out of my head, helps me feel productive, puts me closer to the nurturing parts of myself. And often something smallish and easy like this hummus is more fun than trying to put dinner on the table when everyone is cranky and hungry. There was no rush, it wasn't planned. Okay. Maybe a little bit planned, as I had cooked a crockpot of dried garbanzo beans (chickpeas) a few days ago. I find if I cook beans or grains for no reason, it's much easier to be creative later in the week.
I love canned chickpeas and always have them around. Lately, though, I've been unsatisfied with hummus made from them. I know the culprit, too. It's Trader Joe's Mediterranean hummus, which is the best purchased hummus I've ever had and leaves me disillusioned with mine. So I thought I'd cook my own and see if I could teach TJ's a lesson. If your crockpot is not your entertainment center, you could easily use canned ones here and be pretty satisfied, I think.
One of the rules I've made up for myself is "Go outside whenever possible." Last night, after a long day with the kids, it was tempting to stay put, but I knew we'd all be happier if we walked down to the park with our dinner. So I hauled out Wyatt's bike and Loretta's trike, found both helmets (miracle #1), and made a 10 minute picnic--hummus, carrots, cucumbers, celery, leftover spiced pecans (that's all Loretta ate for dinner, actually), a small wedge of Cambozola, and some whole wheat naan. I also tucked a couple lollipops in my basket in case I'd have to bribe the kids to keep riding their bikes on the way home. Turns out I didn't need them (miracle #2). They were totally absorbed and happy in the warm evening, and so was I. That was miracle #3.
Hummus
There are at least two mistakes I've made with hummus in the past--putting too much garlic in and not putting enough liquid in. As it sits, it gets more garlicky and sets up, so by the next day I'd have a brick of garlic, basically. I've learned to lighten up on the garlic and make it a little bit thinner than I think it needs to be. Oh--another mistake was using too much medium-grade olive oil, which made it bitter. I supplement with some canola oil now. And pouring extra olive oil on the top is a must.
3 c. cooked chickpeas, drained (If you're cooking them yourself, soak them overnight first, then cook them in a crockpot the next night. They take forever to cook.)
1 garlic clove
3 Tb. extra virgin olive oil
3 Tb. canola oil
quite a bit of salt
juice of one lemon and some of its zest
pinch of ground cumin
crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 c. hot water
Put garlic clove in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a couple times. Add chickpeas, garlic, oils, salt, lemon juice, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Keep the food processor running for a good 3 0r 4 minutes, at least, and add the hot water as it's running. Don't add the full half cup unless you need to. Stop and dip your finger in a couple times to taste for seasoning and texture.
Garnish with whole chickpeas, lemon zest, red pepper flakes, and extra olive oil.
May 26, 2009
Reader Comments (17)
Yeah! I was just in the market for a hummus recipe. Now I'll get to pass this along to my sister as well. Keep it up, Sarah!
It's amazing how the "just get outside" rule can do wonders for everyone involved. I had the boys out on bikes in 35 degree weather this year, even a couple times in the rain with full toddler raingear (thankyou REI). It would look a little insane to others, except of course, that there is no one else there! I also kept some NPR podcasts handy on my mp3 player, which I hid under my warm hat so the boys wouldn't obsess about it. Because as cute as they are on their bikes, sometimes watching them ride around the park for the 500th time with nothing else to think about is crazy-making.
OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
Excellent post Sarah, recipe, photo,and narrative.Your transparency helps us not be so hard on ourselves. Keep it coming, we love it!
That looks glorious! I too put crushed pepper in my humus. Beautiful! And what a great idea to put whole chickpeas as a garnish.
great story, glad to hear yancey's first shift went well, cutest chubby sticker/bandaid legs on loretta, and no tahini in your hummus? why not? but it does look delish! wish i could have joined you at the park. :)
I'm excited to try this hummus recipe! I was just thinking about it the other day. I understand about the garlic problem. For my son's birthday I put a whole head of roasted garlic (recipe called for it) and something went wrong. I ended up having that awful garlic taste in my mouth for 2 days! I'm sure I didn't smell to swell either. I had to walk to the store to purchase some strong winterfresh gum and chewed away at my son's b-day party in fear of scaring people away. There are many premade hummus that my son can't have it (allergic to sesame seeds). You are probably asking what is he NOT allergic to! Anyway, this recipe sounds divine! Thank you!
Hummus is one of my very favorite foods on the planet. That would be an awesome dinner for me! Love the stickers on Loretta's legs.
Love that this recipe doesn't call for tahini. I have a hard time using it up. The ingredients you list are all things I usually have in my pantry. Looking forward to giving this a go.
Hi Bethany! Yes, no tahini in this hummus, purposely. I find that my tahini sits in my fridge too long sometimes (not enough uses for it or it's not on my radar), and I don't like to use it unless I can be totally sure it's not bitter. I've made the mistake before of overdoing it, and I just wanted something lighter tasting. Moral of the story: don't let lack of tahini keep you from making hummus!
like that i don't have to buy tahini for this! exactly. tahini always sits in our fridge too and i never know how long it's been there. will make this this week.
Made this tonight and had to status about it. We all loved it...even Ezra! Like I said...better than Barefoot Contessa's which Michael has been making for years. I said tonight that I will now have to make your hummus & granola weekly! Tomorrow it's on to the rhubarb crisp to bring to the Likkel's for dessert. Xo
Just made this for company! Rave reviews from all and i echo the love of no tahini. Thank You!
Very good hummus! Thanks for posting the recipe!
I can also blame Trader Joe's Mediterranean hummus for never trying to make my own. But I'm tired of spending $4 a tub so I tried your hummus. It's fantastic!
I made this tonight because it was just too hot to cook anything and I had one can of chickpeas in the cupboard. The kids gobbled it up. Success! I can't wait to start making some more of your recipes, especially the beans and greens and grains. Wyatt talked up the "Drunken Beans" at the park the other day. I love putting alcohol into my cooking!
Hi Jenn! I think it's hilarious that Wyatt was talking about my cooking at the park. At home, he rolls his eyes at any mention of "the blog." What a stinker. No cooking here tonight, either. Just cherries and sugar snap peas at the farmers market...
Finally giving this ago, along with the pizza dough. Live that I have this site to come back to when I need a recipe I know I've read about and miss you.