Hummus

I remember the first time I tasted Hummus..It was in a Greek restaurant where they served Hummus with pita bread...It was of the classical type..I also like the seven-layer hummus from Trader Joes..I searched for the recipe and got several ways to prepare it..I was surprised to discover that it was made using chickpeas..The one we use to prepare channa..I prepared it the classical way..It is very easy to prepare and it can be served along with snacks especially tortilla chips,lavash,pita bread etc..My husband likes to have it with carrots..The tahini/sesame seed paste adds a great flavor to it..

Here is the recipe.. 

                           

Here are some facts from Wikipedia about Hummus..Hummus or hummus bi tahini (Arabic: حُمُّص‎ , Hebrew: חומוס‎) also spelled hamos, houmous, hommos, hommus, hummos, hummous or humus) is a dip or spread made of blended chickpeas, sesame tahini, lemon juice, and garlic.As an appetizer and dip, hummus is traditionally scooped with flatbread (such as pita) but it is increasingly eaten with tortilla chips and crackers of various kinds outside the Middle East. Hummus is also used as part of a meze, as a sandwich filling and as a dressing (for such things as falafel, grilled chicken, or eggplant).

Hummus can be garnished in many ways. Popular garnishes include parsley, sumac, pickled turnips, cumin, pine nuts, chopped or thinly-sliced tomato, cucumber, cilantro, sautéed mushrooms, whole chickpeas, olive oil and hard-boiled egg.Hummus contains large amounts of the nutrients iron, vitamin C, and is a good source of protein and dietary fiber thanks to its primary ingredient. Depending on the recipe, it contains varying amounts of monounsaturated fat.Hummus is useful in vegetarian and vegan diets: like other combinations of grains and pulses, hummus with bread provides all essential amino acids for humans.

Ingredients

Chick peas - 1 cup

Tahini/sesame seed paste - 2 tablespoons

Olive oil - 3 tbspn

Garlic - 2 pods

Lemon juice - 1 spoon

Salt to taste

Directions

Soak the chickpeas in water overnight..In the morning you will find them doubled in size..

                                     
                                              Soaked Chickpeas
Cook the soaked cookpeas in a pressure cooker along with the garlic pods until they turn soft..three whistles in a pressure cooker should be good enough..
You will have to remove the skin of each chickpea now..It is really a time consuming process..But it is worth it because it yields a very smooth texture to the hummus..You can also skip this peeling step but your hummus might be a bit coarse..

                                         
                                                 Peeled out skin

After you are done with the peeling process grind the chickpeas in a mixer or blender along with the garlic,olive oil and salt..
Mix it with lemon juice..
This can be relished as such or you can flavor it according to your taste by adding anyone of mint,cilantro olives etc during the grinding process..
You can refridgerate this and use it for about a week..

                                     

This goes to JFI conducted by The Spice Cafe..