Thursday, March 20, 2008

Healthy and Tasty Hummus

Hummus? Isn't that the stuff that tastes sort of like sand?

Well no, actually, this recipe tastes wonderful and is very good for you. Chickpeas, or garbanzos, are beans and have lots of fiber so eat up, they are very good for you. Also, garlic has been shown to help lessen the effects of a cold or other flu like symptoms. Of all the hummus recipes I have, this is my favorite. The lemon gives it such a nice zest.

I use hummus spread on fresh ground whole wheat bread with slices of soy cheddar cheese, I also use it as a dip with baked whole wheat pita bread triangles as the dippers instead of high calorie, high salt, high fat chips.

Gerri's Hummus (from www.vegsource.com)
2 cloves, peeled and chopped
4 Tablespoons Tahini paste
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 can (15 oz) of chick peas drained, reserve juice (or equivalent of dried beans that have been cooked)

Put all the ingredientsinto the blender (a Vita Mix works well for this heavy mixture). Blend until smooth, use extra chick pea juice if it's too dry. Enjoy.

Variations:
1. Add sun dried tomatoes
2. Add black olives
3. Add chipotle chilis
4. Add any vegetable that you like the taste of

Ways to eat it:
1. Stuff pita pockets with hummus, diced tomatoes and celery.
2. Spread on fresh ground whole wheat bread
3. Use as a dip for celery or carrots
4. Hummus on a jalepeno bagel is to die for!

Enjoy!

No comments: