BASIL PESTO HUMMUS
Living in Middle East for number of years, I have learned a lot about the rich Arabian heritage and food culture. I learnt how to make a classic hummus from a Lebanese friend of mine who is a great neighbour – we exchange a lot about history and cultures of our homelands. I added a different spin with homegrown basil, to make it different from the usual creamy hummus. This version works so well as dips and in wraps! Trust me, hummus is a staple dish that everyone who lives in the Middle East must know how to make – a mezze platter is never complete without a beautiful and rich homemade hummus!
Recently hummus has gained a lot of popularity for being vegan-friendly and rich source of protein, and the best part is that it's easy to change it up and experiment with delicious new flavours! Check out the recipe for my Classic Hummus here, and my Sun-dried Tomato Hummus here.
PREP TIME: 10 minutes
MAKING TIME: 5 minutes
YIELDS: 500g approx./ one medium serving bowl
INGREDIENTS
1x400g can chickpeas
2 cloves garlic
2-3 tbsp tahini paste
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt or to taste
1/4 tsp paprika
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp brine water in which chickpeas are preserved/ fresh water
7-8 sun-dried tomato halves
2-3 sprigs of thyme leaves
For garnish:
3 sun-dried tomatoes, cut into strips
1 tbsp chickpeas for garnish
2-3 sprigs of thyme leaves
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
METHOD
Drain the chickpeas from the can and reserve the water and a tablespoon of chickpeas.
In a food processor bowl, add chickpeas, garlic, tahini, sun-dried tomatoes, thyme leaves, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, paprika and reserved water. Blend them together until slightly textured and not silky smooth. Add an extra tablespoon of reserved or fresh water if you find it too thick to blend.
Take out in a serving bowl, swirl with the back of spoon to make a well in center. Drizzle the olive oil, and garnish with sun-dried tomato strips, thyme leaves and chickpeas. Serve
COOK'S NOTES
Classically hummus is made by boiling the overnight soaked chickpeas with water and a bit of salt. Let them cool and using the rest of the recipe’s ingredients to make the classical hummus.
Reserve the water from the boiled chickpeas to adjust the consistency of the hummus or the brine water from the canned chickpeas. Add a tablespoon extra if you find chickpeas are clogging to loosen up the consistency to blend better.
Boiled chickpeas can be puréed and preserved by keeping it in airtight ziplock bags for later use.
Defrost or thaw the chickpea purée before blending with other ingredients to make hummus.
