I love hummus and dips. The problem is this. It’s really expensive in the store. If you buy a small container of hummus in the prepared foods aisle of the dairy and fridge section, you might as well hand over your wallet. I could easily eat an entire container as a snack. I need an unlimited supply…
Never fear, Broke Teacher’s got you covered with a few hummus recipes.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 bag of chick peas, cooked (approx 1 large can or 2 small cans)
- sea salt to taste
- 2-4 T lemon juice (about 1/2 of a fresh lemon)
- ~1/4 cups sesame tahini
- a clove of garlic
- pinch of cumin
- cilantro
- 1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
Blend everything together in a food processor. If your hummus is thicker than you want, add more lemon, olive oil, or a little bit of water.
Serve with chips, as a substitute for mayo on a wrap, on a cracker, on bruschetta (with kalamata olives and tomatoes), with falafel, along a crudite platter (chopped veggies), or anything. This is one of those foods that seems really bad for you but is totally healthy, and when you make it yourself it’s nearly free!
Hummus options:
You can make hummus into about any flavor profile you want. Leave out the cilantro and cumin, and substitute the following :
- roasted red peppers (you can roast them yourself over a gas stove flame, under the broiler, or on a grill–or get a jar on sale)
- Kalamata olives, finely chopped.
- roasted garlic (roast in a covered glass container drizzled in olive oil)
- hot pepper–any variety of cayenne or chipotle
The possibilities are endless.
Hummus freezes fairly well. Make a big batch and freeze it flat in freezer bags or filled Tupperware containers. It’ll have that watery freezer taste when you take it out, so mix in a bit more olive oil after it’s thawed.
Broke Teacher tips: Cooking Chick Peas
Chick peas are cheaper dried in the bag. For a quick hummus, you can use canned chick peas, but the price and taste are better if you cook the chick peas yourself. If you have a pressure cooker–as every broke teacher should–use this.
- Soak your beans using one of the following methods: Quick soak method: Soak the chick peas by boiling them for two minutes and shutting off the heat. Leave to soak for an hour. Traditional soak method: Soak overnight in room temperature water.
- Cook your beans for 25 minutes in a pressure cooker or boil pre-soaked beans for at least an hour and fifteen minutes. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, best to make a big batch of chick peas and use them for three-bean salads, other dishes, and make and freeze a big batch of hummus.