HUMMUS (vegan)

Processing finished, hummus placed into a glass bowl for storing in the fridge.

Most hummus recipes made with chickpeas are similar in the basic ingredients added - tahini, cumin, garlic, lemon juice, salt and olive oil. I have posted several hummus recipes in past blogs that included variations from adding herbs or using a different main ingredient such as pureed beets or black beans. I decided to make traditional hummus and not include yogurt which I have added in the past. But I also made another change and that was taking the skins off of the canned chickpeas. I had read/heard that the best and creamiest hummus is made with the skins removed from the cooked chickpeas. Leaving the skins on the chickpeas makes a difference in the taste.

A few steps are required to remove the skins off of the canned chickpeas.
1. The canned chickpeas are drained in a colander while reserving some of the liquid as it is required in the recipe.
2. Run cold water over the chickpeas in the colander to give them a good rinse.
3. Take a small handful of chickpeas in the palm of your hand and gently rub your hands together. The skin will loosen from each chickpea. Separate the skins from the chickpeas. Put the skinless chickpeas into a bowl or the food processor. Another option for removing the skins is to take a good handful of chickpeas, place into a bowl of cold water and rub the chickpeas between your fingers. Separate the skins and add the skinless chickpeas to another bowl or the food processor.

It can be a bit tedious separating the skins from the chickpeas but the taste of the hummus is worth it.

Skins removed from the chickpeas.

Ingredients being added to the food processor

INGREDIENTS:

1- 540 ml (15 ounce can) chickpeas
1/4 cup drained liquid from the canned chickpeas
1/3 cup tahini
2 to 3 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp cumin
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp good quality olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

olive oil for drizzling prior to serving (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Drain the can of chickpeas while reserving one quarter cup of the liquid. Rinse the chickpeas with water using a colander. If you want to skin the chickpeas, the directions are provided above.

Add the chickpeas, chickpea liquid, tahini, lemon juice, cumin, garlic and salt into a food processor. Process until it is smooth. While the machine is blending, slowly add the olive oil to the hummus. Stop the machine and check for taste. Adjust for taste by adding more garlic, lemon juice or oil. If it is too thick you can add a little bit of water. Continue processing until the hummus has the texture you want. Store in the fridge until ready to serve. Before serving, drizzle some olive oil on top to add some flavour. You can also garnish with chopped parsley or cilantro.