There was a fantastic recipe titled “Best Hummus” in the May-June 2008 issue of Cook’s Illustrated, and I’ve been using it as my go to hummus.Many times I have tried to duplicate this delicious spread served at our favorite Mediterranean place. I mean, the taste was always ok, but I yearned for that perfect texture, both light and fluffy.So when my office potluck rolled around once again, I really needed to step up and find that perfect recipe of yummy, beany goodness. The following hints should help prevent disappointment in homemade concoctions.First, everybody’s taste in hummus is slightly different, but when in doubt, I prefer a texture with more light fluffiness and less pastiness, and this recipe achieves that goal.
Ingredients
To make ~1 1/2 cups hummus.
- 1/2 cup dried chickpeas (or 1 15-oz can, rinsed and drained)
- 3 TB lemon juice
- 1/4 cup water
- 6 TB tahini
- 2 TB extra-virgin olive oil (at least)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tsp kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon of the more finely grained kind)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- 1 TB minced fresh cilantro or parsley (this is another optional-but-delicious ingredient that can be increased if you’re looking for more flavor)
Directions
If you’re starting from dried chickpeas, cook them first! Pre-soaking is really nice here because garbanzos are huge and sometimes need to cook for two hours even when soaked. The Cook’s Illustrated recipe suggests cooking the beans with 1/8 teaspoon baking soda, which I have never tried but the idea intrigues me. Combine lemon juice and water and set aside. Whisk tahini and 2T olive oil and set aside. Reserve 2 T of chickpeas. Process chickpeas, garlic, salt and cumin in food processor until almost ground about 15 seconds. While running, add lemon juice mixture in a stream and process 1 minute. Add oil/tahini mixture in a stream and process until smooth and fluffy, about 30-60 seconds. The idea being to make an emulsion, like vinaigrette, with oil smoothly coating everything). Be sure to scrape down the sides of your food processor periodically during this process. Spread hummus in a thin layer on a small platter or plate, then drizzle with olive oil, chickpeas and parsley. Best served the day it is made!
Serve hummus as a spread for sandwiches (falafel if you’re so inspired), use it as a dip with raw veggies or bread for dipping (pita is particularly nice), or some homemade olive oil crackers.
More possible garnish ideas: fresh herbs (as mentioned before); keep a few chickpeas aside; drizzle with olive oil; sprinkle with spices (cumin is especially nice roasted up a bit in a dry skillet or toaster oven).
