Hummus Ideas?

If you can get your hands on za'atar spice, it goes super well with hummus. I like to top mine with some roasted pine nuts. Sometimes I throw herbs like parsley or cilantro in. You could also blend in some roasted red peppers. Just depends on the flavors you like.

I have only made hummus once, but I used lemon and red pepper flake. Next time I want to try and add spinach and artichoke.

Tahini (sesame paste) is a classic addition but does increase the calories. If you are googling for proportions in recipes this version is known as Hummous Bi Tahini.

One of my favourite hummus' was one which had no tahini, and had equal amounts of lemon juice & zest to olive oil to accompany the usual salt and garlic. A nice alternative was to add in roasted peppers from time to time also. I think if I made it again, I would like to sprinkle a little smoked paprika on top, for a little smokey flavour

By the way, if you're not a fan of tahini (as I am not), peanut butter can make a good substitution for that bit of added creaminess. For a nice tahini hummus The Guardian had a nice one I tried, although did not obsess overly about many of the things they did, and simply used canned chickpeas and made the recipe at the bottom of this link: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2011/aug/11/how-to-make-perfect-hummus Makes a nice tahini hummus, although better the second day after the flavours and garlic has had a little time to infuse

That was a great read. I read about removing the skins from the chickpeas before I made hummus last week too and decided to try it. It made a huge difference. My favorite hummus I've had was from a greek restaurant that we used to have nearby which went out of business. But it was so smooth and perfectly done I figured after reading that they had to have been removing the skins.

I may try making it the way you described without Tahini but with lemon juice and zest...That sounds delicious. I'll have to pick up some paprika (smoked or no) as well. I didn't use any last time because I was out but I definitely want to add some.

Haha, you're a better man than me, removing the skin from chickpeas is firmly in the 'life's too short' category for me, lol. I can imagine if you like a smooth hummus its quite nice, I guess my own preference is for one with a little texture, and usually when I'm blending I tend not to blend them too much, just so it's not super smooth

Yes, its really lovely with the lemon, and have no one who has not been a fan once they tried it, even though its hardly a traditional-type tahini hummus When adding the lemon, I use the juice, the juicy flesh (not the skin), and the zest, and its gives it such a wonderful lemon-iness

A little paprika on top is nice for a little colour, and a little cumin dusted on top too can be lovely if you don't have paprika. Good luck with the hummus experiments! I find myself when in the groove of making it regularly, you almost don't need to measure the ingredients, just go by taste, and each can of chickpeas in the press starts to look like a batch of hummus! lol

By the way, The Guardian has a whole series of food articles like that, like the perfect spaghetti bolognese, etc, and they can make for interesting reading. Plus it seems like they've pretty much had everyone who's anyone in food in that neck of the woods write articles for them from time to time, from Nigel Slater to Delia to Jamie Oliver, so their food articles can be pretty good, although I've yet to see a decent and accessible index online in which you can browse them as easily as I would like

If you can get your hands on za'atar spice, it goes super well with hummus. I like to top mine with some roasted pine nuts. Sometimes I throw herbs like parsley or cilantro in. You could also blend in some roasted red peppers. Just depends on the flavors you like.

What's za'atar spice? I have a local grocery store with a pretty huge bulk spice section so I'll check it out.

Za'atar is a spice blend commonly used in the Middle East. It includes sumac, seasame seeds, and some other stuff. I fell in love with it when I lived in Israel a few years ago. It is a little smokey and earthy, and works with lots of foods. I love it on pizza, with hummus, spinkled on chicken, in salad dressings. You may have to visit a Middle Eastern market for it. If you can't find it, you could get it from www.savoryspiceshop.com - it is the best za'atar I have had in the US.

If you can get your hands on sumac, it's not difficult to make za'atar. Just google some recipes. Put it in some fancy containers and it makes a nice gift for the holidays.

i must say my first reaction to this thread was shock horror! This is sacrilege, messing with a classic recipe.

But then i thought, well maybe there's something to it. I plan to eat hummus a lot more often now that i've discovered how wonderful it is with a heated pita bread all over again. So perhaps the occasional variation can't hurt.

I just wondered also though, if the OP drizzles olive oil over the top of the hummus when serving. Its part of the classic recipe and makes it awesome - so yes in answer to his question i've made awesome hummus quite often. :-) He also doesn't mention the chickpeas but i guess that's just an oversight.

If none of you have tried it with a hot pita, please do yourself a favour and try it. I do mine in a frypan with a little olive oil. Then i blot off the excess oiliness. in fact, it might be best to sprinkle the sweet paprika onto the hot bread rather than onto the hummus because on the latter, it tends to dissipate in the oil and looks less fantastic.

i must say my first reaction to this thread was shock horror! This is sacrilege, messing with a classic recipe.

Haha, the classic recipe is nice alright when made right. I found when I made it, it was definitely a better second day recipe for me though, after its had time for the garlic to come through

If you want to make it lower cal and extend the flavour you can add butternut pumpkin. Think in the USA you call them squash. Roasted or steamed. I did this once and it was great.

Interesting addition, like so many in this thread! I better stop reading before I start getting a hankering for hummus, lol

In addition to your basic hummus recipe throw I'm a baked sweet potato and can of white kidney beans. It makes for a sweeter and non traditional hummus but super delicious!

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