Yummy Stuff: Roasted Garlic Hummus

Hummus is one of those foods that can be so great or really terrible. I have had a lot of really good hummus, and even more not-so-good hummus. I can honestly say that I’ve only really liked two of the gazillion store-bought varieties that we have tried. Plus, they mark that stuff up crazy-town. So, if you love hummus, make your own!

This recipe is one geared towards garlic- and lemon-lovers. Roasting the garlic sweetens the hummus and gets rid of the kick, but you can just add one raw clove if you prefer a sharper flavor.

Ingredients

• 2 16-oz cans (about 3 cups) garbanzo beans, drained (reserve 1/4 cup of the liquid)
• juice from 1 1/2 lemons
• 3 (or more) cloves garlic, roasted
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp sesame tahini
• 3/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp cumin

While you are waiting for your garlic to roast, you can prep the other ingredients. Drain your garbanzo beans and reserve about 1/4 cup of the liquid in a small bowl. Rinse the beans well, and place in a food processor or blender. To the liquid, add lemon juice and olive oil and whisk together.

Once roasted, your garlic should look something like this:

Allow to cool, then to remove cloves, simply squeeze the entire bulb gently and they should slide right out. Add as many or as few cloves to your garbanzo beans as you like. You can set aside the remainder of your roasted garlic to use as a spread, or on pizza, or in a dip… the possibilities are endless and honestly I would just eat the entire thing plain if it didn’t make my breath smell so bad!

Add the tahini, lemon juice mixture, salt, and cumin to the garbanzo beans and garlic and blend until smooth. And there you have it! Delicious, healthy, hummus! Enjoy on some pita bread with a bunch of veggies for a delicious sandwich (I prefer mine with roasted red peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, baby greens, and sprouts)!

P.s.- This recipe makes a lot of hummus, so remember to refrigerate what you don’t use. It should keep for about a week. Enjoy!