Monday, July 18, 2011

Happy Jalapeno Hummus

Here is the recipe for the "light-filled" hummus I served at the party! Chuckle.

1 16 oz. can of chickpeas (reserve the can juice then drain and rinse the beans)
3 cloves of garlic - sliced and diced
5 jalapeno slices - of the jarred variety
2 tablespoons of the jalapeno juice from said jar
1 tablespoon tahini (optional and fatty but truly delicious)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons olive oil
Juice of one lemon
Pinch of pepper

Get out the food processor (that you wish was bigger!) and get ready to blend the dickens out of this hummus.

The juice from the can of chickpeas is KEY in this recipe. It replaces a good portion of what would normally be olive oil. Some hummus recipes call for 1/2 CUP of olive oil. I'm sure it tastes delish but I just can't do it.

First, peel the chickpeas with love and then place them in the food processor. My food processor is brand new and TOO SMALL. I should've listened to my gut and gotten the bigger one. My bad. I have to split the can and do two batches.

Next, drizzle in the olive oil, jalapeno juice and 2 tablespoons of the chickpea can juice. Toss in the chopped jalapenos, diced garlic, tahini, smoked paprika and pinch of pepper - only leaving out the lemon juice at this point.

Blend away! Food processors don't like to be on for more than a minute so take a few seconds to scrape down the sides of the bowl and then start again. TASTE the hummus as you go and adjust the flavors. Odds are it won't be perfect the first time. If you like more heat, pump up the number of jalapeno or the juice. Yum.

If you need more liquid to keep the food processor going, use the chickpea juice. It does have some sodium but not the fat of olive oil. (Yes, olive oil is the good kind of fat but when your Kadooment costume is just days away - you do the math)

Finally, add the juice of half a lemon and blend for just a couple of seconds to combine. I like to squeeze the remaining juice on top just before serving. It really brightens things up!

In my world, hummus is a trigger food. I can eat it all day long and not think a thing about it. Make sure to check your portions with this one. It's far less fattening than the traditional oil laden hummus but still relatively calorie dense when you use tahini.

Enjoy!

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