TPM kitchen: Easy Hummus Recipes {Basic + Avocado}

One of the reasons that prompted me to make my own hummus is because of my daughters' gluten intolerance. I was looking for gluten free options for snacks. I wanted to serve whole foods like vegetable sticks or fruits. Something healthy and easy to prep. But it's hard to just serve them carrot sticks or cucumber slices without any dip, di ba? So hummus to the rescue! Because it just takes less than 15 minutes to make one with no cooking required.

basic hummus on the left and avocado hummus on the right

I know there are a lot of moms like me who don't want to feel like they have to turn the entire family's life 360 degrees because of dietary restrictions. It's a challenge. Because even if only two persons eat gluten free, they find it so much more difficult to follow the diet when there is baguette or ciabatta or cake in the house. So nakikisama din kami sa kanila most of the time.

What’s Hummus? 

Hummus is a Middle Eastern spread traditionally made from garbanzo beans, tahini, lemon juice and garlic. All ingredients are gluten free.

If you search online, you will find a lot of recipes for making homemade hummus, which all claim to taste better than store-bought ones. 

The hummus recipe I am using is all about convenience so it makes us of use canned garbanzos/ chickpeas, which are readily available in the grocery, and easily stored in the pantry for spur-of-the-moment hummus cravings.

I don't use tahini because it's not one of the ingredients I usually have on hand. I like hummus that has tahini in it; but for me, the flavor it adds to the dip is not something that I would not miss if it's not there. So if I don’t have it, which I often don’t, I make it minus.

I know purists will say that hummus is not hummus without tahini. But for this busy mama, a homemade kitchen hack version is still better than commercial ones that are laden with preservatives. Besides, hummus needs only a small amount of tahini. I'm sure if I buy one, my jar of tahini will just sit around in my fridge until it goes rancid. Instead, I substitute with UNSWEETENED nut butter that's readily available in my pantry like peanut butter or almond butter. I've also tried using Kewpie sesame dressing. Please do not judge me! Hahaha!

Get the kids involved by asking them to take out the skin from each garbanzo bean. My daughter loves doing this. You don't really have to do this, but if you decide to, it will result in a super smooth, silky hummus. Again, it's a matter of preference and convenience. If you want silky hummus and you have the pleasure of time, then take the skin out. If you are short on time, then keep the peel on, and just let it run on the blender/food processor longer.

Easiest Hummus Recipes

Basic Hummus

This basic hummus recipe is like a blank canvas. Feel free to mix in additional herbs, vegetables, and seasoning to flavor the hummus.

Ingredients
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzos/chickpeas
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2-3 tablespoons of drained liquid from garbanzos (or plain water will do)
3 tablespoons almond butter or peanut butter
1 1/2 tablespoons calamansi juice (original recipe calls for lemon)
1 small clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp paprika, for topping

Instructions
1. Drain the chickpeas into a strainer, reserving the liquid from the can. If time and patience allows, pinch the skins from each of the chickpeas; this will make your hummus smoother.

2. Combine the chickpeas, olive oil, nut butter, calamansi or lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and paprika in the blender or food processor.

3. Blend hummus until smooth, at least 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to integrate any large pieces.

4. Taste and adjust seasonings. If your hummus is stiffer than you'd like, blend the 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved garbanzo liquid (or just plain water) to thin it out and make the hummus creamier.

5. Transfer to a bowl and serve with pita chips or raw vegetables. Alternatively, you can also transfer to a sealed container and it will keep inside the refrigerator for one week, inside the freezer for a month.

Avocado Hummus

Avocados are in season right now, so I've been buying a lot. There are so many ways to enjoy avocado, which I've shared here.

Ingredients:
Basic hummus recipe
1 large avocado, pit removed 

chili flakes, for topping


Instructions
1. Drain the chickpeas into a strainer, reserving the liquid from the can. If time and patience allows, pinch the skins from each of the chickpeas; this will make your hummus smoother.

2. Combine the chickpeas, avocado, olive oil, nut butter, calamansi or lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and paprika in the blender or food processor.

3. Blend hummus until smooth, at least 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to integrate any large pieces.

4. Taste and adjust seasonings. If your hummus is stiffer than you'd like, blend the 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved garbanzo liquid (or just plain water) to thin it out and make the hummus creamier.

5. Transfer to a bowl and serve with pita chips or raw vegetables. Alternatively, you can also transfer to a sealed container and it will keep inside the refrigerator for one week, inside the freezer for a month.

How To Serve Hummus?

Hummus is great as a dip with raw crispy vegetables such as carrots and cucumbers. My kids would not eat carrots and cucumbers as is, but hummus makes everything tolerable.

For those of us without gluten sensitivity, we eat it with toasted pita bread or ciabatta. We love the crustiness of the bread against the smoothness of the hummus.

Traditionally, I've seen hummus topped with EVOO and a few whole Chickpeas. But, since we are making our own, then anything goes! With mine, I added Smiked Paprika and Chili flakes.

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