Over the years, I have taste-tested countless varieties of hummus, from gourmet varieties prepared in a restaurant to those found in the discount bin at Target. I’ve sampled the good, the bad; the spicy, the bland; the all-natural, and the chemical-laden. (Don’t believe me? See my CalorieLab review). It wasn’t until recently, however, that I realized that I could avoid the unpredictability and sometimes high cost of hummus by preparing my own hummus. Thus, a new food infatuation was born.

Generally, hummus refers to a blended chickpea-tahini dip, but for the purposes of this post, I will use the term loosely to refer to any blended bean dip. Here are some of my concoctions…thus far:

Pumpkin Hummus

Adapted from Everday Dish

(Makes 2 Caroline servings, or about 1 cup)

• 1 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1/2 cup canned pure pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix!)
• 2 T. tahini
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• a couple shakes cumin
• a couple shakes chili powder
• a couple shakes paprika
• salt, to taste

1. Mince garlic before processing, especially if you are using an immersion blender. Otherwise, the clove does not break down and distribute evenly throughout the dip. Biting into hunks of raw garlic is not pleasant, in my experience.

2. Place everything in food processor and pulse or combine with immersion blender.

Notes:

-This dip is smoky and slightly spicy.

-Garnish with roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas), if you desire.

-Provides abundant beta-carotene, fiber, and protein.

Greek Hummus

Adapted from this recipe from Rachael Ray

(Makes 1 cup)

• 1 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• juice 1/2 small lemon
• 1 T. tahini
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 t. dried oregano
• 8-10 Kalamata olives, chopped

1. Blend all ingredients but the olives.

2. Once the dip has achieved your desired consistency, stir in chopped olives.

Notes:

-Wait to add the olives until after you are done processing; that way, you get lovely chunks of olive flavor. Otherwise, the olive component gets lost in the mix of the other flavors.

-Pita and cucumber make the perfect accompaniments!

Black Bean Almond Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup refried black beans
• juice from 1/2 small lime
• 1 T. almond butter
• a couple shakes cumin
• a couple shakes cayenne
• lime zest, for garnish

Notes:

-You can easily substitute 1/2 cup regular black beans for the refried beans in this recipe, just be sure to add a bit of salt. I omitted it in this recipe because the refried beans already contain a hefty amount of salt.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

(Makes 1 cup)

• 1 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small jar roasted red peppers, drained
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• 2 T. tahini
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• couple shakes ground red pepper
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-You can use roasted red peppers packed in oil or water, although I use the ones in water. Otherwise, the mixture might become too oil-laden with the tahini.

Tomato Basil Hummus

(Makes 1 cup)

• 1 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained
• 2 T. tahini
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 t. dried basil
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-Feel free to use fresh tomatoes or fresh basil if available!

-If using canned tomatoes, look for no-salt-added varieties so that you can control the amount of salt that goes into your dip.

Artichoke Hummus

• 1 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1/2 cup canned artichoke hearts, quarters, or pieces, drained
• juice 1/2 small lemon
• 2 T. tahini
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 t. dried oregano
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-Tastes like pizza!

-Feel free to use fresh oregano, just be sure to increase the amount to about 1 tablespoon.

-You may also substitute fresh artichokes for canned, but I find them to be excessively labor-intensive to prepare!

Peanut Sesame Hummus

Adapted from Dreena Burton’s Eat, Drink, & Be Vegan

(Makes 1 cup)

• 1 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• juice from 1/2 small lime
• 1 T. tahini
• 1 T. natural peanut butter
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 t. fresh ginger, grated
• a couple shakes soy sauce

Notes:

-I grate the ginger before processing for the same reason that I mince my garlic beforehand: it ensures that there are no “surprise” chunks of these rather strong-flavored ingredients.

-Although this dip was inspired by Dreena’s recipe, I changed it in so many ways that I think it merits its own recipe.

Edamummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup edamame
• 1/4 12.3 oz. container of Mori-Nu silken tofu
• 1 T. tahini
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 t. ginger, grated
• 1-2 T. water, to thin to desired consistency
• a couple shakes cumin
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-I used shelled edamame from frozen, but you can substitute fresh if it’s available.

-I have a particular love of cumin, so I included in this recipe, but if you’re not such a fan, feel free to omit it.

Pesto Hummus

(Makes 1 cup)

• 1 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 T. pine nuts
• 1 T. tahini
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• salt, to taste
• 1-2 T. fresh basil

Notes:

-Feel free to use as much basil as you like–the more the better, in my opinion!

-To make it more like pesto, you could also include parmesan cheese.

Sunny Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup canned chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1 T. Natural Sunbutter
• 2 T. organic tomato paste
• 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-Sunbutter has a small amount of sugar in it, so you might taste a slightly sweet flavor in this hummus, but I found that it worked well with the sweet tomatoes.

Lemon Ginger Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1 T. tahini
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1-1/2 tsp. fresh ginger, grated
• 1 tsp. agave nectar
• dash of cayenne (optional)
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-Save a bit of the lemon zest to sprinkle on top of the hummus. It makes a pretty garnish and lets diners know what zesty flavors lurk in this delicious dip!

-Feel free to substitute your preferred sweetener for the agave nectar, such as stevia, brown rice syrup, or plain ol’ sugar.

Hemp-Herb Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1 T. tahini
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• 1-2 T. water, for thinning
• 1 T. shelled hemp seed
• 2 T. fresh Thai basil
• 2 T. fresh cilantro
• 1 T. scallions
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-For the hemp, I recommend Living Harvest brand. Just make sure that it is the “original” flavor and not the vanilla spice!

-If you can’t find Thai basil, sweet basil would work too. Feel free to substitute your own favorite herbs as well.

Mango Curry Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1 T coconut butter
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• 1/2 cup mango cubes
• 1/2 t curry powder
• 1 t grated ginger
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-This is a very sweet hummus due to the naturally occurring sugars in both mango and coconut butter. Add more salt or curry powder if you’d like a more savory dip.

-I used Artisana raw coconut butter for this recipe.

Spinach Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1 T tahini
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• 1 cup loosely packed spinach leaves
• 1/2 t dried basil
• 1/2 t dried oregano
• 1/2 t red pepper flakes
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-Fresh herbs would be fantastic in this recipe!

-Feel free to adjust the heat level. I like a little heat, but if you prefer a more mild hummus, omit the red pepper flakes.

Broccoli Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1 T tahini
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• 1 cup broccoli pieces or florets, steamed
• 1/2 t dried dill weed
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-I used frozen broccoli for this recipe, but I bet it would be even better with fresh.

-Fresh dill weed would be the better option here. If it’s available, use 1-1/2 T of fresh instead of the 1/2 t dried.

-I bet this would taste great on a sandwich with cheese/soy cheese!

Goddess Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1-1/2 T Annie’s Goddess Dressing
• 1 T lemon juice (optional)
• salt, to taste

Notes:

-I reduced the amount of lemon juice in this variation because Goddess dressing already contains both lemon juice and vinegar, so the extra acidity is really not necessary.

-If you’d rather make this recipe from scratch, substitute the Goddess dressing with a combination of tahini, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, parsley, & chives.

-Add a handful of spinach for Green Goddess Hummus, as seen here.

Avocado Hummus

(Makes 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzos
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• 1/2 small avocado
• 1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped (see note)
• salt, to taste
• chili powder (garnish)

Notes:

-I lightly steamed the onions before blending them into the rest of the dip so as to avoid onion breath. However, if you’d prefer, you can blend them raw, or alternatively, stir them in after all the other ingredients have been blended.

Also, check out some of my white bean dips!

What are some your favorite hummus flavors?

This marks the first “recipes” post. What other recipes would you like to see in the future?

Have a great Sunday, everyone!

Filed under: Feature Post, Recipe