1.28.13 11:40 am

Homemade Hummus & Tahini

It’s around 80 deg. out today and very windy. All the windows and doors are open and the air smells mysterious. The sound of the wind is haunting.

Sometime between midnight and sun up there were two very loud sounds. They sort of sounded like thunder, especially the first one which lasted quite some time and rumbled. The second one was a few minutes later ( I think) and sounded a lot like cats on the tin roof. But since the attic insulation was put in we can’t hear the cats on the roof anymore.

Then around 11:00am we heard a loud crashing in the kitchen. I ran in to find that the pot rack over the stove had fallen. Pans, griddle, tools, etc all over the floor. The skillets and griddle being cast iron made it worse by chipping the enamel on stove and my coffee pot.

Probably just thunder that rattled the house and loosened the rack so that it fell hours later but maybe it was an earthquake, who knows.

I’m waiting for, and hoping that, my co-op order comes through and that I’m able to find out when pick up is and able to get there to pick it up. Not being able to drive is maddening. I can’t check email, phone messages, manage online sales etc. Just another lesson in doing without and making do with what I can do. It’s also about being forced to rely on other people, which I can’t stand but am grateful for the help.

If my order does come through and I can pick it up I’ll be getting 7 pounds of garbanzo beans and a pound of sesame seeds. I’ve not had garbanzo beans since we moved here two years ago and I greatly miss having hummus whenever we want. I can probably buy them at Jean’s but the co-op price is

This is the basic recipe I started with. I believe it came from a very old issue of Mother Earth, but I’m not sure.

Hummus

1 pound cooked and de-skinned garbanzo beans (chickpeas)

¼ c lemon juice (or juice two lemons)

3 cloves fresh garlic minced

3 T tahini (recipe below)

2 T good olive oil

salt  (I use sea salt)

water (as needed)

The recipe calls for a food processor but I’ve never had one so I do it by hand.

Garbanzos – You can leave the skins on but the hummus tastes much better without them. To remove them, cook until tender, drain and soak in cold water until cooled enough to handle. When you can handle them, take several and rub them together in your hands to loosen the skins. Remove the skins and add to the vegetable bag in the freezer for vegetable broth etc.

To mash the beans and make them creamy I first use a potato masher and then a berry masher. I now have a manual food processor but didn’t have it the last time I made hummus so I’m not sure how it will work but I’ll post about it when I do  J

Garlic – I like very creamy hummus so I first mince the garlic very fine than mash it with a berry masher and continue until it’s like paste. Garlic powder works just fine as well.

Tahini – It’s simply roasted sesame seeds ground with olive oil into a paste. You can make a wonderful garbanzo bean dip without it. Just make the recipe as is and omit the tahini. However, if you want hummus you need tahini and it’s very easy to make.

Once the garbanzos and garlic are ready (whatever method you use) … add the lemon juice, garlic, tahini and olive oil. Continue to cream everything together. If it’s too dry start adding the water about a tablespoon at a time, you only need it if the hummus is dry and take care not to add too much. Add sea salt to taste and stir in.

You can use more lemon juice instead of water for consistency if you like the flavor. You can also add more garlic and/or tahini, or whatever you want, to taste. I make several variations, all delicious!

Sometimes I add one or more of the following …
Sun dried tomatoes chopped very fine or ground into a paste with a mortar and pestle.

Roasted garlic instead of fresh. It gives a more rustic flavor which I love.

Onion, dried or fresh and minced or ground fine.

Cayenne, by itself it makes a spicy hummus but with the onion and sun druied tomatoes it adds a Tuscany flavor.

Pepper, ground or freshly cracked is very nice.

I don’t know how long it stays in the fridge because we always eat it quickly but it stays at least 3 or 4 days and probably a week.

Tahini

1 cup hulled roasted sesame seeds

1/8 c good olive oil

Again, the original directions call for a food processor so if you have one you can use it. My directions are for the hard core off-grid old ways folk  J

Sesame seeds – I always buy pre-shelled seeds. Sometimes pre-roasted but usually I roast myself. To roast, just spread them out on a cookie sheet or in an CI skillet. Roast in a low/med oven or wood stove over coals. Stir occasionally and remove when toasted to your liking.

I grind them while they’re still hot, using a mortar and pestle. I’ll try the old manual processor on this too the next time I make it. Once the seeds are ground fairly well I start drizzling in the olive oil and continue grinding and drizzling until I get the a thick, smooth paste.

1 cup goes a long way. Besides using it for hummus it’s also delicious with chicken and a tablespoon in the pan before frying rice etc.

Store in a glass jar with tight lid, in the fridge.

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We eat hummus (and other homemade bean dips) with homemade tortilla chips, homemade pita chips, homemade flatbread, commercial corn chips and/or fresh vegetable sticks.