The Best Garlicky Garden Veggie Hummus
A few years ago, Brodie and I visited The Jerusalem Garden Cafe and we ordered their hummus as an appetizer (as you know we love eating out). It was so incredibly smooth and delicious, we immediately ordered another one to go! Ever since then, I’ve become obsessed with recreating it — and I think I’ve come pretty darn close. The best thing? It’s incredibly easy and you can make it almost anywhere in the world. This recipe will take any mediterranean (or middle eastern) dish you serve to the next level with its notes of garlic, lemon, and the nutty flavor of the tahini.
The Best Garlicky Garden Veggie Hummus
2 cans chickpeas (or 1.5 cups dried chickpeas, soaked overnight)
1/2 cup aquafaba (liquid the chickpeas cook in)
3 cloves garlic
Juice of 1.5 lemons
1/4 cup tahini
1 tsp cumin
1/4 cup oil plus more for plating
salt & pepper
Drain chickpeas and dump in the Instant Pot. Cover with 4 cups water & cook on high pressure for 30 minutes. (if using dried, soaked chickpeas, cook on high pressure for 1.5 hours. you want them to be very, very soft). Quick release pressure & set aside.
Put the peeled garlic cloves & lemon juice in a high powered blender and blend for 30 seconds. You want to break up the garlic so that the lemon juice cooks the raw flavor off of the garlic. Let sit for 3 minutes in the lemon juice.
Add the remaining ingredients to the blender & blend on high until smooth and creamy. You may need to add more aquafaba, depending on the consistency you like. *Since the ninja isn’t SUPER great at blending things very smoothly, I blended it on high for about 15 minutes until I got the consistency I wanted.
Pour into a serving bowl and top with more olive oil, paprika, and crushed red pepper flakes. Serve with fresh vegetables, pita bread, or crackers.
**If you can’t find tahini, you can actually use peanut butter, cashew butter, or almond butter. To make your own tahini, toast 3/4 cup sesame seeds on a low flame (med heat for electric stoves) until toasted & aromatic. Blend on high for about 10 minutes until smooth (mixees work great for this if you’re in South Asia).