Yum-mus!

Last week we had a hummus party at the lab for a teammate’s birthday. He doesn’t eat the usual birthday sweets, so we had to be creative. Last year we got rice cakes for his birthday, but we didn’t want to repeat that. I knew he loves hummus but it looks too plain for a birthday treat, so I decided to make a few different varieties to add more color and flavor. I personally love cilantro hummus, and it also has a nice green color. I spiced it up a little with a jalapeno pepper. For another bright color, I decided to go with roasted-red pepper hummus. As there was no baking/cooking involved, this turned out to be a relatively effortless, but tasty snack.

Ingredients:
Plain hummus (3/4 cup)
10 oz. chick peas (~ 1 cup)
2.5 tbsp tahini (sesame paste) – If you’re not going to use this very often, instead of buying an entire jar, you can make it at home by grinding toasted sesame seeds with a little bit of oil.
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 clove of garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 to 1/3 cup water
salt & pepper

Roasted red-pepper hummus (~ 3/4 cup)
¾ cup plain hummus
1/4 cup roasted red peppers

Cilantro-Jalapeno hummus (~ 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper seeded and chopped

Add all the ingredients for the plain hummus except water in a food processor. Add a little bit of water at a time and grind, adding more water as required till you get a smooth paste.
For the roasted red pepper and cilantro-jalapeno hummus, add the respective ingredients to the plain hummus and grind the mixture until smooth. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
Garnish with paprika and serve with pita bread or assorted crudités.

~Gayatri