The Back Yard Lemon Tree

I’ve made a lot of hummus in my time. Now the absolute best hummus is made with freshly-cooked chickpeas and ground when the chickpeas are freshly cooked. It’s even better if you use those tiny, nuggety organic chickpeas which are packed with flavour.  I’ve got a couple of recipes for hummus on this site including this classic from Paula Wolfert . Smitten Kitchen recently posted a hummus recipe which Deb Perelman proclaimed the smoothest, creamiest hummus ever. This involved peeling your chickpeas after cooking them. I have never tried this version because as MUCH as I love hummus (and I really, really love hummus), the thought of painstakingly peeling each chickpea is absolutely too much to contemplate.

Then, if you just want to be a bit slack and not get too obsessive about your hummus, a super quick, really excellent hummus can be made using canned chickpeas, which is about a thousand times better than the commercial variety of hummus you can buy at your local supermarket (except, of course, it’s one of those gourmet, super-expensive tubs of hummus) but then, you have to ask yourself is it worth paying six or seven dollars for one of those incy-wincy tubs (not even a cup of hummus), when it is so damn easy to make yourself.

I often make the slacko canned chickpea version of hummus and, when I do, I usually turn it into a green herb hummus, which simply means I throw in a handful or two of fresh mint or coriander or parsley, or a combination of all three, and believe me, the zing of the fresh herbs turns the slacko hummus into something that is actually quite awesome and could be in contention for the ‘best hummus ever’ award. Best of all, it is something that can be made at a moment’s notice and in a small batch for an afternoon snack. The most labour intensive thing about it is washing up the food processor after you’ve finished.

Note on the recipe

I find I make my best hummus when I don’t get too hung up on following a recipe. In fact, I’ve made  my worst hummus ever when I was following a recipe.  So feel free taste adjust lemon juice, salt and tahini to balance the flavours.  When I’m using canned chickpeas I simmer the chickpeas in their liquid on the stove for about a minute. This softens the skins and produces a much smoother hummus.

The really important thing to remember when making hummus after you’ve ground your chickpeas and other ingredients into a paste, you should add extra chickpea water slowly until you get the desired creamy texture because if you add too much liquid, your hummus will be watery, not creamy, and will be totally NOT awesome. THIS was the mistake I made when I made my worst hummus ever.

Super quick and awesome green herb hummus

• 1 x 400g can of chickpeas (preferably organic)
• 1-2 cloves of garlic crushed to a paste with a pinch of sea salt, then mellowed with a tablespoon of olive oil
• 1/4 cup of tahini
• 1/2 to 1 lemon juiced
• A good slurp of extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ cup of water or liquid from the canned chickpeas
• 1–2 handfuls of plucked mint or parsley or coriander leaves or a combination of all three

1. Place chickpeas with liquid in a small saucepan on the stove and simmer chickpeas for about minute. Allow chickpeas to cool slightly before adding drained chickpeas to the food processor. Reserve about a 1/4 of a cup of chickpea liquid to add later.
2. Process chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil and garlic in food processor until smooth. Gradually add chickpea liquid until hummus is very smooth and creamy.
3. Add herb leaves and process until hummus is desired consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add more juice, salt, tahini or herbs.
4. To serve spoon into a bowl and drizzle with a little olive oil. Serve with warmed flat bread, crackers or vegetable crudites.

Vegan, gluten-free