Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Recipe: Homemade Hummus + Vegetarian Wrap

During Christmas lunch last year, I was more adventurous and served several tapas / light bites since I had extra help in the kitchen (Hubby and The Unc). Hubby is very fond of hummus, so instead of buying it from the supermarket I decided to try making it myself. I used a recipe out of a cookbook that I got from the Big Bad Wolf Sale.

Homemade Hummus with Pita bread

Our Christmas 2012 Lunch Menu

The Christmas Tapas Spread


Hummus is a Middle Eastern food dip or spread made from cooked chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans), tahini paste, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic. Hummus is high in iron and vitamin C and also has significant amounts of folate and vitamin B6. The chickpeas are a good source of protein and dietary fiber and the tahini consists mostly of sesame seeds, are an excellent source of the amino acid methionine, complementing the proteins in the chickpeas. Two to three tablespoons equate to one portion of the daily recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables. Eating too much chickpeas however, can give you wind so eat in moderation! ;P

Boiled chickpeas


Hummus is the new "kaya"..

When making hummus, I choose to use organic chickpeas, it only costs about RM1 more for every 400g. Making hummus is relatively easy as you only need to soak the chickpeas overnight, boil them, and then place it in the blender with the other ingredients. At Christmas time, we served the hummus with homemade pita bread (recipe soon), but on other days, we eat it with toast... Hubby calls it the new "kaya"! I've made hummus using this recipe a few times now, and each batch will usually last for 10 days. We like its smooth, creamy texture with a hint of garlic. Other than breakfast toast, we also like to use it as a spread on wraps (bonus recipe below hummus recipe).



Even Baby D likes having hummus for breakfast

Vegetable Wrap with Hummus (see recipe below)



Homemade Hummus (ḥummuṣ bi ṭaḥīna)
Recipe adapted from How to Eat In - Adam Byatt
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 1 1/2 - 2 hours
Makes about 500g

Ingredients
200g dried organic chickpeas
A pinch of table salt
2 cloves garlic, peeled
Juice of 2 lemons
75ml good quality extra virgin olive oil
150ml tahini paste
150-200ml cold water
Sea salt and cayenne pepper

To serve
Extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground pepper
Parsley, to garnish

1. Put the chickpeas into a tupperware/bowl, cover with cold water and leave to soak in the fridge overnight.

2. The next day, drain the chickpeas and tip into a large saucepan. Pour in plenty of cold water to cover the chickpeas well and add a pinch of salt. Bring up to the boil and boil rapidly for 10 minutes. Simmer gently over low heat for 1 1/2 hours, until the chickpeas are soft. Drain and keep in a covered container in the fridge until ready to use.

3. Put the chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and tahini paste into a food processor and blend on full speed until the mix becomes smooth and creamy. Add the water little by little until you reach the texture you want; I used about 160ml. Season to taste with salt and cayenne pepper (a pinch should be sufficient).

4. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Drizzle with some EVOO and season with pepper before serving. Serve with pita bread, or with toast (cut into strips) or as a spread on wraps.



Vegetarian Wrap with Hummus
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Makes 2

Note: You can use any type of salad vegetables, the following is a general guideline. 

Ingredients
3 butterhead lettuce leaves, cut into 2 inch pieces
4-5 cherry tomatoes, chopped finely
6-8 grapes, quartered
3-4 sugar snap peas, cut into 3 parts
1/4 carrot, finely grated
2 tbsp homemade hummus (see recipe above)
2 pieces tortilla wrap

1. Spread 1 tbsp of hummus on each piece of tortilla wrap. Place all other ingredients on the wrap (in the centre), leaving some space on the side for folding.


2. Roll the wrap until a long cone is formed, then fold the ends to secure. Cut into half and serve immediately.


34 comments:

  1. Hi Yen, perfect timing as I just bought chickpeas and a bottle of organic tahini (from the US) and been thinking of making this. Thanks for the recipe.

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    1. I hope u like the hummus using this recipe, have made it a few times now. :)

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  2. Nice spread. Very pretty.

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  3. I like these healthy vegetarian wraps. Great and perfect for breakfast!!!

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    1. Sometimes when I'm naughty and wanna have supper, I ask Hubby to make a vegetarian wrap for me. At least I can tell myself it's healthy! :P

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  4. When i made hummus, sometimes i like to use those japanese roasted sesame dressing, works a treat too because tahini can be quite pricey. Unfortunately, my boys dun like the new 'kaya'. :)

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    1. Oooo, 1 bottle tahini can use for 2 batches. Not bad lor. Cos it's pretty expensive to buy a small tub of hummus.

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  5. wah, fresh, homemade hummus! i remember the first time i tried hummus, it was with some university friends, and nearly everyone didn't like it initially, heheh. but i like it now :D

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    1. I never used to like it too, but it's really grown on me. And homemade is the best!

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  6. Hmmm, like the whole idea of homemade. Hummus is also our fav dipping and we like to spread on our bread while making sandwich and also with some bread crisp made of lebanese bread.

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    Replies
    1. Haha I always make it when the kids are in bed!

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  7. Oh I love hummus! Keep meaning to make some myself... Wowee, your Christmas lunch sounded quite a treat :)

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    1. It was quite nice to have a big spread for everyone to enjoy.. :)

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  8. Hehe Baby D has good taste! It is great any time of the day :D And yes hummus is much healthier than kaya so a great new kaya :)

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    1. Hehe I was surprised when he asked for some, sometimes he won't touch it, sometimes he loves it!

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  9. I have always wondered how hummus taste like. I guess I will have to make it one day :)

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    Replies
    1. First time I ate it, I didn't really like it. But I like to use it as a dip or spread.

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  10. Your lunch menu was even better than our dinner..... lol

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  11. Hi Yen! I have never made hummus at home... Your post makes me wanting to try it now... I would make the tahini paste too... would let you know how it turns out...

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    1. Ah yes, I wuld like to know how the homemade tahini paste would fare. Will watch out for it on ur blog.

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  12. Hi Yen,

    We love eating hummus as dip with our crackers and usually make mine with can chickpeas... You must be thinking... "Zoe is cheating" - LOL!

    Zoe

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    1. Hehe Zoe, I think lots of ppl use canned chickpeas for convenience. Nothing wrong with that :)

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  13. Wow..love your spread!! Loved the homemade humus and the stuffed wraps!!

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    1. Thanks Amrita, wanted to prepare something special for my family on Christmas.

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  14. I ate lot of these spreads when i was living in Oz, so cheap there. Miss having good hummus here, i will find some time to try this. Thanks

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    1. Yeah quite expensive to buy in the shops here, much much cheaper to make a large batch.

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  15. Hummus is one of things that I got addicted first when I came to the US. Until then I've never heard of it or tasted it (maybe it's more popular now in Japan after 16 years...). I really want to make mine one day. I'm just being lazy about preparing it on my own. I love the wraps, I think I'll be so addicted to it especially with homemade hummus~~~! :)

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    1. Before I made it the first time, I thought it was going to be difficult and tedious.... but it's not that bad. Mostly you just leave it to do its own soaking and boiling, and only need to press the blender button ;P

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  16. I love humus with everything! LOL Really addictive & I did the same as Baby D having humus even for breakfast . Well, in my case would be 3 times a day eating humus with anything , I would say! :D

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  17. Hii...i love hummus and im craving to eat some right away(preggy :p) im at johor and i would love to know where i could get tahini paste...pls pls...let me know....

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    Replies
    1. Most larger supermarkets shd have it.. I got mine from BIG supermarket in Publika, KL. Try those larger chains like Tesco or Jusco.

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    2. Organic shops usually stock them too.

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