My husband takes my requests for healthy food serious and he came up with the YUMMY hummus recipe. It is so creamy and the addition of the spice called Harissa gives it such an earthy, exotic flavor. I have to admit it is so much better than store bought and doesn’t have all the preservatives

Tips for perfect harissa hummus

Heating the chickpeas before blending will result in a smoother texture. They’re easier to blend when they’re warm, so your hummus ends up velvety and creamy rather than grainy or lumpy. It might sound a little crazy, but it works!

The amount of harissa paste you use in this recipe will depend on how spicy you like it and how spicy your harissa is, so don’t be afraid to play around with the amounts. Ed started with two teaspoons and then stirred in additional harissa after my hummus was blended.

Similarly, the salt will depend on whether or not your chickpeas were salted, to begin with. Feel free to start with less salt and add more as needed.

INGREDIENTS

1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 ½ to 2 lemons), more to taste
1 medium-to-large clove garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
1/2 cup Tahini (this is just ground sesame seeds and you can get 2 to 4 tablespoons ice water, more as needed
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2-3 teaspoons Harissa (we get ours on Amazon and I’ve added the link) the amount you use will depend on your taste
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil,

DIRECTIONS

Place the chickpeas in a medium saucepan and add the baking soda. Cover the chickpeas by several inches of water, then bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.
Continue boiling, reducing heat if necessary to prevent overflow, for about 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas look bloated, their skins are falling off, and they’re quite soft.
In a fine-mesh strainer, drain the chickpeas and run cool water over them for about 30 seconds. Set aside (no need to peel the chickpeas for this recipe!).
Meanwhile, in a food processor or high-powered blender, combine the lemon juice, garlic, harissa and salt. Process until the garlic is very finely chopped, then let the mixture rest so the garlic flavor can mellow, ideally 10 minutes or longer.
Add the tahini to the food processor and blend until the mixture is thick and creamy, stopping to scrape down any tahini stuck to the sides and bottom of the processor as necessary.
While running the food processor, drizzle in 2 tablespoons ice water. Scrape down the food processor, and blend until the mixture is ultra smooth, pale and creamy. (If your tahini was extra-thick to begin with, you might need to add 1 to 2 tablespoons more ice water.)
Add the cumin and the drained, over-cooked chickpeas to the food processor. While blending, drizzle in the olive oil. Blend until the mixture is super smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor as necessary, about 2 minutes. Add more ice water by the tablespoon if necessary to achieve a super creamy texture.
Taste, and add more salt or lemon if you want more flavor
Scrape the hummus into a serving bowl or platter, and use a spoon to create nice swooshes on top. Top with garnishes of your choice, and serve.