Spinach Hummus (Who Knew?)
I love hummus and I love looking for any new hummus recipe. Nice warm crispy pita crackers dipped in the delicious spiciness of chick peas, tahini, seasonings, and really good olive oil. Hummus is packed full of delicious nutrition, providing 19 grams of protein, 15 grams of fiber, 39% of your daily Thiamin and a whopping 50% of folate requirements. It has iron, B vitamins and a whole bunch of trace minerals that makes it a wholesome, filling, nutritious and very delicious meal. And kids love to dip! A fun little container of hummus and a cute baggie of pita chips or carrot sticks in the lunchboxes and your kids will be sure to have a healthy lunch!
I make hummus at home quite often because its an easy meal, very filling and full of energy for a busy homestead workday. I decided to play with ingredients from my garden and around my homestead. Delicious options include sprouting chickpeas, roasting them, roasting sesame seeds for tahini, even trying other beans like black eye peas or red kidney beans for multicolored hummus, a fun dish for a party. Then I decided to try adding even more nutrition with greens!
Greens are so easy to grow and so good for you. Its so easy to add a handful of chopped greens to soups, stews, scrambled eggs, and also hummus!
In this recipe I’m going to use fresh spinach right out of my garden, along with a few radish leaves for spicy bite (yes radish leaves are very edible!) and a couple of swiss chard leaves. If you’re looking for recipes for those foragable greens, you can try this with lambsquarter, broad leaf dock, dandelion and chickweed. Even substitute blended greens for the chickpeas altogether. See which greens your family loves best!
Spinach and Chickpea Hummus
1 can chickpeas drained and reserve liquid, or 2 cups fresh cooked chickpeas
4-5 garlic cloves
1-2 teaspoons Himalayan or celtic salt
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup tahini (homemade recipe below)
¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice
few dashes of hot sauce if you like it
2 cups washed and dried spinach and other greens, chopped
½ teaspoon paprika for color if desired
In a food processor, blend the garlic until mixed. Coarsely chop the greens, remove stems. Begin adding the spinach and greens along with the lemon juice and olive oil until pureed. Add the remaining ingredients along with a little of the reserved liquid if the hummus isn’t smooth enough.
Remove the blade and scrape the processor bowl to get all that rich goodness into your serving dish. Drizzle with a little of your best olive oil and a sprig of something green and a lemon twist for garnish. Serve with warm crisp pitas and enjoy!
Homemade Tahini
1 cup sesame seeds, either hulled or unhulled, white or other type
2-4 Tablespoons olive oil or light oil of your choice (sunflower and coconut are good choices)
Tahini is a matter of choice. You can toast the sesame seeds if you like a nuttier flavor. I like them toasted. In a dry cast iron skillet, add the sesame seeds over medium heat, stirring almost constantly until lightly toasted 4-5 minutes. Don’t let them brown too much, they can get bitter.
In a blender, add 2 Tablespoons oil and about half the seeds. Begin blending, and add a spoonful of seeds at a time, alternating with as much oil as needed. If you like thicker tahini, use less oil. Blend or process until it makes a smooth paste. Add a sprinkle of salt if desired.
Tahini can be used in all kinds of middle eastern cooking. Tahini sauce enhances vegetable wraps, especially eggplant and beet wraps. Its delicious in oil and vinegar dressings for salads too. Store in the fridge up to a few weeks.
