Homemade hummus

Are you having a barbecue this weekend? It's a long weekend for the US and UK and a perfect time to get the old grill out. Well, not if the rain gods here have their way, so I'll just pretend and make summer-y foods, like hummus. Yes, enter the return of the food processor.

I think most people know and have eaten hummus before, but perhaps have not tried to make it at home. One of my friends in college made this with me and I was officially hooked. It is certainly a lot easier with the food processor and gives it the consistency of the store-bought type. One of the best things about making hummus at home is that you can flavour it however you want (read = less salty) and whatever consistency you enjoy. A didn't know you could make hummus at home and has raved about it to his family, who were thoroughly impressed. Little does the Greek family know how easy it really is!

Here's what you will need: lemon. tahini (sesame seed paste- optional but gives it a creamy consistency and that classic hummus flavour), salt, garlic, chickpeas and olive oil. Maybe a little cold water depending on the consistency you like.

Into the food processor dump the chickpeas, teaspoon to tablespoon of mashed garlic to suit your tastebuds, 2-3 tablespoons of tahini, the juice of half a lemon, and a tablespoon of salt.

Then add your olive oil. I probably use 1/4 - 1/3 cup.

Time to spin! Grind everything down for a minute or so and the consistency should be somewhat bitty. Make sure to stir everything now so there are no chunks lurking at the bottom. You should probably taste the mixture at this point to see if it needs more salt, lemon or olive oil, and add a tablespoon of cold water if you want the hummus to be more creamy.

Whirl it again until you have the consistency you like and that's it!

I think the whole process takes me 5 minutes or less and one can of chickpeas makes a reasonable bowl full of hummus. You can even be super efficient and put the pita bread on to toast (really must be toasted) before you start, then serve with a drizzle of olive oil.

Enjoy the long weekend if you have it off and let's all hope for a moment or two of sunshine!