Freshly toasted and ground cumin and a touch of cayenne give this hummus recipe a nice kick.
There must be at least a hundred different ways to make hummus, and we each tend to have our favourite version. Mine includes plenty of toasted and freshly ground cumin seeds and a generous pinch of cayenne for a lovely kick.
For years I’ve made my hummus using a stick blender I won in a Pregnancy magazine competition when I was expecting my eldest (he’s 15 now and that stick blender is still going strong!), but these days I make my hummus in my Optimum 9400 high speed blender. You can read my full review of the blender (plus a seriously awesome music video my husband and I made with it) here.
Working with the stick blender was messy and cumbersome as I had to keep taking the stick out, scraping it and the sides of the tall, narrow container, down and continue blending.
Working with my blender is a cinch. Yes, I have to still scrape down the sides, but the 3 horsepower motor and 6 blades aerate the hummus creating the lightest, creamiest hummus ever, and freshly toasted and ground cumin seeds and a touch of cayenne pepper give the hummus a nice not-too-fiery kick. Feel free to adjust the quantities to your own taste though – after all, we all like what we like!
Another key ingredient for a tasty hummus is to use a good quality olive oil. The olive oil I used in this recipe was grown by Antonio and his family.
Yes, I know the name of the guy who makes my olive oil – how awesome is that?!
For the last nine months I’ve been working with Pomora, a small UK company working closely with two olive oil producers in Italy – Antonio in the Campania region (pictured below) and Carmelo at the base of Mount Etna.
Each quarter I receive a delivery of olive oil from Antonio’s groves – this quarter the delivery was of three 250ml tins of the most gorgeous extra virgin olive oil – perfect for dipping and making hummus.
You too could receive quarterly deliveries from Antonio (or Carmelo – his oil tastes a little different as it’s grown in a different area – I like the kick of Antonio’s oil) by adopting an olive oil tree from one of their groves.
Again, how awesome is that?
Along with the olive oil you’ll receive an adoption certificate and a booklet of information about your olive tree, updates from your farmer throughout the year. All from just £29 per quarter including delivery, and if you buy it through my affiliate link I’ll get a small commission too. An idea for a Christmas gift for that foodie in your life, perhaps? If you’re not ready to adopt they also offer a fostering option, so you could try it out.
Elizabeth's Hummus Recipe
Ingredients
- 400 gram tin chickpeas in water drained and rinsed
- 2 tbsp light tahini
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (I use Pomora - see banner link in sidebar)
- 1 clove garlic (or more, to taste)
- 1 tsp whole cumin seeds toasted and ground
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper or to taste
- 1-2 tbsp water to reach desired consistency
- smoked paprika to garnish
- fresh parsley to garnish
- extra virgin olive oil to drizzle
Instructions
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas and place them in a high speed blender along with the tahini, olive oil, garlic, toasted and ground cumin, cayenne and lemon juice.
- Season to taste and blend, occasionally scraping down the sides, until light and creamy. Add a tablespoon or two of water towards the end until the hummus reaches the desired consistency.
- Spoon into a bowl, drizzle with a little extra oil, sprinkle with smoked paprika and parsley and serve with vegetable crudites, bread or flatbread crackers (pictured).
LINKING UP WITH SOME FOOD BLOGGING CHALLENGES
Meat Free Mondays by Tinned Tomatoes
My Legume Love Affair by Lisa’s Kitchen
OTHER HUMMUS RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE
Tahini-free Hummus by Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary
Lime and Coriander Hummus by Maison Cupcake
Simple Hummus Recipe by Nadia’s Healthy Kitchen
Chocolate Hummus by Recipes from a Pantry
Easy Roasted Red Pepper Hummus by Hungry, Healthy, Happy
Aubergine & Red Pepper Hummus by Penelope’s Pantry Blog
Avocado Hummus by Foodie Quine
Hummus with Peanut Butter by Fab Food 4 All
Pea & Mint Hummus by Rough Measures
Popyeye or Shrek Hummus by Fuss Free Flavours
Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary uses the Froothie Optimum 9400 blender, and the Froothie Optimum 600 slow juicer to make her juices, soups and smoothies. She is also a Pomora ambassador. These are affiliate links, meaning if you buy a blender, juicer or adopt and olive tree through them we will earn a small commission. This is not a paid post and all thoughts and opinions are our own.
With thanks to Peter’s Yard for the sample of Knäcks sourdough cumin and nigella seed crispbread bites included in my Food Blogger Connect goodie bag recently, photographed above alongside the hummus. They were a rather interesting culinary experience!
Mum of three, daydream adventurer, OU Life Sciences graduate, occasional crafter, ex-pat Canadian & quite possibly Britain's most northerly food blogger.
Heather Haigh says
I haven’t made my own hummus in years, I must give this a go.
Penny H says
I am making this tomorrow, much nicer and cheaper than buying it ready made!
Josie Mellor says
I love hummus but I’ve never thought of making my own until I read this. I’ll definitely be giving it a go!
Lisa says
You can never have enough recipes for hummus in my opinion. Yours looks gorgeous. Love the spicy kick too. Thanks so much for sharing with MLLA.
Jemma @ Celery and Cupcakes says
I just love making my own hummus and really should do it more. This looks really delicious!
Charlie @ The Kitchen Shed says
Hummus is one of my all time favourite things to eat. This recipe looks super yummy! Definitely worth the extra effort to make it at home.
Nazima Pathan says
lovely – I love hummus. I read in a couple of books that the silkiest hummus comes when you peel the chickpeas of their skins. And it really does make a difference, though is the effort worth it? am not sure. Huge fan of cumin so I also add a little of that
Kavey says
I feel embarassed to admit that I’ve never made hummus at home!!! I really ought to give a go though, thanks for motivating me!
Johanna GGG says
this sounds great – I love hummus but have been buying since Sylvia decided she doesn’t like mine – I have wondered about using my froothie for another try as she might like a smoother one so am pleased to hear it works
Herbert Appleby says
I bet this would be amazing in a pita with some shredded lettuce
Sarah James says
Your hummus looks delicious Elizabeth, I love the idea of adding toasted cumin seeds. Your blender sounds amazing, I think I’ll start saving up for one. Thanks for sharing, popping over from #MeatFreeMondays
kellie@foodtoglow says
I’m now in a frame of mind to down tools and head for my Froothie to whip up some hummus!
Kirsty Ralph says
I’ve never been a fan of hummus, but this looks yum!
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
I have been looking for a decent hummus recipe for ages. This looks amazing! Bookmarked x
Camilla says
Your hummus looks wonderful and sounds really tasty especially with that gorgeous olive oil in there I also covet a high speed blender after seeing a demo recently and now realise what all the fuss is about – I am a stick blender girl still!
Lucy Parissi says
My goodness that looks so good… I love hummus and I make it shamefully less and less often. If that is your husband’s hand he has the best hands for food photography (unlike someone I know)
Jacqueline Meldrum says
I love homemade hummus and yes I make mine in my Optimum 9200a Next Generation too. The oil is good too, I’ve had a couple of small cans and I’ve really enjoyed it. Such high quality.
Rachel says
Do you read my mind Elizabeth? Got up to this rural house after a wee blitz of the local supermarket, Rivita in hand and then remembered I\’d totally forgotten to by hummus! I love a bit a cayenne in mine too, often pimp a shop bought one with it, either that or ras-el-hanout.
That olive oil thing sounds fab, what a lovely idea!
janet @ the taste space says
Great tips. I find I lose a lot of hummus if I make it in my high speed blender so I prefer my food processor. I find warm, freshly cooked beans helps a lot, too, in making smooth hummus.
Katie Bryson says
This hummus looks so good Elizabeth… I must make a batch soon and take it to work as it’d be a great desk snack for dunking carrot sticks in.
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry says
You make me want to drop everything and make some hummus right this moment.
MsPrettyLThings says
I love the idea of adding cumin and cayenne for a extra kick – I like food spicy.
Sus @ roughmeasures.com says
Oh, I’ve never thought to add cayenne into my hummus, I bet it gives it a delicious kick!
Your photos are lovely, and that olive oil sounds incredible!
Thanks for linking my recipe 🙂