Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

As soon as I got my food processor as a wedding gift, I knew I wanted to try making my own hummus. I got a basic recipe from my cousin Marcy and started experimenting. Marcy explained to me that it is hard to write a recipe like hummus down because you just add a little of this and that until you have the flavor you want. Hummus has been quite an adventure for me. Because I wasn't writing my recipe down, I ended up with something different every time and while all were good, they were always a little to garlic-y or lemon-y or water-y. Mostly, I was frustrated that I could not replicate the texture of my favorite store bought hummus (Sabra) no matter how long I processed the chickpeas. I found a few tricks online to get it smoother (see secrets 1 and 2 in the recipe) and optimized my seasonings...and voila! My finalized roasted red pepper hummus recipe.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

1 15.5 oz can Goya Chickpeas

Juice of 1 lemon

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 tbsp tahini

1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 tbsp water

Olive oil

1/2 roasted red bell pepper

1. Drain and rinse chickpeas with cold water.

2. Secret #1: Remove skins from chickpeas. You can do this by pinching them gently. They will pop out of their skins. Although this step is time consuming, it will make the hummus very smooth and is worth it!

3. Put chick peas in food processor and pulse several times until coarsely ground.

4. Add lemon juice, minced garlic, tahini (if you have trouble finding it in the store, my store has it next to the olives...) and kosher salt. Pulse a few times to combine into a thick paste.

5. Add 2 tbsp water to thin the hummus.

6. Secret # 2: Add a drizzle or two of olive oil through the ingredient shoot WHILE PROCESSOR IS ON. Adding the olive oil in this way creates an emulsion which whips up the hummus. You should see it increase in volume slightly.

7. Add half of a roasted red bell pepper in small strips.* Pulse a few times to chop the pepper and combine.

8. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Makes about 2 "store containers" worth of hummus. Great with pita or wheat thins (Hirsh's favorite).

Difficulty: Medium

Hirsh's Rating: 9.5

Debbie's Rating: 10 (I have FINALLY nailed my hummus recipe!)

* If you have never roasted a pepper before, here's how you do it. (Thanks to Marcy, again for teaching me!)

Roasted Red Pepper

1. Set your oven to broil

2. Wash pepper and put on foil-lined baking sheet.

3. Put pepper 3-5 inches under broiler and wait until it starts to blacken (about 5-10 minutes)

4. Rotate the pepper and repeat until all sides are blackened.

5. Take out of the oven and store in a ziplock bag for at least an hour until the pepper has cooled.

6. Peel off the skin with your hands (this should be easy) and get rid of the seeds.

7. Cut into strips and add to hummus, pasta, sandwiches, etc.

Note: Roasting red peppers makes your kitchen smell really good!