Avocado Hummus (aka Guacahummus, or the most unappealing food name ever)
2014
At our house, guacamole and hummus, as individual products, are basically the sole staples of our diet (oh and greek yogurt but more on that in the future). In fact, the week before we got married, when I was working 15 hour days on a crazy project at work and had no time to cook, my husband essentially lived on a few tubs of Sabra hummus. These delicious dips and spreads have become the holy grail of trendy, healthy eating. Chock full of healthy fats from avocados or olive oil, full of antioxidants and the germ-fighting goodness of garlic, and breaming with fiber a-plenty – these international foods have made their way into the hearts and stomachs of Americans across the country.
So of course, it is only natural that these foods find their way into a blissful union. There is no exact science to this recipe, just as there is no exact science to my (award-winning) guacamole or hummus. The result was a very mild, extremely delicate and light tasting hummus with a green tint. On the first day, the avocado was barely discernible as a flavor, acting only through its fat content to emulsify and create a whipped texture for the hummus. On day 2 though (I am surprised the bowl lasted that long), the flavor of the avocado became more pronounced and created a delicate balance.
Unfortunately, something about the combination of consonant letters and guttural vowels make the words “guacahummus” really unpleasant to my ears – so I refuse to call it that. Here is my version of Avocado Hummus which lends itself to many possible modifications, like adding some fresh jalapeno for more heat, more spices, using lime for the acid instead of lemon for a more south of the border flavor, the possibilities are endless.
Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas – drained (I love the trader joes organic garbanzo beans – they seem to be more cooked through than brands like goya and make for smoother hummus)
1 large or 2 small cloves of garlic
¼ to ½ of a lemon
1 ripe avocado
2-3 tbsp of tahini (I am currently using al wadi tahini which is much liquidier than some other brands I have tried)
Extra virgin olive oil
Water
Seasonings: salt, cumin, smoked paprika, chili pepper flakes
Some recipes recommend rinsing chickpeas, I don’t find a need to do that with the trader joes ones and its ok if you don’t drain out every last drop since you’ll be adding water anyways.
In a food processor (preferably small one like a magic bullet, or a 3-4 cup Cuisinart, or single serve cup of a ninja blender), whip tahini, garlic and juice of ¼ lemon, until garlic is minced. Add in about half the chickpeas and a few spoons of water, blend until mostly smooth. Add the remaining chickpeas and a tbsp. of olive oil. Also add a small palmful of salt (cooking is NOT an exact science – seasoning is very person dependent).
Blend until mostly creamy, if it seems very dense, continue to add water a tbsp. or two at a time. Add the peeled and pitted ripe avocado – puree until entirely smooth. You may at the point want to mix in some more lemon juice or any of your seasonings (cumin, paprika, etc). The mixture should be light and fluffy. Spoon into a bowl, top with another tbsp or so of olive oil and sprinkle with paprika and/or chili pepper flakes. Its great right away with some pita or chips, but if you refrigerate it for a few hours it will give the flavors some time to marry.
