Hummus spree!

I love hummus, I love to eat it plain, dip veggies in it, pita bread, use it in place of mayo...anything!  A lot of prepared hummus in the stores though have extra junk it them that I don't really want to consume.  Plus, when you look at the prize of garbanzo beans plus the other required ingredients, the premade hummus is really spendy! 

This week, I am enjoying two kinds of hummus, prepared by my own two hands.  The first is a raw cashew hummus from Karina at Gluten Free Goddess.  It is unbelievable!  I could seriously eat the whole batch in one sitting and not feel guilty....well maybe a little.

To a high powered blender add the following:

• 1 cup soaked raw cashews, drained
• 1 tablespoon raw organic tahini (I will admit to buying plain old tahini!)
• Juice form 1 fresh lemon, or to taste (I used 1 1/2 lemons)
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder (omitted from mine because I forgot to buy more!)
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• sea salt to taste

Blend on high until smooth and creamy, taste and adjust as needed.  If you want more "body" add more olive oil, if you like a stronger tahini taste, add an extra tablespoon of that.

Store in the fridge and serve with fresh vegetables, enjoy!  It's so good I eat it plain.

My second hummus chilling in my fridge is a lemon basil hummus.  To my Vita Mix (thanks DAD!!) I added the following:

• 2 cups cooked chickpeas (canned is fine, I used my pressure cooker and cooked them for about one hour)
• 1/4 cup of the chickpea broth
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons tahini
• 3 garlic cloves
• Juice of 1 1/2 lemon
• Fresh basil leaves, about 1/4 to 1/2 cup whole leaves, I really love basil!
• Sea salt to taste

Blend on high, taste and adjust seasonings as needed.  Chill in the fridge and enjoy with fresh vegetables or as a sandwich spread.