Hummus is such a universally recognised Middle Eastern dip and is widely available ready-made. It’s not so difficult to make from scratch, though, and well worth the effort. It makes an excellent quick lunch when topped with salad and served with flat bread.
To make the hummus, first soak 250g (8¾ oz) of dried chick peas in 1 litre (1 quart) of water overnight. If you’re in a hurry you can achieve this in less time by boiling the chick peas for 4 minutes and allowing them to sit for an hour. Next, cook the chick peas in 1½ litres of fresh water until they are very tender (this might take up to an hour or if you have a pressure cooker only 10-12 minutes). Drain the chickpeas, place them in a food processor with 250g (8¾ oz) of tahini paste, ⅓ of a cup of lemon juice, 1 large crushed clove of garlic and 1½ teaspoons of salt, and process to a smooth paste, thinning with cold water to achieve a consistency you like.
For the salad combine tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, parsley, feta and pickles of some kind, dress it all with a good olive oil and lemon juice and sprinkle with a little cayenne pepper and sumac.
michelle picker cooks 