Hummus

Hummus is a simple garbanzo bean spread often featured in Middle Eastern cooking.
It's a great thing to make when your vegan friend is coming for lunch ;-)
Bob found it to be a great snack later the same day.
I love it because it is so adaptable to what you have on hand or your food preferences.

Here is the recipe I made up.
1 can of garbanzo beans (or 2 cups cooked beans if you want to make them from scratch)
2 lemons, juiced
2 cloves of garlic
1-2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1/4 cup sesame butter (tahini )
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 cup dried tomatoes, re-hydrated

If you want to make it low fat, leave out the oil and sesame butter.
No lemons on hand, use vinegar instead.
Don't want to breath garlic later...it really is better with garlic but you can leave it out.
The dried tomatoes and smoked paprika are optional but make it sooo much better.
You can also use a small amount of whatever fresh or dried herbs you have on hand: oregano, parsley, marjoram, etc...I would use 1/2 to 1 teaspoon to start with.

I like to put the two cloves of peeled garlic into the food processor first for a few seconds. Then add the rest of the ingredients.

Blend until smooth, if you want it thinner add more liquid from the beans.
Serve with pita bread, tortilla chips or use it as a sandwich spread. It's great with fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.