Hummus

[jorjeni]

Made this last night spread it over Alissa's easy pizza crust

4 cups cashews soaked
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup sesame tahini
1 cup water
salt to taste

mix in food processor till smooth adding water slowly until you get the texture of hummus (I used the whole 1 cup)

I got this from the real world raw food book.

[Conscious Midwife]

Yummmy

Sounds delicious

[JennaBoBenna]

*jaw drops*

that sounds so delicious!! why didn't I think of that ??? :p :D

[Shivananda]

4 cups cashews soaked (etc.) OK, sounds tasty, but it really leaves me wondering...

Why not make the same recipe, but more authentically, using 4 cups of soaked chickpeas, instead of the cashews? At 1/4 the price!

What am I missing?

[SedonaSun]

"Why not make the same recipe, but more authentically, using 4 cups of soaked chickpeas, instead of the cashews? At 1/4 the price!"


Because a lot of us are not fond of the taste of raw hummus made with chickpeas, myself included. I loooove the cooked version with chickpeas, but cannot get past more than a couple bites of the raw chickpea version. :(

[jorjeni]

OK, sounds tasty, but it really leaves me wondering...

Why not make the same recipe, but more authentically, using 4 cups of soaked chickpeas, instead of the cashews? At 1/4 the price!

What am I missing?


I have tried to sprout chickpeas and it wasn't working and I have heard others say the same. Also as SedonaSun stated not everyone likes the taste of sprouted chickpeas. So when I saw this recipe I decided to try it and it taste just like I used chickpeas so I am happy with it and thought I'd share :D

[Indi]

jorjeni

Thanks for the post
I like the idea of using cashews instead of chickpeas.
I look forward to trying this out

Thankyou for sharing :)

[Shivananda]

So when I saw this recipe I decided to try it and it taste just like I used chickpeas so I am happy with it and thought I'd share :D OK, great, that's why I asked. I wasn't trying to be ornery, just trying to understand.

So it occurs to me, what with raw cashews being so expensive, that maybe a 50/50 blend might work? Since I have some sprouted chickpeas just waiting for me to come eat them tonite, maybe I will try that myself.

[SedonaSun]

OK, great, that's why I asked. I wasn't trying to be ornery, just trying to understand.

So it occurs to me, what with raw cashews being so expensive, that maybe a 50/50 blend might work? Since I have some sprouted chickpeas just waiting for me to come eat them tonite, maybe I will try that myself.

:D didn't take you for being ornery myself. I was thinking of a 50/50 blend also after reading this recipe. So, do tell how it turns out if you try that :)

[TP]

just a thought, but i wonder how macadamia would work in place of the cashews.. i think they are less expensive, at least at my hfs they are.. (and i have seen a recipe or two that have said to use one or the other)

[jorjeni]

:D didn't take you for being ornery myself. I was thinking of a 50/50 blend also after reading this recipe. So, do tell how it turns out if you try that :)


Didn't think you were being ornery either :p

[swingbolder]

Thanks for posting that jorjeni.

[Shivananda]

Didn't think you were being ornery either :p Well, thanks. I just felt I had to say that at this point because a few folks here on the forum seem to take offense at everything I say. I'm getting so paranoid about my posts being wildly misunderstood and complained about and and attacked and censored and deleted that I'm just about ready to quit posting here altogether.

Anyways, I did try your recipe 3 ways, with interesting results. To keep the size of the project manageable I cut everything to 1/4, so each batch was:

1 Cup cashews, or chickpeas or 50/50 mixed
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 clove of garlic (pressed)
1 Tablespoon sesame tahini
4 Tablespoons of water
touch of salt

The chickpeas had been sprouting 2 days and had tiny tails from bumps to 1/4" long (I usually sprout a bit longer but wanted to get on with this experiement. ) The cashews were soaked overnight

Chickpea only - What I found was that the pure chickpea hummus had that raw sprout edge that I know some people don't like, so I see your point. Adding a bit more tahini and a bit more lemon seemed to tame it some.

Cashew only - When I made the cashew only hummus, it seemed OK but a bit too bland and nutty for my taste. I already use a lot of cashews in my foods, so it didn't particularly ring my chimes.

Just right - But when I made the 50/50 blend... I thought that was the best of both worlds. It was smoother tasting than the chickpeas alone, and had more character than the cashews alone.

So I dumped it all back in the machine together, added a touch more tahini and a little olive oil and processed it a little more. Putting it in a bowl, with a dusting of black pepper and a sprinkle of chopped fresh parsley, I puddled a little lemon/olive oil on top (middle eastern style) and attacked it with raw pita bread.

Yum! Great lunch! Thanks! :)

[Kris]

Woohoo, can't wait to try this. I've not had success with raw hummus, and was thinking of lightly steaming my sprouted chickpeas as Renee Underkoffler suggests (I'm not 100%). But the cashews are a better idea -- thanks for the suggestion!

Question: do you guys usually make hummus in the food processor or blender? My food processor doesn't really make things smooth enough fro my tastes, but I'm not sure my blender can handle sprouted garbanzos.

[Raw Jewelrylady]

Thanks Shivananda-I appreciate your reporting back to us your recipe-as I have made both the cashew & the sprouted garbanzo & I think this sounds like a perfect mix. I will give it a whirl... :)

Lana

[Shivananda]

Question: do you guys usually make hummus in the food processor or blender? My food processor doesn't really make things smooth enough fro my tastes, but I'm not sure my blender can handle sprouted garbanzos. Your blender probably won't, no. It is designed for liquids, not thick pastes. But your food processor should, even a cheapie, if you use it well.

The few things I find people most often miss about using a food processor:

1) Match the size of your recipe to the size of the machine you use, and vice versa. If you try to process 1 cup of food in a 12 cup machine you are unlikely to get good results. The optimum range is about 1/4 to 3/4 of the total capacity of the machine. For my one+ cup batches of hummus I used my 3 cup container and blade.

2) Use PULSE unless you want to pulverize the texture of your food. When I make salsa I do 3 short pulses, period. Otherwise it turns into ketchup. For hummus, though, leaving it run for a couple of minutes will give a silky texture (if everything else is right). But 9 times out of 10 I don't use the ON switch at all, just the pulse.

3) Stop the machine and scrape down the sides and scrape out the corners frequently, to get a uniform blend. I WISH home machines had what the big 12 Quart Hobart at the restaurant has - built in side and top scrapers that you can use while the machine is running!

4) If you are going for a smooth blend and not getting it, try adding a small amount of liquid or oil. Often this is all that is needed to magically transform a whole batch of food. Pesto is famous for this... you add oil and you add oil and it just isn't working and then all of a sudden as you slowly drizzle in the oil *BOOM* it transforms to lovely green gold. :)

I hope this is useful.

[Kris]

I hope this is useful.

VERY useful! Thanks for all the tips! Can't wait to try it. :D

[TP]

and attacked it with raw pita bread.

pray tell... what recipe do you use?

thanks for the 50/50 suggestion as well and happy hummusing ;)

[swingbolder]

Anyways, I did try your recipe 3 ways, with interesting results. To keep the size of the project manageable I cut everything to 1/4, so each batch was:

You're amazing Sivananda, thanks!!!! I'm going to try the 50/50 blend and see what happens. . .

[Shivananda]

just a thought, but i wonder how macadamia would work in place of the cashews.. i think they are less expensive, at least at my hfs they are.. Oh my word, I nearly fainted when I read that. At my HFS raw macadamia nuts are $20 per pound, while raw cashews are about $6.

But then I realized you may be getting California macs, rather than the more common and more expensive Hawaiian ones. Or maybe it is stolen merchandise. :)

Amyway, macadamias are considered THE nut of choice by many raw food gurus, not to mention many raw food chefs, because of their creamy texture and refined taste in sauces and things. Bon apetit if you can find them.

But anyway, on general you can pretty much substitute any nut for another if you are willing to accept a little difference in taste and texture. Almonds are a little harde, cashews a little softer, walnuts more bitter, etc., but for my personal use I tend to go with whatever has the best price this week.

Also don't forget brazil nuts. They are also excellent, and are sometimes available quite reasonably priced.

[juliebove]

I have sprouted chickpeas with no problems and they taste good to me. I just pick them up and eat them in my hand like popcorn. They are also fine on a green salad. But when I tried them in hummus... :eek: So very nasty! My daughter loves hummus with cooked chickpeas but wouldn't eat this. Perhaps the recipe I used wasn't a good one. It seemed to call for a lot more tahini and parsley than I think hummus should have. And then it was vague on the amount of olive oil. Said something like you couldn't use enough of it. I just kept adding more and more thinking it would get creamy as the recipe implied it would. All I had was an oily green mess. It tasted more of parsley than anything else and when you'd try to eat it, it felt like it was coating the tongue because there was so much tahini. I guess I'll just stick with the plain sprouts. So far any recipes I've tried with sprouts have not been to my liking.

[Jadrien24]

"and attacked it with raw pita bread."
Wha!!!!!!!! I LOVE PITA BREAD AND MISS IT SO MUCH! Please share recipe for raw pita bread!!!!!! Thank you!

[Shivananda]

I guess I'll just stick with the plain sprouts. So far any recipes I've tried with sprouts have not been to my liking.It just occurred to me that you could make a no-effort deconstructed hummus that might be pleasing to you and preserve the crunch you like. I haven't tried this, but it works fine in the Shivananda Test Kitchen mental laboratory. :)

Put your sprouted chickpeas in a bowl. Make a simple salad dressing of tahini, olive oil, and lemon juice (maybe garlic and salt, if you like) and pour over the chickpeas. Or for even less work, just drizzle those things over the chickpeas and stir. Mangia, mangia!

[ChaiLife]

I just used the hummus recipe adaptation by shivananda and made a few alterations of my own and it was VERY VERY good.

1 Cup cashews, or chickpeas or 50/50 mixed (I used all cashews and did not have the patience to soak them this time)
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 clove of garlic (pressed) (MORE! I used about 2 cloves)
1 Tablespoon sesame tahini
4 Tablespoons of water
touch of salt
I added:
touch of pepper
1/4 of a red bell pepper for "roasted" red pepper hummus
sprinkle of onion powder (I hope it's raw!)
2-3 T fresh parsley
2 T olive oil approx.

It was great. I wish I could have gotten it smoother though. Maybe soaking the nuts and running it longer will help. The red pepper really livened it up.

Now if I could only find a sub for tzadziki! :rolleyes:

Kelly

[TP]

sounds good ChaiLife! I may try that as I just bought some cashews but don't have any sprouted chicks at the moment..

Shivananda, in regards to the macadamia and cashew price comparison, the "raw" cashews in the bulk bin at my hfs are cheaper, but I still have to figure out how to tell if they are raw or not. I found "truly" raw cashews in the raw section of my hfs (in a vacuum sealed bag), but they were priced like gold.

[TP]

Well here was my adaptation tonight. We had it in romaine wraps and it was really good.

1 Cup macadamias
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove of garlic
1.5 Tablespoons sesame tahini
4 Tablespoons of water
1 pinch of celtic sea salt
1/4 of a red bell pepper for "roasted" red pepper hummus
2 Tablespoons olive oil

[kyrie]

Hi Shivananda,

I for one enjoy your posts even if I don't agree with them always. A little intellectual biffo never killed anyone. I think everyone just needs to chill out and keep things in perspective, take a deep breath, if you don't like what someone said, ignore it, move on, the world will still keep spinning,and the sun will still rise in the sky tomorrow.

I just think the fact that the posters here have access to the net, and the education to use it, is something they should all be thankful for, because many many fellow humans live in countries where you can go to jail indefinitely for sending email or even for voting against the government.

I know a lot of refugees from different countries, and once you talk to them about their stories, alot of the spats here seem childish.

I know it is off topic, but it is my two cents worth.

Carla.

[vickiesltw]

Putting it in a bowl, with a dusting of black pepper and a sprinkle of chopped fresh parsley, I puddled a little lemon/olive oil on top (middle eastern style) and attacked it with raw pita bread.

Yum! Great lunch! Thanks! :)

Shivananda,

I know we already asked but, I have not seen a response so I thought I would ask again.

Please tell us how to make raw pita bread. Also if I missed it please show me where the recipe is.

Thanks

Lil' Brat

[Eastersky]

1) Match the size of your recipe to the size of the machine you use, and vice versa. If you try to process 1 cup of food in a 12 cup machine you are unlikely to get good results. The optimum range is about 1/4 to 3/4 of the total capacity of the machine. For my one+ cup batches of hummus I used my 3 cup container and blade.



I never thought about that. I have been looking at buying a food processor because I am new at all of this raw food stuff, but I have been discouraged at the expensive prices. Since I am only cooking, er.. I mean preparing, food for myself, then a 3 cup food processor would work just fine. I can afford that!

[cheflissy]

Jorjeni,

I tried your hummus recipe this morning and it was amazing! I usually dont' like hummus at all, but this didn't really taste that much like hummus, although, it looked like it. This one is definately a winner in my book!! Thanks!

Melissa