Trader Joe's Hummus

Ahh, nap time. I've never really been a person who was enjoyed a nap. It usually takes me too long to fall asleep & then by the time I'm off in zzzland, it's time to get up & then I'm groggier than when I started. But nap time has a different meaning for me now, because when Ruby is napping, I can do something for me... even if it's just going to the bathroom or blogging while I sip some iced nettle & mint tea. You see, life for us has changed drastically over the past couple of days, all because Ruby is now officially mobile!

She has been scooting & spinning around for a few weeks, now, but just yesterday she figured out how to turn her precious army roll into a full on crawl. And guess what was the first object of desire? That's right... it was Hartley. I was shocked when he didn't even get up when she pursued him. He's such a great dog.

*Side note: how the heck do parents get anything done with mobile babes? Must everything be saved for nap time now?!

So today during Ruby's nap I washed all our floors (something is so satisfying about getting on my hands & knees & scrubbing...) & I got outside in my garden & tidied it up a bit. I bought a few ornamental grasses yesterday & planted those. It just felt so incredible to be out in the sunshine, even just for an hour or so. Give me some hard core yard work over a nap any day (unless I'm pregnant, then forget about it).

Today's lunch reminded me that I wanted to blog about our new hummus recipe that we've been loving. I stole it from another lady's blog, who says that it's pretty close to Trader Joe's hummus. If we had a TJ in the area, I'd be an addict, that's for sure. But for now, we'll just stick to this hummus.

Trader Joe's Hummus
Ingredients

2 cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas) drained (about 3 cups)

*1 garlic clove (I used 3 the first time & 2 the second... I like 3 better)

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons tahini (we used roasted tahini, found at our food coop)

1 1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (I did more like 3/4 teaspoon because John likes the spice)

about 1/2 cup hot water

*update 7/8/13: I just tried roasting some garlic & using that in place of the raw garlic & it gives the hummus a much more creamy, roasty flavor. I used 2 BULBS of garlic & roasted it in a little bit of olive oil in a cast iron skillet until it was soft. Then I pulsed it in the food processor with all of the other ingredients. Delish.

Directions

Place the garlic clove in the food processor and pulse a few times. Dump the rest of the ingredients in to the food processor, except for the hot water, and run for 3-4 minutes. After the first 30 seconds or so, stream in the water while the processor is still running - until you reach your desired consistency and continue to process until very smooth and creamy. Taste for seasoning and consistency, adding a bit more water if needed. This will set up a bit in the fridge, so make it a tad runnier than you think you'd like!

Recipe adapted from Sweet Annas