Monday 6 August 2012

Dreamy Low Fat Hummus With Garlic & Olive OIl

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Hummus is a wonderful source of protein and fibre from it's star ingredient - chickpeas.  Have you noticed that hummus is not a low fat food?  Often even the reduced fat versions can be over 20% fat.  Having said that, these are not saturated fats so I never think twice when I choose hummus for lunch.  So delicious too, it really is more than what words can say with flat bread and salad.

Yet, I've decided that since I know my fats, I would like to experiment a little bit and make my own.  Let's face it, as soon as you reduce the fat content from something as luxuriously smooth and creamy as hummus, it definitely is a challenge to retain that gorgeous flavour that is so characteristic for hummus.

Yet, I feel like doing something good for me and I love trying new recipes, so here's my version of a low fat hummus.  It's dreamy because it genuinely is low in fat at providing only 5% energy from fat.


Ingredients
3 cups of boiled chickpeas, drained
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 tablespoons tahini paste
1 tablespoon good quality olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 - 11/2 cups water

Methods
Add all ingredients into a blender and 1 cup of the water initially.  Blend until you get a smooth paste, but if you struggle, add the remainder of the water.  I did not add any salt to mine, but you can add a pinch of salt if you desire.

I divided mine into 5 mini containers.  That's one serving of hummus for each day of the week.  This will go fabulous with flat bread and salads or on rice cakes with sliced tomatoes for a gluten and wheat free option.

Enjoy and let me know what you think - I may try this recipe again with greek yoghurt and stuffed garlics thrown in.

Per serving: 267kcal, 12.8g fat, 11.8g protein


RECIPE UPDATE
I actually think this recipe could do with a second tablespoon of olive oil and another of the tahini paste.  I did also add a pinch of salt with black pepper before eating today.  This will still keep the total fat of the recipe under 10%, so still much lower than your supermarket brand versions.  I think a filler like sundried tomatoes will go with this beautifully too.