Spinach Hummus and Chips!

Spinach Hummus

300g dried chickpeas or  2 cans of chickpeas.

3-5 tablespoons of Tahini (buy it at the foreign food mart in Itaewon or make your own, it’s really easy just blend sesame seeds with olive oil)

200g of fresh spinach

200 – 300ml Olive oil

3 – 5 cloves of garlic

The juice  and zest of 1 or 2 Lemons

2 -4 tablespoons of cumin (foreign food mart or Gmarket)

1-2 tablespoons of paprika (foreign food mart or Gmarket)

Lime and Coriander Chips

4 tortillas

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons of lime juice

1 tablespoon of Mexican seasoning

1 bunch of coriander (cilantro)

1/2 a teaspoon of salt

Directions

Soak your chickpeas over night or for several hours in cold water, do not add any salt. Cook your chickpeas in boiling water for 2-3 hours or until they mash easily with the back of a spoon. I use my rice cooker to cook them as you don’t have to worry about topping up the water, just give them a lot at the beginning and they will be fine.  Once your chick peas are done, strain them but reserve some of the water for later. If you are using the canned chickpeas you can skip the cooking stage.

If you are making your own tahini, blend the olive oil and sesame seeds until they form a paste. Then add the garlic and blend again. Finally add the spinach. Keep blending until you have a lovely vibrant green paste. I prefer to use fresh spinach as frozen or cooked is too stringy and will cause problems for your blender unless you have a very good one.

Blend the chick peas in your blender with a little of the extra water,  until they start to resemble the consistency of hummus. Everyone has a different preference about how they like their hummus, some like the runny oily kind whilst others prefer it thick. It’s really up to you, whatever floats your boat, so add more or less water depending on how you like it. Once your chickpeas are blended, add the tahini and lemon juice. Then you can start to add your salt and spices, a little at first stirring them in until you get the taste you want. You also might want to add more tahini and lemon juice too. Hummus is one of those recipes that is hard to pin down. I generally make it the same each time but the results always seem to vary. As long as you get all the basics in there though it should turn out well.

To make the chips cut your tortillas into triangles. The tortillas I use, are the large ones from Costco so I usually get about 10-12 chips from each one. Place the olive oil, lime juice and coriander in your blender and blend until you have a green paste. Then stir in the salt and Mexican seasoning. Using a brush or the back of a spoon coat one site of the triangle then lay on a baking tray. Try not to overlap the chips. Bake in the oven for about 2-4 minutes. Times will vary depending on the size so make sure you keep checking on them. They are done when they are golden in colour and the paste is dry. Store in an airtight container and they will keep for at least a week if you can resist eating them. Voilà home-made chips and a dip. Perfect for any party.