Monday, March 21, 2011

Black Bean Hummus


I'm calling this black bean hummus because the ingredients and proportions were inspired by hummus, but it could just as easily be called "delicious black bean spread" or "semi-spicy black bean dip" so if those sound more appealing to you then feel free to call it one of them, or something else.  In my family we like to adapt ingredients to fit what is on hand so there is a story about the time when a dish was made where all the ingredients had been replaced with something similar... pears for apples, and so forth.  This is a bit like that - I used black beans in place of chick peas, toasted walnuts in place of tahini, lime juice in place of lemon, and added some aleppo pepper flakes for a bit of kick.  It still does have garlic, olive oil, and salt like the original, however.   I have made this before and I'm very glad I kept track of the proportions this time because it was delicious and I will definitely be making it again.


A note on the aleppo pepper: this is one of my favorite seasonings; it has a mild, slightly smoky, rich spiciness to it.  You can use them in place of red pepper flakes or ground chili peppers in cooking, so if you are tempted to get them, don't hesitate, you won't regret having them around.  However, if you don't see the need to add another spice to your cabinet or just want to make this right now without tracking down my favorite obscure spice, you can substitute most milder chili peppers or even chili powder.  If you have ground or canned chipotle peppers I am sure those would work very well too.

Black Bean Hummus
  • 1 can black beans, drained (or 2 cups cooked)
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, peeled
  • juice of 1 lime (~3-4 tablespoons)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons aleppo pepper (or other chili pepper to taste)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt to taste (~1/2 - 1 teaspoon)
  • water
Blend ingredients through salt in food processor or blender.  Add water to get desired consistency.  Serve with crackers, chips, vegetables, or as a spread in sandwiches, or however else you wish!

PS - Don't forget to check out the raffle for handmade baby items to benefit Japan!

4 comments:

  1. Mmm... I've never tried black bean hummus -- I'll have to make this.

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  2. Sounds delicious - will have to make some! I'm all for switching out ingredients too.

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  3. Oooh, sounds wonderful. And I have a bag of black beans in the cupboard. I'll try this out soon.

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  4. I made this today and it was fantastic. I bet it's very nutritious too.

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