Roasted Beetroot Hummus with Toasted Flatbread Crackers

Happy New Year Hummus!

Surprisingly, my most popular (or most visited) post of 2012 was this traditional hummus recipe. I don’t know why but if you search for Hummus or Hummus recipe in Google it’s right up there on the first page. Consequently I get loads of traffic from search engines. I should really learn how this all works. Maybe that should be my New Year’s resolution.

The trouble is I’m too busy doing what I enjoy doing, which is cooking, to want to spend more time on the computer. So it’s probably not going to happen, but you never know. If someone had told me at the start of 2012 that by the end of the year I would be teaching Vegetarian Cookery Workshops at a cookery school in Spanish I would laughed in their face.

Speaking of which, this beautifully sweet, deliciously deep magenta coloured dip, is one of the dishes from the Middle Eastern inspired Christmas party menu workshop that I hosted in December. It formed part of a festive jewel coloured mezze that we all devoured with a glass of pink cava after everything was prepared. I will be sharing more of those recipes with you over the next few weeks.

I bought some little organic baby beets from the market which roasted in about 30-35 minutes but if you can only get larger ones, cut them in half or quarters and roast until they are tender all the way through. This could take up to an hour depending on their size. Use gloves when you rub the skins off, if you don’t want fuchsia fingers.

Roasted Beetroot Hummus Recipe

Serves 6-8 as a dip. Vegan, Gluten-Free

• about 600 g beetroot
• olive oil
• salt & black pepper
• thyme

Trim off the leaves, leaving about 2 inches of stalk attached and leave the root on. Cut into halves or quarters if large. Preheat the oven to 200 C and line a baking tray with baking paper. Lay the beets on the tray, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt & black pepper and some fresh or dried thyme leaves. Roast until tender all the way through. 30 mins to an hour depending on size. Leave to cool then cut off the stalks and roots and rub the skins off with kitchen paper.

• 400 g cooked chickpeas (1 tin/jar) drained & rinsed
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 Tbsp tahini
• 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 small cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• salt & black pepper
• sesame seeds & fresh dill for garnish (optional)

Roughly chop the beetroot and put half of it along with half of the chickpeas in a food processor and blend until finely chopped, scraping down the sides as necessary. Add the rest of the beetroot (saving some finely chopped for garnish) and the rest of the chickpeas and blend again to a paste, scraping down the sides.

Add the olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, cumin, salt & black pepper and blend to a smooth paste. Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Serve topped with some finely chopped beetroot, sesame seeds, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprig of fresh dill, if using.

Toasted Flatbread Crackers Recipe

vegan

• lavash flatbread or soft flour tortillas
• olive oil
• salt & pepper
• cumin
• sumac (if available)

Preheat the oven to 125 C. Brush your lavash or tortillas with olive oil, sprinkle over some cumin, sumac (if using), salt & black pepper.

Using scissors, cut the lavash/tortillas into triangles and place on the baking tray(s). Cook for 10-15 mins until slightly golden and crispy, keep an eye on them. Leave to cool slightly (they will crisp up a bit more) and serve immediately with the hummus.

These crackers are also great served with Baba Ghanoush, Muhammara or even Guacamole.

Happy New Year Everyone!!