j*ni p. wrote:

> I've seen a few hummus recipes in rfc and have always wanted to
> try it. Unfortunately, I'm too chicken to make something myself
> if I have no idea what it will taste like (I don't recall ever
> eating a chickpea). So today at the stupidmarket, I bought
> something called "Athenos Hummus & Pita", and gave it a try.
>
> The first thing I noticed was the smell of cumin. No problem, I
> like cumin. Then I tasted the hummus -- it was good, but it seemed
> to have a bitter and/or sour after taste that I didn't care for.
> Is that normal, or is it perhaps a product of all the various gunk
> that one finds in store bought stuff?
>
> Here's a list of the ingredients:
>
> Chickpeas, water, olive oil, tahini (sesame), garlic, lemon juice
> concentrate, salt, high fructose corn syrup, contains less than 0.5%
> of spice, sorbic acid and sodium benzoate as preservatives, phosphoric
> acid, natural flavors.
>
> Comments? Thanks in advance... :-)
>
>

Tahini can sometimes be bitter, and who needs all that other gunk?

I make hummus with chickpeas, olive oil, cumin, salt and pepper, fresh
garlic, lots of lemon juice, and parsley. Throw everything but the
parsley into the food processor and give it a whirl. Taste for
seasonings (you may want to add some other kind of hot pepper) and whirl
again. At the last moment, toss in a handful of fresh parsley and
process only until parsley is chopped, not liquified (or you'll have
green hummus -- which is maybe OK for St. Patrick's Day). Easy.
Delicious. Serve with toasted pita points or thinly sliced toasted
baguette.

Hmmmmmm. Now I'm hungry.

Peg