Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

I'm crazy about hummus.  It's a healthy and filling snack I've really grown to love. It's crazy to think that just a few years ago I hadn't tried it because I assumed I wouldn't like it.



I followed the same Hummus recipe I had used some time ago, except this time I added in some roasted red pepper and crushed red pepper.

Now I am still food processor-free at this point so I am still working with a Magic Bullet for my chopping and blending.  For this reason I tend to toss in less ingredients at once to blend it together before adding in the extra goodies.  If you are working with a food processor, this is super easy and you can just follow the recipe below.  In my case, I worked the garbanzo beans, liquid from the garbanzo can, tahini, and lemon juice together first.

I blended the beans for about 1 minute, until I had the base for hummus.

Next, I added in the olive oil, roasted red pepper, crushed red pepper, salt, pepper, and minced garlic and continued blending until the perfect hummus was complete.

Super simple, and oh so easy on the wallet.  With a can of garbanzo beans around $1, making hummus is an easy choice. And with dried beans, it comes out to even less per batch.  Last time I made it, I had kept it basic and though it was good, it wasn't nearly as flavorful as the store bought variety.  This time, I tossed in the extra roasted red pepper and crushed red pepper and it was fantastic.  It's filling as a snack, and garbanzo beans are great for you.  I am sold on homemade hummus!

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Recipe

Ingredients:

1 can garbanzo beans, drained (15.5 ounces)
1/4 cup liquid from garbanzo beans
2 tablespoons tahini
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup roasted red pepper
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions:

Drain garbanzo beans, saving 1/4 cup of the liquid in a small cup.  In a blender or food processor, add the beans, leftover liquid, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, roasted red pepper, crushed red pepper, salt, minced garlic, and pepper.  Blend for 1-2 minutes, until it reaches the desired consistency, using a spoon to scoop any clumps off the edges so that the mixture blends evenly.  Store refrigerated in an airtight container.