Yes, I think I’m on a hummus kick.  Yep, crazy about the stuff and since hubby is not a fan, I never have to worry about finding an empty container in the trash when I’m having a craving. Two weeks ago, I posted my first ever hummus recipe; Garlic and Roasted Red Pepper Hummus and since it turned out great, I thought I’d give it a second shot. Homemade hummus in most cases is so much better then store bought. I also like knowing exactly what’s in my food and there is less worry about unnatural ingredients. For this homemade hummus, I chose black olives. I am a big fan of this and thought it would be nice to make my own, then I can also give it a spicy twist if I wanted to or keep it rather mellow.

For those of you unfamiliar with hummus, it’s basically a blend of chick peas, tahini, lemon juice, salt and garlic. It is a middle eastern delight and quite popular around the world. I recently saw an article on The Huffington Post about the 10 Reasons you should be eating hummus.  One of the biggest for me is weight management, especially since I started Weight Watchers. I found it to be my go-to snack and also a great substitute for mayo or mustard in my turkey wraps.  It really adds a lot of flavor to my wraps. Another reason was that it lowers cholesterol. A third is because Natalie Portman likes it, but that reason doesn’t influence me much.

If you don’t have tahini, which his just roasted sesame paste, and want to pick some up at the store, go to the peanut butter aisle first. I thought for sure it would be with the Indian and Thai foods, but it was not. After checking that aisle and with the salad dressings, I asked one of the employees and she said it’s with peanut butter. She said people use it as a spread more then a dressing. Hmmm… did not know that.

But the cool thing is you can customize it to your own flavor preferences. I did this with the Red Pepper Hummus and I’m doing it again with the olive. If you love olives, you’ll love this. If you love spinach, throw that in as well. The possibilities are endless!  So here is my recipe for olive hummus. Note that if you want some added kick to it, add some cayenne. It really takes the flavor to the next level. Also, I didn’t have a lemon so I used lime juice since I didn’t want to run to the store. I think it turned out pretty good.

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Black Olive Homemade Hummus

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Ingredients

• 2 cans of garbanzo beans (drained)
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• juice of one lime
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup tahini
• water (as needed)
• 1 can black olives (pitted)

Directions

Step 1

Put everything in the blender except the olives. Blend until smooth, adding water as necessary. Because it's thick, you may need to shut off the blender and scrape the sides.

Step 2

Once the hummus is to your desired consistency, add the olives and blend until they are chopped fine. If you like bigger chunks of olive, blend for less time.

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For my second hummus, I think I did pretty well. I took this to a party along with some of Stacy’s Pita Chips Garden Veggie variety and some fresh baby carrots.  I also topped it off with some paprika, a drizzle of olive oil and some chopped up black and green olives for some decorative color. It was a hit and my girlfriends could not believe I made it myself. I’m so glad they all enjoyed it and I hope you do too.

For more appetizers or snacks like this homemade hummus, follow my Appetizers and Little Bites Pinterest board

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Tell me, what kind of hummus should I make next? Eggplant? Spinach?  Let me know your thoughts and I’ll make it!
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