hummus

A dried chickpea is a thing of wonder and mystery. A small hard little bullet that requires soaking and boiling until it finally becomes edible. Sounds like a lot of effort to me. I’m the kind of gal who likes to shmoosh up a can of ready prepared chickpeas in 5 minutes and call it hummus –isn’t that what canned chickpeas are for? That being said, I have it on good authority that soaking and cooking dried chickpeas makes a vast improvement over my tinned version so was intrigued enough to try it for myself. Soaking the chickpeas overnight is the only step that makes the process lengthy but other than that, the task was relatively effortless and well worth it. My hummus was silky smooth, buttery and creamier than any I have ever made. Sprinkled with smoked paprika and drizzled with lashings of extra virgin olive oil, I served mine warm straight out the pot shovelled on top a hot pita bread. Nom nom.

Authentic hummus
Makes approx 600g / Hands on time 15 mins / Total time 1 hr 20 mins + soaking overnight / V Vn Gf Df
You’ll need: Food processor or hand blender
250g dried chickpeas
1tsp sea salt flakes
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
For the hummus:
2 garlic cloves
2 tbs tahini
Juice of half a lemon
2 tbs water (more if you like a looser texture)
1tsp sea salt flakes
To serve:
Smoked paprika, chopped parsley and a good quality extra virgin olive oil

Add the dried chickpeas to a large bowl and cover with twice the volume of cold water (filtered if you have it). leave to soak for at least 12 hours – I tend to do this overnight.
Drain and rinse the chickpeas well before transferring to a large saucepan. Cover again with twice the volume of cold tap or filtered water and add 1 tsp of salt and ½ a tsp of bicarbonate of soda and stir well.
Place over a high heat and bring to a furious boil for 10 mins, skimming off any foam and loose skins that have come away. Turn the heat down to a simmer and continue to skim off and disregard any other loose skins occasionally for 50 mins. Your chickpeas should be soft enough to squish between your fingers. If they’re still little hard, continue to cook them until they are soft.
Drain the chickpeas over a large bowl to reserve the water and leave to cool in a colander for 10-15 mins. Tip the warm chickpeas into a food processor or large bowl (if using a hand blender) and add the tahini, garlic, lemon juice, salt and 2 tbs of the reserved water. Blitz until you have your desired texture. If you like your hummus extra smooth, add additional chickpea water and blend for longer until you get your desired textured.
Spoon into a bowl and serve warm topped with chopped fresh parsley, a dusting of smoked paprika and a good glug of good quality extra virgin olive oil.

If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V – Vegetarian Vn – Vegan Gf – Gluten free Df – Dairy free

If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

Is it sad that the most exciting thing to happen to me this month was managing to get a rather swanky pair of gardening gloves for a pound in Waitrose? Maybe it has something to do with turning 34 last week, or the fact I now have a roof terrace for the first time in three years. Whatever it is, my fingers have officially turned green, and I like it!
As we’ve all been huffing and puffing in this insufferable heatwave (myself included), my little garden has been thriving. My cherry tomato plant is heavy with fruit, my lavender has been attracting local bees and I now have enough mint to make one mojito #thegoodlife.
Of course, it hasn’t all been plain sailing. There have been a few unforseeen causalities – I starved my basil to death, crushed my dill under a pile of washing and neglected my Jasmine until it resembled dry hay, but all in all, it’s been a successful harvest.
So, inspired by my gardening success, I thought I’d attempt to use some of my homegrown herbs in a recipe. As you all know, I crushed my dill in a horrifying laundry accident, but I still had mint, rosemary and thyme to play with… RIP dill.

Herby chickpea salad
Serves 4 as a side, 2 as a main / Hands on time 20 mins / Total time 20 mins / V Gf
Hummus dressing
2 tsp Pomora extra virgin olive oil
3 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp honey
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbs shop bought hummus
For the chickpeas
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Juice of half a lemon
Handful of fresh mixed herbs, finely chopped or 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
For the salad
4 handfuls of leave (I used a mixture of rocket and spinach)
Handful Pumpkin seeds
1 beef tomato, chopped
¼ of a cucumber, peeled and chopped
Pitted Kalamaka olives, halved
¼ red onion, finely sliced
1 avocado, peeled and sliced
100g vegetarian feta, crumbled (optional)

Method
1. Start by making the hummus dressing by mixing all of the ingredients in a small bowl with a spoon until fully combined. Put to one side.
2. Rinse and drain your chickpeas in a colander before squeezing over the lemon and seasoning well with salt and pepper. Mix in the fresh or dried herbs and put to one side.
3. In a large bowl, assemble your salad (you can use whatever salad bits you desire although I like to include feta and olives in mine to give it a Greek feel). Add the herby chickpeas and pour over the dressing before give it a good toss. 4. Serve as a side or as a meal with a bit of hummus and pita bread.

If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V– Vegetarian Gf– Gluten free