Creamy, Dreamy Hummus

Author Notes

At my house, we like our hummus with lots of garlic and a good amount of olive oil – hence the “creamy” in the title. This is the recipe we've used for many, many years. It's fairly straightforward and can be easily tweaked for thickness/consistency. We like a fair amount of lemon juice in our hummus, so I don’t add salt – lemon juice can give the impression of saltiness but taste it for yourself. We usually serve it with a sprinkle of cumin/cayenne and an additional drizzle of olive oil on top.
It's a good dipper for veggies, pita crisps, bagel chips, crisp fruit like apples and pears, even slightly underripe peaches or nectarines. Leftovers are great as a spread for a veggie sandwich, too, or thin it with a vinaigrette and use on a veggie salad.
We usually just use canned beans, but if you have the time or have some leftover home cooked beans, all the better. If you want to go to the trouble to remove the skins from the beans for a smoother end result, it’s easy enough to do. Just put them in a largish bowl, add water to a couple inches above the beans, then give them a good rub between your hands, under the water. Most of the skins will rise to the top of the water where they’re easily removed. Drain the beans again before using.
I use my small food processor for this, but you could do this all in a mortar and pestle or molcajete, too. I've even mashed the darn beans with a fork when I was desperate, and we were staying somewhere with no mechanical options! —beejay45