Hummus with Tahini and Spicy Chickpeas

A belated happy New Year, y'all.  Where the f*ck has January gone already???  It felt like the holidays took For.  Ever.  Was it because Christmas and NYD both fell on a Thursday so it like two never-ending, long weekends??  And then my team (can I have a GO BUCKS!) made it to the inaugural College Football Playoffs National Championship game in Dallas.  Whoop!!  And we WON said game!

Since we have great friends that live in Dallas and since they were gracious enough to invite us to stay with them......ROAD TRIP!  I'm not one to usually go to things like this.  I always say they're better on TV, but who has a bigger TV than Jerry Jones??  NO ONE!  It was so much fun and I'm grateful that I got to see the Buckeyes win.....history and all....but I'll probably not do it again.  How could anything ever top this?

So now all that's left of football season is the Super Bowl.  Are you going to a party?  Hosting a party?  I'm probably not doing either, so I made this hummus this past Sunday for the two playoff games....can you believe Seattle came back and won that game?  And....#teambrady all the way!!!

If you have to take something to a Super Bowl party, this is perfect.  You could totally go out and buy some hummus and just make the spicy chickpeas for a topping, but really?  Make your own hummus, people.  It's quite easy and sooooooo much better that store bought.  Trust me.  The hardest part about making hummus is re-combining the paste and the oil in the jar of tahini.  I usually end up getting that shit everywhere.  

The spicy chickpeas totally send this over the top.  I found myself making sure I got a piece of the crispy jalapeño slices in every bite I could, so next time Imma add more of those to the mixture!  

Side note:  My food processor didn't get this smooth enough for my tastes so I ended up finishing it with a few pulses in my Vitamix, but it's up to you.

Here's the recipe:

Hummus with Tahini and Spicy Chickpeas

Michael Solomonov

Ingredients:

CHICKPEAS

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 

1/4 cup minced Spanish onion 

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 

1 jalapeño—halved lengthwise, seeded and thinly sliced crosswise 

One 14-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained 

2 tablespoons Aleppo pepper 

1 teaspoon ground cumin 

1/2 teaspoon ground caraway 

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander 

Kosher salt 

HUMMUS 

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice 

4 garlic cloves 

Two 14-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained 

1/2 cup tahini 

1 tablespoon ground cumin 

Kosher salt

2 tablespoons chopped parsley 

Lemon wedges and warm pita bread, for serving 

Directions:

 PREPARE THE CHICKPEAS 

In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the onion, garlic and jalapeño and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened and golden, about 8 minutes. Add the chickpeas, Aleppo pepper, cumin, caraway and coriander and cook, stirring occasionally, until the spices are fragrant and the chickpeas are heated through, about 10 minutes. Season with salt. 

MEANWHILE, MAKE THE HUMMUS In a food processor, combine the lemon juice and garlic and pulse until the garlic is very finely chopped. Let stand for 10 minutes, then add the chickpeas, tahini, cumin and 1/2 cup of water and puree until smooth. Season with salt. Spoon the hummus onto plates and top with the spicy chickpeas. Garnish with the parsley and serve with lemon wedges and pita bread.  

 MAKE AHEAD The hummus and spicy chick-peas can be refrigerated separately overnight. Bring the hummus to room temperature and gently reheat the chickpeas before serving.