Raw Sprouted Hummus

Sometimes my mental image of myself just doesn't match up to reality.  In my head I picture myself as a complete badass.  You'd probably find my imaginary-self decked out in a pleather jacket on a motorcycle riding off into the night.  The truth of the matter is that I that I drive a hand-me-down mini van and I spent most of last night talking to my cats in a high-pitched voice before going to bed at 8:30 pm.  This is not badass behavior.

In my defense, however, I did learn how to sprout chickpeas this week and turn them into an incredible raw hummus.  If you ask me, it's pretty badass.

Now, before we begin, I have to be honest with you.  If you don't like sprouts, then this is not the recipe for you.  I actually think this raw version tastes better than traditional hummus that uses cooked chickpeas, but it definitely has the flavor of sprouts so I don't want that to be a surprise.  But, if you love sprouts like I do, badass or not, you'll love this recipe.



We start with dried chickpeas/garbanzo beans.  Once they are soaked in water overnight, they are drained, rinsed, and left out to sprout. (Note: you cannot use canned beans in this recipe because they have already been cooked and will not sprout.)

Be sure to rinse your chickpeas every 8 hours or so and drain them thoroughly.  At the end of two days, they will have little tails like this. Then we're ready for hummus!



Everything will get thrown into a food processor and your creamy, raw dip will emerge.

Raw Sprouted Hummus

Makes about 3 cups

1 cup raw chickpeas, sprouted for 2.5 days
1/2 cup tahini
Juice from 1 medium lemon
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup fresh herbs (I used cilantro and parsley)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 Tablespoons (cold-pressed) extra-virgin olive oil

Soak the chickpeas for at least 8 hours or overnight.  Drain and rinse thoroughly.  Let them sit at room temperature, rinsing and draining every 8 hours for about 2 days, until the chickpeas have sprouted.

Add the sprouted chickpeas to a food processor along with the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, herbs, and sea salt.  With motor running, add the olive oil.  Process until smooth and serve.

Spicy Sweet Potato Hummus

I think this world would be a much brighter place if we could spend all our time doing what we love most. And if you are anything like me, that means you would spend your evening dancing around your kitchen to Colbie Caillat with your cats while eating your own weight in sweet potato hummus. Not a bad life.

It might also mean that you *accidentally* ate all of the pita chips that were intended for this photo.  Whoops.  I guess you'll just have to live with a picture of carrot sticks instead. 

This week, besides eating way too much sweet potato hummus, I decided it was time to get my Big Girl pants on and spend some time doing things that I have been putting off for far too long.  Like deep cleaning my fridge, filing my taxes, updating my finances, opening an IRA, and switching to an online bank (with a much better interest rate).  Sigh.  Sometimes we can't spend all our time doing what we love.  But we can still eat pita chips. 

This hummus starts off sweet and mellow, but if you like a bit of spice, sprinkle in some red chili pepper flakes before serving for a little kick.  I tend to make my hummus on the thicker side because it holds better in veggie wraps, but if you like yours a little thinner, you can easily play with the ratio of liquid and add more tahini, oil, or a bit of water.  This recipe makes 3 cups, which is perfect if you plan to use this all week, but if that sounds like way too much hummus for you then you can easily cut the recipe in half. 

And if sweet potato hummus doesn't sound like the best thing that's ever happened then I just don't know how to please you.

Spicy Sweet Potato Hummus
Makes 3 cups

1 sweet potato, chopped
2.5 cups cooked garbanzo beans
2 cloves garlic
3 Tablespoons tahini
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
juice from 1/2 lemon
2 - 3 Tbs water
3 Tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes (optional)

Steam or boil sweet potato until tender.  Set aside. 

Add garbanzo beans, sweet potato, garlic, tahini, cumin, paprika, salt, and lemon juice to food processor.  While motor is running, add olive oil and water.  Process until smooth, scraping down the sides of the food processor as necessary.  Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of red chili pepper flakes.

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries with Tahini Ketchup

Nothing says Thursday like standing over the stove and devouring roasted vegetables.  Especially when those roasted vegetables are sweet potato fries covered with cumin, paprika, chile powder, and sea salt.  Then dipped in... wait for it... tahini ketchup.  Yep, I went there.

I spent this last week on a sweet potato fry marathon.  I baked over two pounds of sweet potatoes and dipped them in almost every sauce I could think of.  Hummus?  Tried it.  Miso ginger dressing?  Tried it.  Balsamic vinegar and olive oil?  Tried it.  Tahini?  Tried it.  Ketchup?  Of course I tried it.  Then somewhere in there my fry found its way into both tahini and ketchup and a miracle was instantly created.

I learned some important things about sweet potatoes on my journey.  I learned that I don't like mushy fries.  I learned that I like my fries thinly sliced.  I learned that I don't like the way they taste when tossed in corn starch before baking (even though this is supposed to help prevent mushy fries).  I learned that giving them lots of room on the sheet pan is the best way to get them to crisp up.  And I learned that sweet potato fries taste best when dipped in tahini ketchup.  What a way to start the year.

Sweet Potato Fries
Serves 4

2 sweet potatoes, thinly sliced into fries
1 Tablespoon coconut oil (or another oil suitable for high heat)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
pinch chile pepper
sea salt to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Toss sweet potato fries with oil and lay flat on sheet pan.  Sprinkle with cumin, paprika, chile pepper, and sea salt.  Bake for 20 minutes, turning twice.  Serve hot.

Tahini Ketchup
Yields: 1/2 cup

1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup ketchup

Combine tahini and ketchup and serve.