I know what you’re thinking, why bother? Houmous is so readily available and not very expensive.  Surely its easier to chuck some in your trolley and forget about it.  Well, you might be right, it probably is easier, and just as tasty, but sometimes you might just have a hankering for some Middle Eastern dip, and there might not be a supermarché close by, and that is when this recipe will come in handy.

I took this recipe and adapted it.  The amount will easily serve 4 people; it makes up about 50% more than a standard supermarket pot.  It will keep in the fridge for up to a week, but I don’t know anyone who has houmous knocking about in their fridge for longer than a day or two.

You need:

1 x 400g tin of cooked chickpeas, drained, and the water kept.
1 tbsp tahini.  This is optional, so if you can’t get it, it’s not the end of the world, but I recommend adding it.
2 cloves of garlic, pushed through a garlic press, or finely chopped.
6 tbsp low fat yoghurt.
A good pinch of paprika.
The juice of half a lemon.
Salt.

Put all the ingredients, except the chickpea water and lemon juice into a blender or food processor and whiz until smooth.  The mixture is quite claggy and you might have to stop and start your blender and push the ingredients down towards the blade using a spoon or spatula.  Use the chickpea water to slacken the dip to a consistency of your liking, and add as much lemon juice as you want to give the houmous a nice tang.  Season with salt if you feel it needs it.  The beauty of this recipe is that you can really make it your own, and the key is to keep tasting it once blitzed to test the flavours.

Tasty, healthy, and without any chemical nasties at all.  We like it with homemade flatbreads or crudités.

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