Yes, it’s that time of week again. A little late perhaps, but better late than never is what I always say.
This week’s hummus of the week was directly inspired by you, dear readers! Christina and Ashley both suggested something with artichoke hearts – and I have diligently obliged.
Not that it was such a harsh sacrifice, I absolutely adore spinach and artichoke dip – so I couldn’t wait to experiment with this classic flavour combination. It took a few rounds of trial and error, but I got there in the end, and the result is nothing short of spectacular.
Spinach and Artichoke Hummus
- 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
- 3/4 cup of artichoke hearts
- 3-4 large handfuls of baby spinach
- 3 cloves of garlic – minced
- 1 1/2 tbsp tahini
- 1/2 tbsp plain vegan yoghurt
- sea salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tbsp lemon juice + citric acid to taste
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Start by sauteeing the garlic in a little bit of olive oil (or stock or reserve water from the chickpeas, if you don’t like to use olive oil for cooking).
- Add in the spinach one handful at a time until wilted, followed by the artichoke hearts. Season well and cook for 6-8 medium heat.
- Drain the spinach and artichoke mixture of any liquid (reserve) then add to a food processor with the rest of the ingredients and blend till well incorporated. Drizzle in reserve liquid and olive oil to thin out if necessary – you won’t need much as the spinach and artichokes offer a lot of moisture.
I could NOT stop eating this straight out of the processor – so good.
I’ll be honest, this doesn’t taste much like traditional hummus. It is slightly more akin to spinach artichoke dip, which isn’t a bad thing really but if you’d prefer it to be more hummus-y, for lack of a better term, just use half the amount of artichokes and spinach.
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Now on to other chickpea related matters. Last week I did a guest post over on The Tie Dye Files on my top tips for flawless hummus (if you haven’t already you can check it out here). One of my top tips, although fairly obvious to some, is to use dried beans.
A lot of people are intimidated by using dried chickpeas/beans, but there really is no reason to. They’re totally easy to cook, cheaper (student-friendly), safer (no nasty BPA’s lurking around) and genuinely taste infinitely better than the canned stuff. I’ve recently gotten back into the habit of bulk cooking and freezing them as part of my weekly prep and my tastebuds (and wallet!) are definitely thanking me.
Cooking Dried Chickpeas Tutorial
1. Obtain chickpeas
If you shop at a supermarket that has a bulk bins section you’re bound to find them there, if not in regular pack sizes with other pulses and beans. If there’s an Indian/ethnic foods market near you try picking them up (and other assorted beans) in bulk from there.
2. Rinse and soak overnight
Measure out 2 cups (makes about 5 cooked), rinse and cover well with filtered water. Add in 1/2 tsp baking soda to the soak water. This helps the chickpeas soften and will significantly speed up your cooking time.
3. Boil!
Add o a pot of boiling water along with 1 tsp sea salt, and another 1/2 tsp of baking soda. I also add 1 tsp of cumin powder, this is optional but it’s something I picked up from my mama who claims this aids in the digestion of dried beans. I’ve never had any problems in that department so I can’t really verify those claims – but then again perhaps that’s why?
Bring to a boil then simmer and cover. Cook for about 20-25 minutes or until the chickpeas are soft. As a general rule of thumb you want them to retain their shape but be soft enough to squash in with your fingers.
4. Storage
If storing in the fridge, make sure you keep them in (new clean)water to prevent them from drying out. You can also freeze them if you wish, just drain and keep in plastic freezer bags.
And there you have it! Easy as pie.
I just realised whoever coined that phrase clearly never attempted baking pie.
[EDIT: I apologise for the severe lack of photos in this post! For some reason when porting this over from my old site I completely lost track of the pictures that originally accompanied it. I’ll try to get some new photos taken and uploaded soon.]
This sounds delicious! Thanks. this recipe is on my radar.
I’ve been looking for an artichoke dip recipe, so I’ll definitely have to try this recipe out; hummus is my favorite go to! Thank you for sharing 🙂