Hummus

Today I'm still a little poorly so I've been working from home. At lunch, that gave me the opportunity to make my own hummus, which I haven't done in ages! It's really simple, and the individual ingredients keep for a long time, so you can quickly whip up a batch whenever you need. You can vary the flavours, at the end stirring in toasted spices, chopped herbs, even small pieces of roasted pepper or sundried tomato; or you can vary the proportions somewhat for a runnier, or more lemony, or more garlicky basic recipe.

Ingredients:

• 210g of cooked chick peas (i.e. the contents of one 400g tin, after draining)
• juice of half a lemon
• half of a medium or one very small clove of garlic
• 2 tbsp tahini
• 1/2 tsp salt
• olive oil
• paprika (optional)

Drain and rinse the chick peas, removing the goobery liquid they're packed in. Add to a blender along with the lemon juice, garlic, tahini, salt and 1 tbsp of olive oil. (If you don't have any tahini, you can toast 4 tbsp of sesame seeds over a low heat until golden on all sides, and use them instead, but the hummus will not be as smooth.)

Blend, starting on a low speed and then turning it up to create a smooth paste. Scrape the hummus out of the blender (use a piece of bread to wipe out the last few tasty bits!) and put in a bowl, smoothing down to remove air pockets. Dash over a little paprika and a touch more olive oil. Brilliant with sharp cheddar or hot lamb and some salad leaves.

Ernie is perplexed: how can I still be hungry after
the mouse he brought me as a snack at 5AM?