Silky Smooth Hummus with No Tahini

By Kath Dedon

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Don’t want to use tahini? You can still make fabulous Silky Smooth Hummus with No Tahini. Maybe you’re out of tahini. Maybe you’re serving the hummus to someone who has a sesame seed allergy. Maybe you just don’t like tahini. You can still make great hummus.

On Martha Stewart’s site I learned that you don’t need to use any substitutions; you can just make your favorite hummus recipe and omit the tahini. That’s pretty much what I did. I omitted the 6 tablespoons of tahini that were in the original Classic Hummus recipe in America’s Test Kitchen’s The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook. I added a tablespoon of creamy peanut butter to give it a hint of flavor.

ATK’s method produces the creamiest texture! And you don’t need to remove the skins to achieve it. You grind the chickpeas and the dry ingredients in the food processor. Then, with the motor running, you slowly add the lemon juice and water blend and then the olive oil and peanut butter. The result? Silky smooth hummus goodness!

I highly recommend this method to make Silky Smooth Hummus with No Tahini. If you want to use tahini, just substitute 6 tablespoons of tahini for the peanut butter for a delicious Classic Hummus.

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Silky Smooth Hummus with No Tahini served with mini pepper strips and pita chips

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Silky Smooth Hummus with No Tahini

Adapted from a recipe in ATK’s The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook using advice from Martha Stewart’s site

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(print the recipe)

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Makes about 1¾ cups

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¼ cup water

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon peanut butter (I used natural peanut butter. The peanut butter is optional. Omit, if you want.)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1½ cups cooked chickpeas (or one can, rinsed and drained)

1 small clove garlic, minced

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

Pinch cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro or parsley (optional), for garnish

1. Stir the water and lemon juice together in a measuring cup.

2. Stir the peanut butter and olive oil together so it’s blended well.

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I put the peanut butter/oil mixture in a small measuring cup for easy pouring.

3. .Set aside about 1½ – 2 tablespoons of the chickpeas aside to use as a garnish.

4. Put the rest of the chickpeas, garlic, salt, cumin, and cayenne in a food processor and process until it’s ground up well, about 15 – 20 seconds.

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5. Scrape the mixture down with a spatula. Turn the motor on and slowly stream the water and lemon juice into the chickpeas. Scrape the mixture down again and then process for 1 minute.

6. With the motor running, slowly stream the peanut butter and olive oil mixture into the food processor. Process for about 15 more seconds.

7. Put the hummus in a serving bowl. Garnish with the reserved chickpeas, a drizzle of olive oil, and, if using, the cilantro or parsley.

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