A beautiful middle eastern spread using some Australian bush herbs

I’m a real fan of hummus, this middle-eastern delight is full of flavour. Making exceptional hummus is a pure delight and eating it with bread, vegetables, falafel, minty yoghurt or pretty much anything you want to add to the platter is pure heaven.

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Hummus is made of 3 basic ingredients; chickpeas, tahini and fresh lemon juice (definitely fresh lemon juice) oh yes…and make sure your tahini is the best quality you can get, its job is to make the hummus rich and luscious. The tahini that’s been in the back of the fridge for ages, separated and sludgy will give a bitter and nasty tasting hummus…time to chuck it out….just saying.

So, in line with a lot of OutbackChefs Australian bush herbs and spices, we acknowledge the importance of a multi cultural influence on our food and have added some local talent in the way of OutbackChef’s Bush Curry, this just adds a little extra zing to the dish.

From this basic recipe I’ve glanced some Warragul Greens and added some to the mixture, a touch of Australian Bush Spice, native Pepperberry could add a touch more heat, this is a quick and easy recipe and one that you’ll keep making, not only for yourself and your family, but a good one for the odd guest that drops by.

 

Into a food processor add I can of chickpeas, (400g) that have been washed

Approx 1 tablespoon of tahini paste

Juice of ½ lemon, just keep tasting to get this right

1 teaspoon of Outback Bush Curry

Some chopped garlic, I use roasted garlic

½ teaspoon of cumin.

 

All into the processor and process until smooth, you can add a little water if it’s too dry, this will also help create a smooth buttery texture.

 

Put into a sealed container and chill when hummus is done,

 

A QUICK TIP…… take out approx. 1/3 and add approx. ¼ cup of blanched Warragul Greens and back to the processor and mix together to give a little variety, it goes a wonderful green colour, perfect for St Patrick’s Day!

 

TO SERVE….Spread the hummus on a plate, make a little pathway with a knife thru the hummus and pour some Extra Virgin Olive Oil into the pathway, top with chopped and roasted pine nuts for a little texture, some paprika sprinkled over or sesame seeds, roasted sunflower seeds or pepitas……just use your imagination here, whatever takes your fancy!

 

On my board I’ve put roasted pumpkin chunks that were roasted with garlic, plus a little sprinkle of Strawberry Gum Leaf and salt. Crispty lettuce is great, finely sliced green beans, tomatoes and feta cheese with thinly sliced sour dough bread and some falafels, I cheated here and bought a store bought falafels mix, I needed quick and easy! A little dish of minty yoghurt and hard boiled eggs would also work well.

 

Keeps in the fridge for about a week or so, great for guests or for the Esky when you’re out and about. Lots of little containers with lots of tasty treats.