Vegan beet hummus
Vegan beet hummus
My recent foray into ravioli got me making and roasting beets for the ravioli filling and has inspired me to make vegan beet hummus again, something I love to eat but haven’t made in a while (as I overdosed on it some time ago and needed time off).
It’s so easy to make, beautiful to look at and packs a nutritious punch too. I make mine in a very, very average (in fact, I am seriously considering an upgrade) blender and it comes out silky smooth without any need for oil. The method to my madness is starting off with peeled chickpeas. That’s right, naked chickpeas make for a much smoother hummus experience. Some people make a face when I tell them that this step is a must, to which I say ‘fine, but don’t expect velvety hummus without it.’
Another ‘magic’ ingredient is aquafaba or simply the water the chickpeas have been cooked in, preferably fridge cold, trickled in slowly as the blender is grappling with the remaining ingredients.
That is it, ladies and gentlemen. These two simple tricks will give you a smooth hummus experience you’ll get addicted to 😉 .
- 3 cups cooked chickpeas (approx. 1½ cups dry), peeled
- 250 g / ½ lb beetroot
- 1-2 garlic cloves, adjust to your preference
- 90 ml / ¼ cup + 2 tbsp quality tahini (I used hulled)
- 1¼ tsp salt, more to taste
- 1 tsp cumin (optional)
- about 180 ml / ¾ cup fridge-cold aquafaba*
- 4-5 tbsp lemon juice
- fresh parsley, to garnish (optional)
- black and white sesame seeds, to garnish (optional)
- extra virgin olive oil, to garnish (optional)
- To cook your beetroots, you could bake, steam or boil them. I baked mine. To bake your beetroots, heat up the oven to 200° C / 390° F. Place washed beetroots in the middle of a large piece of kitchen foil. Holding the edges of the foil up with one hand, drizzle a bit of water to the bottom of the parcel so that the beetroots cook in their own steam. Scrunch the edges of the foil above the beetroots to create a parcel. Bake until you can easily pierce each beetroot with a knife (about 60 min, depending on the beetroot’s size). Once the beetroots are cool enough to handle, peel the skin off.
- Pour cold aquafaba and lemon juice to the bottom of the blender (or a food processor, but blender will give you a smoother hummus) with all the tahini, roughly sliced beetroots and chickpeas.
- Process until smooth. If the mixture is a bit too thick, trickle more aquafaba (or cold water) through the opening in the lid. Once the mixture becomes homogeneous and thick and your average blender starts to struggle (if you have a Vitamix or a similar hi-tech blender you probably will not need to worry about this) start making circles on the surface of your hummus mixture (in the direction of the turning blades) with a spatula (don’t dip the spatula in too deep as you don’t want to accidentally touch the turning blades). This simple action will prevent air pockets forming under the mixture’s surface, helping your blender process the heavy mixture.
- Finally, season the mixture with salt, cumin, garlic and extra lemon juice if you like.
- To serve, put hummus in a bowl. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil (if you don’t care about it being oil-free), sprinkle some sesame seeds and chopped parsley on top.
Absolutely worth peeling the chickpeas if you have the time.
There are lots of options, for example you could grate bake them in the oven (see this recipe) or grate them and make a salad, like this one. Hope this helps! Ania
Cheers!
Thank you for your comment. I think it very much depends on individual preference and on how potent (fresh) the garlic is. Based on your feedback, I will add a note advising caution. Thank you for letting me know! Ania
Happy New Year
I would say it normally lasts in the fridge for about 3-4 days, however, with this kind of recipe, you could easily just halve the amounts of ingredients or freeze leftovers for another time. Hope that helps! Ania
My Easter Sunday lunch looked so bright and colorful. Thank you for such an easy peasy fuss free Recipe.Absolutely loved it. We had it with some toasted bread. The only thing I did differently was that I steamed the beets instead on baking them.
Thank you once again ❤❤❤
I'm really glad that you enjoyed this recipe! This is personally one of our favourites and something that we eat all the time at home!
Sophie
Thank you for the feedback! As head of the eating department, I can vouch that you won't be disappointed!