Zero-Effort Hummus

I have made hummus only once in the past (back in the 90's, actually)--it was an annoyingly involved process, especially because I cooked the chick peas from dried, and the resulting dip resembled garbanzo Play-Doh (and for those of you who ate too much Play-Doh as a kid, no, that's not meant as a positive description).

I was browsing in Rodney's Bookstore (used bookstore in Central Square), and came across a copy of Alton Brown's Gear for Your Kitchen. One of the recipes is his low-effort hummus--so simple, he doesn't even give a real recipe there (toss a can of chick peas into the food processor, add some of this, some of that, spin it up, good to go). I made it, and I think my reaction is that I'll probably never bother buying hummus again. The basic recipe is available online at the Food Network website.

I substituted tahini (i.e., the real stuff) instead of peanut butter, and I used less olive oil. And I just threw in a splash of bottled lemon juice instead of lemon + zest. But I was pretty impressed--definitely garlicky (perhaps a bit too much bite, if you're trying to be civilized).

So JMD--no excuses about not having the recipe now! You can make a batch of roasted red pepper hummus. The tahini's in the fridge.