Lifestyle Tips — Dehydrated Beans

6 Hummus Recipes For An Exuberant International Hummus Day

Hummus is a versatile dip that can be eaten with many snacks and vegetables. Eat your hummus with crackers, avocado toast, or sushi, and enjoy the flavors bursting in your mouth. It’s a dish packed with proteins making it a healthy snack and dip option if you’re pursuing weight loss. If you haven’t had a hummus dip, you have no idea what you have been missing. These hummus recipes are the perfect way to dive in.

History of the International Hummus Day

Although we know that hummus originated from the Middle East, the origin of hummus is greatly contested. Many countries around the Mediterranean claim to be the originator of the recipe. The first mention of hummus in a cookbook was found in the 13^th century in Cairo. The recipe was a cold chickpea puree and lacked lemon juice and garlic. It had pickled lemons with oil, spices, and herbs.

Hummus is still a staple in the Middle Eat diet. Hummus is the Arabic word for “chickpeas.” There is a debate whether the Greeks also invented hummus. For this reason, hummus is one of the greatest crossover foods.¹

Although hummus is a new phenomenon in the U.S, it is now considered a staple in many American households. The first International Hummus Day commemoration was in 2012.¹

Easy Homemade Hummus Recipes

This delicious creamy dip from the Middle East is teeming with vitamins, minerals, and a myriad of nutrients excellent for your whole body’s health. Whether you’ve had hummus before or you’re just hearing about it today, these fantastic hummus recipes will transform your kitchen skills.

Let’s make some hummus recipes for International Hummus Day, which is celebrated on May 13^th.

Easy Homemade Hummus²

Time – 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups dehydrated instant garbanzo beans, cooked and cooled
• Juice of 1 large lemon
• 4 tablespoons of well-stirred tahini
• 1 garlic clove, grated
• Two tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• Salt to taste
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of water
• Dash ground paprika or sumac

Method

1. Put the tahini and lemon juice in a blender and blitz for about 1 minute.
2. Using a spatula, scrape the mixture stuck on the blender sides and bottom, and blend for 30 more seconds to make the hummus creamy.
3. Pour in the olive oil, grated garlic, cumin, and salt to the whipped tahini and lemon juice.
4. Blend again for 1 minute until well blended. Remember to stop midway to scrape the paste off the sides of the blender.
5. Put half of the chickpeas into the blender and blitz for about 60 seconds.
6. Use a spatula to scrape the blender sides and bottom, and then add the rest of the chickpeas.
7. Blend the paste for 2 minutes or until it’s thick and smooth
8. If the hummus is too thick for your liking, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water and make it as light as you desire.
9. Sprinkle some olive oil and a pinch of paprika and serve.
10. Leftover hummus can be refrigerated for at most one week in a sealable container.

Chestnut Hummus³

Ingredients

• 2 cups vacuum-packed cooked chestnuts
• ¼ cup freeze dried broccoli
• ¼ cup freeze dried cauliflower
• Juice of 1 large lemon
• One garlic clove
• Boiling water
• 4 tablespoon olive oil

Method

1. Rehydrate the vegetables by soaking them in 1 cup of water. Drain any excess liquid
2. Separate one chestnut from the packet and put to the side for later.
3. Throw the other chestnuts into a food processor.
4. Pour the lemon juice, oil, and a little water into the blender.
5. Toss the garlic into the mixture in the blender
6. Blend it to a smooth paste.
7. Scoop from the blender and put onto a bowl or plates
8. Lastly, grate the chestnut you had set aside and top it with celery, broccoli, and carrots.

Garbanzo beans Hummus⁴

This hummus recipe only takes three minutes to make and is easy.

Ingredients

• Four cups dehydrated instant garbanzo beans
• ½ cup chickpea liquid
• ½  cup tahini
• ¼  cup olive oil
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp cumin
• ½ tsp salt
• Olive oil
• Paprika
• Fresh parsley

Method

1. Add the beans to boiling water to rehydrate. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
2. Throw all the ingredients into a food processor.
3. Blitz on high for about 1 minute or longer if you want a more creamy paste.
4. The paste sticks to the sides of the blender; use a spatula to scrape back to the blades. If it’s too thick, pour in some chickpea liquid as necessary.
5. Serve and garnish fresh parsley, olive oil, paprika - if you so desire.

Hummus Recipe from Scratch⁵

This recipe will make about 1 ½ cups and will take about 20 minutes to complete.

You’ll need a food processor or a blender, a can opener, and a mesh strainer.

Ingredients

• 2 cups dehydrated instant garbanzos
• 3 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons tahini
• Juice of 1 freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Frozen sliced vegetables for serving

Method

1. Rehydrate the chickpeas. If you have the time, pinch the skins of the chickpeas for a smoother hummus.
2. Put all the ingredients – chickpeas, olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper – in the blender. 
3. Blitz the hummus for 5 minutes it’s until smooth.
4. Scrape the paste that sticks to the sides of the bowl to the bottom nearer the blades.
5. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of the reserved chickpea/ garbanzos liquid if the consistency is thicker than you desire.
6. Pour the hummus into a large bowl and serve with the vegetables.

Chickpea and Garlic Hummus Recipe⁶

This is a quick-fix hummus recipe that will take you five minutes to make.

Ingredients

• Two cups dehydrated instant garbanzos, cooked and cooled
• One tablespoon tahini paste
• One garlic clove, chopped
• Three tablespoons 0% fat Greek yogurt
• Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon

Method

1. Toss the chickpeas, tahini, garlic, and yogurt into a blender and blitz until it’s a smooth paste.
2. Pour in the garbanzo/ chickpea liquid as desired consistency.
3. With a spatula, scrape the cream into a bowl.
4. Drizzle the lemon juice into hummus and stir.
5. Serve with potato crisps or frozen vegetables

Traditional Hummus Recipe⁷

This recipe will take you 20 minutes to complete.

Ingredients

• 3 cups dehydrated instant garbanzos
• One minced garlic clove
• 5 ice cubes
• 2 tablespoons tahini paste
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• Juice of 1 large lemon
• Hot water (if needed)
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Rehydrate the chickpeas by cooking in six cups of boiling water for 20 minutes. Put the chickpeas and minced garlic in a blender and whizz until it’s smooth
2. Throw in the ice cubes, tahini, salt and garlic.
3. Pour the lemon juice into the blender and blitz for about 5 minutes.
4. It’s too thick, gradually add hot water and pulse-blend until you get the consistency you desire.
5. Scoop it out and lay it on a bowl, and sprinkle it with virgin olive oil.
6. Serve with vegetables of your choice.

Final Words

The main ingredients of the hummus recipe are chickpeas/ garbanzos, tahini, olive oil, and lemon juice. You can experiment with seeds as one of the recipes mentioned, or you can stick with the well-known traditional recipe.

Get your pack of garbanzos today from Mother Earth Products and try out these hummus recipes before the international hummus day. Do leave a comment down below on your favorite hummus recipe.

References

1. https://nationaltoday.com/international-hummus-day/
2. https://www.inspiredtaste.net/15938/easy-and-smooth-hummus-recipe/
3. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/chestnut-hummus
4. https://downshiftology.com/recipes/3-minute-hummus/
5. https://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-hummus-from-scratch-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-107560
6. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/easy-hummus-recipe
7. https://www.themediterraneandish.com/how-to-make-hummus/

8 Reasons Why You Should Adopt Meal Planning in 2018

The world is fast evolving into 24-hour economies. In fact, with our busy lifestyle, making meals at home has become a thing of the past. The long commutes, due to traffic and having to manage both office work and home, can be challenging. Additionally, the presence of convenience stores and fast food restaurants opening up on every corner has made it easy to eat outside. The result is more and more people are making poor food choices. The good news is that this can be reduced by meal planning in advance.
Having a plan makes it easy to follow through with your commitment to healthy living, because it removes the need to make a decision. Not to mention, indecisiveness derails your progress by a huge percentage.
Here are eight reasons why you should plan your meals in advance.

Saves you money

When you plan your meals, it is easy to make a grocery shopping list from the plan. Having a shopping plan will prevent you from impulse buying random unhealthy food when you go to the store.¹ Who knows: you may get discount prices in some stores by buying in bulk.
It also saves you money that you would have used to order costly last minute takeout.² In addition, there’s less spoilage of groceries, since you have track of what you have in the house, and wouldn’t buy extra that would go bad in the fridge. There's also less chance to discard pre-planned meals, unlike groceries that may go bad because you forgot about them in the pantry.³
Lastly, having healthy meals also saves the money you would use for hospital visits caused by unhealthy lifestyle.³ Use the savings to treat yourself to a spa treatment or save up for end year vacation.

Saves your priceless time

Your time is precious. It can’t be retrieved. A few decisions, once a week, eliminates the need to make a decision later, and a wrong choice for that matter.³  Having a grocery shopping list saves you time when you go for shopping, instead of going shelf to shelf trying to remember what you don’t have in the house or deciding what to have for dinner.¹
Having a weekly or monthly meal plan made up makes it easy to just shop once in a week or two, rather than daily. Furthermore, once you buy the groceries, you can prepare some food in advance that you will just need to warm up and store in the fridge. Imagine making a week’s meal using the same time you would make a single meal.
For instance, freeze-dried berries and fruits make a quick breakfast on the go. Similarly, freeze dried veggies and beans can be prepared quickly after a long day at work. In fact, you would just need to rehydrate the freeze-dried fruits and veggies, and voila! your salad is ready.
Prepare two or three meals during the weekend and have them when you get at home, when you’re tired from work. It helps to split up food into serving portions that would be enough for your family.² Freeze meatballs, marinated chicken, soups, and reheat them when you need a quick meal.

Helps you to make healthy food choices

If you decide what to eat at the last minute, chances are that you’ll choose to eat out. Buying food gives you power to control your caloric and sodium intakes since your not in control of the ingredients.²   Having a plan puts in mind the right food combinations when you’re not pushed by hunger and tiredness to choose an unhealthy meal. Moreover, when you plan your meals at the beginning of the week, it is easier to have a healthy meal available.
Meal planning eases your burden, especially if you are going to have a busy week ahead. You won’t need to drop into a convenience store to pick a bag of fries or a burger.¹ Furthermore, when you shop while hungry, you’ll most probably pick junk food.²  It helps to build your willpower to follow through with what you have set out to do. You can follow your meal plan and stay on track to getting the body you always wanted.³

Better nutrition for you and your family

Home-cooked meals are always nutrient dense and have fewer calories, salt, and fat compared to takeout or ready-made food.¹   You’re in control of all the ingredients, including spices. In fact, they also have fewer additives and preservatives. You can even buy organic food that is most nutritious.²  Planning your meals on time helps you to plan for well-balanced meals throughout the week or month. Likewise, you get to choose a variety of foods.¹
Again, you cater to your individual nutritional needs. For a hypertensive person, they can take a low sodium diet and a diabetic low glycemic diet. Better food choices will reduce the chance of your craving junk foods like cakes and cookies.²

There’s less chance to have cheat meals

While it is okay to have can cheat meal once in a while, lack of a meal planning compels you have more cheat days. This becomes a habit and can make you gain weight. When you plan your meals, there’s a high chance that you’ll stick to the plan and commit to it.

Reduces the chance to overeat

Good news if you want to lose weight. Having proportioned meals in advance reduces the opportunity to overeat.² When all you have to do is reach out to the fridge and get your pre-packed meal and heat it up, emotions are thrown out of the window, and you cannot control your choice of food or how much you should eat. You eat what’s in there - no more, no less.³

Reduces stomach issues

Bloating, acidity, and other digestive issues can be caused when you have untimely meals, when you don’t plan in advance. Excessive periods of hunger may result in a lot of acids produced in the stomach. Plan your meals in advance and reduce the chances of getting bloated or having acidity.¹

Gives you peace of mind

Imagine not having to wonder what to prepare for dinner. I know that thought plagues your mind throughout the day - from balancing your sanity at work, to rushing to school to pick your kids, to running to the store at midnight just because you realized a crucial ingredient is missing.
You don’t need to wonder what to cook for dinner after a tiring day at work. Save yourself the stress and have a meal plan. After all, you can reuse a week’s meal plan and even use the same grocery list. Just start with a week’s plan or a two; this is enough to have all the variety for you and your family.²
At first, it will seem tedious to sit down and write down what to eat, especially if you’re a person who lives by the one day at a time rule. In light of all the benefits above, take this crucial step, make your meal plan, and forget making food choices based on emotions and convenience. Don't forget to check out our freeze dried fruits and veggies. They'll surely fit into your meal plan and save you time and money.

 
References

1. https://www.google.com/amp/www.thehealthsite.com/fitness/reasons-you-should-plan-your-meals-in-advance-t0217/amp/
2. https://www.azumio.com/blog/nutrition/6-reasons-to-meal-plan
3. https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/why-you-should-be-planning-your-meals/