Mission accomplished!
I don’t know about you but I love hummus. The only thing I don’t like about hummus is that a standard serving size is 2 tablespoons and 3 Points Plus (ridiculous!).
Not anymore! I have finally converted my go-to hummus recipe into a low fat version without losing any of the taste or texture. I have been making hummus for such a long time and it’s really easy if you aren’t concerned about fat content and Points Plus. There are obviously tips, techniques, and taste preferences but regular hummus is sort of hard to mess up. You can just keep adding tahini and oil until you get the right consistency aka keep upping the fat.
Well now we have my Everyday Hummus – a serving is 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) and 3 Points Plus so effectively DOUBLE the serving size for the points! But I promise you won’t miss anything in regards to taste or texture. This hummus has a great whipped consistencyand tastes rich and creamy! Can you tell I am excited about this?
NOTES:
- I use canned garbanzo beans to save time but it is even more delicious with freshly soaked beans if you can plan in advance.
- Za’atar is a middle eastern spice blend that usually has thyme, sumac, sesame seeds, and salt. If you can’t find it locally, you can order it here. If you like hummus and/or middle eastern food, you NEED this in your pantry. Your hummus, baba, and falafal will thank you 100 times over.
- This hummus is best served at room temperature.
- 2 cans garbanzo beans (3 cups), drained and rinsed
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3 tablespoons Tahini
- ⅓ cup water
- ⅓ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (2 large lemons)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon Za’atar (see notes)
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Rinse and drain chickpeas and set aside in a microwave-safe dish.
- Combine tahini with water in a small microwave-safe bowl. Next, combine salt, Za’atar, oregano, cayenne, and black pepper. Squeeze lemons (be sure to remove seeds).
- Microwave chickpeas for about one minute. Next, microwave tahini and water for about 45 seconds to one minute. Place both chickpeas and tahini/water mixture in bowl of food processor along with lemon juice, garlic, and spices.
- Process until smooth.
- While processing, slowly add in olive oil through pour tube on top of food processor.
- Serve at room temperature and Enjoy!
Everyday Maven is where whole foods meets weight watchers. Simple and delicious real food recipes for the home cook who wants to keep their food clean and their waistline trim! 
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Alyssa- I’m a hummus making noob so bare with me. Why do you microwave the chickpeas? Does it change their texture some or make them easier to blend?
Rachel it does change the texture. They are much lighter and have more of a “whipped” consistency than if they were cold. Hence, allowing for less oil! But once you refrigerate the hummus it can get heavy again so I always recommend allowing it to come to room temp before serving. (This only applies to canned chickpeas).
Thanks for sharing the info on how many WW points plus points hummus is! I was trying to figure out how to go about doing that.
I’m curious though – this is how I always make my hummus (Growing up Armenian, this is how we make it), give or take a few more ingredients (Never thought of trying zatar, that must give it a very unique flavouring!) so I’m wondering how you made it before that was more fattening? Or perhaps it’s just the store bought ones with all the extra added nonsense?
Anyhow, thanks again for the points plus value! What a wonderful surprise that 1/4 cup is only 3 points (I could eat this forever! haha)
Sure! A lot of american style hummus has way more oil and/or tahini so I think that is probably where the extra added fat comes from. As for store bought – yes, there is a lot of added nonsense for sure! Definitely try the Zatar sometime
Haha, that makes sense. Your recipe sounds great, I am definitely going to use zaatar the next time I make mine! I’ve only ever eaten zaatar on eggs or with pita, so I’m intrigued!
Thanks for the idea!
Zatar is amazing! If you can’t find it in the store let me know – I have a recipe somewhere to make your own
Oh no worries, I live in an Armenian home, there has always been and will always be zaatar in our cupboards hehe but thank you! Interested in having a recipe for it, though! That’d be fun! If you find it, please share!
Thanks!
I have been making batch after batch of this hummus and I love it! The consistency, texture and flavor are perfect. In my last batch I tossed in a small handful of parsley as I have bunch in my garden right now and it added a really nice fresh flavor.
And I totally agree with you about the dried chickpeas vs. canned. I just made my first batch using dried beans instead and I definitely noticed a difference. I’ll be using dried from now on.
Thanks for the great recipe!
Thank you!! I usually toss in fresh parsley at the same time I add the garlic but I left it out of the recipe so that this could be a “basic recipe”. So good – Enjoy
Excellent hummus! We didn’t have za’atar handy so we made it without and it’s still delicious. I’ll pick some up and try it again; we only had 1 can of garbanzos so it’s only a half recipe anyway. Needed it for the lavash wraps.
Thanks Scott! Next time throw a handful of fresh parsley in with the garlic. That is also great
I’ve been making hummus for years, but never thought of the za’atar, despite using it for many years now in so many other dishes. Great idea. As I never use canned chick peas I imagine the microwave is unnecessary. But should I use it for the tahini mixture or can I just swirl the tahini and lemon around the hot chickpeas? The microwave has a tendency to change textures usually in the wrong direction. Here in Paris, with out Mediterranean influences, I believe we like with a thicker, if not “chunky”, version. I’m eager to try out your method .
Hi David,
If you are cooking the beans from dried, omit the microwave step and sub the hot bean cooking liquid for the water. When I do it this way, I usually put the Tahini and lemon juice in with the hot beans and pour the hot cooking water over so that it warms the Tahini and lemon juice. I hope you love the Za’atar!
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