Dips thrill me. So do chickpeas. Creamy dips transform simple foods into even better food. One of my all time favorite dips is hummus. This simple, versatile spread can be enjoyed with pita, chips, crisp veggies, toast points, crackers, or as a creamy sauce. Hummus can be adjusted to taste. A creamy paste forms easily with garbanzo beans, tahini, spices and lemon.
I never realized how much I love to dip until after I had kids. I took awareness to the magic in it. Taking something simple like an asparagus spear, piece of broccoli or a cherry tomato and dipping it into creamy hummus, salsa or dressing. Happiness prevails.
There are endless amounts of flavors and spices you can add to hummus. You can use any type of bean too. Versatile, simple and fresh ingredients are key with the busy lives we lead.
Lately I have been obsessed with my food processor. It is a one stop shop for savory or sweet sauces and spreads. This kitchen gadget rocks my world. Really.
Chips are always great dippers. These chips I made out of Ezekiel sprouted grain tortillas. A spray of olive oil, pinch of sea salt and a quick toast under a low broiler for 4-5 minutes. Voila! Crispy, healthy chips.
Recently I was sent a new cookbook to review, Big Bowl of Love by Cristina Ferrare. Not only was Cristina a super model and actress, but she sure knows a thing or two around the kitchen.
These days you can catch her cooking show on Oprah’s OWN network. Her book is loaded with simple, fresh and delicious flavors.
The photos capture her recipes with style, elegance and vibrance. They are shot and styled by the fabulous Todd and Diane, White on Rice Couple.
If you are looking for recipes that take advantage of bountiful whole food ingredients then Big Bowl of Love is for you.
It is a one stop shop for 150 amazing recipes that are meant to bring people together through food. Cristina’s bright personality shines throughout the headnotes, flavor combinations and recipe selections.
I will never forget the moment I cracked into this book at the local Starbucks. Each page flip had me excited for more.
For me cookbooks are inspirational launch pads. I gobble up beautiful photos and ingredient lists and then I re-interpret recipes to suit not only my taste palate, but the gamut of ingredients I have on hand. Cristina has a wonderful, simple hummus recipe in her book. I will not post her recipe here, I encourage you to peek inside yourself to get all the fabulous nibbles.
What is your favorite hummus recipe?
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Hummus Recipe Links
- Black Bean Hummus Sweet Pea’s Kitchen
- Creamy Peanut Butter Hummus How Sweet Eats
- Creamy, Fluffy, Delicious, Perfect Hummus Sopheava de Lumiere
- Hummus with Roasted Capsicum Bake Bike Blog
- Jalapeno Cheddar Hummus Eat, Live, Run
- Raw Red Lentil Hummus Sweet Potato Soul
- Sweet Potato Hummus with Olive Oil and Sumac Kalyn’s Kitchen
This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for your entries. Congrats to Aggie of Aggie’s Kitchen.
Great news! The publisher has offered me an extra copy of this cookbook to share with you. This giveaway will close on Thursday, April 14th at 12 midnight PST. The book will be shipped to residents of the USA only, winner will be chosen at random.org. To enter this giveaway please do one or more of the following – leave a separate comment per entry.
- Tell us about your favorite kind of hummus, leave a link if you like.
- Follow me on Twitter @MarlaMeridith
- Become a fan of MarlaMeridith.com on Facebook
- Copy and paste this tweet or make up your own: @MarlaMeridith has a giveaway copy of @CristinaCooks book Big Bowl of Love. Enter to win here http://su.pr/2T1hQm
- Stumble this post
- Follow Cristina on Twitter @CristinaCooks
MarlaMeridith.com disclosure: I was sent a copy of the book Big Bowl of Love to review. I love it and so I am sharing it with you. A giveaway copy was offered by the publisher as well.
Love the background with chalk writing. So playful! This is
one of my favorite flavors of hummus =D.
This hummus looks so tasty. I love sun dried tomatos and
can’t wait to try them with hummus!
I love hummus! Yours looks mouthwatering. Cheers,
Rosa
I LOVE hummus. I am rarely without it, I always make my
own, and I have a new flavor all the time. Lately, my favorite has
been “mixed vegetable” where I just throw in whatever small
leftover scraps I have to use up. I steam them and then puree. I’ve
never made one I didn’t like!
I love a hummus with lots of garlic in it!
This hummus looks great! So fresh and delicious! My
favorite hummus is any kind of spicy variety. 🙂
What a spunky hummus. The color alone is so inviting. I
have made ezekiel tortilla chips in the past and they’re
amazing.
Nisrine: Those Ezekiel tortillas actually taste a whole lot better once you toast them. With out heat they are a bit bland – with heat some kind of magic happens. “Spunky Hummus,” I like that. I love the color it turns with the sun-dried tomatoes, and the tomato paste kicks it up some too.
I love roasted red pepper hummus!
Lindsay: I love roasted pepper hummus too. This one is sun-dried tomato. The two blended would probably be tasty as well!
mmm…love all hummus, but I have to say creamy, garlicky with a bit of a bite to it… yummm..
Marla…amazing pics! “It is a one stop shop for savory or sweet sauces and spreads. This kitchen gadget rocks my world. Really.”– love that. I am a dipping queen. I like a little food with my vat of dip 🙂
The fact that Tood & Diane shot her book…makes me want to tear into it! I bet it’s GORGEOUS!
Averie: I am with you, a vat of dip and all is good with the world. Thankfully we both love dips that like us back 😉
twitter follow you
twitter follow Christina now too
FB fan of you
and your pics get better with each post if that is even possible…stunning!
i really need to invest in tahini…i’ve never actually made homemade hummus with it before!
Marla!! This post is gorgeous… I LOVE your pics and info! You have made me want this cookbook bad! 🙂
Amanda: You would love this book. Each section is beautiful & you would love the dessert chapter!
I love homemade hummus! It beats the pants off of store bought any day. I also love cookbooks and would love to win this one!
This post is reeeediculous and beautiful. It’s 8:30 am and I’m already hungry for hummus!
Here’s one of my favorite hummus’esque recipes!
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/white-bean-dip-with-pita-chips-recipe/index.html
I love dips. They’re so fun to make! I also love your anatomy of hummus! Cute photos.
I already have a copy of the book so I don’t need to be entered in the giveaway…
But I just wanted to say your pictures are beautiful. I love the chalkboard approach! And I’d be lost without the double-batch of hummus I make almost every weekend to get me through the week 🙂
Shawnda: I had loads of fun with the chalkboard concept! I am with you, the bigger the batch of hummus the better. It does last a good long time in the fridge too, which is a bonus.
As I was reading your post my oldest took a glance at your photos and said, wow that looks good! There you have it, I happen to concur with him we both happen to love hummus. PS: I already have the book, so you can exclude this little comment from the giveaway. XOXO – Josie
I love roasted garlic hummus or really any hummus! I am a
dip lover, too!
i love sun dried pepper hummus.
i follow you on FB.
My fav is an edamame hummus and no skipping on the
garlic!
Jennifer: I have got to try an edamame hummus. The color is gorgeous. Extra garlic for me too please!
I absolutely LOVE your labeled photos – so cute and
original. This hummus looks fantastic. My favorite kind of hummus?
It’s a toss-up between roasted red pepper version or one with
kalamata olives.
Love the hummus and the book!
I just picked up some Tahini this weekend to make hummus! I
love lemony hummus, but I have some sun dried tomatoes in my fridge
right now so I may have to try this. They aren’t in oil – do you
think they go bad in the fridge? I’m also going to make chocolate
chip maple hummus as a dessert soon!
These sound wonderful! This book is supposed to be a
winner
That recipe looks amazing, Marla! I think my favorite is
garlic hummus, but so long as there’s garlic in there, I’m
happy!
I follow you on Twitter!
Ey Marla! That board idea is awesome and so playful! I’m
totally stealing it 😉 You might already know this from my post
http://www.journeykitchen.com/2011/02/fatteh-hummus-its-not-just-dip-its-meal.html
my obsession with hummus. This is one of my favorite ways
too.
Kulsum: I remember when I first saw your gorgeous fatteh hummus recipe. It looks creamy & heavenly. Must try it over here – a full meal indeed. Glad you like the blackboard. My kids could not keep their hands off it when I was done with my shoot!
First off I love how you set up your photos for this. The
different elements are too cute! Dipping is so much fun. My
favorite flavor of hummus is roasted red pepper. White beans have
been really fun for bean dips lately too. My food processor is one
best friend in the kitchen. I love a time saving tool!
Heather: I have been seeing white bean hummus all over the web and I am so tempted by it. The lighter color would also show off all the other ingredients too. Must try!
pine nut hummus!
I love all variations of hummus recipes, but my current
favorite is from the blog “Peas and Thank you” and is Cilantro
Jalapeno Hummus. So good and so creamy! Yum! Here is the link:
http://peasandthankyou.com/2011/04/07/cooking-in-the-living-room/
Rachel: Thanks so much for sharing that hummus link. Love the green color and flavor combo. Jalapeno & cilantro is now on my must try list.
Awesome picture tutorial! I love the chalkboard addition! Oh! and very yummy looking dip- can’t wait to make it 🙂
My fave hummus is whatever my friends serve me when we are over – I am the only one in my family who loves it so I don’t make it very often!
Kristy: I think you need a secret stash, tucked away for yourself….you could make 1/2 a batch too 🙂
I am a huge fan of hummus. I like to roast the beans before I blend them – totally changes the texture and flavor. Win – win!
I’m a fan on Facebook!
I’ve fallen hard and fast for chipotle hummus and I make it at home to really get the spiciness I want! But Sun-dried would be pretty great too.
Carolyn: Love smoky chipotle over here too. Gotta toss some in my next batch of hummus.
This looks great. Love the pictorial! My fave is straight up old school hummus with chick peas. So delish!!
Your pictures are great. My favorite hummus is kalamata olive
Maris: I almost went with kalamata hummus for this post, next time. Those olives are an ingredient that is universally loved in my house. Thank goodness for that!
I’m such a hummus lover. My favorite is artichoke hummus…it’s amazing. Your pictures are beautiful Marla! I love how you made your chips with my favorite tortilla wraps!
Aggie: Do you have a link for your artichoke hummus. Sounds amazing – I assume you use marinated artichokes or no?? Glad to hear you are on the team Ezekiel too!
Just tweeted about your giveaway!
Just stumbled and shared! 🙂
Mmm, hummus with EXTRA garlic is my absolute favorite. I
love toasting pita bread, and cutting them up into toast points for
dippers- as well as any kind of raw veggie 🙂
I will let someone else win the book but just wanted to say
how good this looks (and thanks for featuring my sweet potato
hummus too!)
Hummus is my most favorite dip. I recently started making
it at home and now I can’t stop. My favorite is traditional
http://www.marcigilbert.com/2011/02/14/clean-food/. Love your
chalkboard!
I follow you on Twitter.
My fave hummus is with roasted eggplant aka baba
ganoush
I became a fan of Christina on Twitter
Roasted red pepper hummus is my favorite, but I’ve never
met a hummus flavor I didn’t like.
I follow you on Twitter.
I like your FB page.
I LOVE hummus! It’s so easy to make and it’s cheaper too!
My family loves roasted red pepper hummus.
http://squashblossombabies.com/2011/01/25/roasted-pepper-hummus/
Heckuva good job. I sure appreatcie it.
Hummus with red peppers, garlic, oregano, pine nuts, olive
oil, salt, cumin, and lemon, and ofcoarse chickpeas!
I love cilantro-lime hummus! The book sounds wonderful
🙂
Like you page on facebook!
Already following you on twitter too!
Following Christina on twitter too!
Spreading the word on twitter!
http://twitter.com/#
I love my mom’s homemade roasted red pepper hummus!
🙂
I love a great roasted garlic hummus! When I don’t make my
own, Trader Joe’s is the best!
I saw Christina Ferrre on Oprah one day making a recipe and
I love her style. I’d love to have this cookbook. I follow you on
Twitter!
I’m a fan on Facebook. Oops, typed too fast before and
misspelled Christina Ferrare. I hate when I leave a typo in a
comment!
This hummus sounds lovely! I can eat just about any
variety. So healthy and filling too!
I’m a facebook fan
I like tomato hummus from trader joes
I LOVE the sun dried tomato hummus from Trader Joe’s and
have always wanted to make my own. Thank you sooo much for the
recipe, I really can’t wait to make it. It looks incredible, so
flavorful. 🙂
I follow you on twitter!
I love a variation on hummus that is made with white beans,
olive oil, garlic and honey, also a hint of cumin. It’s delicious
with Mary’s Gone Crackers crackers and veggies:)
Colleen: I have been hearing so much about those Mary’s Gone Quackers. I have not yet tried them. Think they are gluten free? Love the addition of honey to your savory hummus.
I love garlic hummus! YUM! 😀
Love it, I have been eating hummus on everything lately.
I love garlic hummus. Extra garlic please.
Veggies are a MUST for dipping and toasted pita!
My favorite recipe is from one of my Fine Cooking cookbooks and can be found here:
http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/hummus-mellow-garlic-cumin.aspx
Amanda: That mellow garlic hummus from Fine Cooking sounds wonderful. Like the way they cook the garlic first to simmer down the flavor.
My favorite hummus is from Trader Joes. It’s a three layer hummus with plain hummus, Jalapeno hummus and roasted red pepper hummus!
Mac: We love the line of hummus at Trader Joe’s, gotta admit I have never had one there that I did not like. The three layer one is wonderful.
I tweeted! http://twitter.com/#!/HvHealthyHabits/status/57630752963166208
I follow you on twitter 🙂
I follow Cristina on twitter
I’m a fan of Family Fresh Cooking on facebook….I “liked” it.
I don’t have a favorite flavor of hummus yet, but I know we like it garlicky!
FB fan as Missy Sunson.
This recipe looks so good! I’ve never made hummus, but have wanted to try it! My favorite kind is with garlic, but honestly, I’ve only tried a few flavors. I would love to win the cookbook, it sounds great!
I like you on FB! And very cute pictures of all the ingredients. 🙂
My favorite hummus… Athenos Three Pepper, I believe it’s called. Kinda spicy and soooo delicious on a sandwich!
I love hummus… pretty much all kinds! I love the basic one I make with garlic, tahini, evoo, and lemon juice. Dip some crackers in it.. yummo! Thanks for the chance!
Your addition of dried tomatoes to this hummus is an great innovation that I absolutely and positively plan to copy. Luckily, I have all the ingredients on hand except the Ezekiel’s tortillas. Such a smart, healthy idea too to use those as chips!
Barbara: I want to see the hummus flavors you come up with. There is no doubt in my mind they would be way beyond fabulous!
Hummus is for sure my favorite dip to have around and this post is reminding me that I haven’t made it in far too long! It looks like yours is just the right amount of creamy, tahini-infused deliciousness! My favorite hummus to date has been a cilantro jalapeno version I make that is a mimic of one sold at Trader Joe’s. Addictive!
Joanne: I love all the hummus at Trader Joe’s. Seems to be they are the go-to store bought hummus for all of us. Think I need to develop recipes for each flavor. A fun project, dont’cha think?!
i think it’s safe to say i’ve just been given one of the best lessons in anatomy ever. 🙂
Loved the asparagus tips nestled in with the carrots and celery — your photos and ideas are appetizing, as always!
Kimby: My kids and hubs loved munching on those after the photo shoot. Veggies become so much more tempting when we pretty up the presentation. My 4 year old was digging into the celery & asparagus like it was candy! Note to self: must do this all the time 😉
I’m boring and I like regular hummus…also roasted red pepper. 🙂 I love that first picture by the way – anatomy of hummus, so cute! 🙂
I follow you on twitter! @whatmegansmakng
Sounds like a fabulous book. I really like the way you’ve laid out the anatomy of hummus on your blackboard, it’s a very cute idea.
GREAT photos! You are so creative!
I love chickpeas prepared at any method! Your hummus with sundried tomatoes looks terrific!
I like traditional hummus with pine nuts and a swirl of olive oil on top. I’m also growing to like ones that mix in roasted peppers too!
I once made a hummus using a sun-dried tomato pesto. I loved it!!
Love the idea of sun dried tomatoes in hummus…not only add color and flavor as well. Great pictures and have a wonderful week ahead Marla 🙂
I love hummus with spinach and artichokes. Your hummus with the sudried tomatoes sounds wonderful. I will have to try that real soon.
Sundried tomato hummus is actually one of my favorites along with roasted garlic hummus. Lovely photos as usual!
Mmmm….I love hummus!! Sun dried tomato is one of my favorites! 🙂
I love hummus and love your “anatomy of hummus” diagram 😉
I think I love simple roasted garlic hummus the best, but I am absolutely not exclusive !!
I just “liked” you on facebook. My very picky eater daughter loves hummus. It is one thing that I can always count on that she will eat.
Mimi: It is awesome when we can find things out picky eaters love. At least hummus is a healthy food for her. Sometimes it’s not that easy!
I love any kind of hummus and very excited to try making it myself! Thanks for the recipe. I found out about your blog from Picky-Palate!
Debbie: I am so glad you found me. Jenny (Picky Palate) is an awesome friend of mine. Love that girl and her blog. I look forward to your visits 🙂
I am now a fan on Facebook! (I am not on Twitter…yet :))
Beautiful post…visually as delicious as I’m sure it is to eat!! 🙂
This hummus looks so good! I have never made my own hummus before but I think I should use this recipe to try for the first time 🙂
Lauren: Yes, you gotta try making your own. When you realize how simple, easy and quick it is – you will wonder why it took so long to try DIY hummus. That is how I felt at least.
your pictures are too cute. love the ingredients and set up.
I’ve heard such good things about this cookbook! One of my favorite has to be garlic hummus…especially roasted garlic. It makes me hungry just thinking of it!
Oh my gosh your photo + illustration is to DIE for it is so cute! Chickpeas are one of my favourite foods…and hummus, well that is an obsession! That is funny because I have made chips with those same tortillas before…they are so good!
Yum… Hummus! I love how versatile hummus is. I like adding Kalamata olives to my hummus for extra flavor. Although roasted garlic is always a classic flavor too.
I love all kinds of hummus. One of the most interesting flavors that I’ve tried from the local farmer’s market is peanut butter flavored hummus.
super LOVE hummus!! great food styling and photography!! thanks for sharing!
I have a hummus recipe where I blend in sweet pepperdews and hummus. It’s awesome! I Liked on Facebook and even put on my One Mile One Meal wall. So happy to find your site 🙂
Stephanie: Thanks for stopping by & linking this recipe to your FB page. You have a great blog!
Love Love Love this! Hummus how I love thee and this cookbook sounds amazing! Can’t wait to try out both! My favorite hummus would have to be this spicy avocado hummus I make with pine nuts! So good! Thanks for visiting the other day- so glad you did so I could find your site! Will be keeping in touch! Oh and would love for you to enter my recipe challenge next wed. you can see the details on my sidebar – just click on the recipe challenge button
Jessica: Thanks for stopping by. Spicy jalapeno hummus sounds awesome. Do you have a link to the recipe? Are there garbanzo beans of tahini in there?
I love pine nut hummus!
I’m a fan of Family Fresh Cooking on Facebook
Tracy P
Tweeted
http://twitter.com/#!/cloud10277/status/58543036497539072
Hi Marla, I’m not entering but I just had to say what a beautiful post and the diagram photos are genius! 🙂 Hope you’re having a nice day!
I love spicy red pepper and garlic hummus.
I stumbled this recipe.
Trader Joe’s has a guacamole hummus that is FANTASTIC with their pita chips. My mouth is watering thinking about it!
I know I’m late for the giveaway (boo) but I had a question. How well do you think the hummus would turn out if I left out the tahini? I’m allergic to sesame but love hummus. I usually try to eat only a little so I don’t break out in hives….haha. Not really the best thing to do.
Brandy: I would totally try the hummus without the tahini if you cannot eat it. Silly, don’t eat the sesame seeds if you are allergic to them. I would add a little more olive oil or oil from the sun dried tomatoes. Might sound weird, but maybe a dab of almond butter would add that creaminess. Adjust oil or nut butter for taste and texture.
Marla: I especially love the cover photo (with the blackboard writing)
I can’t wait to try this!! Love hummus, but store bought just isn’t the same as homemade. Yummy!!
This looks incredible… I love everything about this hummus. Sounds like an amazing snack!
Love that first picture. How did you write the words? Do you have a Wacom tablet?
Hi Jaime, yes you are correct I use a Wacom tablet for all my drawing, painting etc.
Thanks, Marla! I used to use them in college all the time, but I’ve never owned one.
I love all your labeled photos! Very nicely done!
I love the pictures! So much fun! I’m a traditionalist when it comes to hummus… but I really should expand and try some other recipes. Great post!
I’ve been eating a ton of hummus lately. It really fills me up for being a vegetarian meal. I get a spicy garlic hummus from trader joe’s that is really good 😉
Carrie, I am in love with so many of the hummus flavors at Trader Joe’s. I dig how many flavors they have too & that they are so natural.
DElicious!
I love hummus! It is so healthy and very high in protein so it is great for your diet and waist line.
I love this recipe. It looks so yummy. I can’t wait to try them with hummus! Thanks for sharing.