A recent tip on Facebook from a fellow bargain-hunter sent me to Kroger to check out a huge rack of clearance priced hummus.
Now, this was no ordinary, run-of-the-mill markdown. This was the mother load of can’t-walk-away-without-buying-it sale prices!
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Each of these containers of hummus was just 49¢ – regularly priced at $4.95!
Now, I happen to know that hummus freezes very well. So, I took a deep breath and bought 15 of them!
Ten were red pepper flavor, while the other five were a fiery-hot pepper flavor.
As soon as I arrived home, I hopped on Facebook Live and shared my good fortune with my Facebook tribe. When I began to tout all the amazing ways I liked to use hummus, I received several requests for a recipe round up post, featuring the great flavor and texture of hummus as a part of each recipe.
Check out this Facebook Live in which my 15 year old son and I show and test taste all nine actual dishes that we made.
For the record, I had every single ingredient in my home already to make each of the nine dishes that I selected. I sent two of my sons to the store for avocados and tomatoes – two of each. That’s it! It pays to know what you have on hand and to use it! When you follow this one rule, your grocery bills will plummet!
Allow me to share with you all nine ways that we used hummus (just in case, like me, you have a freezer full.)
Let’s start with the hummus
If you don’t have store-bought hummus on hand that you scored for an unbelievably low price, you can easily make your own for, literally, less than $1.00 for a huge batch. I always link to my very favorite hummus recipe, created by my friend Faith over at Get2dRoot. If you like the taste of dill and chives, Faith just published a new hummus recipe that is just as good (and just as easy) as the first.
Let’s take a look at each of the nine recipes that we created using hummus. I tried to find varying ways of using this delightful ingredient, other than the traditional route of dipping crackers, pita pieces, or raw veggies.
1. Hummus Sesame Noodles
My girl, Rachael Ray, has this great recipe, which would be really inexpensive to make and could easily serve as a main dish for a family of four. I added more veggies than Rachael calls for.
2. Hummus Pasta Salad
Maegan, over at The Baker Mama, was craving mac and cheese one night when she discovered that she was flat out of cheese. But, spying a big tub of store-bought hummus in the fridge, she added it to the warm pasta and voila! A new recipe was born.
This recipe was easy for me to veganize, just adding veggies that I had at home instead of the chunks of chicken. For those of you who are low-carb, I also used my favorite GF red lentil pasta. This pasta has the closest consistency to wheat pasta that I have found and yet it contains one ingredient: red lentils. It cooks up perfectly every time. Amazon sells a 4-pack, which comes with two penne and two rotini.
This recipe would adapt easily to using items that you have at home.
3. Romaine Salad with Orange Hummus Dressing
I love trying and creating new salad dressings! This one is not only easy, it’s delicious!
4. Hummus and Veggie Wrap up
For years now, my boys have known that if they feel the need to have a quick, protein-packed snack, they can grab a flour tortilla, spread on some hummus, pack on whatever veggies are available in the fridge, and, finally, drizzle it with a little salad dressing before wrapping it all up into a flavor-packed bundle of mid-afternoon goodness.
5. Hummus, Avocado, and Tomato Sandwiches
Be still, my heart! This sandwich sounds like heaven to me! Just the idea of all these flavors together makes me want to drool just a little bit.
6. Creamy Smoky White Bean Soup
I made a batch of my smoky white bean soup this week. At the same time, I was making hummus in the food processor. Not being one to waste anything, I added a little water to the food processor bowl after I had scraped out as much hummus as possible. I turned the unit on just enough to clean off the sides of the processor bowl – about 20 seconds. I added the resulting, thinned hummus mixture to my hot bean soup. Instantly, I had created a delicious, creamy version of one of our favorite soups!
7. Vegetarian Brown Rice and Hummus Bowls
I was just in the Windy City yesterday on a high school class field trip with the 15 year old sous chef. I had the most delicious brown rice bowl for lunch at Freshii on Navy Pier.
While eating, I remembered that it had been a while since I had created main dish bowls at home. Its so easy to do! The best part is, that much like a salad or baked potato bar, you can throw odds and ends of leftovers on the table along with several topping and dressing options. Everyone gets to pick what they want, everyone is happy, and your fridge is cleaned out!
This recipe, using our featured ingredient of hummus, will get you started, but don’t be afraid to experiment with toppings and add-ins.
This salad is wonderful topped with balsamic vinegar. Here is my favorite 4% aged balsamic vinegar. It’s thick, sweet, and reasonably priced.
If you need a lower-carb base, then try the roasted cauliflower found in the recipe below.
8. Spicy Roasted Cauliflower over Hummus
I had cauliflower pearls on hand. So, I made my roasted cauliflower with the small vegetable pieces. As you might imagine, it cooked in less time, but it was oh so good! Use it to top hummus and then dollop it onto salads, flatbread, pasta, or rice.
9. Hummus Roasted Potatoes
I adore roasted potatoes. In fact, sometimes I just serve huge pans of roasted root vegetables to my family for supper. This recipe features hummus for an amazing twist on an old favorite. It was oh so good!
Your turn!
What are you favorite ways to use hummus? Leave your tips in the comments section.
