| 2 cup | cooked chick peas (garbanzos), freshly cooked or canned |  |
|
| 1½ tsp | salt | ||
| 3 | cloves garlic, finely chopped | ||
| ½ cup | olive oil | ||
| ¼ cup | fresh lemon juice | ||
| 1½ tsp | coarsely chopped parsley, flat-leaf type preferably | ||
| 1½ tsp | chopped mint. | ||
| To dress: | |||
| 1 tsp | olive oil | ||
| ½ tsp | paprika or a little cayenne pepper | ||
If
the chick-peas are canned, drain them through a sieve and wash them under
cold running water until the water runs clear. Spread them on paper towels
and pat them dry. Freshly cooked chick-peas need only be drained and cooled.
To make the humus in a blender or processor, place the chick-peas, salt, garlic, ⅓ cup of oil and ¼ cup of lemon juice in the container and blend at high speed for 10 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula. Blend again at high speed, adding as much oil as you need to prevent the machine from clogging. The finished humus should be a very smooth puree, just thick enough to hold its shape in a spoon. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and lemon juice if you like.
Transfer
the humus to a serving dish and sprinkle it with the parsley and mint. Drizzle
a little oil over humus and sprinkle the paprika or cayenne pepper over the
top. Serve this Middle Eastern spread
with pita bread wedges.
Adapted
from: THE COOKING OF THE MIDDLE EAST, Foods of the World, TIME-LIFE BOOKS,
1968.