Hummus with Olives

I really like Sabra Hummus. My favorite is with olives. Hummus can be difficult to put together though. I asked myself, How much of which ingredient do I put in? I have found recipes that call for an exorbitant amount of lemon juice, which, in turn, makes the hummus rather tart.  The key to making good hummus is starting off with a little lemon juice (or any other ingredient) and gradually adding as needed or not using it at all.  I always use a recipe as a guideline and make changes accordingly.  Remember your taste buds as you are putting dishes together.  Ask yourself if you would like a large amount of a spice or a small one. Then you will have more success with your recipes. By the way, my neighbor is my recipe taster.  She ate half of this the evening I gave it to her.  I ate a good portion of it myself too.

Ingredients:

2 cans (15-16 oz) of garbanzo beans

4 TBS tahini (sesame seed butter)

1-2 squeezes of a lemon, more or less to your taste

salt\pepper to your taste

1 tsp cumin, optional

5-7 roasted garlic cloves

4 TBS olive oil, more if needed

reserved juice from garbanzo beans

paprika for garnish

 1 TBS chopped parsley or cilantro, optional

olives, 2-3 TBS, chopped, green or black

Rinse and drain the garbanzo beans.  In a food processor or blender, process the chickpeas with the garlic, tahini, cumin, salt, pepper, and lemon juice until blended.  Add the olive oil slowly while blending until the hummus is thick and smooth.  You can add some of the reserved juice from the garbanzo beans to make it less thick.  Place it in a bowl and smooth it around.  Make a well in the middle and fill with olives.  Sprinkle with paprika and drizzle more olive oil over the top.  You can garnish with parsley or cilantro.  Serve with naan or pita bread.  Enjoy!