I love garlic. Put it in any savoury dish and I will eat happily. Life would be so dull without garlic… But… Even garlic has its even better moments and roasting is one of those!

 

The idea of this hummus is so simple that I am not sure if I should give the whole recipe or not: you just roast the garlic instead of using raw crushed garlic. The rest is basic hummus recipe. That’s it. No weird mumbo jumbo!

 

 

I first did this hummus for a catering gig about a month ago and I loved every single moment of making it. The garlic smell coming from inside of the oven already around 10th minute is so strong and delicious that you start smiling while working in the kitchen.

 

 

 

Another nice thing about roasting garlic is related to practicality: normally I am really bad at peeling garlic. Peeling and then crushing are two things that I always feel lazy about. But when you roast a whole garlic head, the only thing you need to peel is the outermost papery skin. After roasting, the roasted garlic cloves come out very easy using a small spoon. Also, they are so soft that they easily get crushed in a food processor with other ingredients.

 

Since that first time use in the catering, I have been doing many garlic related dips and spreads with roasted garlics. I recommend this for everyone! Enjoy the smell and taste of roasted garlic festival!
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Ingredients:

 

Difficulty:  ★☆☆ (Easy)
(serves 4-6)

 

Printable PDF-recipe (no photos)

 

1 head of garlic, outer papery skin peeled
about 1 tbsp olive oil
1 can (400 gr.) cooked chickpeas, washed and drained
1/2 tsp salt (you might want to add a bit more in the end if it’s not enough for your taste)
2.5 tbsp lemon juice (preferably freshly squeezed, if you have a fresh lemon)
2.5 tbsp tahini
very cold water

 

To put on top:
chili pepper flakes cooked briefly with some olive oil (this is the topping in the photos)
sumac
roasted chickpeas (check this recipe for roasting chickpeas)
roasted sesame seeds
chopped fresh parsley
za’atar or other, your favourite, spices and spice mix
roasted pine nuts

 

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1. Preheat the oven to 200C.

 

2. Trim off the top of garlic head – don’t cut too much and keep the cloves altogether.

 

 

 

3. Put the trimmed garlic head on a piece of aluminium foil. Drizzle about 1 tbsp olive oil to cover all the cloves. Wrap the foil tightly and put in the oven, in medium rack. Roast the garlic for 45 minutes. When roasted, take it out of the oven and let it cool close to room temperature.

 

 

 

 

 

4. When garlic cools down, take the cloves out of the skins using a small spoon.

 

 

5. In a food processor, put chickpeas, roasted garlics and salt. Process until as smooth as possible. Scrape the sides using a spatula if needed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Add lemon juice and tahini. Start processing again while pouring some very cold water from top. Do not add too much water all of a sudden, add slowly until you get the creamy consistency you want / like. When you have the desired consistency, transfer the hummus to a serving bowl. Serve with the topping of your preference. Enjoy!