P is for: Pita Cups with Homemade Hummus {a Tailgate Special}

Baked pita chip cups filled with hummus, olives and feta

"Is that hummus?"

"So good, right?"

"Get these chips away from me."

Yes, this is hummus. And yes, it's SO good. And you don't need to pass on the chips, because these pita chips are whole wheat.

And better yet, it's homemade hummus INSIDE a baked pita cup. Healthy and delicious, what more do you need? (I kind of want a hot dog).

Anyways, whether you're hosting a football viewing party or going to a game this weekend, you've gotta try these.

(Try some.)

For the hummus, you'll need some garbanzo beans, olive oil, lemon, garlic and tahini. Tahini is a paste of roasted sesame seeds and sort of has the consistency of creamy peanut butter. In fact, I found it near the peanut butters at the grocery store. You don't need too much, but it really makes the hummus taste authentic.

If you're making the pita cups, you'll need to cut the pitas into rounds. I used an egg fry ring, but you could use a round cookie cutter or even the empty garbanzo bean can. If you are just making pita chips, you can skip this and just cut each pita into 8 wedges.

Next, brush your pita rounds with a little olive oil and season with sea salt. (*Note: pitas usually have two layers...I separated them for the cups, but left them together for the chips).

Then pop them into the microwave for about 10-15 seconds until they become pliable. This will allow you to easily press them into a muffin pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy.

To make the hummus, all you need to do is dump the drained garbanzo beans and puree until smooth, reserving some of the liquid from the cans for later.

Add the remaining ingredients and blend until the mixture is creamy. If necessary, add some of the reserved liquid from the drained garbanzo beans until you reach the desired consistency. Adjust seasonings to your taste.



Spoon hummus into cups and garnish with toppings of your choice. (I used parsley, olives, and feta cheese). (P.S. Don't forget to check out Wendy's cookbook for more delicious Mediterranean recipes!)

Pita Cups with Homemade Hummus

by Jaymee Sire

Keywords: bake appetizer snack dips garbanzo bean tahini pita hummus

Ingredients

• 4 whole wheat pitas
• 4 teaspoons olive oil (for brushing)
• Sea salt to taste
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• Juice from 2 lemons
• 1/4 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 cup tahini paste
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• crumbled feta
• chopped Kalamata olives
• chopped parsley
• paprika

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Using an empty can or round cookie cutter, cut pitas into rounds. Using a pastry brush, brush each pita with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Sprinkle with sea salt to taste. (If making regular pita chips, cut each pita into 8 wedges).
3. Microwave rounds for 10-15 seconds until pliable. Press into muffin pan and bake 10-15 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
4. Drain the garbanzo beans and reserve 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the liquid. Place the beans in a food processor and puree until smooth.
5. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until the mixture is creamy. If necessary, add the liquid reserved from the canned garbanzo beans to create desired creaminess.
6. Spoon hummus into pita cups and sprinkle with paprika, crumbled feta, chopped olives, and chopped parsley.

*Note: you can store hummus in a glass container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Cover the surface with a thin layer or olive oil for storing.

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