Petit Pois Hummus & Seed Crackers

This one’s for all the hummus fans out there, especially the ones who eat their peas. Petit pois to be exact.

I’ve made a lot of hummus in my life and am a firm believer that making it with dried chickpeas yields the creamiest, velvetiest and smoothest hummus of them all. The same method applies to my Petit Pois Hummus.

You’ll need to soak dried chickpeas overnight, which isn’t ideal if you have a sudden hummus craving but trust me it’s so worth it. I started making hummus like this thanks to batch after batch of the stuff made using tinned chickpeas was just never smooth enough. When I say smooth, I mean smooth. If you want to make me sad, serve me grainy hummus.

The other secret to smooth hummus is a teaspoon or two of baking soda for every cup of dried chickpeas that are added to the pot when cooking them. The alkaline in the baking soda helps break down the pectins in the chickpea skins so that they soften during cooking, yielding very soft chickpeas which ultimately equal smooth hummus.

Peas are one of my favourite legumes, especially petit pois. Now if you’re wondering if there’s even a difference between regular peas and petit pois besides their size, there is. Petit pois are sweeter with softer skin and a slightly buttery taste. I’ll pick petit pois over peas any day and like to always have a bag of them stashed in my freezer.

Petit Pois Hummus & Seed Crackers

As I mentioned above you’re going to need to soak your dried chickpeas overnight, so start this recipe the day before. You’ll find the majority of ingredients needed below available via CNC’s online shop.

Petit Pois Hummus

• 1/2 cup dried chickpeas
• 2 tsp baking spda
• 2 cups frozen petit pois
• 1 cup flatleaf parsley, washed, dried and leaves picked
• 3 tablespoons tahini
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus extra to taste
• 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for serving
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
• toasted seeds, to serve

Soaking & Cooking Dried Chickpeas

Place the dried chickpeas in a bowl and cover with enough water to cover by about 5cm. Leave them to soak overnight at room temperature. Drain and rinse the chickpeas the next day, then place them in a medium-size pot and cover with enough water to cover them by 10cm. Add the baking soda and bring the pot to a boil over high heat. Turn down the heat to medium-high and simmer the chickpeas until they are very soft – around 1 – 1.5 hours.

Don’t stress about them being overcooked, this is what leads to smooth and creamy hummus. Just watch that the water doesn’t evaporate, so top up with boiling water if need be. When the chickpeas are very soft, remove them from the heat and drain.

Making The Hummus

Blend the drained chickpeas in a food processor until completely smooth. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and blanch the frozen petit pois and parsley for 2-3 minutes. Strain in a fine-mesh sieve, refresh under cold running water and drain excess water. Add to the chickpea mixture along with tahini, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and black pepper.

Blend on a high speed until the mixture is competely smooth again and has turned a vibrant shade of green. Transfer to a bowl and garnish with extra olive oil and toasted seeds.

Seed Crackers

• 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
• 2 tablespoon brown rice flour
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
• 2 tablespoon chia seeds
• 1 cup boiling water
• za’atar (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with baking paper. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the ground flax seeds, brown rice flour, and salt until well combined. Add the rest of the ingredients except the za’atar (if using) and toss to combine. Pour the boiling water over the mixture, stir until there are no dry spots and let sit for about 20 minutes until the water has been absorbed and everything is looking thick and sticky.
   
2. Transfer the mixture to the lined baking tray and spread into a thin and even a layer. You can use an offset pallet knife, the back of a spoon or a spatula for this. If the mixture isn’t thin enough the crackers will not crisp up. Sprinkle with za’atar (if using) and bake your for 35-45 minutes, until they begin to turn slightly golden and are dry and hard to the touch. If the crackers still a little soft in the middle then you’ll need to bake them for a couple minutes more. Be careful not to burn them!
   
3. Allow the crackers cool completely on the baking sheet before carefully breaking them into shards. Serve or store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

THIS RECIPE WAS BROUGHT TO YOU AS PART OF A PAID PARTNERSHIP WITH CNC.