I love traditional hummus. I think it’s a great, easy dish to prepare for a meal or a snack. But, what to do if you’re hankering for hummus and have no chickpeas in the pantry? Well, when I found myself in that exact situation I decided to use beans that I had on hand, which happened to be white beans. I also happened to have a little bit of baby spinach leftover and since I love to throw green leafy goodness into all sorts of recipes, I decided to add it to the food processor to see what would happen. The result? I just might even like it better than traditional hummus! And my teeny tiny foodie? She LOVED this recipe the first time she had it when she was 9 months old and still loves it now that she’s almost 3 years old. I like to serve this hummus with whole grain pita chips, blue corn chips or sticks of raw veggies.
- Green Hummus
- 9-12 months
- 12 months and beyond
- Yields 6 servings
Ingredients:
- -1 15-ounce can white beans such as cannellini or northern, drained, rinsed and patted dry
- -1 loosely packed cup raw baby spinach, rinsed and dried
- -½-1 garlic clove, crushed or minced
- -2 teaspoons olive oil
- -¼-½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper
- -A couple pinches of paprika
- -Juice of one lemon
- -Optional: Cayenne pepper, to taste
Preparation:
Put beans, spinach, garlic, olive oil and juice of half a lemon and spices into a blender or food processor and pulse until smooth.
If needed, add more olive oil or lemon juice to make it creamier. Blend again. Adjust seasonings, olive oil, and lemon juice as desired.
Serve with your favorite accompaniments.
Eliana first had this recipe at 9 months old and loved it. More recently, she has become a bit wary about trying it. Below are the photos of her trying it, making funny faces as she determine if she currently likes this dish and then her final declaration of approval or non-approval.
Now for the taste testing:
And the official declaration:
Happy Cooking!