DELICIOUS DIPS

I just love dips and quite honestly don’t think our family could survive without hummus of some sort! It’s a frequent snack in our house but really healthy and delicious. 
Based on chickpeas which are a great source of protein, fibre, B vitamins, iron, magnesium, zinc, selenium and loads more, chickpeas support literally every system in the body! 
Add in tahini, full of calcium and magnesium, Garlic a nutritional superstar, olive oil full of Vit E and omega 3 fats to support brain health and fresh lemon juice a great source of Vit C, antioxidants and highly alkalising and you have a fabulous snack food on your hands! 
That is the nutritional impact of hummus! Impressed, you should be!! Hummus provides sustainable energy, controls cholesterol, reduces risk of heart attack and strokes and maintains a healthy digestive system. So if hummus isn’t already part of your healthy eating then it really should be! 

Here is the basic recipe:

Hummus

Ingredients

1 400g can chickpeas

1 tablespoon tahini

2 tablespoons olive oil or extra virgin olive oil

Juice of ½ lemon

1 garlic clove, crushed

About 100ml water

½ teaspoon ground cumin

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Method

1. Simply add the ingredients to a food processor or blender and gradually add the water until you get desired consistency.

2. Taste and adjust the seasoning. You can add more lemon juice and/or garlic till you are happy with the flavour.

Its so versatile and great on a wrap with salad, on oatcakes, rice cakes, my favourite brand is Kallo, they do a fabulous range of organic rice cakes and they even write a cute wee poem on each packet. 
They are a great company making real quality products with the best organic ingredients.

Contrasting with the other well known brand, Snack a Jacks which have MSG and all sorts of additives you don’t want to be eating. You have been warned!! Choose wisely for your health!

Anyway back to the dips, the other thing about hummus is you can make so many variations. Another favourite of ours is olive and coriander. Olives add great quality fats and fresh coriander is incredibly detoxing and supports your liver and it tastes great!

Here is the recipe

Green Olive & Coriander Hummus

Ingredients

1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon tahini

8 to 10 pitted green olives

large handful of coriander leaves

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Simply add everything to a food processor and blitz until smooth. Add water to desired consistency. Check seasoning and serve!

Another favourite is Moroccan Butter-bean Dip, as the title suggests, it uses butter-beans- as the base, which have very similar benefits to chickpeas, full of fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals. A few apricots add a delicate sweetness with piquancy from the smoked paprika and a wee hit of heat from the cayenne pepper. 

Moroccan Butter-bean Dip

Ingredients

1 400g can of butter-beans, rinsed and drained

½ red pepper, sliced

3 dried ready to eat apricots

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 garlic clove, crushed

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

 1/4- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, its quite strong so taste then add more if you like

A pinch of cayenne pepper

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Simply add all the ingredients to a food processor and blitz until well combined.

2. Taste and adjust the seasoning

3. Add water to desired consistency.

4. Serve and enjoy on crackers, oatcakes, with raw veggie crudities.

And last but not least here is my absolute favourite dip, packed full of health enhancing ingredients! It's delicious, so simple to make and such a vibrant colour. I actually won first prize on Twitter with this recipe and won a whole hamper full of Fairtrade products from Liberation Nuts! 
So if you want to impress someone, make this!!

Beetroot & Walnut Dip

Beetroot is a powerful detoxifier, cleansing the liver and kidneys and walnuts are a great source of omega 3 fats which support heart and brain function.

Ingredients

250-300g cooked beetroot, vacuum packed

1 or 2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 handful of fresh coriander or flat leaf parsley (optional)

½ cup, (50g/2oz) walnuts

1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil or walnut oil

1 tablespoon of balsamic or apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon of tahini

Sea salt and black pepper

Method

1. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blitz to a coarse paste.

2. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, season with salt and pepper.

3. Enjoy!

Dips are also great as a topping for a baked sweet potato, one of my favourite lunches actually with caramelised red onions and tamari seeds on top. Super yum served with a big salad. Totally balanced, delicious, simple and healthy.

                          ....your health in your hands...