Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Ingredients:

2 whole red bell peppers (or 3/4 cup chopped jarred roasted red peppers)

1 - 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

juice of one large lemon

¼  cup tahini

2 tsp minced garlic (more or less to taste)

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp salt

pinch cayenne pepper or red chili flakes (optional)

salt to taste

Instructions for the peppers:

Skip this step if using jarred roasted peppers.

Place an oven rack about 5 inches from the broiler and turn on the heat. Remove core of peppers then cut into large flat pieces. Arrange pepper pieces, skin-side up, on a baking sheet. Broil 5 to 10 minutes until the peppers skin has charred. Add peppers to a resealable plastic bag, seal then wait 10 to 15 minutes until cool enough to handle. Or, add peppers to a bowl then cover with plastic wrap and wait 10 to 15 minutes. Gently peel away the charred pepper skin and discard. Reserve 1 to 2 pieces of the peeled roasted pepper pieces to use as a garnish when serving then roughly chop the rest.

For the hummus:

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the tahini and lemon juice and process for 1 minute, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process for 30 seconds more. Add the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the whipped tahini and lemon juice. Process for 30 seconds, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process another 30 seconds or until well blended. Add half of the chickpeas to the food processor and process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl, then add remaining chickpeas and process until thick and quite smooth; 1 to 2 minutes. Add the roasted peppers and continue to process for 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth. If the hummus is too thick or still has tiny bits of chickpea, with the food processor turned on, slowly add 1 to 3 tablespoons of water until you are happy with the consistency. Taste for salt and adjust as needed. Finely chop the reserved peppers. Spoon hummus into a bowl, make a small well in the middle and add the chopped peppers. Store homemade hummus in an airtight container and refrigerate up to one week. Makes about 2 cups.