“I’m sending along the recipe for my new obsession: roasted red pepper hummus. I’ve had so much since Saturday I may be a chickpea now myself.  I tend to always have this or a variation of it in my fridge for a go-to afternoon snack with celery and carrots, salad topper, or to serve when friends drop by for a casual drink on the deck. It takes about 10 minutes to whip up and can be made entirely based on what you like or what’s in season so have fun experimenting (and eating!),” shares Claire Matern, founder of ACheesemongersDaughter.com

Ingredients
1 can/15oz/425g chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tsp. baking soda
1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded (but kept whole)
3 small cloves of garlic, or 2 larger ones
juice of 1 lemon
olive oil, approx. ½ cup
tahini, approx. ¼ cup
salt and pepper, to taste
chives, for garnish (optional)

Instructions
In a small sauce pan, heat the chickpeas with the baking soda over a moderate heat
Add water to the pan and bring to a boil
Drain the chickpeas and add to the bowl of your food processor
To roast the pepper on the stove:
Turn the burner to high and rest the pepper directly over the flame until blackened.
Rotate until all sides have a nice colour on them (about 10-15 minutes)
Seal the pepper in a ziplock or paper bag for about 5 minutes (the steam will make peeling the pepper easier)
Peel and add the pepper to the chickpeas

Add the garlic, tahini, lemon juice, salt & pepper to the food processor
Pulse on high while adding a steady stream of olive oil (approx. ½ cup)**
Continue on a high setting until well blended and creamy
Spoon into serving bowl, smooth the top with the back of the spoon into a peak and garnish with fresh chives and a drizzle of olive oil

Note:
**The beauty of hummus is that everything can be adjusted based on your taste. After about a minute give the hummus a try and feel free to add additional amounts of any of the ingredients.

For more great recipes follow Claire Matern at:
www.acheesemongersdaughter.com
IG: @acheesemongersdaughter
T: @clairematern
FB: /acheesemongersdaughter