Hummus & Friends (Low-Fat With 6 Variations) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, liquid reserved
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional)

Preparation

Open the chickpeas and pour off about 4 tbsp of the liquid. Drain the rest of the liquid and rinse the chickpeas. Pusle them in a food processor along with the garlic.
Add the olive oil, lemon juice and pulse. Add 2 tbsp of the reserved liquid, salt, and paprika if using. Blend until very smooth and add in extra liquid a tbsp at a time if need be. Taste for salt & lemon juice. (I ended up adding more lemon juice). Let chill if not using immediately.
**VARIATIONS**.
**Horseradish-Dill Hummus: Add 1 tbsp prepared horseradish with everything else and then pulse in 1/4 cup fresh dill until finely chopped.
**Curried Green Onion Hummus: Add 2-3 tsp curry powder with everything else and then pulse in 1/2 cup chopped green onions until finely chopped.
**Shabby Sheik Hummus: Add 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp cayenne along with all the other ingredients.
**Roasted Red Pepper & Kalamata Hummus: Add 1 roasted red pepper, peeled & seeded (1/4 cup from jar) with everything else and then pulse in 1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives until finely chopped.
**Pizza Hummus: Add 1/4 cup chopped soaked sun-dried tomatoes with everything else and then pulse in 1 cup fresh basil until finely chopped.
**Jalapeno-Cilantro Hummus: Pulse in 1 seeded chopped jalapeno & 1/2 cup fresh cilantro until finely chopped.