Delicious Beet Hummus

This summer we signed up to be members in the Sommer Set Farm Community Supported Agriculture program. Each week we pick up our "share" of veggies from downtown Manteo. The fun thing about it is that we get things that we would have never bought at the store, so we are forced to experiment with new vegtables.

I have never been a picky eater but beets was one of those things I would never touch. I just thought they seemed weird. I always saw them at strange places like the Pizza Hut salad bar or somewhere gross like that. I think my mom used to cook them when we were growing up but I always just had this thing about them and wouldn't go near them.

My mom and other friends on Facebook had quite the laugh when I accidentally spelled beets "beats" on a Facebook status asking for advice on how to cook them. It was an accident, I swear! And regardless of my terrible spelling, I got over 20 comments with suggestions on what to do with the beets. My friend Kristen suggested making beet hummus. I figured since I love hummus maybe this would be an easy way for me to try beets for the first time and actually like them.

The recipe was super easy and didn't take long. I cooked the beets (about 6 of them- they were pretty small) in a covered pan with 1/4 inch of water in the bottom on 375 for about 15 minutes. (Just cook until you can easily put a fork in them.) Afterward I peeled them and cut them into cubs. Add half a table spoon of cumin (the recipe called for a whole tablespoon but I only used half), three table spoons of tahini (the recipe called for two but I used three to make the texture better), five table spoons of lemon juice, and chopped garlic scapes (they are the long green tops of garlic- we get them in our weekly share so we use them instead of garlic) and salt and pepper to taste.

Blend in the food processor until the texture is to your liking. (By the way- since becoming a vegetarian the food processor has become my best friend! What did I ever do without it? So perfect for making dressings, dips, and other fun stuff!)

Serve with pita points, cabbage, or raw veggies! We tried it first with cabbage leaves and then tried it with pita points and both were really good.

Not only is this delicious, but it is SO BEAUTIFUL!!! I think me and beets are going to get along just fine :-)

Ingredients:

-4 medium size beets or 6 small beets
-3 tablespoons tahini
-5 tablespoons lemon
-1/2 tablespoon cumin
-garlic or garlic scapes (however much you want!) I used about a tablespoon of chopped scapes but they are more mild then actual garlic cloves.