Beetroot Hummus
It is nice to wake up with a ray of sunshine on the eyelids, a sigh of wind on your cheeks, craving for ice cream and the song “Emozioni” by Battisti in your ears.
Happiness is like a glass of red wine, like the geraniums hanging from the grandmothers’ balconies, like my cat’s cover, and the flavour of watermelon in Summer. Dilated pupils, dimpled cheeks, crow’s feet at the sides of the eye: those are the symptoms of a natural state of serenity.
But what colour is the melancholy? This term is a combination of two Greek words: mélanos (black), and mélas, cholé (bile), so its meaning is “black bile”. It often happens in life to fall into negative emotions, but food can be useful in case like this. Today, we take from the pantry an ingredient that has the colour of happiness and at the same time is able to fight against the dark sides of melancholy: the beetroot.
In fact, in addition to its high content of minerals and vitamins and to its purifying and energetic properties, this root also contains betaine, a substance that can affect the brain, improve people mood and fight against a state of moderate depression.
The beetroot can be consumed in various ways, but I suggest you to blend it with lemon, olive oil, garlic, chickpeas, salt and tahini sauce, to obtain a creamy tasty hummus which is beneficial to the physical and mental health!
“Capire tu non puoi, tu chiamale se vuoi: Emozioni.”
The recipe
Ingredients for 4-5 people:
- 400 g beetroot;
- 300 g precooked chickpeas;
- 1 garlic clove – chopped;
- Some lemon juice;
- 1 table spoon extra virgin olive oil;
- 2 table spoons of tahini sauce;
- Some mint leaves;
- Some parsley- finely chopped;
- A pinch of salt;
- A sprinkling of pepper and turmeric.
Instructions:
- In a food blender, pour all the ingredients: beetroot, chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, oil, tahini sauce, mint, and salt;
- Blend until you obtain a smooth cream, if it is too thick, add more oil;
- Serve with a sprinkling of turmeric, pepper and chopped parsley.
My advices:
- There are different types of bread that originally accompanied hummus in the Middle East, such as unleavened bread orpita, however slices of toasted bread are also fine;
- This hummus is perfect alongside falafel (you can find my recipe here). It will give the dish a touch of freshness and the scent of Summer.
