Hummus & Happy Days

​26 April 2025  (Saturday)

We were both up early; me at my desk very early to edit together yesterday's A Week at the Plot footage and upload to Planet Vegetaria.

Sunday Chat filming day, and whilst Richard started editing it together I made lunch of homemade hummus - a staple in our house which freezes REALLY well!  I’ve popped my recipe below.  It’s also so easy, and you can use your own cooked chickpeas instead of a tin, just ensure if they’ve been frozen they are well defrosted.

After lunch, I was at the plot doing the usual watering, checking on germination, tidying and weeding… at the end of my work there, sitting on my wooden chair outside the shed and mulling wending my way home, I checked the time on my phone… 5:03pm.  My eye wandered to my left, spying the overgrown flower border bed…

Into the shed I went, and grabbing my kneeler, putting my gloves back on, and laying my hands on a big 30l tub, I got to work.  Half an hour later the bed looked very much better - at least I can now see the plants for the weeds!  LOTS of weeds still to pull, and especially sturdy roots of tufted grasses and that pernicious Cinquefoil, though I can take my time doing some each week.  It will never be perfect, though in reality very, very few things ever are!

Whilst cooking supper I read another chapter or two of The Beautiful Mystery.  I’m now at that stage where I’m keen to finish it, though don’t want to as I’ve enjoyed reading it so much - a bit like when you meet a friend irregularly and after hours of chat you know you need to leave and make your way home, though at the same time you want to stay and chat for just that little bit longer.  If youi don't know the Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series, I highly recommend them!

Supper was followed by some TV, and we stayed up late, both fully engaged watching a fab series called 40 Hidden Music Treasures at the BBC… we watched volume two and there's volume three too, so two others to watch!

​Happy Days!!

My Hummus Recipe

I drained two cans of chickpeas very well, and added them to our food processor (keep a few tablespoons of the liquid - aquafaba - for if you want to use any later) and four cloves of garlic, roughly chopped.  I actually used a block of garlic from the freezer - I heated it through in the microwave to bring it to a steam, just because I don’t like eating vegetables from the freezer without cooking them.

In next, one tablespoon of Marigold bouillon powder (use a teaspoon of salt if you prefer) and five tablespoons of lemon juice (love fresh lemons, though I always have a large bottle of bought lemon juice in the fridge, which I use for this).  If you like your hummus less lemony use only four, and if you like it extra lemony use six!

Blitz this all up in the processor, or mash with a fork if you are doing by hand - doing this by hand you can keep this as chunky as you wish, or not, though it will never be smooth like you get in the shops.  I’ve not used a stick blender for this, though I would be interested to know how it works so please let me know, or I’ll give it a go myself at some point.

The fridge always has a large tub of tahini, which is sesame paste, and four generous tablespoons goes in, and I blitz again (or carry on mixing and mashing if doing by hand).  Scrape down the sides of the processor bowl to ensure all is incorporated, and blitz till smooth, or until you have the texture you wish.  If you like your hummus thinner, add some more lemon juice or a tablespoon or two of the drained aquafaba from the can.

I portion this up into plastic Tupperware or similar and freeze; I do 150g servings for two.  It will keep in the fridge happily for several days, and in the freezer for several months.  In the summer if I take out a tub at breakfast it's defrosted by lunch, and I give it a good stir.  In the winter it might need a quick wizz on Defrost in a microwave, or bring it out the day before and pop in the fridge to fully defrost.

I don't have a photo - though when I find one or make the next batch I will add!
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Weather:  Overcast start to the day, and remained so much of the day with the afternoon being bright and much warmer.

Breakfast:  Bran sticks, yogurt and sultanas
Lunch:  Homemade Hummus, Pitta, carrot batons, cucumber slices and a little leftover coleslaw
Supper:  Lidl Vegan Cumberland Sausage, roasted carrot, parsnips, onion and potato wedges with an instant onion gravy

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