Spicy Cilantro Hummus

December 28, 2010 By Leanne Vogel November 8, 2017

I’m blogging from beautiful British Columbia tonight from a cabin in the middle of nowhere. I have my iPhone pressed up to the window and am working via a tethered one-bar connection, so my apologies on no opening snow filled picture tonight. With the experimental menu I’ve planned for our stay here I hope they’ll be many snowy pictures and tasty recipes to come. I enjoyed the hummus we made on Christmas day so much that it was the first thing I made when we got in this afternoon. Hummus has got to be my favourite condiment. It’s so versatile! Not only can it be used as a veggie dip but it works wonders as a spread in burgers, sandwiches, on pasta, added to soup… the opportunities are endless.

Protein facts

Chickpeas; like all beans, are a fantastic alternative protein to meats, cheeses and eggs and have fiber content that animal proteins don’t have. Beans also help increase your HDL cholesterol (a key to decreasing your risk of cardiovascular issues). Ideally, you want to have a variety of different proteins on a daily basis. This will ensure that you get an array of nutrients. If you’re interested in eating seasonally, beans like mung beans and animal proteins higher in fat such as the dark meat on turkey, are good choices in the winter. The trick of thumb to staying fuller longer and keeping your satiety high (high satiety keeps you fuller longer and keeps you from turning to less healthful snacks to bridge the gap from meal to meal) is to incorporate a form of protein at each meal. Try:

• Soaking a handful of cashews and/or almonds overnight, drain and add to hot or cold cereal in the morning: soaking nuts and seeds makes them much easier to digest.
• Pre-cooking chicken and cut into long strips or prepare a couple of hard boiled eggs on the weekend and pack in your lunch with some pasta sauce or a herb & oil mixture for dipping: I love using a mixture of paprika, cumin, and parsley, adding 1 tablespoon of flax oil
• Sprinkle seeds over top of your chili, soups, or pasta at lunch time
• Prepare a trail mix for afternoon snacks made up of hemp seeds, raisins, almond slivers, cacao nibs (if you crave sweetness), coconut shreds, dried cranberries, mini-figs (cause we all know how great figs are for you!), and pumpkin or sunflower seeds
• Enjoy hummus as a spread in your sandwich or as a vegetable or cracker dip

And with that, I introduce to you… spicy cilantro hummus. View Nutritional Information (once on page scroll down)

This entry was tagged: cilantro, hummus