Garbanzo Bean Dip

I've been wanting to make homemade hummus for a REALLY long time. For some reason I don't like buying it premade but will eat it like it's someone's going to take it away from my when I'm at my parents house. So I had resolved to make it last week and decided to buy the necessary ingredients when I went to the store. Well, one of the key ingredients in hummus is tahini (sesame paste). I went down the ethnic aisle of my grocery store to find a giant 12 oz bottle of tahini.... for $8.99. Well I am a crazy couponer and there is no way I am paying $8.99 for something I need about 2 Tbsp of. So I gave up on hummus for a while.

Then, we were at our local microbrewery with friends and I saw a stack of this local magazine. Inside was a recipe for white bean dip. The original recipe called for Great Northern beans but I thought maybe I could substitute garbanzo beans and make almost a hummus (minus the expensive tahini).

I made this on Father's day and paired it with slice cucumbers, baby carrots and wheat crackers. It was awesome! I had it again today for lunch. Super easy and very full of flavor.

Garbanzo Bean Dip

1 can (15.5 oz) garbanzo beans, drained
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
juice of 1/2 of a lemon
1/2 tsp cumin
sprinkle of paprika

Combine beans, garlic, oil, lemon and cumin in a blender. Blend until smooth. Garnish with a sprinkle of paprika.

Makes 4 servings. Per serving:

140 calories
4.4 g fat
21.3 g carbohydrate
4.0 g fiber
4.5 g protein