I think by now, most of us are well acquainted with regular hummus. Most of us love hummus because it fulfils that need for something creamy, tasty and filling. It has a sort of ‘hard to describe’ citrusy – tahini – garlic – chickpea fusion.

It’s the prefect plant-based food full of healthy essential fats, high in protein and excellent for it’s well rounded nutritional profile.

However, today we are going to do something really delectable and add smoked paprika. Smoked paprika in hummus, takes this delicious dip to a whole new level!

In the English language, Paprika basically means a ground spice created from red, sweet pepper ‘Capsicum annum’ of various varieties.

In some other languages the actual fruit (bell pepper or sweet pepper) is also call Paprika.

Paprika is often associated with Hungarian cuisine, although I’ve heard that it actually originated in Mexico and found its way to Spain in the 16th century. It is very well travelled.

There are quite a number of varieties of paprika. I have noble sweet here at home too. My favourite however, is ‘smoked’ paprika, which also happens to be the essential ‘magical’ ingredient in this recipe.

Regular paprika is usually made by drying the peppers in the sun, until they are dry enough to grind.

Smoked paprika takes thing into a whole new culinary arena. It is made with a special variety of pepper – pimiento peppers. Once the peppers are dried, they are then smoked. Traditionally this is done over real wood like oak. The result is an unique and exciting, intense, smokey, sweet flavour!

A note on tahini…

Tahini is a beautiful creamy paste made from sesame seeds.

There are lots of different tahini’s out there; all with different tastes (and to be quite honest, it can be a bit off-putting if you get a grainy bitter one). However, that is only ‘usually’ an issue unless you are eating off the spoon on its own like I sometimes do ha ha ha. If can, make sure you get a creamy, delicious version of tahini.

I must warn you though, if you stumble on to a delicious source of tahini, you’ll probably get hooked on the stuff, just like we have! For more about the health benefits of eating seeds check out my article here: The Importance of Eating Seeds for a Healthy Diet

Smoked Paprika Hummus - vegan, gluten-free deliciousness! Yield: 4 portions Prep Time: 5 minutes Total Time: 5 minutes Smoked paprika hummus recipe. A delicious take on traditional hummus! Print Ingredients 200g (1 cup) chickpeas (cooked)

3 tablespoons tahini

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 large clove of garlic

4 tablespoons water

3 tablespoons lemon juice Instructions Juice the lemons and discard the skins. Blend all the ingredients together using either a food processor, jug blender or hand blender - until creamy smooth. You can eat this right away, although it works best when chilled first. Serves well with pitta bread, crackers or with salad. Don't forget to add a sprinkle of paprika on top to be posh.

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