Once more I shall commit the sin of stretching the name of my favorite dip, traditionally made with garbanzo beans, tahini, and very few other additions. I think zucchini is one of the most versatile veggies, and this dip proves the point. Plus, it is delicious! I originally saw it at Angie’s blog Divalicious Recipes in the City, and tweaked her recipe ever so slightly. Angie has a ton of creative recipes in her site, I actually linked one of her cauliflower concoctions in a recent post, and intend to make it soon. As far as this dip goes, you should definitely play with the amount of tahini, lemon juice, and feel free to even add some garbanzo beans in case you want to get one step closer to the title of the dish. 😉
ZUCCHINI HUMMUS
(slightly adapted from Divalicious)
2 medium zucchini
1/4 cup tahini
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove of garlic (optional)
1/4 cup lemon juice
zest of half lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.
Taste and adjust the seasonings. I like to sprinkle a little smoked paprika on top of the dip before serving, but that is totally optional, of course! Ak-Mak crackers are the perfect carrier for this dip.
ENJOY!
to print the recipe, click here
We had a pizza party the other day. My favorite type of get-together, in which I make plenty of balls of dough, and we take turns adding all sorts of toppings, some will be vegetarian-friendly, some loaded with meat, according to the mood of the moment. The house is kept cool because we grill the pizzas outside. In this type of event, appetizers must be light, and for obvious reasons, cheese is out. Who wants to load up on cheese before facing a pizza dinner? I prefer to serve hummus, either the traditional version or some variation, like my edamame hummus of the past. This version with zucchini turned out super light and flavorful, a perfect option for our evening.
If you are a zucchini-lover, don’t skip this one. Winner!
ONE YEAR AGO: In My Kitchen – October 2013
TWO YEARS AGO: Bourbon and Molasses Glazed Pork Tenderloin
THREE YEARS AGO: Crimson and Cream Turkey Chili
FOUR YEARS AGO: Taking a break from the nano-kitchen
FIVE YEARS AGO: Chocolate Chip Cookies
How very interesting, and delicious (!), Sally…. saving this for summer when I’ve got home grown zucchini!
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Home grown zucchini! What a treat… yes, for sure save that for when Summer arrives….
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Looks great! But what is Tahini? Do you have something as a substitute if I can’t find it? Any info is appreciated!
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Tahini is a toasted sesame seed paste. You should be able to find it in your grocery store’s middle eastern/imported food aisle, or any organic health food store. You can even make your own.
http://www.daringgourmet.com/2014/05/21/how-to-make-homemade-tahini-paste/
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Problem is the extent of my local grocery store’s international area has chow main noodles and that’s about it. 🙂 I’ll wait til I get to Wally World or down to an actual Asian market. Funny thing when you move to a small town with no imagination 150 miles from the nearest larger city, 🙂
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I’m glad you have a source even if it’s far away. I’m lucky to have a couple of good Asian grocery stores nearby. Even an actual Japanese/organic grocery store even if they don’t carry yuzu. 🙂
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Thanks for helping out! 😉
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Thank you for the info by the way. Know where to get it now! 🙂
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@ snowfox66 – here in Australia we have a plethora of wonderful online Asian/Middle Eastern stores – usually huge choice, high quality, stuff you have not ever heard of and low freight . . . I live semi-rurally but use 2-3 such stores + favourite spice merchants in town! Ask Mr Google!
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Nice! Keep up the great recipes! 🙂
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I see you got your answer already…. sorry it took me too long to take care of the comments… 😉
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No prob. Thank you. 🙂
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🙂
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Looks like a deliciously-twisted Arabic dish!
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I love a little twist on classics… not too drastic, of course 😉
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[laughing!] Now you should know by now how ‘finicky’ I am about names but you did say ‘hummus’ in inverteds!! Since I absolutely live on zucchini and have never put them and tahini together this sounds so moreish I’ll get some extra zucchini [even if slightly out of season] during my weekend shop and try! Actually I would pile this on hot grainy toast for breakfast: yum!!! Thank you for ‘Divalicious’ too: what an interesting blog – shall be reading for awhile 🙂 !
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I know! Just to be on your good side, I decided it was best to use quotation marks… 😉
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Have made over the weekend and love it!!!!! Thanks a bunch!!!!
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I will try this….. looks yummy!
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It was very tasty, I am always happy to find a good type of dip for parties
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Yum! I’ve pinned a zucchini hummus recipe on Pinterest: I’ll have to compare it to this one and see how both go! I’m a fan of any kind of “hummus”
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There are actually quite a few zucchini “hummus” around – this is a very pure version, but I’ve seen others including white beans, chickpeas etc
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Thanks for the link back. The picture looks delicious!
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Great to see you here! Glad you enjoyed the post….
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Ok this is an interesting and delicious twist!! Totally creative and a must try!
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I love the color and the texture, very smooth…
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I have seen hummus with various ingredients, but never zucchini ! Great idea and with plenty of zucchini at summers end, this is perfect. I love the color too!
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My first time using zucchini in this type of preparation… So far, I have not tried a recipe using zucchini that I did not like…
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The lighter texture from zucchini sounds so good! I can never resist a good dip, and hummus in any guise sounds good to me!
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Same here… any departure on hummus is great for me.. I think the tahini is the key ingredient.
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This is such a pretty coloured dip to set on your table along with the regular version. It’s amazing what you can do with vegetables.
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Isn’t it amazing? And to think that it is raw zucchini, no need to even cook it – pretty nice!
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Ak-mak crackers might be the best way to get this wonderful dip into your mouth but a spoon would work rather well for me.
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A spoon could be all we need!
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A great way to get your dip fix and your veggie servings all in one bowl!
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double the pleasure!
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Truly original! What a better way to use the abundant of zucchinis, plus you get that beautiful green color which I like so much.
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So many people are dealing with zucchini overflow, I guess it’s a good way to put a couple of them to use!
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This is a terrific idea and a great way to use up extra zucchini.
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Glad you liked it!
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I love hummus Sally and your looks delicious!! Colorful too!
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We eat with the eyes first, right? Love a nice color….
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What a wonderful idea for zucchini, Sally! I would love it!!
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Give it a try, it kept well for a couple of days…
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Fascinating! Definitely unique. Are there supposed to be beans in the recipe? Is this really straight up zucchini?
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Hi, Mimi! In this recipe no, just zucchini, but you can definitely add it and it will be awesome too, a little more creamy, I suppose.
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I’m intrigued Sally, I’ve never had zucchini hummus before. I need to try this asap!
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Gee, Sally. If you think making hummus with zucchini is a sin, than am I ever in a heap of trouble! 😉 Nevertheless, I agree with you that zucchini is a very versatile veggie and think this is a great substitution. Actually, I’ve yet to meet a hummus I didn’t like. I’m sure to like this one, too.
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I read this a while back and just want you to know it’s on my list to make! Looks great!
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