Guest Post: Hummus!

Woo Hoo for another fabulous Mommy Guest!

Jenni is an old college buddy of mine (Sarah)! She and I were both Chi O's at Texas A&M. She writes a fabulous blog about her precious family of three..errr four, including her Labrador, Aggie. She has an adorable son, Connor, whom I'm determined to make Carter's friend someday. I think one of the greatest things about reading long-time friend's blogs is watching everyone change and become "adults" with Big-People lives, like working, getting married, owning homes, moving, and parenting. Isn't growing up so much fun!?

Anywho, she is a really sweet mommy and I just love reading about so many of their sweet family moments.

With out further ado...(insert trumpet sounds!!) here is Jenni sharing a bit of how they love learning in the kitchen:

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For several months now, my 19 month old, Connor, has loved to "help" do things. We regularly make Hummus in our house because he loves it so much! He has always been really interested in watching me make it, so why not let him help? He pulls a stool up to the counter and away we go. (Just be careful with your little one's fingers around the food processor blades!)

We talk about the different ingredients and using measuring spoons and cups as we put everything together. My assistant does slow things down a little and can sometimes make the recipe slightly messy, but the experience for both of us is worth it! Maybe someday he'll like to cook like his Daddy? His favorite parts to help with, of course, are pushing the button to blend and tasting the final product!

Here is our simple Hummus Recipe, slightly modified version of
Real Simple's 5-Minute Hummus:

Ingredients

• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed (reserve the liquid)
• 1 clove garlic (we use 2 tsp minced garlic in water)
• 1⁄4 cup olive oil,
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• a pinch of kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• Optional: A couple of dashes of hot sauce (Mom and Dad like this extra kick, but we haven't tried it with Connor yet!)

Directions:

1. In a food processor, puree the chickpeas and garlic with the olive oil, lemon juice, cumin, and a pinch of salt until smooth and creamy.
2. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons reserved chick pea liquid as necessary to achieve the desired consistency.
3. Enjoy with crackers, pitas, fresh veggies, or if you are like my son, just with a spoon!

And here is a video of the little guy assisting with the final stage of our Hummus making during lunch one day. (He gets slightly distracted by the camera!)