Caramelised Onion Hummus

My children seem to hungry all the time. We eat breakfast and they’re already thinking about lunch and there’s no way they can make it to dinner without a hearty snack. Well let’s be honest neither can I. But I do need to be ready with a quick, healthy snack idea to stop the kids reaching for a bag of crisps.

Hummus is a perfect snack and a great way to get in a good helping of veg with all those lovely crudites. I love any kind of hummus but I think caramelised onion is my favourite. This is really easy to make. The onions are ready in 10 minutes and then it’s just a case of blitzing everything together.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
• 1 small clove of garlic, crushed
• 1 can of chickpeas, drained
• 3 tablespoons of tahini
• Juice of half a lemon
• 2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon of salt

Method

• Heat your oil in a small pan and gently fry your onion for 5 minutes until it’s soft. Then stir in the sugar and cook for a further 5 minutes. It should now be nicely caramalised but still soft rather than crispy.
• Pop all of the ingredients, including the onion, into a blender and blitz. Add water a tablespoon at a time until you have the right texture. I like it quite course so that it still has a little texture but blend this until smoother if you prefer.

To Serve

Here are a few things I like to eat with this delight:

• Chopped raw veg like carrots, celery, peppers, baby sweetcorn, cucumber
• Cooked veg such as potato or sweet potato wedges
• Bread sticks
• Sturdy bread like ciabatta
• Crackers
• Slathered on cooked corn on the cob
• Spread on sandwiches or wraps
• On toast with a poached egg
• Served with a simple cous cous salad