I have tried making a variety of different hummus recipes, and have loved each one. I am still amazed at how simple it is to make, and totally regret all the money I threw away by buying it pre-made in the grocery store.

As part of trying to stick (more or less) to a Paleo diet as part of my getting back on track for the New Year, hummus has been off my list, as it is made with chick peas, and they contain a lot of carbohydrates.

However, I have found a new hummus substitute and I couldn’t be happier. Drum roll please – Ta Da – Cauliflower Hummus 🙂

Seriously, this stuff is good, and I think that cauliflower should be crowned the new miracle vegetable! In the past I have made both rice and pizza crust using cauliflower. Recently I made cabbage rolls and substituted cauliflower for the normal rice with the ground beef. Who knew that it could transform itself into anything and everything (within reason)? 😉

So, I was flipping through my cookbook and I saw a recipe for Creamy Cauliflower Hummus. I had to give it a try. Jamie has mentioned using cauliflower in my hummus before, but I just hadn’t gotten around to it. But this past weekend I did!

We purchased an orange cauliflower, so that the colour of the hummus would seem more ‘normal’. Once we steamed the cauliflower to make it soft, it was used in my favourite hummus recipe as the chick peas. That was it! So easy, I wish I had thought of it first!

Of course, since sun-dried tomato hummus is my absolute favourite that was the flavour I wanted to make using cauliflower. It was good. It was a bit more watery than normal hummus, but if I didn’t steam the cauliflower so much, it might help to make the consistency a bit firmer. It tasted pretty close to ‘normal’ hummus. Not exactly the same but close enough that I will be making it again, and again.

So, you may have noticed that I have been using the same cookbook for the last couple of posts (including this one). You may remember that when Jamie and I were in the process of moving, I only had access to two cookbooks. The rest had been packed away. I learned from that experience that I have to give cookbooks more than just a passing glance. Reviewing each page and really reading the ingredient list has opened me up to a whole new world of recipes.

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Adapted from:
Practical Paleo – Creamy Cauliflower Hummus
Diane Sanfilippo, BS, NC

Ingredients:

• 1 head of orange cauliflower
• 2 1/2 tbsp tahini
• 1 lemon, juiced and zested
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp sun-dried tomato oil
• 12 sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil)
• 1/2 tsp red chili flakes

Directions:

1. Steam cauliflower and let cool to room temperature.
2. Add all ingredients into food processor and blend until smooth and creamy.
3. Amazing!