Lebanese Hummus

If you were to meet me and have any length of conversation with me, it would be obvious that I'm an American though you'd have a hard time placing where I'm from. I spent a good portion of my life in the Chicago area but don't have the "da Bears" kind of accent. I've lived in the south for close to 15 years now but haven't picked up the "y'all" way of talking either. In fact, most people think my speech is pretty neutral.

The reason for that is that I was blessed with a very unique upbringing, especially for the first 20 years of my life. I was born in France; my father Armenian by heritage and French by birth and my mother Polish by heritage and Belgian by birth. We immigrated to the United States when I was a baby but moved to Lebanon for a portion of my grade school years. Even though we settled in the Chicago area by the time I was in fifth grade, I had the opportunity to continue to travel with my family, going to Israel, Greece, and Italy.

Since I was so steeped in Near East and Middle Eastern culture, there are many recipes in our family that I learned from my mom, who learned them either from my father's mother or from the time we spent in Lebanon. Being Armenian, a culture which was heavily influenced by other countries, including Turkey, it has become difficult to know which are rooted in Armenia and which have slipped on in.

I actually called my parents before I started writing to see from where the recipe I use for hummus came. In this case, my mother picked it up from our time in Lebanon so this is that country's version. The only versions of hummus whose country I can definitely tell are those that are from America; roasted red pepper, spinach and artichoke, sun dried tomato, jalapeno; these things are not additions that the Arab nations that came up with the original dish would ever include.

As you can imagine, since I was raised with this version, it is my favorite. My daughter and husband also have learned to love this hummus. In fact, I made the batch in the picture this evening and we went through an entire packet of pita bread eating it. So, while there are many versions out there; this is ours, from Lebanon.

Lebanese Hummus

1 15.5 ounce can garbanzo beans (I prefer the Hanover brand; they process up much more smooth)
1 tablespoon tahini (sesame seed paste)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic; quartered
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Add all ingredients except olive oil to a blender. Blend hummus until smooth, then drizzle in olive oil, using more or less to get the desired consistency.

To serve, put hummus in a bowl, sprinkle with a little paprika and drizzle extra virgin olive oil around the edge if desired.