Zahav Hummus

Zahav hummus is a foodstuff from the Gods. Fortunately, the restaurant owner Michael Solomonov put out an amazing cookbook that features the recipe for it as well as the recipes for countless dishes served at the esteemed restaurant located in Philadelphia. My husband and I have dined at the actual Zahav on occasion but not nearly enough. It is so nice that I have my hands on this beautiful  cookbook so that I can create the amazing recipes at home.

My son calls this hummus his absolute fave. The flavor and texture is so dreamy.

When I make this I have to have a game plan as you must soak the dried chickpeas overnight. You also need to make a tehini sauce, although this can be made ahead and refrigerated or frozen. Then of course, cooking the chickpeas takes a good hour or so. Solomonov says the secret to mind-blowing hummus is overcooked and overpureed chickpeas. 

I hope you get to go to Zahav one day. In the meantime, make this fab hummus!

Basic Tehina Sauce

Makes about 4 cups

From "Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking"

By Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook

1 head garlic

3/4 cup lemon juice (from 3 lemons)

1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

2 generous cups tehina

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Break up the head of garlic with your hands, letting the unpeeled cloves falls into a blender. Add the lemon juice and 1/2 tsp. of the salt. Blend on high for a few seconds until you have a coarse puree. Let the mixture stand for 10 minutes to let the garlic mellow.

Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer set over a large mixing bowl, pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the solids. Add the tehina to the strained lemon juice in the bowl, along with cumin and 1 tsp. of the salt. 

Whisk the mixture together until smooth (or use a food processor), adding ice water, a few tablespoons at a time, to thin it out. The sauce will lighten in color as you whisk. When the tehina seizes up or tightens, keep adding ice water, bit by bit (about 1 1/2 cups in total), whisking energetically until you have a perfectly smooth, creamy, thick sauce.

Taste and add up to 1 1/2 teaspoons more salt and cumin if you like. If you're not using the sauce immediately, whisk in a few tablespoons of ice water to loosen it before refrigerating. The tehina sauce will keep a week refrigerated, or it can be frozen for up to a month.

Hummus Tehina

Makes 3 1/2 cups

From "Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking"

By Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook

1 cup dried chickpeas

2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cups Basic Tehina Sauce (see above), plus a bit more for the topping

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

Paprika

Chopped fresh parsley

Olive oil, for drizzling

Place the chickpeas in a large bowl with 1 tsp. of the baking soda and cover with water. (The chickpeas will double in volume, so use more water than you think you need.) Soak the chickpeas overnight at room temperature. the next day, drain the chickpeas and rinse under cold water.

Place the chickpeas in a large pot with the remaining 1 tsp. baking soda and add cold water to cover by at least 4 inches. Bring the chickpeas to a boil over high heat, skimming off any scum that rises to the surface. Lower the heat to medium, cover the pot, and continue to simmer for about 1 hour, until the chickpeas are completely tender. Then simmer a little more. (The secret to creamy hummus is overcooked chickpeas. Don't worry if they are mushy and falling apart a little.) Drain.

Combine the chickpeas, tehina sauce, salt and cumin in a food processor. Puree the hummus for several minutes, until it is smooth and uber creamy. then puree it some more!

To serve, spread the hummus in a shallow bowl, dust with paprika, top with parsley and more tehina sauce if you like, and drizzle generously with oil.