Sweet Potato Hummus

Ingredients

• 1 medium-to-somewhat-large sweet potato (8 to 14 ounces)
• ⅓ cup tahini
• 2 medium cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
• Zest of ½ lemon (about 1 teaspoon)
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 to 3 tablespoons cool water, as needed
• 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas
• Up to ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, for spice)*
• Optional garnishes: Olive oil, cayenne pepper, or sesame seeds

Steps

1. 1

   Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake the sweet potato on the middle oven rack or in a baking dish for 45 minutes to 1 hour. It will yield to a gentle squeeze when it’s done baking.

2. 2

   While the sweet potato is cooling, combine the tahini, garlic, lemon zest and juice, salt and cumin in a food processor. While processing the mixture, drizzle in 1 tablespoon of the water. Blend until the mixture is super creamy, pausing to scrape down the bottom or sides as necessary (you may need to add 1 to 2 more tablespoons of water if your tahini was thick).

3. 3

   Add the drained chickpeas and process until the mixture is completely smooth, about 2 minutes. Once the sweet potato has cooled enough to handle, use a knife or your fingers to peel off the skin. Discard the skin and add the sweet potato flesh to the food processor.

4. 4

   Blend until the mixture is completely smooth, about 1 minute. Taste, and blend in a pinch or two of cayenne pepper if you’d like your hummus to taste spicy. Enjoy as is, or garnish it with a drizzle of olive oil, a light sprinkle of cayenne pepper or sesame seeds. This hummus will keep well in the refrigerator for about 1 week.