Why do I always wait until I am starving to go to the grocery store?  Inevitably, every time I start making strange impulse purchases because all I can think about is eating immediately.  True story – the last time Sarah and I went together, I bought a two-liter of light lemonade and chugged half of it in the parking garage.  Who does that?

Don’t answer that.

I am always tempted by prepared foods because for some reason in the moment, it always just seems easier.  And then I remember that I have a pantry that could sustain us for 6 months waiting back at home, and there is absolutely no reason I can’t “prepare” the foods in my own kitchen.  One of my frequent temptations is store bought hummus, which is particularly ridiculous because it’s so darn easy to make.

Yesterday afternoon we did the post-vacation-restock-the-fridge shopping trip to Trader Joe’s, where I successfully passed up all the $3.99 tubs of creamy flavored hummus, and grabbed a can of $0.89 garbanzo beans instead.  This one was definitely worth making myself.

Creamy Basil Hummus

Print this recipe!

Ingredients:  (makes ~2 cups)

• 1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup basil leaves
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp tahini (sesame paste)
• 1 tbsp water
• pinch of salt (to taste)

Instructions:  The great thing about making hummus at home is that I almost always have all of the ingredients on hand. 

My basil plant was looking a little sad after a week of getting no attention while we were in South Carolina, so I figured I’d do some pruning upon our arrival back home. 

Roughly one cup loose leaves.

Get started by tossing chickpeas into a food processor…

And adding the basil on top.  Pulse to combine until chopped.

Add lemon juice, water, olive oil, tahini, and salt.  Continue to run the food processor (stopping to scrape down sides every once in a while) until the hummus is smooth and creamy.

Easy as that.

I used a modified version of the base recipe that I made for O Magazine last month, and thought that adding basil might spruce things up just a little bit as I cling on to our last month of summer.  Or first month of summer if you live in Seattle.

This hummus is delicious as a dipper or a spread.  There’s just enough basil to give a great herby flavor without being overwhelming.

Generously smeared across crusty toasted sourdough and topped with sliced cucumbers.  Highly recommended!

However you choose to use it, I hope this finds its way into your kitchen while the basil is fresh and the cucumbers are crunchy.

Enjoy!

Since I was lucky enough to have today off, I took advantage of the extra day and headed to my favorite little coffee shop so I could focus and get my work done. 

I spent the morning working on blog stuff and catching up on emails.  Don’t I look intense?  :)

Now that Casey and I both have laptops, it’s nice that we can get out of the house and work together.  If I worked from home, I think I would go here every single day!  Some people hang out in bars, we like to hang out in coffee shops – to each their own.  :)

I got hungry mid-morning, and dug into my bag for another one of the Pure Bars I was sent to review – this time it was cranberry orange!

These are small, but very dense, and  I like the texture a lot better than LaraBars.

Good ingredient list – nothing cooked, nothing processed, completely PURE…

Isn’t this place cute?

We worked all morning and I felt really caught up and good about what I got done.  It is so fun having days off and getting to work at home with Casey – wish I could do it every day!

By the time we got home at 2pm, I was starving.  I busted out the fixings to make a leftover vegetarian sandwich…

Leftover green beans, tempeh, hummus, and avocado on an English muffin, mmmmmmm.

This avocado tried to get out of becoming sandwich fixings by getting all mushy and un-sliceable.  But I was one step ahead of him and smeared him all over the top piece of my muffin like a spread.  Gotcha!

Who says you can’t put green beans on a sandwich? 

It’s all about getting creative with your leftovers.  Nothing should ever ever go into the garbage can.  The best meals and recipes typically come from combining flavors and ingredients that don’t seem like they should be together!

Delicious lunch = full belly.  :)

Working on a special post for you guys that I’ve been promising for over a year now… coming soon!