Raw

I remember towards the end of "Sex & the City" Samantha met Smith at a restaurant where he was waiter. The restaurant only served raw food, which was a fad at the time. The food did not look appealing at all, surprising to a woman who grew up eating most of her vegetables raw.

Carrots, cucumbers, celery, bell peppers ... I always preferred them raw instead of cooked. Every Thanksgiving my family would try to get me to eat glazed carrots, telling me they tasted "just like candy." Never bought it. It was raw all the way for me. And while I still like my veggies raw, I do like to dress them up with some dip.

Enter hummus. I started eating it in 2006, when a co-worker made some and brought it in. I was hooked and started eating it regularly. But it wasn't until my son started eating it in 2009 that I decided to make it myself, in an effort ot eliminate any additives or preservatives. What took me so long?! It's so easy to make! The food processor does all the work! So if you like hummus dust off your food processor because I have two wonderful recipes to share.

5-Minute Hummus

Recipe adapted from Real Simple magazine
Total time: 5 minutes
Makes 1 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
  
• 1 clove garlic
  
• 1/4 cup olive oil
  
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  
• 2 tablespoons tahini
  
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. In a food processor, puree the chickpeas and garlic with olive oil, lemon juice, tahini, cumin and salt until smooth and creamy.
   
2. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons water as necessary to achieve the desired consistency.

Red Pepper Hummus

Recipe adapted from Souther Living magazine
Makes 2 cups

Ingredients:

• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  
• 1/2 cup roased red bell peppers, drained and chopped
  
• 1/3 cup tahini
  
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
  
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper
  
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

1. Process first 9 ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides.
   
2. With processor running, pour olive oil through food chute in a slow, steady stream; process until smooth.
   
3. You can also add water, by the tablespoon, to help achieve the desired consistency.