Hummus

Hummus is a middle-eastern dip made with chickpeas. There are so many varieties of hummus like roasted garlic hummus, roasted red pepper hummus, cilantro hummus...etc. The main ingredient in all of them is chickpeas. It can be used as dip for pitas or as a spread for falafal. It is mixed with a paste called Tahini which is nothing but a sesame paste. You can either buy it from grocery store or make it at home. You can find it at Indian stores, Middle-eastern store or at Walmart. I found it easier to make it at home, so I am giving you the homemade recipe too.
Tahini
White sesame seeds - 1/2 cup
Olive oil or vegetable oil - 1/8 cup or half of quarter cup

Method
Dry roast the sesame seeds till it turns golden colour.

Let it cool. Grind it in a blender with the oil. This will be like a thick sauce. This can be stored in fridge for three months. This is what you get from grocery store. Thick consistency is needed for making hummus. To make it thinner add some water & continue blending. This thin sauce is used to drizzle over falafal sandwich. Shelf life of thin sauce is shorter because of added water. It can be stored for 3 days in  refrigerator.

Hummus 
Cooked chickpeas - 1 cup
Tahini -1/2 cup
Roasted garlic - 3 cloves
Lemon - 3/4
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Method
Place the chickpeas, tahini, garlic, lemon juice,seasonings & some water in a blender.

Process until smooth, adding little more water if necessary. Transfer the contents into a shallow bowl. Mix some olive if you like. This can be stored in a fridge for one week. While serving as a dip garnish it with some paprika, black olives & parsley.