We all need simple appetizer food around this time of year, right? My small group from church is having a Christmas party next week and I’m planning on bringing this Six Layer Mediterranean Dip. Colorful, healthy, and tasty! I occasionally make hummus “pizza” for lunch- basically pita bread with a layer of hummus topped with cucumbers, tomatoes, kalamata olives, red onion, and feta. I used this same combination of ingredients to create this six layer dip and served it with whole wheat pita wedges on the side. I love that this can be assembled ahead of time and it’s a fairly portable appetizer to bring along to gatherings. Although it’s best eaten on the same day it’s assembled (the cucumbers and tomatoes release a fair amount of water), the leftovers still made great packable lunch food for Ryan and the kids. So glad to have a new way to enjoy some of my favorite Mediterranean flavors.
- ⅔ cup dried garbanzo beans (chick-peas), soaked at least 6 hours
- juice of ½ lemon, plus extra lemon juice to taste
- ¼ cup tahini
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¾ teaspoon- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup diced English cucumber
- 1 roma tomato, diced
- 10 pitted kalamata olives, sliced
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
- ¼ cup crumbled feta
- whole wheat pita wedges for serving
- Drain the garbanzo beans and place in a saucepan with enough water to cover the garbanzo beans by 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower heat and simmer until tender, about 1 hour. Remove from heat and drain, reserving the cooking liquid for later use.
- In a blender or food processor, add the garbanzo beans, lemon juice, tahini, olive oil, garlic, cumin, salt, and ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon cooking liquid. Blend or process on high speed until hummus is smooth and creamy. Season to taste with additional salt and lemon juice.
- Spread the hummus in the bottom of a shallow bowl. Next layer the cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, onion, and feta. Serve with pita wedges.
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