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I know what you are thinking. Pizza hummus?? Yup, and it’s fabulous! I mean, pizza flavored anything is amazing and hummus is a crowd favorite, so what can go wrong? Absolutely nothing.
But first, let’s talk about why you should sprout chickpeas, as well as most other legumes. I have a whole post on why soaking and sprouting grains and legumes provides more nutrients and are better digested in our guts. In summary, grains and legumes contain anti-nutrients, lectins and phytates, that can cause digestive distress and we aren’t able to properly absorb the nutrients that they contain. In order to reduce these anti-nutrients, we can soak and sprout grains and legumes to activate the enzymes that reduce lectins and phytates, making the nutrients much more bio-available.
Soaking and sprouting may sound complicated, but this process is actually quite easy. It takes 2-3 days for the entire process, but so worth it in the end.
Chickpeas, or garbanzo beans, are one of my favorite beans. They are packed with protein and fiber, as well as important minerals like calcium, potassium, zinc, folate, manganese, magnesium. Why would you want to waste away these amazing nutrients by not soaking and sprouting your chickpeas? Find the step-by-step instructions on how to sprout your chickpeas at the bottom of this post!
Of course, one of the main reasons why I love chickpeas is because HUMMUS! I’ve made delicious paleo hummus using cashews as the base, but I was extremely excited to make hummus using sprouted chickpeas after I introduced grains and legumes back into my diet. And this version is quite fantastic, if I do say so myself.
It’s crazy how I come up with recipe ideas. I was searching for a gluten-free pizza crust recipes last week so I was looking at all the pretty photos of delicious looking pizza pies online, and then I got the craving REAL bad. That’s when I decided I want a pizza flavored hummus. I thought it might be a bit weird but then I was like, who doesn’t love pizza?
How to Sprout Chickpeas
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried chickpeas
- Water
Instructions
- Rinse the chickpeas and place them a jar or a container.
- Pour in water until it covers 2-3 inches above the chickpeas.
- Soak for 24 hours. The chickpeas will swell and double in size.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas.
- Place the moist chickpeas in a colander or a wide strainer, and store on top of a kitchen towel or a large bowl so the water can drip out. Keep out of direct sunlight.
- Rinse and drain every 8-12 hours for 1-2 days until the chickpeas sprout and the tails are about 1/4 inch long.
- Once they are sprouted, rinse for the last time and let them air dry.
- Store in a the fridge for up to 1 week.
- You can eat sprouted chickpeas raw or cooked. Raw ones have a more "grassy taste" that some people find unpleasant. If you decide to cook them, they require a much shorter cook time than unsprouted chickpeas. To cook, place sprouted chickpeas in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil, then turn down the heat to simmer. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes, then drain.
Sprouted Pizza Hummus
Ingredients
- 1 cup sprouted chickpeas, raw or cooked (see instructions above)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp sesame oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp flax meal
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 tbsp water + more, if necessary
Instructions
- Place everything into a food processor.
- Blend until smooth and creamy.
- If the mixture is too thick, add 1 tsp of water at a time, and puree until it reaches the right consistency.
I tried sprouting chickpeas and after about two days they started to smell really weird. I looked at other websites trying to figure out what I did wrong. I think it might be lack of air-flow. Do you cover your sprouted when they are doing the initial soaking? Do you think lack of air-flow might be the problem?
Let me know how it goes! It’s crazy how much it tastes like pizza. 🙂