Sweet Potato Hummus. Cajun Spiced. Tartine too.

I don't know why I didn't think making Sweet Potato Hummus sooner. It combines two of my most favorite foods: sweet potatoes and hummus!

For this hummus, I add in Cajun spices, rich nutty tahini and even nutritional yeast. The Cajun seasoning gives each bite a bright, warm heat - but not too bold so it doesn't overpower the mild potato and bean flavors. This hummus is soft and savory with hints of bitterness and nuttiness breaking into the sweetness from the golden sweet potato. And really, you can season the base recipe however you'd like. Sweet potato lovers - dive into this recipe!..

Spread it! Adding a sweet potato to your hummus gives it a denser texture which makes it perfect for slathering onto sandwiches and pitas - even bagels.

Sweet Potato Hummus, green apple, red onion tartine ..

Sweet Potato Hummus Apple Tartine
makes two slices

2 slices whole wheat sourdough, spelt – or another toasted bread
4-6 tablespoon sweet potato hummus (recipe below)
½ green apple, thinly sliced
½ small red onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon olive or grape seed oil
pepper to taste

To Assemble: Slather toasted bread in hummus. Add the apple, onion and drizzle of oil.

Dip it! Add some fresh chopped fruit and veggies and serve it as a wonderfully creamy dip...

Cajun Spiced..

Hummus Meets Sweet Potato. I've always loved this combo. One of my first blog recipes ever was a sweet potato hummus pita. It involved a creamy combination of rich garlic hummus mashed into a baked sweet potato. The mixture was stuffed into chewy-soft, toasted pita - with plenty of greens and orange-accented cranberry sauce to perk it up. It was a Thanksgiving recipe.

But this recipe is perfect for everyday. It has a bit more body than a traditional bean-based hummus.

Healthy Dip! This dip is super healthy because it contains fiber rich sweet potatoes and beans. Plus vitamin A, iron, potassium, B vitamins and more. Plus the combo of protein, fat and complex carbohydrates will keep you satisfied for a while. Perfect lunchtime recipe!

Reduce the Fat. You can reduce the added oil in this recipe if you'd like. Replace the oil with some zesty orange juice or a splash of soy milk to loosen the blend.

Make it Soup! You can actually turn this mixture into a yummy sweet potato soup by adding in 1 cup of soy milk or vegetable broth (soy milk makes for a creamier soup - or you can use a combo of both). You will need to transfer the mixture to a pot on the stove to simmer until heated since the beans are not heated when pureed.

This recipe would also be lovely spread into a Sweet Potato Glow Spiral..

Spiced Sweet Potato Hummus
vegan, makes about 3 cups

1 cup oven-baked sweet potato (skin removed)
1 ½ cups garbanzo beans, drained
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoon tahini
4 tablespoon grape seed oil (or olive oil, walnut oil..)
⅓ cup nutritional yeast (optional)
1-2 teaspoon agave or maple syrup
optional: ¼ cup orange juice - for a zesty sweet accent of flavor!
salt and spice to taste*

* I used Cajun seasoning and seasoned salt from Penzey's Spices
* Add more oil/vinegar for silkier hummus - if desired. For lower-fat version: sub some or all of the oil with low-fat soy milk or orange juice.

Directions:

1. Add all the ingredients to a Vitamix of Food Processor.
2. Pulse or blend until smooth. For chunkier hummus - pulse the mixture and keep a few of the beans half-chopped instead of pureed. I went with a full on puree for creamier hummus.