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Chickpeas, those little blond orbs with the dimples that we usually buy dried or canned, begin life as a green legume that, like all peas, grows in a pod (below) and has to be shelled. Alice Waters knows this, and one day last week, when she was in Hollywood for the Julie & Julia premiere, she acquired some and made a puree for crackers. Sunday night, she sat down and wrote this dreamy account for The Daily Beast:

“Sunday morning at the Hollywood Farmers’ Market was just one of those magical moments—what an amazing diversity of summer vegetables! One of my favorite farmers, James Birch, had harvested a bushel of fresh chickpeas, and we spent the morning shelling them. After boiling the peas, we mashed them in a mortar and pestle with garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs and spread the bright green puree onto rosemary crackers. . . . So simple and so delicious!”

Brilliant, we thought, and imagined how her invention would taste with the addition of lemon juice and tahini. (Above, chickpeas growing in Turkey, by Duru…, Flickr.com)

We recently made raw hummus with dried chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) that had been soaked for 24 hours, then sprouted for another 72. There was no cooking at all in the raw version, just sprouted chickpeas, garlic, tahini, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper, and olive oil—everything a traditional hummus should have.

So, we thought, here we have the potential for yet another version of healthful hummus. This one wouldn’t be raw, it would be fresh, made from fresh, shelled chickpeas that would have to be boiled or steamed to tenderize them. We like steaming, because it doesn’t cook away so many nutrients.

You may find fresh chickpeas at a farmers’ market or a produce market with a lot of in-season specialties. But their availability is hit-and-miss. If you are a regular customer at a produce market, you might ask the market to notify you when a farmer brings in fresh chickpeas. It will be worth the wait. 

We love respecting culinary traditions, and it must be said that Arab women (hummus is an Arab food) would not make fresh chickpeas into hummus. During the one week of the year when fresh chickpeas are in season, Arab women would roast them like chestnuts until the skin is charred. Apparently the aroma is unforgettable.

Thus, we are straying from the playbook a bit. Here is our recipe for fresh hummus, using steamed fresh chickpeas. The color, like Alice Waters’s green chickpea puree, will be a lovely green.

FRESH HUMMUS

Makes about 3 cups

INGREDIENTS

2 cups fresh chickpeas, shelled and washed
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 to 1/3 cup organic tahini (sesame puree), to taste
Juice of two organic lemons
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup organic extra-virgin olive oil (for creamy texture)
Garnish: organic extra-virgin olive oil, paprika, finely chopped organic parsley and toasted organic pine nuts*

PROCEDURE

Steam the shelled chickpeas in a steaming basket for up to 5 minutes, or until tender. Mix together the chickpeas and garlic in a food processor; process well. Add tahini, lemon and salt, and process about five minutes. Add the olive oil, as necessary, to adjust the texture. The final product should be smooth and creamy. Check the seasoning and adjust to taste.

With a spatula, transfer the hummus to a flat plate or platter, smoothing and swirling it with the broad flat of the spatula. Sprinkle paprika and chopped parsley in the center and around the periphery, and mound some toasted* pine nuts in the center. Drizzle generously with extra-virgin olive oil.

To serve: Enjoy with whole wheat pita bread that has been painted with olive oil, sprinkled with sea salt and oregano, then grilled or toasted. (Crusty whole grain baguette slices also work well.)

*To toast pine nuts, spread them on a baking sheet and place in a preheated 350-degree oven. Leave for a few minutes, or until they start to turn golden. Remove immediately and cool.

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