Roasted Garlic Hummus with Whole Wheat Flatbreads

I like sugar.
It's so annoying!
I'm trying to quit.
(It is hard.)

This means making things that have no sugar.
What?  Sounds totally lame and boring.
I did not want to do it.

Then I remembered how much I love hummus and started to get my groove back.

We all know hummus is a good snack, but in our house, sometimes it's a meal, too.  I just pile up veggies with some flatbreads and hummus and we go to town.  Babies love it, too.  And it's healthy and sugar-free.  Win, win, win.

Do you like roasted garlic?  I just have to have it in my hummus.  It takes things to another level.  If you haven't roasted garlic, it's simple.  Just cut off the top of a head of garlic, put it on a small square of foil, drizzle it with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, wrap it up and roast it at 350 until the garlic is soft and golden brown.

And let's not forget the flatbreads- so good!  They come together in under and hour and are baked quickly on the stove top.  I love that I can decide to make them right before dinner and they're ready in no time.  Once you get the rolling technique down, the process is a breeze.

Any hummus lovers out there?

Any people that eat snack food for dinner?

Any one dying for some sugar?

(Me, me and me.)

Roasted Garlic Hummus
adapted from the Curvy Carrot
makes approximately 2 cups

2	heads garlic
2	tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil , plus extra for drizzling
2	thinly sliced garlic cloves
3	tablespoons juice from 1 to 2 lemons (I would use one, taste, and then add extra if you need it)
1/4	cup water
6	tablespoons tahini , stirred well
1	(14-ounce) can chickpeas , drained and rinsed
1/2	teaspoon salt, plus more for garnish

Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, cut top quarters off heads of garlic and discard.  Wrap the garlic head in aluminum foil, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast in the oven until browned and very tender, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil and the sliced garlic cloves in small skillet over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 5 minutes or so.  Watch them closely so they don't burn.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the garlic slices to paper towel-lined plate and set aside; reserve oil.

Once the roasted garlic is cool, squeeze cloves from their skins (you should have about 1/4 cup).   Combine lemon juice and water in small bowl or measuring cup.  Whisk together tahini and garlic cooking oil in second small bowl or measuring cup.

Process chickpeas, roasted garlic puree, salt, and cayenne in food processor until almost fully ground, about 15 seconds. Scrape down bowl with rubber spatula.  With machine running, add lemon juice-water mixture in steady stream through feed tube. Scrape down bowl and continue to process for 1 minute.  With machine running, add oil-tahini mixture in steady stream through feed tube; continue to process until hummus is smooth and creamy, about 15 seconds, scraping down bowl as needed.

Transfer hummus to serving bowl, sprinkle toasted garlic slices and parsley over surface, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand until flavors meld, up to 30 minutes.  Drizzle with olive oil, sea salt, sesame seeds and serve.

Whole Wheat Flatbreads
by Oven Love, adapted from Cookistry 
makes 12 flatbreads (3 WW Points Plus values each)

1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 tablespoon agave nectar (you can use honey or white sugar here, too)
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the water, yeast, and agave nectar (or chosen sweetner), and set aside for 5 minutes, until it begins to get foamy.

Add the whole wheat flour and salt and knead with the dough hook until the dough is smooth and beginning to become elastic.  Add the olive oil and continue kneading until the oil is incorporated and the dough is smooth, shiny, and elastic.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, the dough will have risen, but it won't be doubled. Take it out of the bowl, knead it briefly, and divide it into 12 roughly equal portions (I use kitchen shears or a large knife for smooth separation). They don't have to be exactly the same unless you're a perfectionist. I actually like the option of having some larger and some smaller.

Roll each portion into a ball as you would for buns, then flatten each one slightly. Cover them with a clean kitchen cloth so they don't dry out as you're working with them one at a time.

Assuming you're using a cast iron pan, heat the pan over medium-high heat while you start rolling the flatbreads. You don't need any oil - these are cooked in a dry pan.

On a lightly floured work surface roll the first flatbread to a 6-inch circle. It doesn't have to be exact, and it doesn't have to be a perfect circle. Brush off any excess flour and put the first flatbread in your frying pan. A little flour clinging to the flatbread is fine, but flour that falls off in the pan may burn so you want to remove as much as possible.

Start rolling the next flatbread while you're keeping an eye on the first. It will start forming bubbles and might puff up completely. It will take a minute or so to cook on the first side, depending on how hot your pan is. When the the bottom is lightly browned in spots but the bread is still completely soft and pliable, it's done on the first side.

Turn the bread over and cook on the second side for about 30 seconds or so. Again, you're looking for a few brown spots. If the bread is puffy, press it down with a spatula so the whole surface is contacting the pan. Press gently to deflate it, and watch out for escaping steam.

If you get a good rhythm going, you can have the next flatbread rolled when the first one is finished. If you have a large griddle, or if you're cooking them outdoors on your grill, you can cook two or three at a time. And here's another time saver. If you're cooking these on your grill, close the lid and they'll cook on both sides. No need for turning, unless you want more browning (or grill marks) on that second side.

Have a clean kitchen towel ready for your flatbreads. Put them on the towel and fold the sides over to cover them as they're done, and stack them up as you have more. They're best served right away, while they're still warm from cooking. If you want to reheat them later, just heat them briefly in your dry cast iron pan. A few seconds is all they'll need.