Roasted Carrot Hummus

Name: Roasted Carrot Hummus
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 400 g cannellini beans; 2 tbsp olive oil ((plus extra for drizzling)); 1 tbsp tahini; 0.5 lemon ((juice only)); 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper; 6 small carrots; 1 tsp harissa; 1 tbsp ras-el-hanout

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Diet: Gluten Free, Low Carb, Vegan

Hummus is a great snack when paired with some vegetables sticks and pita bread, but why not add some vegetables to it with this Carrot hummus! Some added vitamins and a subtle sweetness and it gives it a wonderful vibrant orange colour too. This would stand out on a party food table.

Orange coloured hummus in a blue dish next to pita breads and sliced carrots.

We eat a lot of hummus, and our kids love it too, so we are always looking for new flavours to add to it and ways to give it a veggie boost. When we were doing baby led weaning, hummus was a favourite and we added in vegetables wherever we could so that our kids were getting a portion of vegetables with every meal and snack. We tried spinach hummus, beetroot hummus, courgette hummus, but this roasted carrot hummus was the favourite because it was nice and sweet.

You can use it as a dip, or you can use it as a spread on a sandwich or even stirred in to pasta for something a little different and it goes really well on our Grazing Platter. It's a great way to us up carrots that are maybe a little bit past their best. If you are looking for some other ways to use carrots, then why not try our Air Fryer Carrots, Carrot and Coriander Soup or Carrot and Coriander Side Salad.

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Ingredients needed
How to make Roasted Carrot Hummus - Step by step
Why you should try it
Health benefits
Variations
Storage
Frequently asked questions
Extra tips
More dip recipes
Recipe
Feedback

Ingredients needed

Cannellini beans - This might seem strange for hummus, as it is traditionally made with chickpeas. We used cannellini beans because my husband is allergic to chickpeas. However, you can use chickpeas in this too.
Oil - We used extra virgin olive oil in this carrot hummus. Try to use the best quality oil you can, as you will be able to taste the difference.
Tahini - This is a paste made of sesame seeds and it is essential in hummus in my opinion. It is what gives it that smooth and creamy texture. You can find this in the world food aisle of most supermarkets. If you don't want to use tahini, then you can use the same amount of almond or peanut butter.
Lemon - A generous squeeze of lemon juice really lightens this dip up.
Carrots - The star of the hummus. The great thing about this recipe is that roasting the carrots really brings out their flavour, so using ones that are a little past their best is fine. You can mix things up and use some yellow and purple carrots too. Obviously this will change the colour of the finished hummus though.
Harissa - This adds a nice kick of heat and goes really well with the sweetness of the carrots.
Ras-el-hanout - A nice way to finish off the hummus and it adds lots of flavour.

How to make Roasted Carrot Hummus - Step by step

One: Peel and slice the carrots and put them in a baking tray with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.

Sliced carrots, oil and seasoning in a baking dish.

Two: Put them in the oven at 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 for 25 minutes until roasted.

The carrots now roasted in the baking dish.

Three: Put all of the ingredients (apart from the ras-el-hanout and rest of the olive oil) in a food processor with the roasted carrots and blend until smooth.

A blender jug containing beans, roasted carrots, oil and tahini.

Four: Put the hummus in a bowl and drizzle with the rest of the olive oil and the ras-el-hanout.

Why you should try it

A twist on hummus - Hummus is one of the best dips out there and the great thing about it is there are so many different ways you can make it. Adding carrots is a great twist on hummus, and adds some extra nutrients too.
A great way to use carrots - If you have some carrots in your fridge that are looking a little sad, then roast them up and add them to this hummus. It will bring them to life again.
Adaptable - We have added some harissa to ours for flavour, but there are other ways you can flavour it and we have given some options below.
Stores well - You can keep this in the fridge for a few days, which makes it great for making a big batch and keeping it for snacks and meals. Did you also know that you can freeze hummus!

Health benefits

Hummus is a really healthy snack option. You have protein from the beans, some healthy fats from the olive oil and tahini and then this has a healthy boost with the carrots too. Carrots are a good source of beta carotene, fibre, vitamins A and K1, potassium, and antioxidants.

Make this an even healthier snack by serving it with loads of vegetables sticks. We usually go with some carrot, cucumber, celery and bell peppers. Then some torn up pita bread on the side.

Carrot Hummus swirled with oil and ras-el-hanout.

Variations

The carrots do give this hummus a lot of flavour, but we could always do with some more flavour in our lives, right? We blended some harissa in to the hummus and then once it had been put in a bowl, we added a drizzle of good quality olive oil and then a sprinkle of ras el hanout, to make Moroccan Hummus. Not heard of ras el hanout before? You need some in your life! It's a North African spice blend that is made up of cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ginger and turmeric.

If you didn't want to use those flavours, then you could make a pesto version. Blend some pesto in to the hummus, and then add some fresh chopped basil on top before serving.

You could just keep it as the carrots and add a generous pinch of paprika for some smokiness. A pinch of cumin also goes really well with carrots.

If you like garlic in your hummus (and I mean, who doesn't?) then you can roast some garlic cloves in their skin at the same time as the carrots and then squeeze the garlic out of it's skin once roasted and blend it with everything else.

For a different type of hummus, try our Butter Bean Hummus.

Storage

Store: This will keep in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Freeze: If you are wondering if you can freeze hummus, then the answer is yes! Plain hummus tends to freeze better than flavoured hummus, but it will still freeze well. You can either put it in little air tight container and put it in the freezer, or you can put spoonfuls on to baking paper on a tray and then put that in the freezer (flash freeze). Once that is frozen, then you can peel them off the paper and put them in a freezer bag in the freezer. This is great for individual portions.

Defrost: You can defrost it in the fridge overnight. You will need to give it a really good stir before serving.

Carrot hummus topped with ras-el-hanout in front of cut carrot tops.

Frequently asked questions

Can you make carrot hummus in advance?

You can roast the carrots ahead of time if you are making this for a party, but the hummus itself is best blended up just before you will be serving it. Hummus can start to dry out a little after a while, so this is best enjoyed right away.

Is carrot hummus gluten free?

Yes, as long as you make sure that there is no cross contamination, this can be gluten free.

Is carrot hummus vegan?

Yes, this is a vegan recipe.

Do I have to roast the carrots?

No, you don't have to but we really recommend you do. Roasting them really brings out the sweetness and gives them a nice caramelised edge. If you want to make this carrot hummus a little quicker, then you can just boil the carrots until soft and then follow the rest of the recipe.

Extra tips

• We used cannellini beans because it's what we had in the cupboard, but you can use chickpeas to keep it a more traditional hummus.
• You can use this recipe to make other kinds of vegetable hummus too, like beetroot or courgette.
• Feel free to experiment with flavours in this hummus - you could give it a Mexican twist by using Mexican seasoning.
• Serve the hummus with vegetable sticks and pita bread.
• You will need to use a high powered blender for the best results as it will get the carrot hummus nice and creamy.
• To make the hummus even lighter, add a couple of tablespoons of the water drained from the beans.

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