Catastrophe Kitchen | Beet Hummus with Yogurt Sauce and Mint

Why settle for boring beige hummus like everyone else? A star like you deserves HOT PINK hummus and nothing less! Drizzle it with oil or push this main character hummus right over the top with a garlicky dill yogurt sauce, salty feta, and fresh mint, for an absolute banger of a spring snack. I only use one small beet, so it contributes mostly color (not taste) to this high-protein dish. A few more shortcuts: my recipe is made with canned chickpeas and a microwave (gasp!)-- but don’t worry, it’s delicious every single time. It requires about 20 minutes of hands-on time, then needs at least 2 hours to chill in the fridge. (I like to make it a day before I’m planning to serve it, just to make it easier.) Be sure to refrigerate the sauce and hummus separately, and add the toppings at time of service. Pack this colorful hummus in lunches, serve it as a showstopping appetizer, or snack on it all week long. You will need: 1 small beet1 16-oz. can chickpeas1/4 t baking soda4-5 cloves garlic½ cup tahini½ teaspoon Diamond kosher salt2-4 Tbsp ice water2-3 T Olive oil2 lemonsFor the sauce and toppers:1 single-serving cup Greek yogurt (about 5 oz)¼ cup of fresh dill (about 2 Tbsp dried)½ cup fresh mint4 oz. feta cheese, crumbledToasted pita and/or fresh veggies for serving First, cut the top and bottom off of your beet and poke it with your knife all the way around. Submerge it ¾ of the way in water in a microwave safe dish and microwave it for 10 minutes. When the beet has finished cooking, set it aside to cool.While the beet is cooking, dump your can of chickpeas into a microwave-safe bowl and cover with water by about an inch. Peel three cloves of garlic and add them to the bowl (I just whack them pretty hard on the counter and the papery skins come off easily). Add ¼ teaspoon baking soda to the bowl (this will get the skins super soft and blendable). Microwave for 10 minutes, or until the beans mash VERY easily with a fork. They should seem almost overdone– that’s key to getting a super smooth texture to your hummus. While the beans are cooking, make your yogurt sauce and prep the blender for the hummus. Zest your lemons and set the zest aside. Cut the lemons in half and set one half aside with the zest. Juice the other three halves into your blender (or food processor). Add the tahini to the blender, as well. Finely chop the dill and mince or press one clove of garlic (two if they’re little). Add the dill, yogurt, half the lemon zest, and the garlic to a bowl. Juice the reserved lemon half into this bowl, then stir to combine. You can add more dill or zest as you like, but do NOT salt the sauce– you don’t want the salt to leach the liquid out of the yogurt while it’s resting in the fridge. Put the yogurt sauce in a sealed container in the fridge. Your beans should be done now. Drain them and rinse in cold water to get all of the baking soda off of the beans. Add ¼ cup of ice water to the blender holding the lemon juice and tahini, then add the cooked beans and garlic. Toss in the beet and the salt, as well.Blend on high, stopping to scrape the bowl down and add 1-2 tablespoons more of water, if necessary. When your hummus is smooth, add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil, and blend just until combined. Scrape your bright pink hummus (!) into a container, cover, and refrigerate at least two hours (or overnight). When you are ready to serve, finely chop the mint. Spread the beet hummus on a serving plate. Top the beet hummus with drizzles of yogurt sauce, then scatter on feta and mint. Serve with pita or veggies and enjoy!