In Defense of Eggs & Hummus

In a casual lunchtime conversation the other day, I haphazardly related to a friend that I had indulged in a poached egg and hummus breakfast that morning. I foolishly assumed that meandering on to some other topic (the weather? haircuts? 30 Rock? the potential is limitless...) would be simple, but found myself stopped dead by a dropped jaw and a wail of disbelief. "You had WHAT?!" For a second I thought I had accidentally given away who shot JFK or something; I couldn't believe the sheer force of the reaction. I stuttered: "Huh?" "Eggs and HUMMUS?" he replied, as if placing the very words in proximity to each other was enough to make his skin decay. "Yeah..." I said. Duh. Right? Or am I wrong...?

Of course, I'm not talking about just any old hummus here. I'm talking about the good stuff! The homemade, fresh-out-of-the-food-processor, from-just-roasted-vegetables stuff. How could you resist that under any circumstances? To be honest, there's very little in the way of food that can interest even me in the bleary morning before work. I'll usually settle for whatever sustenance can be mustered from around five or six cups of coffee before I run off (late) to the office. A good hummus&egg meal, though, can easily rouse me to a level of unadulterated exhilaration heretofore unknown prior to noon on any weekday. At this juncture in my embarrassing confession, it's important for me to take note that the quality of the hummus is essential to my enthusiasm for the combination. A batch of freshly whirled hummus is so good I could eat it with a spoon while still maintaining a marginal amount of dignity, so I certainly don't see why I can't eat it with eggs. This is how I make my version of "good hummus".


You Will Need:
1 Medium Sized Red Pepper
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Medium Sized Yellow Onion
1 Can (or so) Garbanzo Beans
1 Tablespoon Minced Garlic
1 Tablespoon Chopped Fresh Parsley
Salt+Pepper to taste

To Make:
Warm one tablespoon of olive oil in a pan while thinly slicing the pepper. Sautee the pepper for 3-4 minutes in the oil, making sure it is fully coated, until it is lightly cooked. Dice the onion, mince the garlic, and chop the parsley. By this time the pepper should be cool enough to hew with a few, rough chops. Now the fun part! Dump the garbanzo beans, pepper, onion, garlic, and parsley into a food processor with another tablespoon of olive oil and give it a whirl. Based on the consistency you prefer, you can add more garbanzo beans (thicker) or a tablespoon or two of water (thinner). I prefer a good, solid garbanzo bean or two left in my hummus when I'm done. I also like my peanut butter chunky.