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I hate when I have a plan for food and I forget a crucial ingredient. You know, like when you’re planning on making macaroni and cheese and you forget the…cheese. Lame. Well today, I forgot to buy chickpeas and I’ve had a ridiculous craving for hummus. Something about the sunny weather screams dips to me. But hummus without chickpeas is, well, just tahini with garlic and lemon. Which is not bad, but it’s no hummus.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I came across the idea of red lentil dip. “I have red lentils,” I thought to myself, as I read my vegan bible, La Dolce Vegan. Huh. So I went with it, made the usual modifications (more spice! more garlic! more lemon!) and my oh my but it was delightful!

Ezmy’s I forgot the chickpeas Red Lentil Dip:

1 cup red lentils
1 1/2 cup water (in which to boil your lentils)
1/3 cup lemon juice (about 1 large lemon)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp dried chili flakes
3 cloves garlic
3 tbsp olive oil

+pita
+celery or leafy green
=awesome times

Easiest recipe ever. Cook up your lentils – these should take about 10 minutes or so – and set aside for a few minutes to let them cool down. While they are cooling down, get out your other ingredients and your food processor. If you’re like me, you are lucky enough to have a spiffy pink food processor. Mine is called Betsy. But if you don’t have a Betsy, you can just use a blender. Anyways, once your lentils have cooled down a bit, throw everything into the food processor/blender and mix until smooth(ish). Serve immediately if you like warm dip or later if you want cold (I’m a warm dip kind of gal).

I’m off now to munch on red lentil dip with pita and celery and to consider my role as an ecological citizen.