Easy homemade beet hummus - bright, delicious and a serious winner for babies!

Pop quiz: How do you feed beets to a baby?

I had gotten to beets on my list of foods to introduce to M when she was a baby. I figured I could steam or roast and puree them, but that seemed to be a liquid mess.

I was reluctant to give her cut up pieces of soft beet because they would stain her hands, her face, her tray, her clothes and everywhere else they ended up in the kitchen as she fumbled to get them to her hungry little mouth. No thanks on the extra cleaning.

That’s when I decided on beet hummus. I had recently given her plain hummus and she loved it. Of course she did! Hummus is divine. Creamy, smooth, a slight nuttiness from the tahini, a little fruitiness from the olive oil. And it's ridiculously easy - throw everything into the food processor and let 'er whirl.

And I love that hummus is so good for you. So many good fats for a growing baby. Yes, hummus was the way to go for the beets.

She agreed. And at almost 4, still does. She and now J as well both love, love, love this beet hummus. I can’t give them enough. They don't even dip, they just take to it with a spoon. (Personally, I prefer some cut veggies or pretzels or crackers - this delicious hummus isn't just for babies!)

And like with the okra couscous, it’s sort-of fun when they squeal with delight -- "Yay! Beet hummus! Yay!" -- in public over having it. We almost always give them this for lunch on the weekends if we're going out to a restaurant because it's a guaranteed winner.

Happy babies, happy mama. Happy wife, happy life. Indeed!

I make a double batch every time because it freezes so well and because they go through it so quickly. (I freeze it in ice cube trays then pop the frozen cubes into a labeled freezer bag.)

I hope you and your little ones love it as much as we do!

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Yield: about 3 cups

Beet hummus

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Easy homemade beet hummus - bright, delicious and a serious winner for babies!

Prep Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 6 oz. packages peeled, steamed beets, cut into smaller chunks
• 2 14 oz cans chick peas, rinsed and drained*
• 3 tablespoons tahini (a sesame seed paste that can usually be found near the peanut butter in the grocery store)
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Kosher salt, to taste (omit for babies)

Instructions

1. Dump all of the ingredients into a food processor and mix.
   
2. Stop and scrape the sides and stir it to ensure all of the beets get pureed.
   
3. Add more olive oil — or even a bit of water — if needed to get it to the right consistency. Add salt, to taste (but omit if serving to babies).
   
4. If freezing, portion into ice cube trays and freeze overnight before transferring to a labeled freezer bag.

Notes

*You may also use 2 bags homemade cooked chick peas