Ingredients

Beetroot                           2 small beets or 1 big beet

Red/Orange Lentil       1 cup, dried

Garlic                                2 -3 cloves minced, depending on the size of the cloves

Olive Oil                           1/4 cup + 1 tbsp for topping+ 1/2 tbsp for roasting

Tahini Paste                   2 tbsp

Lemon Juice                  3 tbsp

Salt                                    1 tsp (+ more according to taste)

Pepper                             Freshly ground, to taste

Chilli Flakes                  Optional

Method

1. Roasting the beetroot –
   – Preheat your oven to 190C (375F).
   – Peel and roughly chop your beets into cubes. I like to chop them since this helps them roast way faster.
   – Spread them out on a baking sheet, drizzle with 1/2 tbsp olive oil, toss around to evenly coat all the pieces and roast for 20-25mins. You can pierce a piece with a fork to check if it is done.
2. Cooking the lentils – 
   – Bring two cups of water to a boil, add the lentils and cook uncovered, on a simmer, for 15-20mins or until the lentils soak all the water. Keep stirring in between to make sure they don’t stick to the pot. OR you can also cook them in a pressure cooker.
3. Preparing the hummus
   – Allow the lentils and beetroot to cool for at least 10mins.
   – You can keep out a few pieces of the roasted beets for decoration, or you can skip this step and add them all into the hummus.
   – Place all the ingredients in a blender – lentils, beetroot, garlic, olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, seasonings – and blend until you get a smooth consistency.
   – Scrape out the hummus with a spatula in a bowl. Do a taste test, you can adjust the lemon and seasonings as per your taste.
   – Even out the hummus, drizzle the 1tbsp olive oil on top. Optionally, you can also sprinkle some chili flakes on top for some spice.
4. Storing the hummus
   – You can store the hummus in an air-tight jar for over a week. Avoid adding water for it to last even longer.