I’m going to be honest, I’ve never been a courgette fan. I know, I know I’m a health coach and yes I know the fabulousness of lots of veggies but there’s some I have just never been able to stomach. It may be the smell (one of my superpowers inherited from my mother, sometimes good, sometimes not so good) and things like cauliflower & broccoli are just too strong for me, or it may be the texture – sliminess is one I really struggle with. I find mushrooms, squid and things like cooked courgettes & aubergine just too much like slippery little suckers. Babyish? Yes, I know. That’s not to say I avoid them constantly, if you were to serve any of them up to me, I’d politely manage to get them down the gullet and I sometimes kid my own brain and hide them in soups or other recipes (it’s amazing how you can kid your own brain, don’t you think). But neither of these 2 have ever been that enjoyable – UNTIL NOW.

My lovely friend Carryn (cordon bleu chef & fab interiors business owner www.theinteriorscompany.co.uk), invited us over for the most beautiful buffet style dinner. One of the things that was on the table was Courgette Hummus. Now, as I said above, I have been brought up well, so try it I would. Man, I was surprised (not that I didn’t trust a cordon blue trained chef, more my courgette thing), it was so so nice and as an accompaniment to seed crackers, that we both make, was just fantastic.

For those who love hummus but either can’t stomach (literally) chickpeas (a touch windy miller, if you know what I’m saying) or if you are watching your carb intake, this is a fantastic replacement and it tastes just like regular hummus. Do you get how excited I am to finally find a way to get in all the goodness of the mere Courgette (Zucchini if you’re not from the UK) – and there’s loads & loads of fabulous goodness.

So to my lovely, clever Carryn, I salute you for getting me to move past my childlike dislike of the mighty (but slimy) Courgette / Zucchini & show me a way that I actually like.

Ex

ps. the Chef tells me she also loves this with roasted aubergine instead of courgette. Eeek another slimy one for me but I’m going to give it a go.

Makes – 500g or a good size tub

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 30 -40mins

Ingredients

500g Courgette (cut into chunks)

1/4 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice

1/4 Cup Tahini

3 Cloves Garlic

4 tbsp Olive Oil (use some to roast the veg)

1/2 Himalyan Salt

1/2 tbsp Ground Cumin

(optional – Smoked Paprika to sprinkle on top to serve if you like the retro feel like me)

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°F.
  2. Toss courgette & garlic in light coating of oil, salt & pepper and roast in oven until golden brown and mushy (approx 30 mins).
  3. Once cooked, whack into a food processor along with other ingredients and puree until smooth.
  4. Put in the fridge to cool and bring out the flavours and serve with whatever you fancy. So super easy.FABULOUS