Garbanzo bean dip (Hummus bi Tahini)

For The Beans:

1/2 cup water
1 15 or 16 ounce can garbanzo beans, drained (about 1 3/4 cups)

For The Hummus:

2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup tahini (This is a sesame seed paste used in many middle eastern dishes. You can find it at a store that specializes in international food.)

Put beans and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan over high heat and cook a couple of minutes at a rolling boil. (You don't have to precook the beans, but the texture will be smoother if you do.) Make sure about half the water evaporates. The less water, the thicker the hummus will be.
Pour the boiled beans and the leftover liquid into a food processor. (You can use a blender but it's harder to get everything to puree evenly. You have to keep turning it off and stirring the beans with a spoon so they all reach the blades.) Add the garlic and salt and process for about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides with a spoon or spatula. Add the lemon juice and tahini and process another minute. Transfer the hummus to another container and refrigerate. Once it's cooled, you can serve it either cold or at room temperature. When serving, you can put the hummus in a dish and create a a circular indentation with a spoon and fill it with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. You can garnish it with a few sprigs of parsley and a few whole garbanzos beans in the middle. Serve with raw vegetables, pita bread or crackers for dipping.

Variations: You can make many different flavors of hummus from the basic recipe above.

Sun-dried Tomato Hummus: Add 3/4 cup chopped and drained sun-dried tomatoes to the basic hummus and process until thoroughly blended.

Roasted Red Pepper: Mix in 3/4 cup roasted red peppers and process until blended.