This Chickpea Dip is made flavorful with toasted cumin and pomegranate seeds. It’s a delicious dip that’s easy to make and pretty to display at parties!
This appetizer dip is like a glamorous hummus! The pomegranate seeds used as garnish on top make this dip sparkle and stand-out. And they’re an amazing added sweet crunch too.
🛒 Ingredients Needed:
- cumin seeds
- garlic
- sea salt
- lemon
- canned chickpeas
- fruity extra virgin olive oil
- water
- pom seeds
- desired dippers
✏️ How to make Chickpea Dip with Toasted Cumin and Pomegranate:
*The complete, printable recipe is in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- In a small, dry frying pan over medium heat, toast the cumin seeds, shaking the pan often, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Pour onto a plate to cool.
- In a mortar, combine garlic and a pinch of salt and crush to a paste with a pestle. Add the toasted cumin seeds and grind them together with the garlic.
- Grate enough zest from 1 lemon to measure ½ teaspoon and then halve and juice both lemons.
- In a food processor or blender, combine the chickpeas, garlic-cumin mixture, lemon zest, 4 tablespoons lemon juice, ¼ cup olive oil and ¼ cup water. Process the mixture until very creamy, adding more water if needed to achieve the desired consistency. Season to taste with salt and lemon juice..
- Scrape the dip onto a large plate. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds.
➡️ Tips and Substitutions:
- If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, you’ll need to grind the toasted seeds in a spice grinder. If you don’t have either, improvise by using ground cumin and mix well in a small bowl with garlic and salt. (You’ll be losing out on the “toasted” flavor of the cumin since you won’t be toasting the cumin seeds in a skillet.)
- The more water you add in, the creamier this dip will become. Add a little at a time until you reach a nice dipping consistency.
- You can substitute chopped dried cranberries for the pom seeds, if you’d like.
✔️ What to serve with Chickpea Dip:
- carrot sticks, celery and cucumber slices
- crackers
- toasted baguette slices
❤️ What I Love About This Recipe:
- It’s a gorgeous dip to display at a holiday party!
- The flavor of this dip is super unique. It reminds me of my roasted butternut squash hummus with toasted pepitas.
- Leftovers of this chickpea dip are good spread on a sandwich as a condiment.
Favorite Appetizer Dip Recipes:
Chickpea Dip with Toasted Cumin and Pomegranate
This recipe is easy to make, festive-looking and it was devoured quickly by guests at my husband's big birthday bash.
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 medium garlic cloves
- sea salt
- 2 medium lemons
- Two 15-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- ¼ cup fruity extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- ¼ cup water
- ½ cup pomegranate seeds
- pita chips or baguette slices, for serving
Instructions
- In a small, dry frying pan over medium heat, toast the cumin seeds, shaking the pan often, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Pour onto a plate to cool.
- In a mortar, combine garlic and a pinch of salt and crush to a paste with a pestle. Add the toasted cumin seeds and grind them together with the garlic.
- Grate enough zest from 1 lemon to measure ½ teaspoon and then halve and juice both lemons.
- In a food processor or blender, combine the chickpeas, garlic-cumin mixture, lemon zest, 4 tablespoons lemon juice, ¼ cup olive oil and ¼ cup water. Process the mixture until very creamy, adding more water if needed to achieve the desired consistency. Season to taste with salt and lemon juice..
- Scrape the dip onto a large plate. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds. Serve with pita chips or baguette slices
Notes
- If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, you’ll need to grind the toasted seeds in a spice grinder. If you don’t have either, improvise by using ground cumin and mix well in a small bowl with garlic and salt. (You’ll be losing out on the “toasted” flavor of the cumin.)
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 219kcal, Carbohydrates: 31g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Sodium: 124mg, Potassium: 350mg, Fiber: 8g, Sugar: 9g, Vitamin A: 30IU, Vitamin C: 16mg, Calcium: 53mg, Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
