January 15, 2013
(last updated October 24, 2020) 
This creamy roasted beet hummus is the prettiest and most vibrant hummus variety I’ve ever made! And I love the subtle sweetness that beets add to an otherwise familiar recipe.
The other night, my friend Chris and I went to dinner at a local restaurant in D.C.. I was happily surprised to find a lot of vegan options on the menu. One of the dishes we decided to order was the roasted beet hummus. It’s a dish that I’d seen recipes for but had never actually made myself. It was delicious: tangy, sweet savory, and of course a beautiful pink color.
Funnily enough, one of my blog readers emailed me soon after to say that she’d tried the same dish and wanted to replicate it at home. I said I thought one might simply roast the beets and then blend them in in the food processor, and as it turns out, that’s about right.
How to Make Creamy Roasted Beet Hummus
As you can see, the texture of this creamy roasted beet hummus isn’t quite as silky smooth as other hummus recipes I’ve shared. That’s just the effect of adding beets to the chickpeas in the recipe. If you make the recipe in a food processor, which is how I usually make hummus, yours will look similar.
If you’re intent on an ultra-creamy texture, you can use a Vitamix (or another high speed blender) to make the recipe. That will give you a smooth consistency. No matter which appliance you use to make the hummus, the flavor will be the same! Lemony, sweet/savory, and with a hint of rosemary, if desired.
Which beets should I use for beet hummus?
I love using red beets in my creamy beet hummus because the electric pink color of the finished hummus is just so stunning. But golden beets (or even candy-striped beets!) will also work well in the recipe.
Prepping & roasting your beets
I pretty much always roast my beets the same way: wrapped in foil, for 45-60 minutes at 425F. I trim them prior to roasting, but I leave the skins on. One they’re very tender (a fork or knife should pierce each beet easily), I allow them to cool. Then, I run them under cold running water and slip the skins off. I find that this is much, much easier than peeling them while they’re raw.
I recently started rubbing or spraying them lightly with olive oil before roasting. It’s a tip that I got from Amanda Hesser’s lovely beets and herbs salad, and I like it: the skins seem to slip off even more easily when I do that. Having an olive oil spray at home makes it easy to give the beets a very light coating.
You may notice that smaller beets become completely tender before larger beets do. This is fine! Just remove them from your oven and allow the larger beets to continue roasting for as long as is needed.
Storing creamy roasted beet hummus
The creamy roasted beet hummus can last up to five days in an airtight container in the fridge. It’s both a lovely dip and also a nice spread for sandwiches and wraps! I think it’s a great component to include in weekly meal prep or batch cooking.
I’ve often wondered whether you can freeze hummus, and I recently learned that yes, you can! So don’t hesitate to make it far in advance and freeze it before using, or to freeze a portion of it once it’s ready.
Creamy Roasted Beet Hummus
Author -Yields: 8 servings
Ingredients
- 2 medium sized beets, scrubbed and trimmed
- olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained)
- 1 small clove garlic, roughly chopped (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 3 tablespoons tahini
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary (optional)
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly spray or rub each beet in olive oil. Wrap each beet tightly in tin foil or parchment paper. Roast the beets for 45-60 minutes, or until they can be easily pierced with a knife. Allow the beets to cool at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes. Then, run them under cold water, slipping the skins off with your fingers. Chop the beets and set them aside.
- Place the beets, chickpeas, and garlic in a food processor fitted with the S blade. Pulse to combine. Add the salt, tahini, lemon, and water. Process the mixture for a full 3-4 minutes, or until the hummus is super creamy, stopping to scrape down the bowl now and then. Alternately, you can add all of the hummus ingredients to a high-speed blender and process till smooth.
- Pulse in the rosemary (optional) and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Serve the hummus with crackers, crudités, pita wedges, or however you like!
I love a batch of classic, no frills hummus. But I’ve learned that I also love adding roasted vegetables to hummus as well. My roasted carrot hummus and sweet potato hummus are two of my all time favorite hummus varieties! And for something lighter and more spring-like, this sweet green pea hummus is also an old favorite.
One of the nice things about incorporating any vegetable to hummus is that it’s an extra dose of nutrients as well as a new and different flavor. Beets are especially nutrient-dense. They’re packed with anthocyanins, plant pigments that give them their vibrant color along with disease fighting properties. They may also have anti-inflammatory and anti-hypertensive properties (the latter just a fancy way of saying that they may be beneficial for blood pressure control). They’re healthful in addition to being sweet and lovely to eat.
Perhaps a batch of creamy roasted beet hummus is in your near future, too. If so, hope you’ll enjoy this recipe as much as I have. I’ve already learned that I love adding a little extra protein to my hummus in the form of hemp seeds, so I’m excited to sprinkle a few into this recipe, too. We’ll see what happens!
xo
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Categories: Dips,
Snacks
Ingredients: Beets
Dietary Preferences: Gluten Free, No Oil, Soy Free, Tree Nut Free, Vegan
Recipe Features: Meal Prep
Ingredients: Beets
Dietary Preferences: Gluten Free, No Oil, Soy Free, Tree Nut Free, Vegan
Recipe Features: Meal Prep
Leave a Comment
Deelish! Easy to make. Fabulous color.
Absolutely delicious, so easy to prepare and gorgeous to look at. I added some roasted chopped beets for texture.
Should I modify the recipe if I were to use a Vitamix in lieu of the food processor?
Thank you
For the most part it should be fine, though you may need to add a little extra water to help get things going. Enjoy!
Love beet hummus! And what a stunner on the table. Would you mind telling me where that yellow dish towel is from? I LOVE it!
Hey Coley! It’s from Anthropologie. So glad you like the recipe.
my beautiful 10month old just LOVES this dip!! Thank you for your wonderful, clean recipes! just gorgeous tasting!
So glad! Thanks for sharing!
Absolutely adore this! The color is fantastic and the taste is sublime! We added a bit of garlic, paprika and pepper instead of rosemary and will definitely be making it again in the future.
Thanks so much!
nice post thanks for sharing and good information
Thanks for the interesting and useful post..
I’ve been making a version of beet hummus for sometime now, and often take it to potlucks, especially with my fellow dietetic interns. I put dill in mine for that whole Eastern European flair (my Russian heritage showing), and it always gets rave reviews. I recommend giving dill a go next time you make some ๐
oooh, beautiful and fun! Iโve been wanting to try beet hummus and yours looks gorgeousI love the color of it, so vibrant. I think the rosemary would be a lovely addition..
This looks wonderful, love the idea of beets in hummus and the color is amazing!
Thanks Karen love your little bowl!!!!!!
This looks wonderful, love the idea of beets in hummus and the color is amazing!
Thanks Karen love your little bowl
Looks great! You may be able to improve on the texture if you peel the chickpeas. I recently tried this method for making smooth hummus, as suggested by Smitten Kitchen. It’s tedious but makes wonderfully creamy hummus.
This looks wonderful, love the idea of beets in hummus and the color is amazing!
oooh, beautiful and fun! I’ll definitely try this. I love hummus, and I love roasted beets… so I’m pretty sure I’ll love this combo. Thanks!
I first tried beet hummus this summer and have made it many times since. I used sumac in mine, but rosemary would be equally delicious!
YUM!! I am so excited for this recipe. Did you know beets help increase your red blood cell count allowing your body to bring in more oxygen. I am heading to Aspen in a few weeks so this will be perfect for helping me adjust to the elevation change! Thanks!
I love your little bowl! It looks gorgeous with the bright red hummus in it!
This is the most gorgeous plate of hummus I’ve ever seen! My little girl would love its’ color.
Hey Gena –
Off topic, but given your professional interest in gastronomical health, I wanted to pass along these links to you re. a study called the american gut project:
http://chicagotonight.wttw.com/node/14104
http://www.indiegogo.com/americangut
Best,
Karen
Thanks Karen,
I read about it just the other day. Good timing, since I spent a great part of this semester studying the microbiome! I can imagine this initiative being either really instructive and pathbreaking, or possibly leading to a lot of at-home concern and confusion. I hope that it is ultimately the former, of course!
G
So much excitement! I just saw a a recipe for white bean beet hummus in Whole Living… I’d never heard of it before! Looks like the humble beet is having it’s moment and I’m definitely on board.
And congratulations on dinner with Kris!! I’m a huge fan of you both… a humble beet amidst… Idk, what’s a stately vegetable? Anyway, I realize we lose the interactive part if we sadly have to miss the discussion… but are there podcasts or videos available for us to tune in after the fact?
Have a happy Wednesday, Gena!!
Your photography is gorgeous; I love the bright fuchsia hue of the hummus. Also, rosemary is one of my favorite herbs, especially since I have a huge pot of it growing at my house. Thanks for the recipe!
Gena looks incredible! I have been loving beets a lot lately in my juices. Beets are the best!! Love rosemary too, that reminds me I need to start growing my own again! HUGS
I’ve been wanting to try beet hummus and yours looks gorgeous! I love the color of it, so vibrant. I think the rosemary would be a lovely addition. (What is on the plate next to the hummus?)
I was wondering the same thing! I think it’s yellow bell pepper slices.
It does look gorgeous. I don’t believe I’ve ever tried beet hummus myself but I loved this beet pate: http://freshyoungcoconut.blogspot.com/2011/07/rosemary-beet-pate.html It has sunflower seeds and rosemary too, which as you noted does really well with the sweet, deep beet flavor.
I’ve made a very similar recipe for years, but funnily enough have always gone for dill instead of rosemary, even though I had to buy dill and rosemary was overflowing in my parents’ garden.
I always particularly enjoyed the split second panic of thinking I was dying in the bathroom at 3am the next night, too.
Gena! That looks absolutely BEAUTIFUL!
I love beets! Check out this recipe I just featured:
Roasted Golden Beet and Fennel with a Honey Mustard Glaze
http://diaryofanutritionist.com/2013/01/14/roasted-beets-and-fennel-with-a-honey-mustard-glaze-vegan-no-oil/
I used a combination of Golden and Chioggia beets and it turned out lovely. If only I have your photography skill. ๐
It sounds lovely, Lauren! Except it’s not vegan, because of the honey. I’m sure maple syrup would work nicely though.
Love this idea for a hummus. I’m a big fan of beets and a big fan of hummus, but I don’t think I ever would have thought of combining the two.