Autumn Pumpkin Spice Series III {Pumpkin Hummus & Spiced Pita Chips}

It is Halloween! I hope all you ghouls and goblins are preparing to scare up a storm this evening and gather pillow cases worth of candy! I remember very fondly, how excited my sister and I would get dressing up in wacky costumes and getting out in our neighborhood to knock on those doors and in unison declare, "Trick-or-Treat!" at the top of our lungs, grab our loot and run away! The good houses gave away full chocolate bars or cans of pop (my parents were known for that) and the bad houses gave healthy snacks (Ew, gross!). But by the end of the evening after running around the block and gorging on candy, chocolate and chips, we often ended up with sore bellies.
 
As the final post in the Autumn Pumpkin Recipe Series, I wanted to do a snack that was healthy to have perhaps, before going out for Halloween, or for the day after, when those treat-filled bellies needed a little pick-me-up!

This is a very easy recipe but is really satisfying. I brought this into work a few weeks ago and everyone loved it, so it is co-worker approved!

Pumpkin Hummus & Spiced Pita Chips

Pumpkin Hummus

1 can of chickpeas, plus 1/4 cup of liquid from the can
1/2 cup roasted pumpkin
2 tablespoons tahini
3 cloves garlic
Juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

In a food processor, add all of the ingredients together. Blend together until the mixture becomes a very smooth and almost fluffly like texture. You may need to add a bit of water to loosen the mixture in the food processor.

Serve in a nice bowl, with a drizzle of olive oil on top and a sprinkle of paprika. I also topped mine with some great salty pumpkin seeds that I made.

Spiced Pita Chips

Pitas
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Paprika
Cumin

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Prepare your pitas by brushing them with olive oil. I used whole wheat pitas for this recipe. I also used locally made pitas from a Middle Eastern bakery. Once brushed with olive oil, sprinkle the pitas with salt and pepper, paprika and cumin. If you would like a more spicy flavour you can also add cayenne pepper on top.

Stack the prepared pitas on top of each other and cut into eighths. Arrange them on a baking sheet and bake in the pre-heated oven for about 15 minutes or until golden and cripsy. I didn't use an exact recipe for this snack because you can make as little or as many pitas as you want, using this method. In my experience, its best to make more, because they get eaten up pretty darn quick (just ask my beau!).

Serve these pita chips with the pumpkin hummus. These chips are delicious and even good as a snack on their own.

Happy Halloween!

Enjoy!

-Tina (Turnip)