Hummus with Pine Nuts and Cayenne Pepper

Drain the liquid from the can of chickpeas — it will still be useful. Rinse the chickpeas well and transfer them to a bowl (leave a few peas for decoration). Squeeze a small lemon using a juicer or just by hand. In a mortar, grind the cumin into powder and finely chop the garlic.

Pour chickpeas into a blender, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, cumin, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and 2 tablespoons of liquid from the chickpea can. Blend everything until a thick, homogeneous mixture forms.

Mix the tahini sesame paste well: sometimes the paste is thinner on top than at the bottom of the jar. Add 3 tablespoons of tahini to the almost finished hummus and blend again. Taste: if needed, add tahini, and if the mixture is dry, add chickpea water. Refrigerate the result for 1 hour, preferably 2: the hummus should cool and infuse.

Toast pine nuts in a dry heated pan for about 1 minute. Then add pita and toast it lightly until crispy. Place hummus in a serving dish, add 0.5 tablespoons of oil, and garnish with pine nuts and remaining chickpeas.

Sprinkle the hummus with a pinch of cayenne pepper and finely chopped herbs. Serve with pita, olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, and other vegetables and herbs to dip in the hummus.