One of my last dietary high-fat holdouts was mayonnaise. I’d switched to Veganaise years ago, so at least had moved away from eggs in the recipe, but the fat content was no less than good ‘ol Best Foods.
Once I’d made the decision to opt out of “mayo” altogether, 2 things took place:
1) withdrawal from the taste and texture perk my Veganaise provided.
2) find an acceptable – and I mean it had to be g-o-o-d – substitute.
Let me save you some time if you are in the process of, or considering, same:
1) withdrawal: frankly, this just takes time. I missed Veganiase on sandwiches, as sauce base, in salad dressing – for about a month to 6 weeks. Then it faded. Then on one occasion I took a bit off the wrong plate – the one with the mayo in the dressing – and was astonished at the grease feel in my mouth. A little awareness of how we become accustomed to tastes – and then learn to love them (there’s a BIG lesson there).
2) substitute: let’s face it, if you are trying to take something that is composed almost entirely of eggs and oil without the use of eggs and oil and have it taste the same, you are in for a huge disappointment. I even tried Nasoya Nayonnaise and had to return the jar. It was SO not the point. Maybe it’ll be up your alley, but for me, it wasn’t even in the same traffic zone.
Then a moment of enlightenment.
What I needed was not a substitute for mayonnaise.
I needed a replacement. Aha!
I changed my quest from “substitute” to “replacement” and connected spread, sauce, and their like to similar properties of other gustatory loves.
Hummus.
Of course!
Now, I have hummus on hand in the fridge all the time. At least twice a week I whip up a batch and it is so darn easy to make. There are a gazillion variations on hummus, some of which I’ll note as add-ins, and no doubt there are pages of variations on the hummus theme of which I haven’t heard. If so, you must enlighten me!
Hummus, straight and simple
Into the food processor:
- 2 cans garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 1 clove crushed garlic
- pinch of sea salt OR Bragg’s Aminos
- 2 – 3 more Tablespoons water to desired consistency
Favorite add-in variations:
- 2 roasted red peppers from jar
- handful chopped cilantro or parsley
For a richer version:
- add 2 Tablespoons tahini (sesame butter)
Whip it up and you’re done. The sesame butter sexes it up a bit and is divine, for those occasions when a little more fat on the plate is OK.
Applications
This is where it gets even more fun. This hummus works as:
- sandwich base spread OR the entire sandwich!
- base for veggie wraps in burrito shells or lavash – or just spread on a pan toasted piece of same
- salad dressing: thin with a little brown rice vinegar.
- or sauce for a bowl of grains
- spread on bread and topped with roasted peppers or tomatoes and olives for bruschetta (image, top)
Project mayo replacement: mission accomplished!
Believe it or not, I now hanker after this addition to many meals just as much as I used to do the same for mayonnaise. Personal proof that old habits can be changed, and tastes can be remodeled. I call it “realimentation”.
And when you finally “get” it that you carve your figure with your fork, and that the fat you’ll eat is the fat you’ll wear, a serious search is so worth the effort. Engineering oil out of your diet may take some forethought but is not near as daunting a task as you might initially imagine.
Any hummus variations you’d like to share? Tell about them in comments below!
© Lani Muelrath 2010 All Rights Reserved; image pillsbury.com
This looks like a great and simple recipe. I have everything but the beans and the Bragg’s. Where can I get some of that?
Thanks for a great post!
Jen
Hey Jen,
I can pick up Bragg’s at any natural foods store. I think I saw some not long ago in a mainstream supermarket! I know you could get it at Whole Foods if you have one of those near.
This simple recipe has never been a miss as far as I know!
Thanks,
Lani
@Lani: I found it at Meijer, if you have one of those near you.
Lani, I love this post. You sure are writing some great ones lately.
Hummus is an excellent replacement for mayo! Yesterday I enjoyed a portobello mushroom sandwich on whole grain bread with roasted red pepper hummus spread. It was divine!
Hummus is so easy to make and GOOD for you too.
@Casey: Thanks Casey! Are you making lunch again today? I’ll be right over 😉
Lani
Lani,
I just read this post. We’ve been using hummus as a mayo-replacement for quite some time. Even when we’ve had family visiting, and we’d make sandwiches for the beach, it’s amazing how NO ONE complained of hummus replacing the mayo!
We’ll have to start making our own again, since I’ve been a bit lazy and been buying store-bought. It’ll be good to have control over what goes in it, since we do eat hummus quite often!
Jainnie
Cool Jainnie! I had no idea you were on the hummus train too! I made a big batch today – what timing! Today I added a whole bunch of tomatoes and a huge handful of cilantro, along with lime juice and some brown rice vinegar. Left it pretty chunky, too. Yummers! What are your favorite “add ons” to your recipe?
Thanks for your post!
Actually, we’ve only made our own hummus a few times, and basically did a plain recipe. Your additions sound yummy! I’ll have to look up recipes again. I think there’s one from McDougall? We LOVE hummus!
How much does this yield and how long does it last in the fridge? What is a good serving size to have?
thanks!!!!!
Hi Stacy!
It keeps for a few days in the fridge. I use the 16 oz garbanzo bean cans, so it makes between 2 and 3 cups.
Servings size? However much you want.
Lani
This recipe sounds like it would work well as a mayo substitute, whereas my version would not be quite as versatile. For mine, cumin and cayenne are required ingredients. 🙂
Chile,
That’s the nice thing about hummus. You can morph it to a million flavors with a flip of the spice switch.
I’m late to this soiree, but I have just discovered that you can make a pretty delicious modified pesto out of carrot tops. I use that as a sauce, a sandwich spread etc. instead of mayo. In fact, I buy a bunch of baby carrots with tops attached. Clean and roast the roots, make a pesto with the tops using garlic, nutritional yeast, a few raw cashews, a few basil leaves, the stem-removed carrot tops and the tiniest bit of olive oil.
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Love humus, but sometimes when a bit more fat is allowable, some mashed avocado fills the bill best for me. I like it just spread on wheat toast in the morning.
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