Hummus, one of my favorite foods

As I have said in previous posts, my wife and I are vegan so we try to find healthy foods that are high in protein. Hummus is one of our favorites, it is simple to make, tastes good, has a lot of protein and many other nutritional benefits.

Here is a good article I found from "The Hummus Blog"

http://humus101.com/EN/

Hummus: nutritional facts

Hummus is a nutritional treasure. It’s not only delicious to eat, but also contain lots of vitamins, minerals, amino acids.

See Also: Hummus, is it good for your Diet?

It’s hard to be decisive when talking about hummus in general. There are different kinds of hummus, in which the exact quantities of each ingredient vary. So it’s a little hard to be precise, but I can tell you: hummus is certainly good for you!

By the way: we are talking solely about homemade – or at list handmade – hummus (recipe). Industrial packaged hummus is not that healthy.

So what does hummus contain?

First of all, about 60-70% water. And though Tahini, the second most important ingredient, is basically a fatty extract (of sesame seeds), only 10% of the final “product” is fat. And we’re talking about good fat, with lots of Omega 3 in it (200-300mg in an average serving of about 1 cup). The rest is mostly Carbohydrates and protein.

Overall, hummus contain up to 200 calories for 100g, and a large hummus portion may contain up to 300 grams. True, not really dietary in the regular sense. On the other hand, it makes you really satiated, without increasing glucose levels in your blood that much (Gthelycemic Index, GI, is 10-15). So for most people hummus is a healthy, calorie-worthy choice.

Hummus also contains lots of crucial nutrients, most of which come from the tahini BTW. It has a high content of important minerals like Manganese, Copper and Sodium, and also some Calcium, Iron, Magnesium and Zinc. It is relatively reach in Vitamin C and B6 and also contain vitamin E, K, Folate and Thiamin.

Hummus also contain about 20 essential Amino Acids, including large dosages of Tryptophan, Phenylalanine and Tyrosine, a threesome that makes it, surprisingly, a potential substitute for Prozac and the such. Omega 3 too was found to be effective in treatment for minor mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety.

So what am I saying? If you love hummus you can eat a lot of eat, and not feel bad about it. You are going to be healthier and happier.