Meal Makeover Moms: Sabra Factory Tour

Sabra Factory Tour, a Recipe for Hummus Deviled Eggs, and a Hummus/Dip Giveaway (Podcast #148)
by Liz on June 10th, 2011
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I’ve always been a big fan of hummus — a dip made with cooked, mashed chickpeas, tahini (sesame seed paste), lemon juice, and lots of other yummy things. I serve it a lot with crunchy vegetables, and recently, I even got Simon (my 12-year old) to eat a bunch of baby carrots thanks to the bowl of hummus I strategically placed smack in the middle of his dinner plate. On a recent trip to Richmond, VA where I toured the Sabra company’s hummus factory and joined their panel of blogger “Tastemakers,” I discovered that using hummus as a dip is just the tip of the culinary iceberg. I share my hummus adventures on this week’s Cooking with the Moms podcast, so read on for lots of fun hummus factoids, giveaway news, recipes, and more!


Hummus replaces mayonnaise in these Hummus Deviled Eggs. This recipe got a two-thumbs up from my boys when I served it as an after-school snack.

My fellow Tastemaker Panelists and I were welcomed to the factory before donning hair nets, lab coats, hard hats, and goggles. It was not a pretty sight!

Joining me on the tour were Diane from Fit to the Finish, Renee from Cutie Booty Cakes, Kristin from Iowa Girl Eats, Chaviva from Nosh: The Gluten-Free Kosher Critic, and Linda from Short Pump Preppy.



Some cool things I learned: The factory is LEED certified … so it’s a “green” building, all the chickpeas are sourced from the United States, and the plant produces 60 tons of hummus in each eight-hour shift, and the factory runs 24/7. That’s a lot of hummus.

Our group was introduced to a new lineup of products: four flavors of salsa, two versions of guacamole, and three low-fat Greek yogurt-based vegetable dips. My favorite flavor by far is the onion and fresh herbs (which was also just declared “the best dip I’ve ever eaten,” by Simon).We also tried two new hummus flavors: Basil Pesto and Buffalo Style.



Check out this Mediterranean Layered Salad we had for lunch made with Buffalo Style hummus, lettuce, fresh chopped tomatoes and cucumber, kalamata olives, and topped off with my family’s fave, the Greek Style Onion & Fresh Herbs Veggie Dip.



Sabra’s Executive Research Chef, Mary Dawn Wright, treated us to a dessert of Chocolate, Coconut and Caramel Hummus Pastries. Yes, you can even use hummus as an ingredient in dessert recipes!


Tastemaker Panelists pose for a photo after a delicious dinner at Acacia in Richmond, VA.



Hummus Deviled Eggs
Makes 12 Servings (recipe created by Sabra chef, Colombe Jacobsen, and tweaked slightly by The Meal Makeover Moms)
6 large eggs (we like to use omega-3 eggs)
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon Sabra hummus
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon relish
Paprika for garnish

1. Place eggs in saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Turn off the heat and let sit for 17 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and run cold water over the eggs. Cool eggs 10 minutes.

2. Remove shells when cool. Cut each egg in half lengthwise and scoop out the yolk and reserve in bowl of a food processor.

3. Add hummus, olive oil, pepper, and salt to the yolks and puree in the food processor. Add the relish and pulse 3 to 5 times to incorporate. (If you don’t have a food processor, place ingredients in a bowl and use a potato masher to blend.)

4. Put the yolk mixture in a piping bag. (Use a tall glass and fold the edges of the piping bag over the glass to make it easier to transfer the mixture.) Pipe about a teaspoon of the mixture into each of the egg white halves and sprinkle with paprika. You can also use a small zip-top plastic bag for piping. Fill the bag and snip about half an inch off one bottom corner. Squeeze an equal amount of the mixture into each egg white half.
Nutrition Information per Serving (one half egg): 80 calories, 6g fat (1g saturated), 95mg sodium, 1g carbohydrate, 0g fiber, 4g protein



GIVEAWAY NEWS
Thanks to our new friends at Sabra, two blog readers or Facebook fans (U.S. only please) will each win 12 VIP coupons for free Sabra products (we’re talking hummus, dips, salsas, guacamole, etc) and a Glass 4-in-1 Serving Set.
Please be sure to leave us a new comment every time you do something extra, and GOOD LUCK! The giveaway ends on June 28th at noon, and as always we’ll use random.org to pick our winner.

Disclosure: Sabra hosted my trip to Richmond, and they are sponsoring our giveaway.