White Bean Dip

Ingredients

• 2 cups .5 can cannellini beans white canned cooked drained
• 0.3 cup olive oil extra virgin for drizzling
• 2  garlic cloves peeled to taste
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin to taste
• 8 servings juice of lemon fresh to taste
• 8 servings salt and pepper black to taste
• 0.3 cup shallots red chopped for garnish, optional

Equipment

• food processor
• bowl

Directions

1. Put the beans in a food processor with the garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and cumin. Turn the machine on and process until the mixture is smooth, stopping and scraping down the sides if necessary and adding a bit more bean liquid or olive oil if necessary.
2. Taste and adjust the seasoning—add more garlic, salt, pepper, or cumin if you like—then transfer to a bowl.
3. Add lemon juice a tablespoon at a time, until quite tart, then garnish with the chopped shallot if you like. Use immediately or refrigerate for a day or two. Bring back to room temperature before serving.
4. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with a little more cumin (or some paprika) before serving.
5. Taste
6. Book, using the USDA Nutrition Database
7. and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.