Both the hummus and the lemons should be made the day before so the ingredients have time to come together.  See the recipe notes below for garnishing ideas and a note on the ingredients.

Yield: an appetizer for 8 adults

Ingredients:
1 medium lemon, sliced 1/8 inch thick and seeds removed
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
1 piece of fresh rosemary about 4 inches long

Method:
Combine water, sugar and rosemary into a small saucepan and simmer until sugar is dissolved.

Put lemons in a small heatproof container and pour simmering liquid over the lemons making sure that they are completely covered.

Refrigerate overnight.  Overnight refrigeration allows the bitterness of the rind and the sourness of the flesh to mellow and sweeten.

For the Hummus

Ingredients:
2 15 oz cans of cooked garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed (about 3 cups)
2 cloves of peeled garlic
2 Tbsp. and 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. of tahini
1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 Tbsp. lemon oil (optional)

Method:
Put the garlic and lemon juice in a food processor.  Pulse them together until the garlic is chopped into rough pieces.

Add the garbanzo beans, tahini, 1/2 cup of olive oil and kosher salt to the food processor.

Puree for several minutes until smooth and creamy, occasionally stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Taste and adjust the seasoning

Assembly:
Finely chop the lemon slices and set aside.

Spread the hummus out onto a plate.

Spoon the chopped lemons into the center of the hummus.

Drizzle the 1 1/2 Tbsp. of olive oil around the edge of the plate.

Drizzle the lemon oil over the entire dish.

RECIPE NOTES
Not all sugar is vegan and not all tahini is gluten-free so make sure to double check your ingredients.

The purple flowers on this hummus are rosemary flowers.  If you’re lucky enough to have a flowering rosemary plant then I highly recommend using them as garnish.

Try these other garnishes:
Salt-cured lemons
Chopped green olives
Chopped parsley
Snipped chives
Cilantro leaves
Chopped sun-dried tomatoes
Harissa
Try a combination of anything above