Spicy Roasted Red Pepper Hummus with Feta Cheese

Here's a tasty fall appetizer we served recently.... we just love the gorgeous colors!  We even had a few edible nasturtium blossoms to use as garnish.The recipe can be found on the Internet site 'All-Recipes' here . This tasty hummus, a delightful combination of roasted red peppers, garbanzo beans, feta cheese, parsley, and a touch of lemon juice can be quickly mixed together in a food processor. We found the flavors improved after the hummus sat overnight in the fridge. Sprinkled with additional feta cheese just before serving, we offered pita chip crackers and halved yummy peppers to accompany the hummus. Oh so good!

You can use jarred roasted red peppers to really make this a super quick recipe.  But, if you happen to have red peppers on hand, you can roast your own.  There are several ways to roast peppers, and a quick search of the Internet will provide you with assorted options!  I placed them on a foil lined tray and baked them in the oven at 450 degrees for approx. half an hour.  They were turned a few times so that all the sides of the peppers charred.  When they were removed from the oven, I put them in a large bowl and placed a plate over the bowl so they could continue to steam and cool down.  Others have suggested putting them in a brown paper bag until they are cool.

Once cool enough to handle, simply cut the ends off, remove the stem and seeds, and peel off the outer shell of the pepper.  If you aren't using all of your peppers, store them in the fridge covered in olive oil.  They'll be ready for your next recipe that calls for pimiento.  I like to add finely chopped pimiento to chicken salad.