Hummus bil Lahme — Warm Hummus with Spiced Ground Lamb

Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked chickpeas, warm, plus 2 tbsp whole for topping
• ⅓ cup tahini
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic
• ½ cup ice water
• 8 oz Ground Lamb
• 1 tsp seven-spice
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• 3 tbsp pine nuts
• 3 tbsp butter or olive oil
• Salt, sumac, and warm pita

Method

1. Blend the warm chickpeas with the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and salt, then stream in the ice water while the motor runs. Blend a full 3 minutes — the ice water and the long blend are what turn it silky instead of pasty.
2. Toast the pine nuts in the butter over medium until pale gold, then scoop them out immediately; they go from perfect to burnt in about twenty seconds.
3. Cook the Ground Lamb in the same fat over high heat until deeply browned, breaking it up, 6 minutes. Season with the seven-spice, cinnamon, and salt, and cook meat to 160°F (71°C).
4. Spread the warm hummus in a wide shallow bowl with the back of a spoon, building a well in the middle.
5. Pile the Ground Lamb into the well with its buttery juices, scatter the pine nuts, whole chickpeas, and sumac, and serve with hot pita and mint tea.