Want to power-up your cricket teas with extra nutrients without sacrificing taste?

The traditional Mediterranean dip, made from chickpeas and sesame seeds is quite the performer. It can liven up most meals and carries a host of health benefits.

What are some of the reasons to start adding hummus to your diet regularly?

We all know the health benefits of getting more vegetables in our diet. Trouble is, sometimes vegetables just don't seen attractive. A handful of baby carrots are a good idea for vital fibre and vitamins but crunching away like a rabbit can out you off.

Enter the humble pot of hummus. It's easy to use as a dip for all kinds of crunchy vegetables, turning them from bland to delicious. It even works with the anti-vegetable lobby that is small children (I tried it on my boys and they loved it).

Hummus is rich in essential fatty acids, better known as 'good fats', which are good for your heart and help reduce inflammation. A good balance of fats in the diet (including but not limited to hummus) is critical to good health, so forget the 'fat is bad' mantra from the olden days and get stuck in to the hummus.

Hummus is also a source of calcium, vitamin B and vitamin E. None of which have direct cricketing benefits but are important for health reasons, and if you are not healthy you are less likely to be on the park.

If you are looking to lose a bit of weight, hummus could be your saviour. It gives flavour to bland diet foods and even contains nutrients of it's own (something, sugar-free ketchup or low-fat mayo can't boast) Yes, it is higher in calories than a lot of snacks but the high fibre content means that the impact on your blood sugar is much lower than a traditional dieter's high-carb-low-fat snack.

Plus if you are using it as a dip you can keep the overall calorie intake low (50 calories in 2 tablespoons is hardly going to break the diet bank).

Most people, miCricketCoach included, will probably buy pre-packaged hummus off the shelf. It's one of the few 'convenience' foods that don't lose all traces of nutrients in factory production.

That said, it's always better to make your own food as you know exactly what is going into your mouth.

If you are feeling adventurous it's quite easy to make a quick version of your own hummus without hours of bean soaking, rinsing and washing. You can make a big tub that serves about 10 people in 20 minutes:

• 3 cans of chickpeas
• 5 tablespoons of tahini (most big supermarkets sell it these days but it may take some finding)
• 6 cloves of garlic (minced)
• Juice from 2 lemons
• 1/3 cup of olive oil
• 1/3 teaspoon of salt

Brown the garlic in a pan and add to a food mixer with tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, salit and about half a can of chickpeas. Process this until it becomes mashed together. Keep adding chickpeas a little at a time until all the chickpeas are in the mixture. When ready it should look smooth and creamy. Drizzle with olive oil and serve as a dip.

The recipe comes from Dr John Berardi's excellent 'Precision Nutrition' system. I highly recommend it if you are serious about cleaning up your diet for cricket performance.

image credit: sugarfreak