If you search through my ideas for a book entitled An American Family Cooks (which, by the way, we are working on now and you should see it in book stores next fall) you will see a long dissertation about hummos.  I don’t think that there has a week go by in the last 30 years that I have not made some type of this Middle Eastern meze.  Steve loves it – as a snack, in a sandwich, licked off of the spoon.  The only thing I do differently now is always make my own pita chips.  All you do is cut pita breads into small triangles and pull them apart to make single pieces.  Toss with olive oil and salt and bake in a single layer in a preheated 350ºF.  You can, if you like, also sprinkle dried herbs over the mix before you bake.  They are so much better than commercially made chips.