Soak the chickpeas for at least 12 hours in cold tap water. Drain and put the chickpeas in a sauce pan with the onion, 3 cloves of garlic, parsley and cover with water, about double theamount of chickpeas. Bring to a boil, remove as much foam as you can from the top of the liquid, and cook for 1.5-2 hours, until the chickpeas are really soft and you can mash them easily in your fingers. Drain, but keep the liquid and the veggies.

Put the chickpeas, the cooked onion, garlic and parsley, uncooked 1-2 cloves of garlic, tahini, lemon juice, salt, cumin and ½ cup of the cooking liquid in a food processor and mix well, until you get a very smooth paste. If it looks too thick (it will get thicker when it cools, so you can make it a little runnier if you do not serve it immediately, though it should be a paste), add a little more water, just 2 tablespoons at a time. Add the oil and mix well shortly. Taste for salt and see if you like a more distinct taste of cumin. Best served immediately, but in any case at room temperature, so take it out of the fridge some time before you serve. You can save some whole chickpeas for decoration and drizzle Equal Exchange Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil on top. Enjoy with pita bread or fresh vegetables.