All to entertain you with my dear

Who doesn't love to entertain?? Ok a few of you might not...but who doesn't love to laugh, carry on meaningful conversations, and enjoy delicious food? That's what I thought. When entertaining, you shouldn't have to spend a lot of money or cook for 10 hours to indulge in some fantastic food with wonderful company.

When I invite guests over I always like to entertain with a few nibblies when they first arrive. That way when conversations are starting, wine bottles are opening and the main course may still be cooking, we can snack over some delectable treats.

One of my favorites and one of the easiest appetizers to serve is hummus with veggies, crackers or pita bread. You can either make your own hummus (I  highly recommend) or you can purchase some from the nearest grocery store.

Homemade Hummus
2 cans of garbanzo beans (drained)

2 cloves of minced garlic

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley

1/2 lemon

1/3 cup tahini (smashed sesame seeds)
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 cup water

roasted red peppers for topping

black pepper
paprika for garnish
olive oil for topping

Combine all ingredients into a food processor, blender or in a bowl and use a emulsion blender. Stir as the ingredients smooth out and combine. If the mixture is too dry add olive oil to help smooth it out. Once all blended, add to a festive dish, top with a drizzle of olive oil, add roasted red peppers and paprika. Then cut up some cucumbers, bell peppers, broccoli, tomatoes, pita bread, crackers...any thing you want to dip inside this lovely hummus.

Another great appetizer, that I made for the Superbowl this year was my deviled egg dip. We love deviled eggs in our house, so I thought, why not create a dip? You use exactly what you would for deviled eggs but blend it all up til smooth and serve with chips, crackers, toast points, veggies, anything you want.

Deviled Egg Dip

8 medium-boiled eggs (being cooked less than hardboiled helps keep the dip smooth and creamy)

1/2 cup mayo

1/4 cup horseradish dijon mustard

1/3 cup dill pickle relish
1/2 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Add all ingredients into a blender, food processor or in a bowl for the use of an emulsion blender. Blend til smooth, stirring along the way. Add to a bowl and serve with any chip, cracker or veggie like. I chose to serve my dip with the new Pop Chips (regular flavor) they were delicious. If you want to kick this dip up a bit you could add some crispy bacon!

Hopefully I've helped you see that it doesn't have to be difficult to entertain. Pop a few things in a blender and you've got some fabulous dips that your company will adore.

Happy entertaining! xo Lo

Opa! Greek Salad

My ancestry on my mother's side is Greek and I take pride in that heritage, luckily my mom raised my brother and I on Greek food since we were little. I've always had a versatile palate thanks to my parent's upbringing and encouraging me to try foods from different cultures. I love Greek food, the bitterness and sharpness of flavors is aromatic and enlightening to me. Some may have a hard time eating Greek food so I thought I'd start with a simple, fresh Greek salad to help ease you into Greek-style cooking.

On this particular day, my mom and I had been shopping all day for my wedding, we were both on diets and super hungry. We went to the grocery store and thought what better than a classic, fresh Greek salad!

Our grocery list consisted of:

- rotisserie chicken
- one package of feta cheese
- one can of kidney beans
- one can of garbanzo beans
- one can of beets
- kalamata olives
- one head of romaine lettuce
- one package of spinach lettuce
- one package of cherry tomatos
- one English cucumber
- sun-dried tomato hummus
- one red onion

I chopped up the chicken into bite size pieces, washed both lettuces, sliced cherry tomatoes in half, roughly chopped the lettuce, thinly sliced the red onion then added all of those ingredients into our large wooden salad bowl. Next, I topped it with sliced cucumbers, the can of garbanzo beans, can of kidney beans, and can of sliced beets. The beans give the salad some heartiness and protein along with the beets give the salad a tad of sweetness. Tossed that up a bit, added crumbled feta cheese, which adds a tangy, sharp flavor and a bit of hummus on the side. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper...enjoy!!! Maybe we'll explore spinach and cheese pie or Moussaka next!?

xoxo Lo