As Promised …. Hummus Recipe

I have been promising Danielle from Humes, Party of Three this recipe for months now.

It’s been even longer for my freelancer, Maria Tzavaras.

I apologize to both of them for tempting them, Maria physically, with the goods and not delivering.

I wish I could take credit for this recipe but that goes to Canadian Living, a fantastic magazine that never fails to provide timely information and fantastic recipes.


Herbed hummus dip
Makes 2 cups
1 can (19 oz/540 ml) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 tbsp each lemon juice and water
2 tbsp light mayonnaise
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
¼ tsp each dried dillweed and salt
pinch pepper
2 tbsp minced fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced (it makes a good and hot, yummy)
1 green onion, chopped
In a food processor, blend chickpeas, lemon juice, water, mayonnaise, oil, dillweed, salt and pepper until smooth; stir in parsley, garlic and onion.
Make a head: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to three days.

Nutritional information:
Per 1 tbsp: about 23 calories; 1 g protein; 1 g total fat (trace saturated fat); 3 g carbs; 1 g fibre; 0 mg chol; 60 mg sodium.

Rabbits, rabbits, everywhere

There are a lot of rabbits this year, which doesn’t bode well for our vegetable garden.

I almost walked right by the one pictured here while taking my son for a walk last week.We usually have a rabbit in our front yard in the morning, eating the grass under the bird feeder, and I have seen three at once in the boat launch across the street.

I wonder if the foxes will come back to decrease the rabbit population?

We also have a lot of barn swallows this year, likely because we also have a lot of mosquitoes.

It’s amazing to watch the acrobatic flight of the swallows as they swoop and fly in between each other, people, houses and moving cars. I was able to capture a picture of a swallow actually sitting still. Anyone who has seen swallows in action knows how rare that is.

I thought I would also include a new picture of our Baltimore orioles. I have seen at least two males and their partners this year but we must have more because I have to fill their feeder every third day.

If you are looking to attract hummingbirds and orioles to your backyard, you don’t have to purchase a commercial mix - it’s just sugar water with food colouring. I add one cup of sugar to a large mason jar of water. I do not add food colouring.

And finally, I thought I would include a picture of the turkey vultures. You can distinguish these large birds even in the air by their red heads.