Easy Tahini Salad Dressing

"Where are the vegetables?  Any form of color on the plate would be nice!" can be heard coming from my mouth almost every time my hubby is in charge of a meal.  When it comes to prepping meals, he's a meat and meat type of guy. I'm a carnivore too but I love my vegetables.

It takes too long to clean or prep is his usual excuse but I always think it's worth it. Washing some beautiful produce to eat raw or even simply sauteing some vegies in butter is perfect.  I have been increasing my intake of vegies and salads and am always on the lookout for different dressings.

Tahini is ground sesame seeds and can be found at the ethnic aisle of your grocery store or an ethnic market. I love the flavour of it and with the earthy hit of cumin and lemon juice for acid, this is a great dressing for robust salads.  It can also be used on the side as a dip for crudites or add a spoonful atop of your pita or souvlaki dishes.

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Big Rock's Life of Chai Launch

"Seasons change, beers change..."

Ok, maybe those aren't the exact lyrics...  

I attended the launch of Life of Chai, Big Rock Brewery's newest seasonal beer offering. The spiced amber beer, with hits of chai and cardamom, was the perfect compliment to the enticing South African Indian food  at Narayanni's.

When I think of beer, it conjures images of friends, food and good times.  I had such a pleasant time that evening. I met some new people, caught up with friends I haven't seen in some time, imbibed and ate really delicious food in the warm ambiance at Narayanni's.  What more can a girl ask for?

Hope you have a great weekend of friends, food and beer.

Cheers! Santé! Prost! На здравје! Živeli! 

Simple Lemon Yogurt Dressing

Summer has seemed to whirl by me.  It feels as if it has come and gone, within a blink of an eye, and I am left hopelessly trying to recall what I did and where I went.

I did try my hand at gardening this year.  Try, being the key word.  Ha! Between my dislike of weeding, the drought-like condition of my soil from going away on holidays and simply forgetting to water, I had disappointing yields.  I have always considered myself a city slicker and this summer confirmed that I certainly did not inherit my parent's green thumbs.  I anticipated as much but a girl could always hope!

The two things that flourished in my garden was the arugula patch, which I had no part in as it self-seeded on it's own, and a plot full of dutch elm trees, that I just refused to weed when I realized they were in fact trees and not the various greens I had planted.  I think I will pass back the responsibility to my better half and stick to cooking.

As for cooking, didn't do too much of it either these past months.  It was a summer of sandwiches, simple quick-prep meals and salads.  Plenty of salads.  And when in a pinch for time, a simple lemon yogurt dressing.  A cup of your favorite yogurt, a tbsp or two of lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.  Four simple ingredients combined to give a light dressing that works for many different combinations of salad.

Salad always makes me think of summer and lately, I find myself lingering with every plate.  Maybe to appreciate all the beauty that summer grows or maybe just to reflect on where my summer went.  Either way, here's hoping the warm temperatures stay put for a bit longer.