It's Official: I'm WWOOFING!

I'm dedicating this post to some very exciting news I would like to share with you all. I recently applied/was accepted to do a farming internship at an organic farm in California for a week working on the farm in exchange for room and board through a program called WWOOF. WWOOF has locations all over the world, and accepts people of all ages. The program is often an exchange: you work on the farm doing whatever they need in exchange for a place to stay and three meals a day. Each farm permits/requires you to stay for a different period of time. The one that I will be visiting has a one-week long program which is perfect for me since I will be starting my job full time right after graduating. The photo I've included is of some tomatoes that were grown in my family's backyard on Long Island... hopefully this farming experience will expand my abilities past just these tomatoes and some basic herbs.

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Yummus Olive Hummus

A few weeks ago, Tiny Tummy took a trip to Ithaca to visit a special someone. While there, we brunched at an adorable cafe where I got a delicious sandwich-turned salad (yes, I asked them to make a sandwich into a salad) with grilled vegetables and an olive hummus as dressing. The hummus was far and away the best part of the meal, so naturally, I had to try to replicate it because driving 5 hours for hummus is a little less than ideal. I'll admit, this recipe yields a LOT (I made it to serve 2 separate dinner parties and there was still a container leftover), so if you don't want hummus for days, I highly suggest cutting the recipe in half or by 4.

To make this olive hummus, you will need:

64 oz of chickpeas, (drained and rinsed if using canned)
1 can of olives (just the olives, not the juice)
3 T tahini
2 T good quality olive oil (I used lemon-infused olive oil which is GREAT if you can find it)
6 cloves garlic, roasted (if you only have raw garlic, simply pop the cloves into the toaster or oven for 10-20 minutes before blending. Using raw garlic will be WAY too strong)
4 T lemon juice
a pinch of sea salt

To prepare, simply toss everything into a food processor and blend. My hummus came out very creamy, but if yours is too thick to your liking, you can either add a little olive oil to thin it or even some water for a healthier option. Daddy Tiny Tummy generally likes what I make, but it's rare to get a LOVE IT from him, and not only did I get a 'LOVE IT,' but I also got an 'OH YEAH!' so I take it this is a real winner. Not to mention, that giant bowl of hummus was almost gone at the end of the 'cocktail hour' of our dinner party (and there were only 6 of us!)

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Salidify That Sandwich

It's been a while since I gave a restaurant-survival tip, so I thought it was about time I gave a simple one. In the past, I've suggested that a salad of sorts (with a plain, vinaigrette dressing) is generally a safe bet, but some restaurants don't have the most exciting salads. Recently, while traveling, I found myself in a cafe with an incredible sandwich menu and a meager salad selection, so I figured, what's to stop me asking for a sandwich-turned salad. Yes, I'm suggesting you order a sandwich as a salad. Restaurants will often have no problem placing the insides of a sammy over a bed of lettuce for you (they may charge you a few bucks extra). I did it for the first time in Ithaca with a grilled veggie and hummus salad which was fantastic as a salad and then a second time at a dosa and sandwich restaurant in Soho. The photo is from the dosa restaurant (which I'll admit, I had a bite of the dosa which was yummy too), but my mozzarella/avocado/cucumber sammy-turned salad was delish!You could easily do this with any sandwich-including a burger (veggie burger, tuna burger, hamburger, etc). Pin It