Birthday Dips

Well the restaurant review I promised on Tuesday is going to have to wait. I have had a major technology fail this week and all of my pictures for that post are MIA- but I will find them and put it up this weekend! In lieu of that post I am going to put up a couple of recipes for dips that I made for a birthday dinner this week!
On Wednesday night we had a super fun girls dinner to celebrate Grace's birthday! I offered to bring an appetizer. Bringing food to a party in NYC poses a couple of issues. It needs to be able to travel(either cab or subway) and for me- making anything to fancy during the week for a party is tough as I have to be able to get it done after work and before the gathering(which is usually a 45 minute window). 
So I decided to bust out my new food processor and make home-made hummus and a creamy pesto dip. This way there is a little variety- these flavours are a good preface to almost any meal(I did not know what the main course was going to be) and the bonus- it travels well! I was able to make the dips the night before, so major points for convenience! 

Lemon Garlic Hummus

Ingredients:
1 Can Garbanzo Beans
1 Clove crushed garlic(I sautéed mine in olive oil to give the flavour a little more depth)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp black pepper


Directions:
-Drain garbanzo beans over a bowl and save the liquid
-add ALL ingredients to food processor and blend. 
-Once thoroughly combined begin adding liquid until desired consistency is reached
-Refrigerate overnight


*I also would have added 1/3 cup of tahini to this recipe- but the grocery store was out when I went shopping- but regardless this hummus was still super tasty!

Creamy Pesto Dip

Ingredients:
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 mayonnaise 
1/3 cup pesto
2 Tbsp thinly sliced green onion
2 tsp lemon juice

Directions:
-Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly- Refrigerate over night!

Obviously both of these recipes are pretty easy- but they are both very tasty! I have to say that the "home-made" hummus for sure beats the ones you can buy at the grocery, it taste so much fresher- you could also adjust the flavour to your personal liking!  I made a double recipe of each of these and barely had any left over! I served them with some Stacy's pita chips, sliced green and red peppers, and carrots. These are great recipes for tailgate food- and good things to have in the refrigerator on a weekend when you have house guests!