As it gets colder and darker early I have been reminiscing over the the long summer dinner I made to celebrate my dad’s birthday in June. We invited the neighbours and started up the barbecue in the early afternoon.

We sat around the table until it got dark and then brought out a summer berry pavlova with candles in for dessert. He said it was his best birthday he could remember ❤

On the menu:

• Homemade houmous (made the traditional way)
• Cannellinni bean dip
• Homemade aoili
• Black olives marinated with garlic and herbs
• Salad from the garden dressed with apple cider vinegar, lemon and Himalayan salt
• Boiled new potatoes with ghee and rosemary
• Sesame seed breadsticks made from sourdough discard
• Cantabrian Anchovies with extra virgin olive oil
• Steamed artichokes from the garden
• Butter beans with crushed garlic and olive oil
• Barbecued mackerel with lemon and finely sliced onion

I love a dip party ~ the more dips the merrier. Something about finger food brings so much joy and I love that satisfied feeling from trying so many different flavours throughout the evening. Also, if we are thinking of gut health, it is very healthy as so many different dishes get eaten which keeps the microbes happy.

Cannelinni Bean Dip

Ingredients:

• 1 x tin of drained cannellini beans
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Juice from half a lemon
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• Salt and pepper to taste

Recipe:

1. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.
2. Taste test ~ add salt and pepper and more garlic or lemon if needed.
3. If you would like to make the dip more runny add some more oil or a couple of tablespoons of water and blend again until you are happy with the consistency.
4. Enjoy :~)