easy

As we welcome summer into our lives with open arms, it's also a time to welcome wonderful, crisp and light foods into our bellies. Minnesota has so many delicious options to choose from. We are also a Minne-gold mine when it comes to hummus. Our farmer's markets, co-ops and gardens are full of tasty options for your own homemade hummus. I was shocked at how easy it is to make at home, and ever since that day, I have been hooked on the stuff. It was not time consuming or difficult and you can create enough variations to keep this go-to food fresh and fun for your palette.

The greens are growing wildly in my garden, the spinach is getting munched up as soon as the leaves are as big as half dollars. Soon, I will be buried in salad greens from the crunchy and mild butter crisp lettuces at the farmers markets, to the mix of lettuces and other cutting greens in my garden. Add in the mustard greens and dill that grow everywhere in my yard now and I'm set to eat as much salad as I can handle. The only way that is going to happen is if I have great dressings constantly on hand. This is key. I mean, I love a spot of salad with every little thing, but if I have to make dressing every time or suffer through another bland canola oil based bottle of store bought dressing (for $5 bucks, no less), then there is no way this massive influx of greens will get eaten. Some will inevitably end up a slime project in the bottom of my crisper.