flexi, flexi, elasti, hummus

I have 3 silly comments, all about being flexible:

1. I have decided to try out flexitarianism for a while. (Basically, flexitarians are people who generally eat a vegetarian diet, but who occasionally eat meat.) Basically, I'm not buying meat for home any more, but will still eat it if I go out to eat or am at a dinner party or something like that. Why, you ask? Well, a few reasons: meat is expensive, I've never really liked meat much, vegetarianism is healthy, vegetarianism is a new cooking challenge for me, and I'm starting to realize that if I eat meat I want to eat stuff that is raised cage free/free range/antibiotics free/hormone free, and that meat is especially expensive. I have no major moral issues with consuming meat (although having a pet chicken at school has made eating chicken less appealing lately,) since we are at the top of the food chain for a reason, in my opinion.

2. I need to do more yoga, (for both strength training and increased flexibility,) and I need your help! Pester me -- I plan to do yoga on Mondays, Thursdays, and once over the weekend. Check up on me and make sure I'm doing it, and yell at me if I don't!

3. Natalie and Don have started calling me elasti-girl lately, because there have been several occasions lately where we all wished my arms could stretch indefinitely. (I like to say "go, go, gadget arms!" but, of course, the kids don't understand that. Elasti-Girl is familiar to them.) It's pretty funny.

The only thing I "cooked" this weekend was hummus. Here's my recipe (very easy!):

1 can garbanzo beans, partially drained (the more liquid you use, the runnier your hummus will be, but the less oil you will need)
1 clove garlic
juice of 1 small lemon
rounded teaspoon full of tahini, almond butter, OR peanut butter
salt and pepper to taste
extra virgin olive oil
fresh herbs if desired
cayenne pepper if desired

* Combine the garbanzo beans, garlic, lemon juice, nut butter, salt, and pepper in your blender. (You can also use a food processor if you have one, which I don't!) Turn it on, pull the little round thingy out of the middle of the lid, and stream in enough olive oil until it comes together. (Have a folded towel handy to cover the little hole in case the hummus starts spurting everywhere, but it shouldn't.) Blend thoroughly. Add the herbs and cayenne if desired, blend a bit longer, and serve. Store leftovers in the fridge.

Jon-O-Meter Rating (omitting pepper and cayenne): 0

Serve with crudites, pita, crackers, use instead of mayo on turkey sandwiches (especially good: whole grain bread, hummus, turkey, provolone, avocado, tomato, and lettuce!), tortilla chips, etc. . . . . . . hummus is very versatile! Enjoy.