Fresh Mint-Dill Dip

For the past 4-5 days it had been raining cats and dogs in Washington DC. We had constant rain and I barely managed to get out of the house. Of course, the result was that my backyard veggie patch had to be totally neglected. Finally this morning when a tiny bit of the sun came out, I went out to take a look at it and was surprised to find that over the few days of rain and intense heat, the plants had grown like Jack’s bean stalks! I even managed to find some vegetables that the rabbits had not been able get their grubby paws on. I got a few ripe cherry and grape tomatoes, some radishes, a couple of Persian cucumbers and lots of crispy sweet peas.  When vegetables are this fresh, I don’t like to cook them and so I just decided to serve them with a healthy Mint and Dill Dip (mint and dill were also harvested from the yard).  This is an easy to make dip that is healthy (especially if you use low-fat mayonnaise) and it goes marvelously well with fresh crispy vegetables.

Ingredients:

1.    3 tablespoons of low-fat or no fat Greek Yogurt (or hung yogurt)
2.    2 tablespoons of jarred Mayonnaise (low fat if you prefer)
3.    2-3 cloves of fresh garlic
4.    Juice of half a fresh lemon
5.    2-3 teaspoons of sugar (less if you prefer)
6.    ½ teaspoon of salt
7.    A small bunch of fresh dill (stems removed)
8.    5-6 sprigs of fresh mint (stems removed)
9.    1-2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil (you can do without this as well)
10.    Lots of fresh raw vegetables (whatever you have available)

Directions

1.    Wash the mint and dill leaves and place them on dry paper-towels to remove any excess water.

2.    Place the dried herbs in a small food processor and give them a thorough chop.

3.    Peel the garlic cloves.

4.    Add the Mayo, Greek Yogurt, garlic cloves, sugar, salt, and the juice of ½ lemon) to the food processor and whisk everything thoroughly.

5.    Pour the dip in a serving dish and pour a little bit of extra virgin olive oil on it.
6.    Cut the vegetables and serve on a platter. Serve the Mint Dill Dip (chilled) with the vegetables.

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