Thankful Thursday - Birds, A New Recipe, and a Tip

So much to be thankful for this week.  Cooler weather for one thing.  Now cool in Florida is quite different than most places.  Cooler here in central Florida is 80-90 degrees.  Nights are in the '70s.  It is wonder-full, Gail-Friends.  I can spend time on my porch in the mornings without two fans blowing on me.  I'm loving it!

This morning, I saw my first male painted bunting of the season.  October 3 is way early, so it must already be getting cold where this little snowbird lives.   Sorry for the bad (phone) photo.  Hopefully, I'll get more in the days ahead.

We had a great Rosh Hashanah celebration to welcome in the new year 5780.  Lots of shofar blowing:

food and fellowship:

Round challah is a tradition for Rosh Hashanah - and we had this beauty-full one made by our Miss Barbara

I made this hummus dish and it was a big hit with everybody.  I found it on a website and changed it up a bit.  Here's my version:

Ingredients:

2 containers of plain hummus
olives - whatever type you like
cherry tomatoes
baby carrots
Cumin
Paprika
Dried parsley flakes
Salt and pepper

 Preheat the oven to 350

Split the tomatoes in half and cut the carrots to small pieces.  Toss in olive oil, then roast until veggies are tender to your liking.  I did mine for about 45 minutes.

Let veggies cool, then sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.

Empty the hummus onto a plate and use a spoon to spread it into a big circle.

Sprinkle cumin and paprika over the hummus.
Sprinkle the olives and tomatoes on top of the hummus
Place the carrots around the edges of the dish
Sprinkle all with the parsley flakes.

VWA-LA!!!  Refrigerate.

Serve with crackers or pita wedges.  SO GOOD!

I also made a sugar-free, gluten-free apple dessert.  It did not turn out good.  I figured out why later...I forgot to add the butter to the crumble topping.  (Martha Stewart I'm NOT!)  I must admit, the topping tasted like sawdust.  But the filling was fabulous!  I used glucomannan to thicken the apple juice.  That part was perfect.  It's a Trim Healthy Mama recipe if anybody's interested in making it, let me know and I'll give you the info.

Also, I'm thankful for a great tip I found this week.  I learned how to keep apples from turning brown.  It's so simple.  Core and slice the apples, cover them with water, and then add a tablespoon of plain old table salt.   I made these apples way ahead of time, stored them in the frig, and they stayed perfectly white  as you can see below:

I love getting to use my little bumblebee honey dipper.  Isn't it cute?

Minnie Blue met a new friend at the library this week.  She's thank-ful.

Well, that's all for this week, Gail-Friends.  I hope you have a great week ahead.  Shalom and blessings to you.