Labor Day is just around the corner, which means it’s time to start planning a party.  I have already posted several recipes for party foods, but this time I will share one that has been around for a while.

It used to be very popular few years back, and it’s gaining popularity once again.

Actually, one of my readers  asked me to post my recipe for the Rye Bread Dip, so here it is.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups mayonnaise (Hellmans Light, is my favorite)
• 2 cups sour cream (see TIP below this post)
• 1 Tbs Italian Parsley leaves, chopped
• 1 Tbs onion, minced
• 2 Tbs dill
• 1 packet Dried Beef, chopped(optional if you are a vegetarian)
• 1 round loaf of Rye Bread

Directions:

1. In a medium size bowl, mix mayonnaise and sour cream.
2. Chop the Dried Beef to small chunks.
3. Blend in the parsley, onions, dill and chopped beef.
4. Slice off the top of the round rye bread loaf (about 1 inch from the top)
5. Scoop out the middle section of the bread, and cut up into 2×2 inch squares.  The bread shell will become  a bread bowl.  The sliced off top of the bread may serve as a cover for the dip before serving, or it may be cut up into chunks, for dipping.
6. Set aside the bread chunks.
7. Fill the bread cavity with the dip (see TIP below this post).
8. Place the filled bread bowl on a serving platter, and arrange the cut up bread chunks around it.
9. Dip in, and enjoy!

TIP: To prevent the “bread bowl” from getting soggy, you can place a serving bowl, filled with the dip, inside the bread cavity, and as begin to run low on the bread cubes, you can cut up the remaining bread, to replenish.

To lighten up this recipe a little further, you may substitute the sour cream with Light Sour Cream, or Greek Yogurt.

I already showed you some of my flower patches, and I mentioned my small organic garden, which I started two years ago. All my plants are cultivated in a mix of mushroom soil and organic gardening soil. I do not use any additional fertilizers, and definitely no pesticides.

I grow perennial herbs and fruits, and annual vegetables.

This is my organic garden.

Here are some of the plants in my garden:

Parsley, Basil, Dill Weed, Oregano,Green Beans, Potato Plant, Red Beets

The fruit group includes:

Blueberry Bush Blueberry Flowers Green Blueberry Fruit

Raspberry Bushes Raspberry Flowers Raspberry Green Fruit

Blooming Strawberries Blushing Fruits First Harvest

My vegetables selection changes annually, but mostly consists of: Tomatoes, Zucchini, Summer Yellow Squash, Red Beets, Cucumbers, Green Beans, and this year I have added a couple of potato plants and Sorrel plants.

I will share some pictures of these as the “fruit of my labor” begins to show a little bit more.