I always have trouble finishing the messages split in several entries, but it's really worth it to give you the entire buffet, no? After the Soup bar and the glass cups and salty appetizers, here is the part where I tell you about dips and spreads. Serve them with lots of veggies (cherry tomatoes, radish, carrot sticks, cucumbers and celery and cauliflower sprouts) to free the girls of guilt and some nachos, bread and pitas to nourish the guys!!

Two spreads: my first attempt at Hummus and Green Olive Tapenade. Two dips: my two favorite dips that I've been eating since childhood almost every time I've had people over, the Yoghurt and Chive Dip and the Ketchup-yoghurt Dip. A good opportunity to offer these very simple recipes that everyone asks about everytime I serve them.

Serves 50 people, I doubled all the recipes.
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Hummus

Prep: 10mins (+10mins if you peel the chickpeas)

For a big bowl of hummus

- 1 canned chickpeas (250g drained weight)
- 4 tablespoons Tahini (sesame paste, sold in organic food shops)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- Juice of ½ lemon
- 1 garlic clove 1 tablespoon of garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon sumac (Spices blend for Hummus, optional)
- salt, pepper

Drain the chick peas, keeping 6 tablespoons of the juice present in the can. Rinse the chickpeas then peel them pinching two fingers to remove the skin. Peeling is time consuming but it gives a creamy texture; However, this step is optional, you can just rinse chickpeas, hummus will taste the same but will just be a little more granular.

Put the chickpeas, Tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, the juice from the can, peeled clove of garlic (or garlic powder) and sumac in the bowl of a blender and mix thoroughly for a few minutes to get a texture as uniform as possible. Add salt, pepper. Taste and adjust if necessary. If the hummus is too dry, add a little olive oil.

Keep refrigerated with plastic wrap and eat before 2 days. Serve with pita bread and / or raw vegetables.

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Green olive tapenade

For a bowl of tapenade

Prep: 10mins

- 1 jar of pitted green olives (190g drained weight)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- pepper
- 1 garlic clove (optional)
- 7 anchovy fillets (optional)
- 2 tablespoons capers (optional)

Drain the green olives. Place the pitted green olives, lemon juice and garlic clove, anchovy fillets and capers (if you want them) in the bowl of a blender and blend a few minutes. Add pepper. Taste and adjust if necessary.

Keep refrigerated with plastic wrap and eat before 2 days or store in your refrigerator for several weeks in a closed sterilized jar.

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Yoghurt Chive Dip

Prep: 3mins

For a bowl of sauce

- 400g of yoghurt (or 200g of thick cream + 200g of yoghurt 0%)
- a bunch of fresh chives
- salt, white pepper

Mix the yoghurt and the fresh chives. Salt generously. Add pepper (the white pepper really gives a specific taste). Store for 2 hours in the fridge with plastic wrap for the taste of chives to spread in the yoghurt.

Serve the same day as an accompaniment for salads or veggies, nachos or chips.
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Ketchup-yoghurt Dip

Prep: 3mins

For a bowl of sauce

- 2 natural yoghurt
- 1 yoghurt cup of ketchup (or more according to taste)
- salt, pepper

Mix yoghurt and ketchup. Add salt, pepper.

Serve the same day as an accompaniment for salads or veggies, nachos or chips.