Get Ready for Ren Faire!!

Are you ready for Ren Faire? We are! We're looking forward to returning to our favorite stage at the Shifting Sands Belly Dance encampment on the following days and times:

Friday, October 5th -- 4:00 PM
Saturday, October 6th -- 1:30 PM
Saturday, October 6th -- 4:00 PM
Sunday, October 7th -- 2:30 PM

We'll be performing four different shows, so plan ahead to make it to every one of them...You'll see something different at each one!

Need more information on Ren Faire? Check out their Website for information on location, hours, parking, etc. We'll see you there...Huzzah!!

Ren Faire 2015!

Did you make it to Ren Faire this year? We had a fantastic time performing, as you can see from the pictures below! If you didn't make it, don't worry...we'll be posting more pictures and videos soon!

Ren Faire Ready!

Las Vegas Renaissance Faire 2014
"Gypsy Show"

So, are you ready for Ren? We're ready for the Las Vegas Renaissance Faire! We're proud to announce we'll be performing four entirely different shows this year, all on the Shifting Sands stage:

We'll be performing our Arabic show on Friday, October 9th,  at 3 PM.

Saturday we're excited to present our Gypsy show at 1 PM, and we'll return to the stage with a flamenco-influenced show at 3:15 PM.

On Sunday, stop by at 2 PM to check out our Eastern Mediterranean show, inspired by music and dance from Greece, Lebanon, and Armenia.

If you've seen our shows before, you'll be happy to hear we're introducing many new songs, choreos, costuming, and props. There's something new in every show! We're excited to share our passion for Middle Eastern music and dance with you, and look forward to seeing you soon.

Throwback Thursday!

We're busy gearing up for the Las Vegas Renaissance Faire in October, and we're excited to share that we'll be introducing new music, choreography, props, and costuming. Naturally, that's keeping us busy until October, so today we'd like to call your attention to our recently updated Photo Gallery, where you can enjoy a sampling of the shows we've done since Desert Gypsies hit the road as a professional troupe back in June 2012. We've done holiday shows for Mardi Gras, Halloween, and Christmas; themed shows ranging from Arabic to Spanish to Mediterranean; and we've performed at venues as varied as the Las Vegas Belly Dance Intensive to the West Charleston Library.

Enjoy! -- and we'll see you soon at Ren Faire 2015!

Recipe: Hummus

Hummus is a classic Middle Eastern recipe, which means there are many opinions and variations. In the Middle East, hummus is usually prepared with tahini (sesame seed butter), but in Greece, olive oil is used. I find raw olive oil upsets my stomach, so I opt for canola oil. It'll be delicious no matter how you prepare it! Serve with pita chips, a veggie platter, or use as a spread for sandwiches in lieu of mayonnaise. Yum!

Hummus

Ingredients:

2 (15.5 ounce) cans chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup bottled minced garlic (or 8 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped)
1/4 cup canola oil, olive oil, or tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice

Directions:

Combine chickpeas, water, garlic, oil or tahini, and lemon juice in blender or food processor, and puree until smooth.

Recipe: Pumpkin Hummus

It's that time of year when pumpkin recipes abound! -- and one of my favorites is pumpkin hummus. Pumpkin hummus is good with cut raw veggies or plain pita chips, but it's sublime with cinnamon pita chips or cinnamon pretzels. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Hummus

Ingredients:

1 (29-ounce) can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup bottled minced garlic (or 8 garlic cloves, minced)
6 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup tahini paste
salt, to taste

Directions:

Combine pumpkin, garlic, lemon juice, and tahini in blender or food processor and puree until very smooth. Add salt to taste.

Ren Faire 2014!!

We had such a wonderful time performing at Ren Faire this year! We especially want to thank all of our friends who joined us for our performances. It's a real delight to look out into the audience and see a familiar face or two! We're already looking forward to next year's Ren Faire. :) Here's a pic from our last performance, but if that's just not enough dance for you (and we hope it isn't!), check out our Video Gallery. Huzzah!

Las Vegas Renaissance Faire 2014!!

We're seriously excited about Ren Faire next week, in part because we're looking forward to sharing some exciting new music and choreography with our audiences! Here's our schedule on the Shifting Sands Belly Dance stage:

Friday, October 9th, 3 PM -- "Mediterranean Delights"
Friday, October 9th, 5:30 PM -- dancing with Tribe Al-Wadi
Friday, October 9th, 8 PM -- "Spanish Nights"
Saturday, October 10th, 4 PM -- "Arabic Dreams"
Saturday, October 10th, 5:30 PM -- dancing with Tribe Al-Wadi
Sunday, October 11th, 3 PM -- "Mediterranean Delights"

We look forward to seeing you at Ren!! :)

Recipe: Mediterranean Potato Salad

This Mediterranean take on classic potato salad makes a cool, refreshing side dish for a hot summer's day. I like to serve it on top of a bed of chopped greens and garnish it with chopped tomato to make it a meal. Enjoy!

Mediterranean Potato Salad

Ingredients:

2 pounds potatoes, waxy-type
1 cup Greek yogurt
1/2 cup celery, thinly sliced
1/4 cup onion, minced
2 teaspoons dried dill weed
1 teaspoon whole coriander, crushed
1/8 teaspoon fresh-ground peppercorn mix

Directions:

Boil potatoes until just soft. Drain and cool. Chop into 1/2" cubes.

Place potatoes, yogurt, celery, onion, dill weed, coriander, and peppercorn mix in medium bowl, and gently stir to combine.

Recipe: Tzatziki (Cucumber Yogurt Dressing)

Tzatziki is one of my favorite dressings. It's delicious with all sorts of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes, from kebbeh to foul moudhammus, but it's a classic with falafel. It makes a wonderful chunky salad dressing, too. Enjoy!

Tzatziki

Ingredients:

2 cups Greek yogurt
2 cucumbers, peeled and diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
2 teaspoons dried dill weed

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in medium bowl. Serve chilled.