Salsa Roja

Ingredients

• 3 medium tomatoes, cored and chopped (or 1 15-ounce can of whole tomatoes)
• ¼ cup onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 small jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
• ¼ cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ½ to ¾ cup water

Instructions

1. Add everything except the water to a blender. (I didn't add any water) Add ½ cup of water and blend until smooth. You want the salsa to be pretty thin so add more water as needed.
2. Transfer the salsa to a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for 7-10 minutes until the salsa has thickened slightly. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
3. Transfer to a jar and serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 week.

Found here: Nosh.on.it

Quinoa Bake

I wouldn't necessarily call it healthy, but it is delicious!  The hardest part is cooking the quinoa before hand, but it can be done in the microwave quickly.

Ingredients

2 cups COOKED quinoa
1 cup of your favorite pasta sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/3 cup heavy cream (we use skim milk)
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1 cup mozzarella, divided
1/2-1 cup grape tomatoes, halved (we use cherry tomatoes cut in thirds)
1 large bunch fresh basil, cut into ribbons
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.Heat tomato sauce and tomato paste over low heat in a large saucepan. Once warm, stir in heavy cream, parmesan, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and stir in the quinoa. Fold in half of the mozzarella and half of the tomatoes, then chop 6 fresh basil leaves and add them in too. Once combined, spray an 8x8 or 9x9 baking dish with non-stick spray and pour the entire quinoa mixture into the dish. Top with fresh mozzarella rounds or shredded mozzarella and the remaining tomatoes.Bake for 10 to 15 minutes and then turn the broiler on and broil for 1 to 2 minutes or until cheese is golden and bubbly.Remove from the oven and top with fresh basil ribbons. Allow to sit five minutes and then serve.

Mango Salad Dressing

So much delicious! I highly recommend this one with baby lettuce, red pepper, and mango.

Ingredients

150 g Flesh of about one mango
1/2 cup Water
1 tsp. Red wine vinegar
2 tsp. Rice vinegar
2 tsp. Extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Onion powder
1/2 tsp. Basil, dried
1/8 tsp. Cayenne pepper (optional)


Instructions
1. Puree everything, except half the basil, in a blender until super smooth.
2. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
3. Add the rest of the basil and mix.

Grilled Pineapple

1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 pineapple, trimmed and cut into 1.2-inch thick slices

In a ziplock bag, combine lime juice and brown sugar. Mix well. Add pineapple, stir to coat; cover and marinate 30 minutes or more.

Brush grill with oil. Place fruit on grill rack, and grill 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Peanut Butter White Chocolate Popcorn

2 bags microwave popcorn (or you could use regular popcorn)

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1 bag white chocolate chips (2 cups)

1/2-1 cup Reeses Pieces or M&Ms

Pop the popcorn then sift through to remove all unpopped kernels. Soften the PB in the microwave over 30 seconds, stir into popcorn to coat evenly. Melt the white chocolate either in a double broiler or in the microwave (over 2 minutes on 50% power, then stir chips until smooth). Pour over popcorn and gently stir to coat popcorn evenly with chocolate. Add Reeses Pieces or M&Ms as you stir in the chocolate. Spread out popcorn on waxed paper to set. Enjoy!

Amazing Jicama-Salsa

This is a delicious and novel take on salsa. I love it. I strongly recommend doubling the recipie. I have eaten an entire batch on my own.

1/2 cup shredded jicama
1/2 cup chopped mango
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil

Mix ingredients in glass bowl with wooden spoon, adding oil last. Make sure oil coats everything. Let stand 2 hours in refrigerator before serving.

Seven-layer Bean Dip

This recipie was a huge Cinco de Maio hit! Gone in 20 minutes flat!

1 can (16 oz)refried beans
1/2 package taco seasoning mix
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chiles
1 cup Thick 'n Chunky salsa
2 cups shredded lettuce
2 cups shredded Cheddar or Mexican cheese blend (8 oz)
1 can (2.25 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained (1/2 cup) - Jalepeno olives rock!
1 medium tomato, diced (3/4 cup)



1. In medium bowl, mix refried beans and taco seasoning mix. Spread mixture in a glass pie dish.
2. In another medium bowl, mix cream cheese and chiles. Carefully spread over bean mixture.
3. Top with salsa, lettuce, cheese, olives and tomato. Refrigerate until serving time. Best if left over night. Serve with tortilla chips.

Chili's Southwestern Egg Rolls

Again, I stole this one from Aubrie's blog. Maybe one day I'll learn to share original recipes. But probably not. They take some time to make, but are TOTALLY worth it. Delicious. I leave out the jalapenos because I'm a wimp. They make a perfect football watching or other party snack, but also a good dinner--they are very filling and super good!

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts (1 - 1 1/2 lbs), cooked and diced or shredded

2 Tb. vegetable oil

1 medium red bell pepper, minced

1 small or medium onion, minced

1 can corn, drained

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1/4 c. frozen spinach, thawed and drained

1/4 c. diced, canned jalapeno peppers

2 Tb. minced fresh parsley (or use 2 teaspoons dried parsley)

2 tsp. cumin

2 tsp. chili powder (I use 1 tsp regular chili powder and 1 tsp chipotle chili powder)

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

dash smoked paprika

3 c. shredded Monterey Jack (or Colby jack) cheese

20 7-inch flour tortillas (Mission brand tortillas work best)

Directions:

1. Preheat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat.

2. Add the red pepper and onion to the pan and saute for a couple minutes until tender.

3. Add the chicken, corn, black beans, spinach, jalapeno peppers, and spices to the pan. Cook for another 4 minutes. Stir well so that the spinach separates and is incorporated into the mixture.

4. Remove the pan from the heat and add the cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted.

5. Wrap the tortillas (10 at a time) in a moist cloth and microwave on high temperature for 1 minute or until hot.

6. Spoon 1-2 tablespoons of the mixture into the center of a tortilla. Fold in the ends and then roll the tortilla over the mixture. Roll the tortilla very tight. Brush edge of tortilla with a beaten egg and press to seal. Repeat with the remaining ingredients until you have twenty eggrolls.

7. You can either deep fry the eggrolls or bake them. I prefer to bake them. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, spray baking sheet, and brush each eggroll with one beaten egg. Bake 10-15 minutes or until crispy. If desired, you can turn the eggrolls halfway through baking time and brush the other side with egg so both sides are extra crispy. To deep fry, preheat 4-6 cups of oil to 375 degrees. Deep fry the eggrolls in the hot oil for 12-15 minutes and remove to paper towels or a rack to drain for about 2 minutes.

Serve with Avocado Ranch dressing for dipping.

Note: I usually chop the onions, pepper, and chicken in a food processor to save time. I just use whatever cheese I happen to have at the time—colby jack is good, but anything works. You might want to cut back on the jalapenos as it can get pretty spicy. For the avocado ranch I just use a ranch dip mix and prepare according to directions and add one or two diced avocados (mash them a little bit when you mix it into the dip). You can halve the batch if you want as this makes a lot. Or you can freeze them (cooked or uncooked), that way you have more on hand without going through the trouble of making them again.

Aubrie's Salsa

This is the easiest salsa you'll ever make, and it's totally incredible. It's a smooth salsa, and can be spicy (Adam, Kelly...that should appeal to both of you). It used canned tomatoes, but still tastes really fresh.

I stole the recipe from Aubrie's recipe blog, apparently she adapted it from somewhere else. All I know is that it's good.

1 - 2 Tb. lime juice
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 yellow onion (or red onion, diced)
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro (I used a little less--I don't like my salsa being too overwhelmed by cilantro)
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with chipotle chiles (if you can't find them or want it less spicy, it works with garlic and onion tomatoes too)
Salt & pepper to taste
cayenne pepper to taste, if desired (the salsa starts out pretty mild--the more of this you add, the more heat you add, but it retains the salsa flavor pretty well)

Put all ingredients in a food processor/blender and blend until desired consistency.

Cafe Pierpont Black Bean Salsa

This recipie is phenominal! I usually make it without the red onion, but delicious either way. The secret is to very, very thoroughly drain the canned vegitables. Only takes a few minutes to whip up and refrigerates well.

1 can black beans
1 can chopped tomatoes with jalapenos
1 can corn
½ red onion diced
Juice from ½ a lime
Fresh cilantro
Salt
½ teaspoon minced garlic (be conservative)

Drain all cans thoroughly. Mix beans, tomatoes, corn, onions, lime, and garlic. Add cilantro and salt to taste. Let all ingredients refrigerate at least 3 hours. High in fiber and low fat!