This is my go to quick and fresh salsa recipe when ever tomatoes are in season. During the rest of the year we will pull out a jar of salsa but when tomatoes are fresh this is the one I prefer. It is wonderful right away and even better the next day.
Tomato Salsa
1 Tomato
½ tsp salt
¼ cup frozen or fresh corn
½ tbs lime juice
1 clove garlic
1 tbs cilantro
1 tsp olive oil
Chop tomato, add salt and drain for 10 min. If using frozen corn, rinse the corn and let drain. Mix all ingredients and let sit for 10 min.
Cheese sauce is great for dipping veggies in and for nachos.
Cheese Sauce
2 tbs butter
2 tbs flour
1 cup Milk
1 cup Cheese
½ cup Cream Cheese
On low heat melt the butter add flour and stir till mixed together.
Add the milk all at once and continue stirring until sauce thickens. Add
the cream cheese and the shredded cheeses and stir till smooth.
Make the cheese sauce as mild or as spicy as you like adding chopped jalapenos or hot sauce depending on your tastes.
More often then not we just cut up an avocado and use it in slices or simply mashed. Sometimes though I will through together this supper simple guacamole. Adding chopped tomatoes when they are in season makes this recipe even better.
Guacamole
1 Avocado
1 clove Garlic diced
½ tablespoon Lime juice
1 tablespoon Cilantro
½ tablespoon Olive Oil
Cut
and scoop out the avocado. Place avocado, garlic, lime juice, cilantro,
and olive oil in food processor and mix together until smooth.
You can also mix the guacamole by hand or with a hand blender if you do not have a food processor.
My kids love refried beans and Spanish "orange" rice. Well I have not perfected the orange rice but after much trial and error they like my beans.
Refried Beans
4
cups cooked Pinto Beans
2
cups veggie broth
1
onion
2
cloves garlic
⅛ tsp
chili powder
¼
tsp cumin
¼
tsp salt
2
cups water -as needed
Chop the onion and garlic to desired size. Place all the ingredients,
except the water in a large pot with a lid. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer and cover. Cook for 20-30 min checking to be sure it does not get overly dry adding water as needed. Mash the beans or puree, I like to use my hand blender, to the desired consistency if they seem dry add more water.
These beans can also be
cooked in a crock pot. Just place the beans and all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for 3-4 hours. Then mash or puree to desired consistency.
I am working more lentils and beans into our diet. I made this the other day with our Grilled Veggie Sandwiches. I worked great and will be added to our rotation.
Red Lentils and Veggies
1 1/4 cups red lentils
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
2 cups chopped veggies (eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, carrots)
2 tbs butter
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 tsp dried thyme
pepper
salt
Boil the lentils in enough water to cover them for 10 min. Drain and set aside.
Chop the onion, garlic, and other veggies. Heat butter in a pot. Gently saute the onions, garlic, and veggies. Add the lentils, thyme, pepper, and vegetable stock. Bring to a boil. Cover reduce heat and simmer for 20 min. Salt to taste.
I made this the other night it was from my latest issue of Real Simple Magazine. Our family enjoyed it so much I just had to share it. The magazine calls for pita chips instead of flatbread but the flatbread sounded good, plus it is slightly easier to make. The next time I have extra pita chips though I will be grilling up some feta for them.
Place feta in the middle of a large piece of foil. Top with thyme and sprinkle with the olive oil. Fold the foil to create a small sealed packet. Grill the packet on a preheated grill med-low heat for 10-15 min or place the packet in a 350 oven for 10-15 min. Serve with Grilled flatbread broken into chip size pieces.
Make packet up to 1 day ahead and bring to room temperature before cooking.
These can be a good snack or a healthy side dish. Yummy and crunch much like a potato chip.
Kale Chips 1 bunch of Kale 2 tbs Olive Oil 1/4 cup grated Parmesan Salt to taste
Wash and dry the kale leaves. Then cut and discard the hard middle stem cut or tear the kale into potato chip size pieces. Preheat oven to 300° F. Place the kale in a large bowl add the oil, parmesan, and salt and mix (your hands work best) until the kale is well coated. Place the kale in a single layer on a large baking sheet or 2 if you have a lot of kale. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the kale is crunchy. remove from baking sheet and let cool before enjoying.
We are overloaded with Zucchini right now, not that I am complaining. My sister suggested breading and baking the zucchini so I went to try it. Unfortunately I had a tone of bread crumbs (I make them from the heals and crust of our bread) and zucchini but no eggs to dip them in. I decided to try it with milk. They were delicious! Especially when I dipped them in some homemade ranch. Next time I make them I will add some grated Parmesan cheese and garlic powder to the bread crumbs.
Simple Breaded and Baked Zucchini Zucchini Milk Bread Crumbs
Cut zucchini into 1/2 inch thick strips. In 2 separate bowls place the milk and bread crumbs. Dip each strip in the milk and then in the bread crumbs to cover. Place each strip on a baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven at 400° F for 15-20 minutes.
Homemade tortillas are easy to make and so much better then store bought ones. I have tried 2 different versions and they are both good. It is important to let the dough rest before rolling it out. It will roll thinner and be easier to handle.
1. Flour Tortillas 1 ½ cup Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Salt
1/3 cup Shortening
1/3 cup Water
Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in shortening. Add hot water until moist. Knead dough. Cover and let rest for an hour. Separate dough into 8 balls. Roll to very thin (the will rise a little when they cook) and cook each tortilla for 2 minutes on each side in a skillet. Tortillas should be slightly brown and no longer look floury.
2.Flour Tortillas
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup room temp veggie puree*, milk, or water
Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Slowly add the warm milk and oil. Stir together dough will be sticky. Knead for two minutes on a floured surface. Dough should be firm and soft. Place dough in a bowl and cover with a damp cloth for 20 minutes.
After the dough has rested, break off eight sections, roll them into balls in your hands, place on a plate (make sure they aren’t touching) and then cover balls with damp cloth for 10 minutes. Roll each ball until it is thin and about 8 inches in diameter. In a dry skillet on high, cook the tortilla about thirty seconds on each side.
*I almost exclusively make all my tortillas with the second method using the veggie puree.
If using puree your dough may seem a bit dry. Mix the dough together first and if it seems too dry add a tbs of water at a time until you have the right consistency.Purees are a lot of fun to use my kids love having a variety of different colored tortillas.
My kids love quesadillas especially when they get to dip in the different sauces.
I like to keep our quesadillas pretty plain by just using a variety of our favorite cheese in them and then add flavor by providing different dips and toppings.
Heat oil in large pan. Place cheese on one tortilla and fold in half. Fry in oil until golden brown then flip and fry the other side about 1-2 min on each side. Place on a dish towel or on paper towels to drain some oil off before serving. Serve with avocado, sour cream, Bean Dip, and Tomato Salsa.
Black Bean Dip
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion
1/2 pepper
2 cups black beans
1 cup water
1 tbs Cilantro
1 tsp Salt
Finely chop onion and pepper. Cook onion and pepper in oil till soft. Add beans and water to veggies bring to a boil. Cook till soft and mash to desired constancy. Add more water or let cook to reduce water depending on your preference. Add salt and cilantro mix well. Serve warm.
Tomato Salsa
1 Tomato
½ tsp salt
¼ cup frozen or fresh corn
½ tbs lime juice
1 clove garlic
1 tbs cilantro
1 tsp olive oil
Chop tomato, add salt and drain for 10 min. If using frozen corn, rinse the corn and let drain. Mix all ingredients and let sit for 10 min.
1/2 loaf French Bread cut into thick slices 2 tablespoons Butter 1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Melt butter and mix in garlic powder. Let butter mixture sit until slightly hardened but still spreadable, can be placed in the fridge to quicken the process. Spread butter mixture on each slice of bread. Top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Cook bread at 350° for 15 min until top is lightly browned.
