Tag Archives: Salsa

recipe goodness :: traditional tomatillo tops salsa notions

Traditional Tomatillo Tops Salsa Notions

Traditional Tomatillo Tops Salsa Notions

Each week’s trip the greenmarket feels like a treasure hunt. But despite the many visits I’ve made over the years, I’m still discovering new items that I’ve never cooked with before. This week’s experiment: tomatillos. Luckily my produce stand is manned with friends of Mexican descent, who are more than willing to share their traditional preparation secrets to create a tomatillo salsa that will top any prior notions of what makes salsa good.

First: peel thin outer skin and cook 3 minutes in boiling water until color changes to a darker green.

Side by Side Tomatillos

Side by Side Fresh and Cooked Tomatillos

Second: Toss in the tomatoes and cook for 2 more minutes. Drain. Whiz. Salsa!

Salsafied

Salsafied

Traditional Tomatillo Salsa

4 tomatillos
~2 cups mixed yellow, red and black grape tomatoes
2 stems of cilantro, washed and finely chopped
1/2-1 red chilli {depending on heat pref}
1 scallion or 1/4 medium red onion
salt to taste

  1. Bring a pot of water to a boil with 4-5 inches of water
  2. Peel tomatillo and add for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook for 2-3 more minutes until tender.
  3. Drain and blend thoroughly with onion, red chili and salt to taste.
  4. Mix in chopped cilantro by hand.
  5. Chill or serve immediately as a salsa or topping to fresh grilled fish.

Salsafied:
Creole Roasted Fresh Corn-Tomato Salsa
Avocado & Tropical Fruit Salsa 
Introducing grilled blowfish

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recipe goodness :: lime-kissed peach and corn summer salad

Summer Jersey Peaches

Two of my favorite things come out in the heat of the summer: corn and peaches. So the obvious thing to me is to put them together, add some citrus, heat and herby goodness and create a spectacular summer salad that can be made in 5 minutes. We served this up to our Freshocracy customers and also just shared a few bites at our Freshocracy Greenmarket cooking demo…to rave reviews. So for those of you who would like to try this simple sweet and savory salad at home, here’s to sharing…

Lime-Kissed Peach and Corn Summer Salad
Serves 4
Recipe modified from Jessica Albertson 

4 ears of corn, shucked
2 peaches
1/2-1 serrano pepper
1/2 red onion, diced finely
0.5 oz cilantro or mint, chopped
1 lime, zested and juiced
Salt and pepper to taste

  1. Shuck the corn and use a large sharp knife to cut off the root part of the cob that is sticking out, creating a flat end. Tip: Using a baking sheet with edges, hold the corn standing up on its flat end in the middle of the sheet and carefully run your knife down the sides to cut off the kernels. Cutting directly on the baking sheet with edges will catch the kernels as they fall off. Add the corn to a medium sized bowl.
  2. Wash and dice the peach into pieces approximately the size of the corn or a little larger.
  3. Depending on your tolerance for spice, dice 1/2 to all of the serrano and add to the mixture. Note: Be careful not to touch your eyes after handling a hot pepper!
  4. Finely dice red onion and add to the bowl.
  5. Wash and chop cilantro or mint and add to the bowl.
  6. Zest and juice lime into the bowl.
  7. Season with salt and pepper and mix gently.
  8. Serve as a side salad with fish, chicken or beef or just as a salsa!

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recipe goodness :: creole roasted fresh corn-tomato salsa

Creole Roasted Corn-Tomato Salsa

It’s not very difficult to make your own salsa and it’s fresher, cheaper and often solicits a lot of “mmmmms” from anyone you share it with. Plus, a really good salsa can not only  make a good app, but goes really well with something like grilled fish, chicken, burgers, nachos, you name it, adding a more interesting and flavorful accompaniment than anything you’ll find in a plastic bottle.

Creole Roasted Fresh Corn-Tomato Salsa

2 ears of corn, shucked
butter or olive oil for  brushing
Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning for dusting
1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered
2 scallions, chopped
1 lime, juiced and zested
1 jalapeno or red chili, finely chopped
small handful of cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Light the grill and while that warms up, shuck each ear of corn and brush with butter {or olive oil if you prefer} and sprinkle a generous amount of Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning on all sides of the corn until covered. Wrap each ear of seasoned corn separately and cook on the grill for  10 minutes, rotating every 2-3 minutes. While the corn is cooking add the remaining ingredients to a mixing bowl. {Tip: Use only half a jalapeno or chili if you prefer a milder salsa}. Once the corn is done, let it cool slightly and then stand on the flat end of the cob and take a sharp knife down length of the corn to remove all the kernels. Add the bowl and toss well to break up the corn and mix all the flavors together. Serve in a bowl or to jazz it up a bit, take a tablespoon and fill tortilla chip “scoops” individually on a plate.

Creole Roasted Corn-Tomato Salsa and Chips

If this sounds appetizering, you might also like these recipes:
Pink Fizzy Lemonade Cocktails Beat the Heat
Avocado & Tropical Fruit Salsa
Bison, a Better Burger Worth Biting Into

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recipe goodness :: avocado & tropical fruit salsa

Avocado & Tropical Fruit Salsa

Memorial Day is right around the corner , which means I break out the American flag and fire up the BBQ. Anyone who knows me knows my biggest weakness is tortilla chips with fresh salsa — not the jarred kind that tastes like bland tomato puree or the ‘fresh’ salsa that comes prepackaged at the grocery store, but the pull-your-knife-out and start chopping fresh salsa. I usually do some version of a grape tomato-corn-jalapeno-lime blend, but my cousin recently introduced me to a truly unique recipe with a blend of fruit, citrus and avocado that was both delicious and beautiful — it’s worth the effort of chop, chop, chopping and if you don’t finish it off yourself before it gets to the table, you will definitely impress your guests with something new and unexpected.

Avocado & Tropical Fruit Salsa

2 cups finely diced tropical fruit such as kiwi, pineapple, mango, and papaya
2 avocados, pitted, peeled, and cut into ¼-inch dice
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
¼ cup finely chopped red onion
1 fresh serrano or jalapeño chile, seeded and finely chopped
2 TBS fresh lime juice, plus zest
2 TBS fresh squeezed orange juice

Let the chopped onion soak in the orange juice for 10-15 minutes while you chop the rest of the ingredients {TIP: this will help take the bite out of the raw onion}. Gently toss together all ingredients in a medium bowl with salt and pepper to taste. Goes great with lime tortilla chips or with grilled fish, chicken, as a topping for a burger, whatever! The flavors are so fresh it’s hard not to love this salsa with anything.

Speaking of burgers, why not try bison?

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