Saturday, July 21, 2018

Instant Pot Smoking Hot Salsa

I got a new toy during Amazon Prime Day the giant Instant Pot! The Arizona summer heat has got me dreading any heat in the kitchen at all. I'm hoping this will motivate me to get back to the kitchen as I love playing with new toys.


To get the party started I was feeling a little spicy and saucy. For years I've cheated and used canned tomatoes to make my salsa. I don't like being a cheater, so I'm excited to be using fresh tomatoes and making my own salsa truly from scratch. This is also a great way to control sodium if you are watching it.

Let's get down to the business of throwing down the recipe.



Instant Pot Smoking Hot Salsa

Makes about 1 quart

6 large tomatoes, cored and diced small (seeds intact)
1 medium sweet yellow onion
2 fresh Serrano chiles, seeds removed, finely diced
2 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chipotle powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 - 1/2 cup cilantro (measured before chopping) chopped

Add all ingredients except for cilantro to Instant Pot inner pot, stir to combine. Set for 30 minutes on manual/steam setting. Let cool to room temperature. Depending on the liquid content of your tomatoes you may want to drain off some of the excess liquid. Stir in chopped cilantro. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. The flavor gets better with time.

Sunday, January 7, 2018

Fajita Marinated Grilled Veggies

This past week the local Sprouts had organic bell peppers on sale, so I bought a bunch. I love to eat them straight up with hummus, but not THAT many in a week. I decided to have a little dinner party and thought it would be a beautiful idea to find a way to incorporate my buy into the dinner. I had pineapples to use up and my sis was trying to find a use for some soy curls she wanted to use.

I remembered the Courico Tacos with Grilled Pineapple Salsa from Isa's Vegan Brunch. What a perfect way to use both! So the main course was set. We are all trying to recover from the carb loaded holidays, so I did not want to make rice or chips to go with the whole kitten caboodle. It is 70 degrees in Arizona this week, so I had not qualms about firing up the grill, but these can be made in a grill pan as well. These veggies would be delicious with any latin style dish. Heck, they are good with anything really.


Fajita Marinated Grilled Veggies

Makes 4 Generous Servings

Marinade Ingredients

1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 up avocado oil (or other mild flavored oil)
4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ancho Chile powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke

2-3 large red, orange or yellow bell peppers, core and veins removed, cut into quarters
2 fresh papilla (poblano) peppers, core and veins removed, cut into quarters
1 large sweet onion, cut into 1/2 inch thick rounds, peeled

Whisk marinade ingredients together in a bowl. Place peppers and marinade in 1 gallon ziplock back (or non-reactive container of your choice). Marinate for at least an hour up to overnight turning/stirring 1/2 way through.

Preheat grill to high. Spray onion slices with thin layer of oil. Place onion slices and peppers on grill. Brush onions with marinade. Grill for approximately 5 minutes per side, making sure peppers are slightly charred and onions have good grill marks before turning. NOTE: Turn onion slices carefully to try to keep intact. Brush second side of onions with marinade.

Serve immediately. Great reheated on sandwiches, in salads on omelets, etc.