Salsa

Last year we had an amazing garden, and we got a TON of romas. We decided to save them all for late fall, when my friend was planning to have a salsa-making party. Let me tell you what, that was the best salsa we've ever had. Richard dreamed about it for 10 months until this fall, and we planted over 20 tomato plants in preparation. Unfortunately that didn't work out so well, but Winco was having a really good sale on romas, so we lucked out.

Our first batch made about 12 pints, and that went WAY too fast. Off I went to Winco to get more veggies, and we made a second batch. We had a slight mishap with the seasonings, but Richard was able to work his magic and make it super tasty. We brought 4 quarts to Thanksgiving, and they all disappeared. And then everyone wanted the recipe, so here it is!

This is my friend's uncle's recipe, but I'm sure he doesn't mind sharing.

12 c tomatoes
1 1/2 c white vinegar
1/2 c sugar
3 onions, chopped
4-6 chopped green peppers
3-6 chopped Anaheim peppers (or whatever you want to add for spicy)
3 T salt
1 T black pepper
1 T or more garlic powder
cilantro (optional)

Peel tomatoes by blanching in boiling water and removing skins. Simmer all ingredients for 2ish hours or until it's as thick as you want it to be. (You can also add 1/2 c dried onion toward the end of the simmering to make it thicker if you want.)

Put in jars, leave about 1/4 inch at top, water bath for 15 minutes to sterilize and seal.

Variation: Use only 1 c vinegar and add 1/4 c lime juice.

Makes about 6-8 pints.

Southwest Sweet Potato and Quinoa Casserole

This is so yummy. Sweet potatoes are SO good for you, but not everyone likes them as much as white potatoes. I'm trying to find more ways to incorporate them into meals my family enjoys without losing the flavor, and this recipe is great for that. It's also very simple. I threw it together in less than half an hour yesterday, and Richard approved. Reuben liked it too, but it was a little too spicy for Rachel.

This recipe will easily feed 4 people.

Here's what I did:
1. Shred 1 medium sweet potato.

 You can skin it if you want, but remember that a lot of the nutrients are packed into the skin, and no one's going to notice it since it's shredded anyway.

  2. In a large bowl, combine the shredded sweet potato, 1 can of drained and rinsed black beans, 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa*, and 1/2 cup of shredded cheese, along with dashes of salt, pepper, and cumin (technically it calls for 1/2 Tbsp, but that's a lot for my sensitive 3 yr old) and mix well.

 3. In a separate bowl, mix 1/2 cup salsa with 1 egg. 

 4. Pour into greased baking dish.

 Pour the salsa mixture on top,

 and top with another 1/2 cup or so of shredded cheese.










 
5. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Enjoy!

*Quinoa is fun to experiment with, but this is my absolute favorite recipe for it. It cooks just like rice, but you do need to rinse or soak it before you cook it. I usually put it in a pot of water for 15 minutes, then rins it in my mesh strainer. Then return it to the pot with a 2:1 ration of water to quinoa, bring to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. 1 cup uncooked yields 3 cups cooked, so for this recipe you can easily cook up 1/3 cup and do the rest of your preparation (mostly shredding) while it's cooking.

And if you end up with extra beans or quinoa from making this recipe, here's another yummy thing I made for lunch the other day.