Tag Archives: tomato

25Jan / 2011

The Pioneer Woman’s Restaurant Style Salsa (and The Quest for Good At-Home Mexican)

What was left of The Pioneer Woman's Restaurant Style Salsa after one day. Dawn and I can put away some salsa.

Dawn and I are pressing on in our quest to create the perfect at-home Mexican food.  Our first great success was the adaptation of this near-perfect burrito sauce from a Cooks.com recipe.  We both almost always order a bean burrito, so this was a big success.  We’re still working on perfecting the filling, though.  I know at restaurants they just shove some refried beans in there and call it a day, but we’re shooting for something a little more… something, but we’re not sure what that is (which is probably the problem).  The first time we made these burritos it was because we had lot of leftover bean and veggie mix that we were sick of rolling up in tortillas but couldn’t bring ourselves to throw out.  That filling was good, but no one really remembers what was in it other than various vegetables and beans in various quantities.  The second time I made them I just used a combination of a few different types of beans.  This was okay, but on the whole pretty bland because the filling was just beans, and I didn’t even have time to mash and refry them (whatever that means).  The most recent time we made the burritos, we made a filling of a few different kinds of beans, diced carrot and mushroom, a little salsa, various spices, and brown rice.  This was good, but it seemed to be still missing something–though I have no idea what.  But, really, that’s not what this post is about.

This post is about salsa.  More than burritos or Mexican rice, Dawn and I are pretty crazy about salsa.  When I say I’m in the mood for Mexican food, what I usually mean is I’m in the mood to eat about 5 lbs of chips and salsa and then complain that I’m about to be sick the whole way home.  There are plenty of foods that I love and can’t get enough of, but my love of chips and salsa is past that point.  Sometimes I think I actually need it to survive.  Having said that, I’ll say now that it’s nice to know that if we’re ever snowed in for weeks on end (like that will happen anytime soon in southwest Louisiana), my existence will be sustained as long as I’m able to make this slight adaptation of The Pioneer Woman’s Restaurant Style Salsa recipe.  We added a little more sugar, and left the cilantro out entirely (yuck!).  This is, by far, the best at-home salsa we’ve had.  Now I’m free to focus my efforts on perfecting that burrito filling (suggestions?) and finding a decent Mexican rice recipe.

To make this, you’ll need:

  • 1 28 oz can whole tomatoes, with juice
  • 2 10 oz cans diced tomatoes with green chiles
  • ¼ C chopped onion
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 jalapeno, diced
  • 1 t sugar
  • ¼ t salt
  • ¼ t ground cumin
  • juice of one small lime

    • Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Pulse 10 to 15 times, testing once or twice with a tortilla chip for consistency and seasoning.  Adjust as needed enjoy!

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    30Jun / 2010

    Quick and Easy Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta

    The basil I planted early this spring has been growing like a weed, so I seriously cut it back today and make some pesto cream pasta.  I am too lazy and poor to make a special trip to the grocery store, so I just used what we had on hand and it turned out pretty well.  The only change I plan on making next time is using heavy cream instead of milk if I have it.  I tend to think that no matter what the dish is, heavy cream will probably make it taste better.  I really like the combination of sun dried tomatoes and basil, and I like that pecans are subtle enough not to compete with those two stronger flavors.

    i think I have a knack for cooking food that tastes better than it looks

    To make this, you’ll need:

    • 1 C fresh basil
    • 3 cloves garlic
    • 1/4 C sun dried tomatoes
    • 1/4 c pecans (you can probably also use pine nuts, almonds, or walnuts with equal success)
    • 1/4 C fresh grated parmesan cheese
    • a few T olive oil
    • 1 T butter
    • 1 t minced garlic
    • 1/4 C flour
    • 2 C milk
    • salt and pepper to taste
    • pasta of your choice (we like spiral and bowtie noodles a lot)

    Put a big pot of water on to boil.  While that’s heating up, combine the first half of the ingredients (basil through olive oil) in a food processor and blend together until they form a thick paste.  Set aside.

    Melt the butter in a saucepan and sauté the garlic for about a minute.  Add the flour and turn the heat down to low, constantly stirring.  Once the flour has browned a bit pour in the milk and whisk well.  The water should have begun to boil by this point, so pour in the noodles and let them cook as you continue to stir the sauce periodically so it doesn’t stick.  Once the sauce has thickened up to your liking, add the pesto mixture to taste (I added it all because we like ours strong) and stir until well blended.  Remove from heat, pour over drained al dente pasta, and serve.

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    21Mar / 2010

    Spicy Black Bean Barbecue Chili

    Readers, I owe you an apology. In all my first-day-of-Spring excitement yesterday, I think I did something awful. It started as an innocent trip to K Mart, where I picked up potting soil, seed packets, and a few plants (more on that later). After working in my garden (or, the fifteen or so pots of dirt scattered around my front porch), I came inside and decided to finally use some of this wonderful floral jersey knit I got at Dirt Cheap.  I made a sweet, ridiculously comfortable above-the-knee Spring skirt (more on that later, too). How could I have known what I was doing? My daylilies and mint plants were coming back with a vengeance, and even my gladiolas had started to peep up from beneath the cigarette butts and leaves littering my tiny plot of dirt. In all my excitement, however, never once did I knock on wood or cross my fingers. Consequently, I’m afraid I’ve jinxed Spring! The low today was 33º.

    So, we’re huddled under blankets in wool socks and sweatshirts around here.  I guess the best thing I can do is catch up on all the homework I neglected (and between the flu and Spring break, it’s really accumulated) and eat this wonderful black bean barbecue chili, from Betty Crocker’s Easy Everyday Vegetarian cookbook, until it warms up a little.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this cold snap is short-lived; I’m ready for some warm weather!

    Admittedly not the most photogenic food.

    Admittedly not the most photogenic food.

    To make this chili, you’ll need:

    • 1 lb dried black beans (or 2 C), sorted and rinsed
    • 10 C water
    • 1 T olive oil or vegetable oil
    • 1 large onion, finely chopped
    • 6 cloves of garlic, minced
    • 4 C water
    • 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
    • 1 C hickory barbecue sauce
    • 1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce (from 7 oz can), finely chopped
    • 1 t adobo sauce (from previously mentioned can)
    • 2 C frozen soy-protein burger crumbles

    In a 4 quart dutch oven, heat the beans and 10 C water to boiling; reduce heat.  Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes; remove from heat.  Cover and let stand 1 hour.  In a 10″ skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.  Cook onion and garlic in oil about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onion is tender and light golden brown.  After the hour is up, drain the beans.  In a 3 1/2 to 4 quart slow cooker, place beans, 4 cups water, and onion mixture.  Cover and cook on low for 10 to 12 hours.  Once the time is up, add the tomatoes, barbecue sauce, chili, adobo sauce, and crumbles.  Increase the heat setting to high; cover and cook about 30 minutes, or until hot.

    A couple of notes: I copied these instructions pretty much straight from my cookbook.  Though I used a dutch oven, you probably don’t have to.  Additionally, I’m sure this would be edible if you cooked it for less time and with more heat, if you’re in a hurry.  I had a hard time finding the 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes, so I used two 10 oz cans (the more tomatoes the merrier, in my book!), and I used Morningstar Farms burger crumbles (though I am also a big fan of Quorn).  In general, I try to stay away from meat substitutes because they’re so expensive and don’t always add too much flavor, but I’ve made this recipe without the crumbles and it does make a pretty big difference.  Also, don’t overdo it on the adobo sauce unless you want really spicy chili–that stuff is potent!  I feel wasteful about buying the whole can and only using one of the chiles, so I plan on either finding more adobo chili recipes (any suggestions?) or making more of this and freezing it.  I’ll keep you posted!

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    06Jan / 2010

    Another Tomato Soup Recipe

    There’s a threat of ice and snow sometime between midnight and 3 am, and when it snows around here everything completely shuts down. (I’m keeping my fingers crossed about work tomorrow.) We really need groceries (like, haven’t bought groceries since before Christmas), but whenever there’s a winter weather warning everyone runs to the store to stock up on milk and bread, and I didn’t feel like fighting with all of those people when I got off work earlier. Instead I decided to come home and throw any and everything we had edible into a pot and see what happened, and I’m pretty pleased with the results!  I’ll definitely be making this again, even on days when I have groceries in the house.

    If you're in special need of comfort food, add a biscuit.

    If you're in special need of comfort food, add a biscuit.

    To make this soup, you’ll need:

    • 1 T butter
    • 1 onion, diced
    • 3 or 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
    • 1 T red wine vinegar
    • 2 28 oz cans of tomatoes (whole, diced, crushed… whatever you have on hand!)
    • ¼ C tomato paste
    • 6 sun dried tomatoes
    • 1 C vegetable stock
    • 1 t red pepper flakes
    • 1 bay leaf
    • 1 T brown sugar
    • 1 t basil
    • 1 t oregano
    • 1 t parsley

    In a large stock pot, cook the onion and carrot in the butter (over medium heat) until everything is almost caramelized. Add the red wine vinegar, making sure to scrape all the tasty bits from the bottom of the pot. Next, add the tomatoes and tomato juice. If you’re using whole tomatoes, you might want to crush them with your hands (I did), but I’m not too sure this step is necessary since everything will be pureed later. After adding the tomatoes and juice, add the tomato paste, sun dried tomatoes, stock, red pepper flakes, bay leaf, and sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and then cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for at least 30 minutes. (This is a good time to wash the dishes or whip up some biscuits. Mine probably simmered more like 45 minutes or an hour, and I think it was got better each time I snuck a taste.) After adequate simmering has occurred, remove the bay leaf and puree the mixture with a stick blender (my preferred method) or food processor. Be warned: there will probably still be tiny bits of carrot, and overall this is a pretty chunky soup. If you don’t like chunky, leave the carrots out. Anyway, once the mixture has been pureed, add the herbs and return to the heat until you’re ready to serve it (probably no more than another 30 minutes).

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    26Nov / 2009

    Red Soup!

    The raw ingredients required to make something awesome.

    The raw ingredients required to make something awesome.

    I got this recipe from a friend about a year ago, and I love it so much that I make it a point to keep the ingredients on hand at all times.  Red soup is a really good thing to make on busy, cold nights when I want something filling but don’t have a lot of time to spend on dinner.  Another thing I love is that it’s fairly customizable according to how much one likes potatoes, carrots, noodles, etc.  I happen to like all of those things a lot.  I never fail to burn my tongue on red soup because it is really so good that I can’t wait to eat it.  Also, those shell noodles are like tiny, scalding  pockets of fury, so please watch out for them!

    Red Soup

    Red Soup

    To make red soup you’ll need:

    • a fairly large onion, diced
    • a few carrots, peeled and diced
    • a rib or two of celery, depending on how much you like it, also diced
    • 1-2 cloves of garlic, diced
    • three medium potatoes, diced (you can always peel them, too, but I like to leave the peel on since it’s the only part of the potato with any real nutritional value)
    • 1 1/2 cups of shell or elbow noodles
    • 1 large can of vegetable juice
    • 1 large can of tomato juice

    Saute the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in a big stock pot until the onions are translucent.  (If you like crunchier veggies, you can wait to add the carrots, but I am not a big fan of crunchy soup.) Pour in half the tomato juice and half the vegetable juice, and bring the mixture to a boil.  Add the potatoes, and simmer until they’re tender enough to be pierced with a fork but not quite done yet.  Then add the rest of the juice and the noodles, and cook an additional 5 to 10 minutes until the noodles are also done.  Serve with something delicious like garlic and cheese biscuits.

    I always have a scalded tongue the next day because I can't wait for the soup to cool to eat it.

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