Black Bean and Corn Salsa
1 can sweet corn
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
8 roma tomatoes, diced
1 sweet onion (or less) chopped
2 avocados, diced
Chopped fresh cilantro
1 pkg Good Seasons Italian dressing; make as per recipe but substitute balsamic vinegar for the white vinegar.
Combine all ingredients and chill.
Fruit Salsa
2 kiwis, diced tiny
2 gala apples diced tiny
1 lb strawberries diced tiny
1 8oz pkg frozen raspberries, thawed
2 T sugar
1 T brown sugar
3 T any berry jam
Combine and chill for at least 20 min. Serve with cinnamon/sugar chips. (Fry triangle pieces of tortillas and dip in cinnamon/sugar mix)
Black Bean Side Dish
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed.
½ t olive oil
2/3 c diced onion
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
2/3 c chicken broth
¼ t cumin
¼ t coriander
¼ t oregano
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
Juice of one lime
Saute onion, then garlic. Add beans, broth and seasonings, bring to a boil, simmer 7 min. Remove from heat and squeeze in lime juice. Makes 6 1/3 c servings.
Flank Steak Marinade
1/3 c olive oil
2 cloves minced garlic
2 T red wine vinegar
1/3 c soy sauce
¼ c honey
½ t pepper
2 lbs flank steak (or any other kind)
Kosher salt & pepper
Score surface and marinade for at least 2 hours, up to overnight. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper, place on hot grill 4-6 min. each side. When done, cover with foil and let rest for 10 min. Slice diagonally against the grain.
Chicken Taco Filling
Saute 4 chicken breasts, cut up, in oil. Add two 4 oz cans of green chilies and half of packet of taco seasoning.
Cilantro-lime shrimp tacos with avocado crema
3 lbs shrimp
Marinade:
1 ½ cups lightly packed cilantro
Juice of 3 limes
¾ c olive oil
Red pepper flakes (to taste)
1 ½ t cumin
5 cloves garlic, minced
Avocado crema:
2 ripe avocados
2 cups nonfat plain greek yogurt
Juice of 1 lime
½ t salt
Combine marinade ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Place the shrimp in a glass bowl or baggie with marinade and refrigerate 30 to 60 min. Grill shrimp until firm, 2 to 3 min. per side. (I just sautéed them in a pan because they were too small to grill).
Puree all ingredients for crema until smooth. Serve shrimp in warm tortillas with shredded cabbage or lettuce, cilantro leaves, crema and lime wedges.
Grilled Chipotle Veggies
3 lrg onions, cut in ½ in thick slices
3 med zucchini, cut in ½ in slices
3 red or green bell peppers, halved and seeded
3 sweet banana peppers, halved and seeded (I just used yellow peppers)
Marinade:
3 T red wine vinegar
3 T balsamic vinegar
3 T water
3 garlic cloves (minced)
3 canned chipotle chilies (diced) with 3 tsp adobo sauce
1 ½ t coarse salt
1 cup canola oil.
Marinade veggies at room temperature for 30 to 60 min. Grill veggies for 15-20 min, turning occasionally. Rough chop veggies and serve.
Mexican grilled corn
¼ c unsalted butter, softened
2 t lime juice
¼ t chile powder
¼ t salt
1/8 t pepper
6 ears shucked corn
2 T chopped cilantro
1/3 c cotija cheese (or another salty hard cheese like parmesan)
Mix first five ingredients in bowl. Grill corn over med-high heat, turning occasionally, until corn is tender, about 10 min. Remove from grill, brush with butter mix, and sprinkle with cheese and cilantro.
Fried Ice Cream Dessert
Melt 1 cup butter and 1 cup brown sugar until mixed well and sugar has mostly dissolved. Toss with about 9 oz roughly crushed corn flakes (you can add sliced almonds and coconut also). Press half of above mixture in a 9x13 pan. Cover with ½ gallon vanilla ice cream (use the brick ice cream, and cut in slices to make it easy). Top with the rest of the corn flake mixture (lightly press it in) and freeze at least 3 hours. Set out to soften a bit before serving. Cut into squares and drizzle with lots of chocolate and caramel sauce.
Margaritas
I just used the Bacardi margarita mix, served in cups with salted rims (rub a wedge of lime around the outside of the cup rim and dip in kosher salt) and a lime wedge on the edge.
