Authentic Mexican Salsa - Gone before you know it!

La Costena chipotle peppers in Adobo 

Who doesn't like a good salsa?  That's right, nobody!  Salsa is delicious and healthy, and you can make your own at home for a fraction of the price of the jarred kinds.  As an added bonus, the salsa you make at home will be lights years better than any of the processed garbage that you find on the stores.  There ARE reasonably good jarred salsas, but most of them cost an arm and a leg, and it's always so more satisfying to make it yourself anyway :)

For this recipe, you will need:

A blender or food processor.

1 28 oz can of good quality diced tomatoes.  You can also use 2 or 3 fresh ones, or a combination.

Tomatoes on the vine

1 Whole small onion, chopped
2 Good fist fulls of fresh cilantro.  Don't skimp.  I'd say 1/4 of a large bunch.  Chopped.
3-4 Cloves of garlic, chopped.
2 Chipotle chiles in Adobo sauce, from the can.  Any brand will do, they're all wonderful.  Chop 'em!

Merideth's mom's vegetable soup. Always delicious and filling - now you can make it too! :)

Dill, potatoes, carrots, onions, broccoli, celery,
sweet peas - soon, you will be delicious soup!

Masoor Malka - Whole Masoor Dal. 7 Pounds of yummy red lentils!

In a previous blog post, I gave the recipe for Spicy Red Lentil Soup.  Now, may of us have seen or had lentil soup - it's a standard item, pretty popular here in America.  Indeed, I'm pretty sure that both Campbell and Progresso make their own versions of the soup.  But these soups are made with your "regular" brown lentil.  They're tasty and all - but what about the red lentil ?

This 7 pound bag of Red Lentils (Masoor Malka)
is packed with inexpensive, healthy nutrition!

Adams Fairacre Farms - My favorite store :)

The other day I had the joy of shopping at my favorite store - Adams Fairacre Farms.  Adams has an incredible produce section, with delicious fresh fruits and vegetables at very good prices.  I couldn't take any pictures of the inside (didn't want to be rude) but they have your standard supermarket departments and also an agricultural / horticultural setting.  It's really a rather interesting store.

A view from the parking lot of Adams Fairacre Farms in Wappinger Falls, NY

Restaurant Review - Jade Palace in Wappinger Falls, NY

The front of Jade Palace in Wappinger Falls, NY

Red Lentil Soup - Quick, spicy, and filling!

Lentils and other legumes are nutritional powerhouses!  They are high in fiber and low in calories, plus they fill you up and taste oh so good :)  When you combine them with rice, they also give you a complete amino acid profile i.e. they help you get a complete protein.  While I love meat, I like to remind people that you can get all your nutrition that you need from vegetables.  Just be sure to pick up some B-12 supplements, not a bad idea for veggies and meat eaters alike!

A pile of red lentils. 

This recipe calls for red lentils, which are a smaller version of your standard brown lentil.  The advantages are are a slightly different nutritional profile, a beautiful color - and cooking time.  Red lentils cook very quickly and do not need to be soaked like other lentils.  You can just chuck em in the pot and cook as is :)

It should take about 20 minutes to prepare this soup and about 35-40 minutes to cook it.  After you know how to make it, you can probably do the whole shebang in about 50 minutes.

For the yogurt you dollop on at the end, I recommend FAGE Greek yogurt.  This, IMHO, is the superior brand of supermarket-available Greek yogurt.  You can usually get a nice tub of it on sale for between $1 and $1.75.

Simple, authentic Thai hot sauce.

This recipe uses Thai chilis.  They are small and powerful, and like all chilis, have their own particular taste.  For  the real authentic taste, go for the real Thai chilis.  If you can't find them, you could substitute other red and green chilis.  It won't be the real deal but it will still make a solid hot sauce.

Thai Chilis - Be careful,
These are HOT!

Ingredients:

2 Green Thai chilis
2 Red Thai chilis
2 TBSP Lime juice
2 TBSP Fish sauce

1) Chop the chiles into 1/4 inch long pieces.  SAVE THE SEEDS, this is going to be spicy!

2) Mix the chilis into a bowl along with the fish sauce and lime juice.  Stir.

3) Let sit for 10-15 minutes.

And that's it, you're done!  This sauce will last for at least a few weeks at room temperature and probably indefinitely in the fridge.  Be warned, this is SPICY - but if you like Thai food, that probably isn't a problem.