Category: Recipes

Ever had a salsa and thought, “mmm, almost, but not quite”? Yeh, me too. I no longer search for the perfect salsa or the perfect salsa recipe, because taste is such an idiosyncratic thing.

Here’s what I currently use for my Average Joe Salsa. I pick up a so-so (actually not half bad) jar of “hot” (it is to laugh) tomato-based salsa at my fav dollar store. (Why spend more than a buck?) Pick a few small roma tomatoes and some peppers (my jalapeños are in right now) from the garden. Take some garlic, onion and the tomatoes and peppers and whir ’em up in a food processor. Add ’em to the cheapo salsa and, pretty darned good.

I avoid cilantro, because unless it’s cooked, it’s just nasty. I also avoid (like the plague) the salsa that’s not “Made in New York City?!?” because it’s nothing but some almost indiscernible red and green stuff added to really salty water.

But there you have it. Pick a prepared salsa that’s sorta OK and kick it up with whatever fresh ingredients float your boat. THAT’S the secret to really tasty salsa, IMO.

Lo! these many years ago, I came up with this recipe (at an early version of twc). Good eats. I was feeling a wee tad “nibbly” one fine Saturday and hadn’t yet had my requisite dose of coffee, so I combined the two. BTW, make these a little more than double-sized, cool well and then slap a scoop of ice cream between two of them Re-chill, then serve. Sweet. Javascript Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches™.

*coffee powder: either from your fav ground coffee or fav whole beans (preferred); grind in a blade or burr coffee grinder until a fine, powdery consistency. If using a blade grinder, grind in bursts, as the coffee may overheat, especially if you’re grinding from whole beans, before becoming powdery.

BTW, I brought this forward from the deep, dark recesses of the shadow of twc’s past just because. Because my youngest nephew is getting married in June and his mom, my older sis, asked for a few of my fav recipes, and. . . he and his bride-to-be are both Javaheads. So, win-win-win-win. He and his lovely bride-to-be get a delish Javahead treat, I have this recipe brought forward (and updated a wee tad) and you, dear reader (oh, my, is it just one, now? *heh*) get to share in the delights of Javascript Cookies™.

Had two different smaller cuts of roast beef that added to about 4.75 pounds and a nice new, barely used, Crockpot™. Yeh, the brand even. Automagical nearly everything. Kinda cool, so. . .

Rolled the two cuts of beef around in some salt and black pepper, then rolled ’em around in a wee bit of flour. Browned ’em in a hot pan, then. . . Oh, heck, I’ll just do it semi-right:

Another “notarecipe”. Snack or meal: you decide.

Quick sorta pizza. Take a pita round (or two or three or whatever). Add your fav pasta/pizza sauce and toppings (meat, veggies, cheeses). Bake. Add sides as you wish to make a meal or just have one as a snack.

I do a similar thing with corn tortillas as well. Different textures and flavors but still enjoyable.

Well, still kinda riffing off the days spent w/family before/after my dad’s funeral. This is a twice-removed kind of post. At one of the family gatherings featuring comfort foods brought by my mom’s by friends, a small taste of something the preparer called “chicken spaghetti” (small spoonful was all I tasted) prompted me to make a kind of chicken tetrazinni the other night, using just what I had on hand. Turned out better than I expected it to.

3 chicken breasts
about 8 oz spaghetti broken into 4″ pieces* (see below)
one medium onion, minced
2 celery ribs, minced
1/2 medium bell pepper, minced
one can of cream of celery soup
4 oz heavy cream
2 C shredded cheese. I used a colby/cheddar mix.

Cube and cook the chicken breasts on medium heat, in olive oil, in a large fry pan. Add the bell pepper, celery and onion and turn down to simmer. Meanwhile, slightly over-cook the spaghetti in salted water. By that I mean to cook it well beyond the al dente stage that’s best for spaghetti you intend to eat as normal to a stage much fuller of water, softer but not falling apart. I’m not sure how many minutes’ time at the boil that would be for your altitude, whatever, so just keep an eye on it.

When the spaghetti’s ready and the bell pepper, onions and celery have joined the chicken in the Borg of Flavor Assimilation, drain the spaghetti and combine all the ingredients in a baking dish. Bake covered (foil or the baking dish’s cover, if it has one) at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Uncover and bake another 10 minutes or so until whatever cheese is just naturally on the top has nicely/barely browned–personal taste.

Remove from the oven and let it sit uncovered for a few minutes, then chow down.

It got a “Keeper” award from my Wonder Woman, so it’s OK. If I’d had some red bell peppers, I’d have added it to the minced veggies. Maybe next time.

No, this isn’t the “Chicken Spaghetti” recipe we had last weekend. That used cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soups, and Velveeta. *meh* Not exactly my thing, though it tasted pretty good at the time.

*about the spaghetti: I had a 32-oz box of spaghetti I wanted to store in a tall, decorative jar, but the spaghetti was 12″ long and I only had 8″ of storage, so… I made this recipe out of the 4″ I broke off the 12″ long spaghetti. Actually, it was those 4″ pieces that compelled me to make the dish in the first place, as I didn’t have a good place to store them, so… 😉

One of the good things about my dad’s funeral gathering was getting to spend some time with my in-laws. Yeh, mostly the brother-in-laws (my one sister-in-law is a sweet gal, but she’s BIGTIME “Holly Homemaker” and I primarily see her bustling around playing “Martha” a la Luke 10:38-42). The guy who’s married to my middle sister is simply THE best cook of “Southwestern” (A/K/A “Mexican” though I try to avoid the term what with the Mesican gummint encouraging alien invaders of the US) food. Below is a simplification of one of the tasty chip-dippin’ sauces he makes, as approximately near to his as I can recall from acting as sou chef for him Monday evening, chopping, mincing, etc..

One medium white onion, minced
Six jalapeno peppers, minced
Six serano peppers, minced
salt (couple of pinches)
A small “hand” of cilantro, coarsely chopped

Place in a sauce pan and almost cover with water. Bring to boil, then back it off to a simmer for 15-20 minutes, maybe a bit more.

Let it cool or eat it hot.

I don’t use cilantro in the version I make. I don’t care for the soapy taste. *shrugs* YMMV, of course.

Do wash your hands after handling the minced peppers and before touching any *cough* sensitive areas. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. 🙂

BTW, if the above is a wee tad too spicy for you, you can ease that a bit by adding some tomatoes. Either chop some fresh tomatoes and add that (or simmer ’em a bit and add ’em if you prefer) or add some chopped, canned tomatoes. The natural sugars in the tomatoes will slightly ameliorate the spiciness. *shrugs* I’d have to add more peppers for mine. *heh*

Easy-Peasy, Pseudo Faux Semi-Italian Shepherd’s Pie, Sorta, Kinda. *heh*

No, it’s not “fine dining” or any such thing; it’s just good eats.

Brown one pound of ground meat–your choice; I prefer to use “chili ground” lean Angus for this one–in a large skillet. Make it 12″ or so. With lean ground meat, I’ll add enough olive oil to make it work well.

Add 2 C medium “bow tie” pasta

Add the liquid from a 27-oz. can of this (honestly, I tried to find ’em at Amazon, but I ended up finding everything else from that company but this *sigh*) and enough of your favorite tomato-based pasta sauce to make up 3 cups liquid. BTW, while I really like chunky tomato sauce for many things, this one works much better with pureed sauce. Just sayin’.

Top off with the beans from the can you got the liquid out of, bring to a boil, then back it off to a simmer and cover for about 15 minutes, tops. If yo want to add any other vegetables before the “bring to boil” stage, that’s fine, too. Some frozen carrots and/or peas are a nice addition, IMO.

At the end of the 15 minutes’ simmering, remove from heat and let it come together and cool off enough to serve. You can add a lil grated cheese if you wish to top it off, and a simple salad to side it if you want.

BTW, I have no idea how many folks this’ll feed, but feed 2 or 3 and have LOTS of leftovers… which are only improved by being leftovers.

Simple snack; a tasty accompaniment to some meals. Cheesy peppers. A kind of chips-n-queso dish without the chips. *heh*

Take some serano, jalapeno, habanero peppers: whatever you have on hand that suit your taste and preferred level of spiciness. Wash, slice lengthwise and place on a parchment-covered broiling pan. Cover well with shredded cheeses. I like a mix of Monterrey Jack, cheddar and Romano cheeses. Add spices and herbs to taste. (This is one of the few times the acrid flavor of garlic powder doesn’t put me off.)

Place under the broiler for 20-30 minutes. Depends on your peppers and your broiler, really; experiment.

Nom-nom. Make a bunch. Even if you cannot or do not plan to eat ’em all at once, leftovers wrap nicely in the parchment paper for keeping in the fridge for a short while and microwave up to tasty nom-nominess in a flash. DO watch out for outgassing from the microwaving, though. It can sting mucus membranes–eyes, lungs.

I’d include pictures, but the batches I make don’t usually seem last long enough for me to remember to get a camera out.