Salsa Month!

May is National Salsa Month!  I will celebrate with the easiest salsa recipe ever!

(Bonus: Salsa is usually low in fat and calories, and half a cup can sometimes count as a veggie serving!)

Amy's Super Easy Salsa
1 Can Chunk Ro-Tel
1 lime, halved
Cilantro to taste, thinly chopped

Drain Ro-Tel well, squeeze lime juice over Ro-tel and top with cilantro.  Stir. Chill or heat to liking. Enjoy.

Jen's Super Easy Salsa
1 can Mexican Festival Ro-Tel (sometimes labeld Mexican: Lime and Cilantro)

Drain well and enjoy!

Honestly, I'm not a big Cilantro fan, so I like to open one can of Chunky Rotel and one can of Mexican Festival Rotel and mix them.  It's enough for a group of friends to enjoy and not so cilantro laden.  Also, if you don't like chunky salsa, just stick this in a food processor!

Ro-Tel is wonderful because it tastes fresh and 1/2 a cup averages about 30 calories,0 fat, less than 5 carbs, less than 600 mg of salt.

Got a salsa recipe?  Share it!

Cinco de Mayo

In honor of Cinco de Mayo, I am pleased to share my Easy Peasy Gaucamole Dip.

Jen's Easy Guac
2 large, ripe avocados (peeled and cut into chunks or mashed)
1 small - med tomato, diced
1 small onion, chopped
1 lemon or lime, halved
Cilantro, optional
Salt and pepper to taste

Just combine everything in a bowl, except lemon or lime.  Juice citrus fruit over bowl, stir, chill if desired, and enjoy.

Jen's Even Easier Guacamole
2-3 large, ripe avocados (peeled and mashed)
1 can regular Ro-Tel or Mexican Festival Rotel, drained well
optional: 1 small onion, chopped
1 lemon or lime, halved.

Combine avocados, Ro-Tel, and onion.  Juice lemon/lime over bowl.  Enjoy.

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I love guacamole!  Avocados are a good fat and about half a cup is a fruit or veggie serving.  I know they pack a bit more of a calorie punch than salsa, but this meets my need for creamy goodness in a way salsa can't...and keeps me from reaching for the cheese dip.

Make your own gaucamole?  Share the recipe!

Southern Baked Beans

Jen's Baked Beans

I should warn you know that Baked Beans are an example of my family's cooking at its most ingenious. I told you all in my first post that if it wasn't easy and fast that I didn't want to do it.

Main Ingredients:
2 cans Pork and Beans

Throw Ins:
Ground hamburger, cooked
Cooked ham or bacon
Couple big squirts of ketchup
Big squirt of mustard
Medium squirt of steak sauce
1/2 cup or so of BBQ sauce
palmful of brown sugar
onion, finely chopped


Just like the fruit salad, this is SUPER EASY! It's nothing but Variations.

Step 1: Open the Pork and Beans, pour into a pot or Dutch Oven
Step 2: Add whatever throw in ingredients you have on hand that you like
Step 3: Bake all ingredients at 350 for an hour OR let simmer on medium-low until ready to eat!

Easy Pasta Salad

Super Easy Pasta Salad
1/2 lb uncooked pasta
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 large bottle Italian Dressing
vegetables of choice (broccoli, bell pepper, olives, etc), chopped

Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cooked ten minutes, or until tender. Drain and pour into a large dish. Let cool. Add tomatoes and other vegetables. Pour half bottle of Italian Dressing. Stir to coat noodles and veggies. Let sit in fridge at least 2 hours.

After two hours, do a taste test. If everything tastes fine, then this is ready to serve. It may, however, need more salad dressing. Add as much salad dressing as needed, stirring to coat. Serve chilled. May be refrigerator overnight before serving.

Variations

• Use Your Noodle. I like using spiral noodles, plain or tri-colored for this recipes because they "grab" the dressing, but any kind of noodle will do. Penne pasta is also a good grabber, and I've seen this done with fettuccine noodles.
  
• Going low carb? Who needs noodles anyway?!? Do this same recipe with just the veggies! Use tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, broccoli, and bell peppers mixed with Italian Dressing for a crunchy, zesty side dish.
  
• Don't like plain Italian Dressing? Whisk 1/2 cup of mayonnaise in with the salad dressing before coating the noodles for a creamier salad. Or try Zesty Italian or a vinaigrette.
• Try adding cubed cheese or Parmesan cheese to the mix.
  
• Class it up! Serve on a bed of lettuce, with sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and capers.
  

Got a different Pasta Salad recipe? Share it with me!

Summertime Drinking

Whether your hot because you live in the hot and humid South or because you've been outside boating, playing baseball, and generally living it up for summer, a good drink is going to be on your mind.

Sure an ice cold Coke or beer is going to hit the spot right after that big game or for dinner of fried fish, hush puppies, and fries...but getting enough canned drinks for a crowd can be expensive and then you have half open cans all over the place and there's always that one person who doesn't do caffeine or alcohol.

Cheap and easy drink are easy to come by in the summer. For your next get together, offer Sweet Tea, Kool-Aid or Lemonade, and filtered ice water in cute pitchers. Variety is key and nostalgia will keep people coming back for more.

JEN'S EASY PARTY TIP: Even if you buy a gallon of tea, a 2 liter bottle of lemonade, and a gallon of filtered water from the store, pour part of each of the drinks into a pitcher and chill. Even cheaper, plastic pitchers are better for most get togethers than setting out the original bottles. (I am also one of those people who buy frozen pies and put them on a pie plate...presentation is half the battle!)

Sweet Tea
For 2 quarts:
4+ small bags or 2+ Family size tea bags
Sugar to taste
cold water and ice

We're not talking Sweetened Iced Tea here, people. We're talking Southern-style Sweet Tea that your serve in Tea Glasses filled 2/3 to the top with ice. McDonald's, Arby's, and Popeye's all make pretty authentic Sweet Teas. So if you're unfamiliar with this beverage, 99 cents will get you pretty good taste test.

Do you have a Mr. Coffee Tea Maker? If so, you're set. If not, you can also brew tea in the sun, with a regular coffee pot (washed well so that your tea does not taste of old coffee), on the stove, or in the microwave.

Jen's Microwave Sweet Tea: In large microwave-proof bowl, add 4 or so cups of cold water and lay your tea bags around the edge of the bowl. Microwave for 8 minutes on high, turning bowl 1/2 turn after 4 minutes. Remove from microwave and let sit for 3-5 minutes. In a pitcher, add your sugar (or sugar substitute), then the liquid in the bowl. Make sure you hold back the tea bags so that they don't fly into your pitcher. Fill your pitcher to the top with cold water.

Jen's Personal Tea Recipe: 7 small or 4 family size Lipton Tea bags, 1.5 - 2 cups sugar (or Sugar substitute), cold water to fill pitcher. This recipe makes me 2-3 quarts of strong, very sweet tea.

Substitutions/Variations:

• Tea and Lemonade Half and Half
• Light (vs strong) tea with infusions of herbs (mint is fabulous)
• Light tea with light infusions of fruit and/or fruit juice -- ever squeezed a lemon into your tea? try blueberries, strawberries, peach, even kiwi

Got your own Sweet Tea recipe? Blog all about it below.

Easy Sparkling Raspberry Lemonade

• 1 (12 ounces) can frozen raspberry lemonade concentrate
• 3 cups water
  
• 3/4 teaspoon lime juice
• 1.5 - 2 cans lemon-lime flavored carbonated beverage
• 1 cup crushed ice
• 1 cup fresh raspberries, garnish

In a large punch bowl, combine raspberry lemonade concentrate, water and lime juice. Stir in lemon-lime soda and crushed ice. Garnish each glass with a fresh raspberry and a mint leaf.

Substitutions/Variations:

• Can't find Raspberry Lemonade concentrate? Double the recipe and use a 12 ounce can of frozen lemonade and a 12 ounce can of Raspberry (or rasberry mixed) concentrates. OR use a fruit juice and lemonade combo, like cran-raspberry and lemonade or white grape/raspberry and lemonade
  
• Feel free to use sparkling water or Ginger Ale instead of water and lemon-lime soda. OR for an Adults Only party, substitute in some Hard Lemonade, Vodka, or other favorite alcohol for one of the ingredients.
• Like it sweet and tart? Add some fresh lemon juice and a teaspoon or so of sugar!
  
• Mint is a fun and fabulous summer garnish. Don't forget to garnish with raspberries, lemons, mint, etc. Don't have time to garnish each glass? Garnish the pitcher/punch bowl

Keeping it Cold
Sure, ice keeps drinks super cold for those long, hot summer days...but it's not the only thing. Read on below for some ideas for keeping your summer drinks chilled and keeping your guests guessing.

• Use frozen fruit. Fruit is a beautiful (and tasty) garnish. Add a few frozen raspberries, strawberries, or blueberries to any drink. For example, if you were had some regular lemonade on hand, you could add chilled lemons rings and frozen strawberries. You've just taken your everyday lemonade to Get Together level
• Make ice out of whatever you are drinking. I love ice but I don't love having a watered down drink. Just pour a little of your tea, kool-aid, lemonade, etc into an ice tray. For fun, add pieces of fruit or mint sprigs to the center of each ice cube.
  
• Make ice out of something else you like to drink. Remember how we mentioned a Tea and lemonade half and half drink and Sweet Tea with infusions of juices? Try this with different flavored ices instead (i.e. lemonade, white peach juice, raspberry). As the ice melts, your drink takes on a whole new attitude.
• Freeze your whole drink. You know you've seen this at weddings. If you are using a punch bowl, feel free to make an ice ring out of your drink. It's easy, it's cold, and it won't get watered down as it melts.

Share your own Summer Drink ideas below!

Summertime in the Suburbs

Let's face it. I'm from the South...the real South, where Summertime means Sweet Tea, Fried Chicken, Porch Swings, and Mosquitoes as big as your hand.

Summer is HOT, HUMID, and exhausting... take a day to spend out on a lake and GRILL OUT!

So I've decided to start a series on Summer Foods! I've already done a blog on the easiest fruit salad in the world. Now that I'm gearing up for picnics in the park, BBQing by the lake, and grilling on Memorial Day, what better way to remember all my recipes than to share them with you.

So, be prepared to see the following recipes:

Super Easy Pasta Salad
Easy Potato Salad
Southern Baked Beans
Jen's Awesome Sweet Tea

There will be others. By the time I finish this series, you will have all of the recipes in hand to throw the biggest, most delicious (semi) homemade Grill Out for your friends and family.

And always remember...if I can make it, you can make. Quick and easy is the name of the game when I'm gearing up for dinner.