RECIPE ROUNDUP
Chill Out on a Hot Day
By Kevin Hargis
You don’t need to visit the condiments aisle in your local grocery store to stock up on tasty additions to your meals. With little effort, you can whip up salsas or sauces that both enhance the food you serve and reflect your individual taste.
It’s just a matter of planning ahead. The tools you’ll need are, most often, just a sharp knife and perhaps a blender or a food processor.
Raw salsas and sauces made with vegetables, fruits and spices can add the crowning touch to a meal without much additional preparation. To reach the full flavor of a fresh salsa, it’s best to make it a day ahead and let the flavors blend.
San Antonio restaurateur Blanca Aldaco has put a spin on traditional pico de gallo, replacing the tomato with a blend of mango and grapefruit that gives the spicy concoction a hint of tart-sweetness. She recommends using Rio Star grapefruit, a Texas-grown variety that she says has a deeper red color and more natural sweetness than other varieties.
Aldaco, who owns two San Antonio-area restaurants, suggests serving the pico atop grilled or baked tilapia filets.
GRAPEFRUIT AND MANGO PICO DE GALLO
1/2 cup fresh grapefruit juice
2 to 3 green onions, chopped fine
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 mango, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 fresh jalapeños, cut into thin strips
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1 grapefruit, sectioned and chopped
Dash oregano, optional
Salt to taste
Combine juice, green onions, olive oil, mango, jalapeños and red onion in a non-reactive container (glass, ceramic or stainless steel). Marinate overnight in refrigerator. Bring to room temperature just before serving and add grapefruit and oregano, if desired. Blend well. Taste and salt.
Servings: 8. Serving size: 1/2 cup. Per serving: 54 calories, 0.6 g protein, 1.8 g fat, 10.1 g carbohydrates, 93 mg sodium, trace cholesterol
COOK’S TIP: Use just the pulp of the grapefruit without the membrane, and definitely remove the bitter white pith with the skin.
APPLE CHUTNEY
For those more ambitious cooks, especially those with canning experience, this chutney recipe developed by Texas Co-op Power Communications Assistant Sandra Forston is a wonderful topper to pork tenderloin or ham. If you are not sure how to safely can, please consult a good resource or reference book before attempting this recipe.
1 lemon (unpeeled), seeded and chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
5 cups peeled, chopped apples
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups raisins
1/4 cup peeled and chopped fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 cups vinegar
Combine ingredients in stockpot and simmer, stirring frequently, at least 2 hours or until thickened. Spoon boiling hot chutney into hot sterile pint jars and seal. Process 10 to 15 minutes in boiling water bath. Yields about 3 pints.
Servings: 96. Serving size: 1 tablespoon. Per serving: 30 calories, 0.1 g protein, trace g fat, 7.9 g carbohydrates, 38 mg sodium, trace cholesterol
For more on canning, take a look back at the March 2006 issue in our online archives at www.texascooppower.com.
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Recipe Contest Winner: Marsha A. Stamper, Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative
Prize-Winning Recipe: Triple Fruit Salsa
Quick, easy and flavorful sums up these salsa and condiment recipes that make it simple to spice up your meals. Marsha Stamper’s fruit salsa bowled taste testers over with its savory-sweet flavor. What’s more, the concoction is simple to prepare, can be made well in advance of a meal and delivers tremendous flavor without adding many calories or significant fat or sodium.
“It is delicious served over any grilled meat, fish or poultry,” Stamper wrote. “I serve it with fajitas as an option to sour cream, guacamole or traditional salsa.”
TRIPLE FRUIT SALSA
1 cup diced fresh pineapple
1 cup chopped fresh mango
1 kiwi fruit, peeled and chopped
1/2 to 3/4cup diced red bell pepper
3 tablespoons minced cilantro
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
Combine all ingredients in glass bowl, tossing gently. Cover and chill up to 8 hours. Serve at room temperature.
Servings: 8. Serving size: 1/2 cup. Per serving: 44 calories, 0.5 g protein, 0.1 g fat, 11.1 g carbohydrates, 1 mg sodium, trace cholesterol
TOM’S GARLIC SANDWICH SPREAD
This mixture serves not only as a change-of-pace spread for hamburgers and sandwiches, but also, when topped with a sprinkle of paprika, it makes a tangy dip for celery, carrots, etc. Options are available to match your personal taste.
2 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons of your favorite ground, spicy, Cajun or Dijon mustard
6 to 8 green olives, coarsely chopped
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon rubbed sage or Cajun seasoning (or both)
Sauté garlic in olive oil until it just begins to brown. Mix all ingredients and serve.
Servings: 16. Serving size: 1 tablespoon. Per serving: 62 calories, 0.3 g protein, 5 g fat, 3.9 g carbohydrates, 126 mg sodium, 3 mg cholesterol
Tom Gurn
Nueces Electric Cooperative
SWEET HOT MUSTARD
2 ounces dry mustard
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup oil
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Pinch salt
Combine all ingredients in small bowl and whisk until smooth. Refrigerate in a covered jar for a couple of days to allow flavors to blend.
Servings: 36. Serving size: 1 teaspoon. Per serving: 32 calories, 0.4 g protein, 1.9 g fat, 3.6 g carbohydrates, 2 mg sodium, trace cholesterol
Norlene Razak
Pedernales Electric Cooperative
CREAMY CILANTRO HEAT
1/2 bunch cilantro
6-7 slices pickled jalapeño
1 clove garlic
Juice of one lemon
16 ounces plain Greek yogurt
Creole seasoning to taste
1/3 white onion, finely diced, optional
Process cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, lemon juice and yogurt in a blender or food processor until cilantro is finely chopped. Season to taste with Creole seasoning. Increase or decrease amount of garlic or jalapeño according to your individual tastes.
Servings: 10. Serving size: 1/4 cup. Per serving: 35 calories, 1.9 g protein, 1.5 g fat, 4.5 g carbohydrates, 242 mg sodium, 5 mg cholesterol
Jeanene Williams
Pedernales Electric Cooperative
WEB EXTRA: BONUS RECIPES
EGGPLANT AND OLIVE CREAM
1 1/2 cups diced, cooked eggplant
2 tablespoons green olives
3/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic, mashed slightly
1 tablespoon canned diced chilies
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
5 drops hot sauce
In food processor, puree all ingredients except olive oil until well blended. With machine running, add olive oil in a thin stream until all is incorporated. Chill until serving time. Serve with mild crackers.
Servings: 12. Serving size: 1/4 cup. Per serving: 128 calories, 0.3 g protein, 13.6 g fat, 1.5 g carbohydrates, 287 mg sodium, trace cholesterol
Eleanor Middaugh
Hamilton County Electric Cooperative
Cook’s Tip: You can easily cook an eggplant in the microwave by perforating skin a few times and cooking whole about 8 minutes. Allow to cool, then peel and dice as needed.
HOMEMADE RANCH DRESSING OR DIP
1/2 to 3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup buttermilk for dressing
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon minced onion, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning salt
1/4 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon Mrs. Dash
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, optional
Pinch cayenne pepper, optional
In jar, combine all ingredients, whisk with a fork. Taste frequently and adjust seasonings as needed. This may be used immediately but is better when chilled for a couple of hours before serving. Blue, gorgonzola or feta cheeses are all nice additions.
Servings: 16. Serving size: 2 tablespoons. Per serving: 59 calories, 0.8 g protein, 4.9 g fat, 2.84 g carbohydrates, 140 mg sodium, 7 mg cholesterol
Cathy Starbuck
Houston County Electric Cooperative |
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RECIPE CONTEST
Want a chance to win $100? NOVEMBER’S recipe contest topic is NOT YOUR EVERYDAY THANKSGIVING. Do your Thanksgiving Day dinner traditions stretch beyond the traditional roast turkey, mashed white potatoes and cornbread dressing? Do you serve a side dish or a dessert that is anything but ordinary? If so, we’d like to see your recipes. The deadline is JULY 10.
Send recipes to Home Cooking, 1122 Colorado St., 24th Floor, Austin, TX 78701. You may also fax them to (512) 763-3408, e-mail them to recipes@texas-ec.org, or submit online at www.texascooppower.com. Please include your name, address and phone number, as well as the name of your electric co-op. The top winner will receive $100, a copy of 60 Years of Home Cooking and a Texas-shaped trivet. Runners-up will also receive a prize. |