Preserved Lemon Coriander Salsa

I would not describe myself as an early riser in the morning.  I do like my snug bed, but when it comes to work - I like many working people, have to get up and go.  I am often at work 7am in the morning, if not earlier.

This morning the car journey into work was a little more interesting.  We got to see Venus and Jupiter together in the pre-dawn sky.  I had not tweaked what it was and said out loud to D, 'those stars look like they are going to collide'.  He then mentioned that he had heard on the radio whilst showering something about some astronomical phenomenon happening today at dawn. Well didn't we, well me mostly get lucky to see two of the brightest planets Venus and Jupiter appearing together.  It was truly amazing, a bit like the red sun a couple of weeks ago.   The skies recently have been quite spectacular.

I made this Preserved Lemon Coriander Salsa at the weekend with what we had in the fridge as I could not be bothered to venture far.  Its made mostly from fresh ingredients other than the preserved lemons which came from a jar.

Tomato Salsa on Toasted Bread

Whether its the start of the tomato season or the end of it, the best way to enjoy homegrown tomatoes is fresh of course, but its not always easy.

This recipe started off as Pan Con Tomate - Catalan Tomato Bread  or is it  Catalan Pa Amb Tomaquet - bread with tomatoes, but it quickly evolved into a Tomato Salsa on Toasted Bread.  

It was good and enjoyed just before the griddled bread could go soft and soggy.  As I have mentioned before I don't do soggy bread.

Many oif the Pan Con Tomate recipes I found did not use a herb, and those that did used either basil or parsley, so i was not sure if this was authentic.  My version has coriander because I always have some to hand.  I have also eaten something similar in Cyprus, but it was doused with good extra virgin olive oil. 

Pineapple Jalapeno Salsa

My first ever experience of a fruit in a salsa was at a deli, the name of the place escapes me - it may not even be there anymore as this was 10 years ago.  

Anyway, it was a salsa made with mangoes.  I have bee n making fruit salsas on and off since.  Last year it was Strawberry Salsa and a few year before that it was Papaya Salsa and way before that Kiwi Salsa.    Today on this bright sunny day, I share you with Pineapple Jalapeno Salsa.  

Handsome Whippet and Pineapple Jalapeno Salsa

Most salsas are made with fresh tomatoes, but this Pineapple Jalapeno one is not but enhanced further with red onions and my absolute favourite herb, fresh coriander.  This salsa was really lovely and complimented the Green Chile, but of course you can dip your tortilla chips in this chunky refreshing salsa. 

On another note, a little while back a fellow blogger asked me about the images in the background of some of my food photographs.  I have been doing this for as long as  I have been blogging.  It was a suggestion introduced to me by my husband as we do not have the luxury of a dedicated space with good (natural) lighting; and also a lack of crockery that comes with food styling for food bloggers, so playing around with images from various sources has been most welcome.  Although not an original ideas, it was nice to see that in doing it on my blog that I had inspired other fellow bloggers in doing this too.
Pineapple Jalapeno Salsa 
Ingredients
Makes enough for six servings
Half fresh pineapple, peeled and diced as small as you can
60g fresh coriander, minced
1 small red onion, peeled and minced
1 - 1 1/2 tablespoon jalapenos from a jar, minced including 2 - 4 tablespoons of its liquid (or use 1/2 lemon or lime juice)
Pinch of salt
Method
In a wide bowl, mix all the ingredients together.
Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.
Good for a few days if kept refrigerated.

Quick and Easy Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa

I am in Wales, a land not known for the sunshine but rain rain rain, but today it felt like I was somewhere in the Mediterranean.  I stepped out of the office onto the busy streets and honestly it felt like I had walked into a greenhouse.  

Anyway, you know what hot, clammy weather means - no energy for cooking and your appetite to eat leans more towards quick light and easy bites: such as this Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa which requires no cooking at all, even better.  

I actually made this Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa at the weekend with homegrown strawberries. The strawberries take the place of tomatoes which can either be acidic or sweet.  I have to admit, as much as I wanted to make this and experiment, I was not sure that I would like it and I could see D looking down at the bowl and thinking the same. 

Then we both tucked in with our tortilla chips and were Wooed! 

This is not the first savoury strawberry recipe I have made, I have made a Savoury Strawberry Quiche with strawberries and even Strawberry Risotto before and more recently Strawberry Spinach Asparagus Salad, so don't quite understand why it has taken me a while to make this Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa in my home. I will even go as far and say, I think I prefer this  Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa to the spicy Tomato salsa.  

Papaya Salsa

I've made my popular Black Turtle Bean and Red Pepper Chilli so that we could have enchiladas for supper in the the next few days. To accompany the enchiladas I sometimes make my own tomato salsa or even one with the added crunch of celery.  However, as I still had half a papaya in the fridge left over from the  'Mauritian Beef' Soy Chunk and Papaya Curry early in the week, I thought I'd try my hand at making a papaya fruit salsa.  

I knew it would work, as I've tried both pineapple salsa and mango salsa in the past, but I did not know how much I would like it.  So what was the verdict?!

Celery and Tomato Salsa

I am back from my parents, and to get me back into the flow of blogging about food. I have a simple 'Celery and Tomato Salsa' recipe to share with you today.

I've written before about the muted green, long  crunchy celery rarely playing the starring role of a dish. It is often featured as part of a crudite platter or invisible forming part of a soup, stew or sauce base. Here although sharing the limelight with the bedazzling red tomato, it certainly steals the show with its refreshing crunchy lettuce flavour.

I would really like to encourage you to try this. Of course its a salsa, so you will need tortilla chips, but failing that try it with a fluffy jacket potato - its ace!

Celery and Tomato Salsa
Makes a small bowl
Ingredients
2 red tomatoes
4 celery sticks
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 - 2 tablespoons fresh coriander, minced
Chilli pepper to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
Method
Chop the tomatoes, discarding any tough parts. Slice the celery sticks thinly*.
Put the tomatoes and celery into a bowl with the lemon juice, chilli powder, coriander, and season to taste. Serve immediately. Adapted from a Rose Elliot recipe.

*I often use a potato peeler and peel a thin layer of the celery. This will remove the fibrous stringy bits that often get stuck between your teeth; or are a little chewy to digest

Jalapeños, coriander and avocado pasta salad

I was drooling over fellow bloggers Mexican inspired vegetarian dishes, such as Barbaras tempeh stuffed rellenos, Morgan's Black bean Tacos and Dee's Mexican feast, it wasn't all vegetarian, but gosh I'd love to have been sitting at her table. These dishes were all created in recognition of the Mexican holiday known as Cinco de Mayo. Cinco de mayo is celebrated on the 5th of May. It commemorates the victory of the Mexican militia over the French army at the Battle of Puebla in 1867. It is primarily a Mexican holiday, but is celebrated in some U.S cities that hosts large Mexican communities. I too suddenly felt the urge of wanting to participate and was greedily looking for an invitation, albeit through food. Then as if by magic the invitation came in the form of a monthly blog event. This months No Croutons Required challenge is to create a Mexican inspired soup or salad. I was originally going to make a soup, but with both the weather changing and me getting into the holiday spirit literally. I decided on a light salad.

For inspiration I flicked through my small collection of Mexican cookbooks. One of which was Café Pasqual’s cookbook: Spirited Recipes from Santa Fe. I picked up this Mexican cookbook a few years ago from the charity bookshop Oxfam. I have to admit I was completely enticed by the colourful images, ironically not of the dishes. Some of the pictures would surely make my young nephews heart race. The women are certainly sultry and exquisite just like a 1950s movie star.

White Bean and Cabbage Stew with a Scarlet Salsa

I made this dish only for two reasons. One because I had to use a cabbage picked last weekend (I think) and two, I have been hearing a lot about 'White Chilli Bean' dishes amongst British celebrity cooks. White Chilli Bean dishes have been around for awhile, a decade in fact, but they have only become popular in the U.K recently.

Anyway, I was curious to try out a white chilli bean, so I flicked though one of my American cookbooks and decided on a recipe which contained winter vegetables including swede (also known rutabaga). On serving, this White Chilli Bean to my eyes looked more like a Cabbage Bean stew with a vibrant salsa. It did not have the spice kick, the allure of vegetables such as colourful peppers, or the deepness of black or brown beans ' vegetarian chilli'. However, the salsa was pleasant. It made the stew come alive with its smoky undertones and the zing of the coriander.
I am not saying that I did not enjoy this dish, I did, it just didn’t meet with my expectations of what a 'vegetarian chilli' should be like (an oxymoron I know), hence I have renamed it. I will at some point try out another 'white bean chilli' recipe.

The resulting quantity of this dish gave us three, maybe even four meals: in a bowl as we had yesterday, in a wrap as we had today and with rice or even potatoes later in the week.

White Bean and Cabbage Stew with a Scarlet Salsa
Serves 6
Ingredients
For the White Bean Stew
200g dried cannellini beans, cooked and drained or two tins.
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 medium onions, finely sliced
6 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 green cabbage, chopped into quarter, then finely sliced
1 generous teaspoon dried oregano
1 potato, cut into ½ inch cubes
½ swede, peeled and cut into bite sized cubes
Salt and pepper to taste

For the Scarlet salsa
1 ancho pepper
1 chipotle pepper
2 tablespoons of sun dried tomato in oil, minced
1 red pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoon olive oil
Juice from 2 limes
Bunch of coriander leaves, minced
Salt to taste
MethodFor the beans

In a large heavy pot, heat the olive oil. Add the onions, and sauté them until they soften. Add the garlic and cabbage and cook on low heat until cabbage is translucent. Add to the pot 4 cups of water, the oregano, the potato and swede cubes. Season with salt and cook for 30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Add the beans and mix well, then add a further 2 cups of water and cook until thickened.
For the salsa

In the meantime make the salsa. Soak both the ancho and chipotle pepper for ten minutes, cut open and remove seeds. Then mince finely. Place in a bowl with the remaining ingredients, including salt to taste. Leave aside for the flavours to combine. Serve in large bowls with a spoonful of salsa on top. Adapted from Vegetarian Planet by Didi Emmons.