Last night I check the weather and it said low to mid 80's. Since we were moving furniture, it sounded pretty good. Should have known it would be too good. 90's is not my ideal weather for moving. My in-laws are moving in 4 weeks. I already told them if it was going to be this hot, I'm not helping them. They didn't believe me.
One dish we all like in the summer is homemade salsa. It's not a hard recipe, but just takes time to cut everything up. I'm not giving specific measurements because this is a recipe that is altered to your taste. Such as, I don't care for cilantro, but the salsa does need some. Therefore, I don't add very much, just enough so you can taste it, but if you like more, then go ahead and add more.
Homemade Salsa
3-4 large tomatoes
small to medium onion
chopped cilantro, no stems
3 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
2-3 jalapeños or other hot chiles
salt
lime juice
Dice the tomatoes. Add salt and refrigerate for an hour.
In the meantime, dice the onion and cilantro. Chop the jalapeños on another cutting board, or at the very end. Ater the hour or so, take out the tomatoes. By adding the salt, the tomatoes have released their juices. Drain most of the juice off. Add the remaining ingredients. Add the balsamic vinegar and lime juice to your taste. Refrigerate again before serving.
I always save the jalapeños for the last to be chopped. I don't like hot salsa. In mine, I slice the jalapeno in half, and remove the membranes and seeds from the inside. This is the part that makes it hot. I chop the remaining outside and add it to the salsa. You get the taste, but not the heat. Now my husband on the other hand, loves hot salsa. I always make a small bowl for him. What I do is once my salsa is complete, take some out and put in another bowl. Then I chop another jalapeno, including the seeds and membrane, and add it all to his bowl. I have a serrano pepper growing out back so I can't wait to make salsa using that pepper. It's supposed to be hotter than the jalapeno.
Be careful when chopping the jalapeno. Never touch your face without washing your hands. I wash them two times to be safe. If you rub your nose or eyes, they might start burning. Never rinse with water, it just makes it worse. Dab on some milk. It takes the sting away. Trust me on this. I learned from experience.
Look at my husband's salsa. There is a lot more green in his than mine! See the seeds? Then you can see the heat.
On a hot summer day, this tastes wonderful. Grab some chips and enjoy.
Until next time...Stampin' Always,
Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper
