Homemade rotel

This recipe is a great way to use up summer produce. It is easy and freezes well. It probably cans well too, but I don't can. Yet. I've adapted it from a larger recipe because it suits me to work in small batches. The recipe was originally four times every ingredient.

1 lb. tomatoes (my romas weigh about 2 oz each, so I used 8), diced
3 jalapenos, diced (deseed if you want less heat)
1/4 tsp. salt

Place in a saucepan. When tomatoes boil, reduce heat and let simmer until a thickness you like. This batch took me 60-90 minutes. It's so pretty when it starts; it's tasty when it's done.

My saucepan might be a little small, but it cooks way down.

This recipe yields a cup and a half. One cup is the equivalent of a small can of Rotel that you buy at the store.

Salsa verde

I love green salsa, but I find it just as easy to buy (unlike red, which I think is amazing homemade). Maybe I just need to tweak my recipe.

However, given tomatillos, one makes green salsa! Here's my recipe.

6 tomatillos, husked & halved
1 thick slice onion, separated
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 anaheim pepper, halved & seeded (optional)
1 jalapeno pepper, halved & seeded

Coat with olive oil and broil. When blackish, turn, spray with oil and roast the other side. My tomatillos were very soft, so I left them alone and turned the other veggies.

Process in a blender with juice of half a lime, 1/2 tsp. sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, and a tablespoon chopped, fresh cilantro. Mine turned out quite spicy, so I have the option of mixing it with 1-1/2 cups chicken broth and dousing enchiladas with it. My husband, however, wants to claim it for chips. Next batch, I'm omitting the anaheim.

Ninja salsa

This recipe came with my Ninja--hence the name. It is superb. I use whatever peppers I have on hand, which sometimes is just a serrano or jalapeno. When you roast the salsa, eat as much of it as you can while it is still warm. If there is ever any leftover, I use it in Mexican skillets or to top enchiladas in lieu of enchilada sauce.

Spray vegetables with olive oil and roast in the broiler. Then turn everything over, spray again, and broil some more.

I have a small Ninja that I throw the vegetables in, along with some onion (maybe 1/4 of a small onion). I often roast the onion if there's room in the roasting pan. Then I add a teaspoon of sugar, teaspoon of salt, pinch of cumin, pinch of oregano, some lime juice. I always add fresh cilantro, but today I was out and just used the dried variety. Drat.

My husband and middle daughter love homemade salsa. When I make it fresh, it seems like a wonderfully nutritious health food. When I buy it at the store, I think of it more like ketchup. Who knows!

Poblanos and corn

I'm always excited when we get corn at my produce co-op, but that's rather ironic: this recipe only calls for one ear of corn (I use two) and three poblano peppers. If I get fresh corn, I buy poblanos. It's sort of a programmed response.

3 poblanos: blacken them, then place in a plastic bag to steam for 10 minutes.

In a skillet, heat 1-1/2 T. olive oil.

Saute: 1/2 medium onion and the kernels from one ear of corn (I use two!).

Add 1 T. cream (or half-and-half; if I only have milk, I add a little butter too), 2 T. creme fraiche, and the poblanos (cut into strips). Salt and pepper to taste. Stir together until everything looks melty and yummy. Add 1/4 c. Monterey Jack cheese (I use colby jack or whatever is on hand).

Eat on soft tortillas. You wouldn't think something this tasty would have so little seasoning.

Stuffed peppers with sausage

In all my cooking years, I have stuffed peppers with hamburger (etc.), and I've always eaten them with ketchup. Or basted them with some kind of Italian sauce. These peppers are yummy just the way they pop out of the oven. And I don't precook the peppers. Whoopee, simplicity!

1 c. cooked rice or quinoa
2 large green bell peppers
1 medium onion, diced
olive oil
8 oz. sausage, browned (I usually keep cooked sausage in the freezer, for just this kind of recipe)
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. crushed oregano
salt & pepper
1/4 c. shredded mozzarella

Cut off the tops of the peppers and clean out the seeds. Dice the pepper tops. Sauté onion and pepper tops in olive oil. I sometimes throw in some diced carrot. It's pretty, and I like carrot. Stir sausage and seasonings into skillet. Place peppers in a small casserole dish and stuff with skillet contents. I always have some filling leftover, so I scoop it into a ramekin or small oven-proof bowl and bake it along with the peppers. I like that kind of thing for a lunch when I'm home alone.

Bake peppers at 375 for 30 minutes. Top with mozzarella and bake an additional 10 minutes. Complete dinner in one dish!

Serves 2-ish.