Olla-Podrida

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Salsa!

When I say the words salsa dancing, you probably have an entirely different idea as to the meaning than I do. You are probably thinking about an energetic dance with Latin American influences. Me? I'm talking about the happy dance that I do every time I make one of these delicious salsas. In my case, it can be a jig, skip, waltz, or sashay, sometimes accompanied by song, sung slightly off key. Whatever you do to express joy when creating something zippy and flavorful, enjoy it to the hilt when you make one or all of these flavorful dips (or side dishes -- Truth be told, I have been known to skip the chips and eat these with a spoon, but keep this to yourself.).

To get the text and full recipe, just click on the links below the mouthwatering pictures.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Restaurant-Style Salsa

Avocado-Mango Salsa

Salsa Verde

Pineapple Salsa

Mango Salsa

Avocado Salsa Verde

Gazpacho Dip

Champagne Grape Salsa

This post is linked to:

Full Plate Thursday

Create It Thursday

The DIY Collective

Simple and Sweet Fridays

Foodie Friday & Everything Else

Weekend Blog Hop

Simple Saturdays

Saturday Sparks

Bouquet of Talent Saturday

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Vietnamese Iced Coffee

I am a morning person; I love the freshness of early morning. I am also a night person, because I love the quietude of late night. Essentially, then, it's midday that I don't really care for, when we are stricken with what we like to call around here, “the afternoon blahs.” In the winter, a hot cup of tea and cookies warm from the oven can relieve the “blahs,” but in summer? Well, I recently found the remedy for this dreary time of day while trolling the Sweet Paul website and came across his recipe for Vietnamese Iced Coffee. Generally, I'm a purist when it comes to coffee, and want no part of sweetness or spicy flavor in my hot cuppa joe, but when I tasted this it was love at first sip. This recipe makes four servings. I made a batch of cold brew, and syrup, stored both in the fridge, and when the “blahs” struck, reached for this remedy, pouring a 4:1 ratio of coffee concentrate to syrup, but you can experiment on your own. It is a delightfully exotic way to tackle the dreariness of mid-afternoon.

Vietnamese Iced Coffee

2 cups water

1 1/2 cups coconut sugar*

4 Melissa's canela (cinnamon) sticks

4 cloves

5 black peppercorns

10 cardamom pods (I used black pods)

2 cups cold brew concentrate

1 cup Half ‘n half

Ice

Make syrup by putting water, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, pepper, and cardamom in a small saucepan, and bringing it to a boil. Let the mixture simmer for 5 minutes. Cool and strain.

When ready to serve, pour coffee concentrate, Half & Half, and 1/2 cup of the syrup into a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake it baby, shake it. Pour into glasses and enjoy.

*I found this at Trader Joe's.

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