Half-and-Half Salsa; Very Green Pasta

Unfortunately the salsa got all et up before I could get a picture of it. Pictured to the right is our jar of awesome, 1-dollar-per-pound green chilies from the Indian market. So far we have been unable to find an actually spicy pepper in the supermarket, so these were a great find. They will keep forever if you store them with oil and a whole lot of salt.

The salsa was super tasty - in comparison, the store-bought kind lacks any tomato flavor and pretty much just tastes like vinegar and salt.

When I've made homemade in the past it's often tasted a little bit too raw and watery, so I fixed that this time by roasting half of it, pureeing half of it, and then straining and reducing the liquids to make it thicker. This also helps to meld the flavors more quickly so it doesn't have to sit in the fridge for days before it starts to taste good. Adding a green pepper would add a nice green note, but we were too cheap to get one and it still tasted great.

EDIT: Salsa re-created 8/6/09, and this time we remembered to take pictures. Here they is:

Tomatoes, onions, spicy green peppers, and whole garlic all drenched in EVOO and ready to roast

Finished salsa, ready to be devoured by an eager Urban the Dinosaur

Half-and-Half Salsa
(Half-cooked, Half-pureed)

6 ripe, sweet tomatoes
4 small green chilies (more or less to taste)
2 medium onions
4 medium cloves garlic (more or less to taste)
1 green pepper (optional)
2 tbs oil
Juice from 1/2 lime
Salt and pepper to taste

Slice half of the tomatoes, half of the onions, and the pepper into large chunks. Toss in a deep pan with half of the garlic (peeled), half of the chilies, and the oil. Roast at 450, turning occasionally, until the tomatoes and onions start to brown. Meanwhile, chop the remaining tomatoes and onions into a small dice and mince the remaining garlic and chilies. Combine all of the vegetables and add the lime juice, salt, and pepper. Either move half of the salsa to a food processer and puree until mushy but not totally liquid, or use an immersion blender on the whole batch until you achieve the texture you want. Then put the salsa in a colander over a pot and press to drain out most of the liquid. Reduce the liquid by half on medium-high heat, mix back into the salsa, adjust the seasoning, and refrigerate for an hour before eating.


We found some spinach pasta in the closet and decided it was quite suited to our planned pesto and broccoli dinner. Here's approximately what we use in our pesto, but definitely adjust everything to taste.

Pesto

5 tbs pine nuts, toasted
1 big bunch basil
2 large cloves garlic
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Break up the pinenuts a little in a foodprocessor, then add everything but the olive oil, turn it on, and slowly pour in the olive oil. Or, if you're doing it ghetto-style, Toss everything in a mortar and pestle and go to work. Adjust the seasoning and toss with hot pasta.