Sweet and Spicy Salsa

Sweet and spicy salsa. Delicious.

 Who loves salsa? I sure do. I've tried making salsa more times than I'd like to admit. Sometimes it ends up too tomato-y. Sometimes, too garlicky. Sometimes it turns out great. What I've found is that when it comes to making salsa, I can always rely on canned tomatoes. Thus, this recipe uses:

-1 can of diced tomatoes 

-1 tomatillo

-1/2 cup chopped onion

-1/3 cup chopped bell pepper

-1 bunch of cilantro (I like to use a lot, you may not)

-2 jalapenos (or serrano, or habenero, depending on your heat tolerance)

-juice of one lime

-1 to 2 cloves of garlic

-1/4 tsp cumin

-1/2 tsp salt

-1 tsp sugar

-1 tsp vinegar

-1 tbs crushed red pepper (more or less depending on your taste

Alright. That's a lot, but it really comes together pretty quickly. I promise.

 Start off by tossing your diced tomatoes in a blender or food processor.

 Add the cilantro now, and put the rest in the fridge right away so it doesn't wilt. You need not chop the cilantro. The blender will take care of that.

 Looks tasty already. I like to use a lot of cilantro. I think it really makes salsa delicious. Some people aren't into that, though.

 This, my friend, is a tomatillo. You would be surprised how many people don't know that.

 For example, when I purchased this little guy, the cashier had to ask me what it was so that she could look up the price. Embarrassing.

 After slicing it up, it looks like this.

 Throw the tomatillo in there with the tomatoes and cilantro.

 Pulse, pulse, pulse, maybe stir a little, pulse, pulse.

 Juicing a lime. If you're lazy, you can just use a container of lime juice (a tablespoon or two).
P.S., yes, I have what is known as a "clubbed thumb," which can clearly be seen in the above image.

 Next, add the onions, bell peppers, and jalapenos (or hot peppers of your choice). Since this is for my family, I used jalapeno to keep the heat level down.

 Chop up some garlic. It doesn't need to be chopped too well, since it's going in the blender. Along with this, add the cumin, salt, sugar, vinegar, and crushed red pepper. Blend it up, and hope for the best.

 There you go, sweet and (just a little) spicy salsa!

 Of course it's good on chips. Also great with quesadillas, tacos, etc. You know how salsa works.

 Mmm, don't you wanna dig in? Enjoy it!

Mediterranean Vegetable Wrap

Who doesn't love wraps? They're light, great for lunch, and a little more fun than a sandwich. This wrap is particularly healthy for us vegetarians because it has hummus instead of dressing or sauce. Bonus protein points. This recipe is just a guideline. You can feel free to make it your own and mix up what you put on it. Enjoy!

 So here's what you'll need:

-a tortilla (I like to use whole grain--or "ultra-grain"--ones)

-hummus (I use Sabra brand)

-fillings (I used onions, black olives, spinach, bell peppers, and feta crumbles)

-cheese (I would recommend Montery or Cheddar Jack.

 First, slop some hummus on your tortilla right down the middle.

 Top with your veggies. There's some feta crumbles on mine, too.

 I added some whole spinach leaves, then cheese. Now comes the tricky part. If you don't know how to wrap one of these babies, I would highly recommend watching this video. It makes it much easier to understand than if I were to type it out.

 Now hopefully, once sliced down the middle, your wrap looks something like this. Voila, a Mediterranean veggie wrap!

And if it didn't turn out so pretty, it will surely be delicious anyway!

Greek-Inspired Pizza

Greek-inspired pizza. Mmm, mmm.

 Hey, so today I thought I'd try out a Greek-inspired pizza. Who doesn't love pizza, right? To get me in the cooking/creating mood, I started my mid-morning (after I got off work) with some iced coffee. My cat Sheba decided to peek, so you can see her chilling in the window back there. This pizza recipe is extremely simple, and it comes together pretty quickly. Here's what you'll need:
-1/4 cup chopped onions

-1/4 cup chopped spinach

-1/4 cup chopped black olives

-1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

-pizza sauce of choice

-mozzarella cheese

-pre-made crust(s). A good recipe can be found here.

-balsamic vinegar.

Let's do this.

 First, I chopped up my onions.

 Then, my spinach. Mmm.

 P.S., being a bassoonist and a skilled reed maker, I own a ceramic knife. I use it in the kitchen too. No shame. I use a Kyocera knife, personally. It works wonders.

 Look at those delicious veggies!

 Black olives. You either love them or hate them. I, of course, love them.

 There you go, mates.

 I guess if you want, you can just stop here and eat this as a salad...

 But I'd highly recommend continuing this journey.

 Take some balsamic vinegar, and spread it all over your crust.

 There you go.

 Next comes the sauce. Use as much or as little as you'd like!

 Mozzarella cheese, please.

 I added some crushed red pepper at this point, too. I had to have a little spice in there.

 These puppies are ready to go in the oven. Follow the directions on your pre-made crust package. For example, mine was 425 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. However, we aren't finished quite yet. Only put them in for about 2/3 of the total time, so we can add the toppings.

 Thus, I set the timer for six minutes, and waited.

 Six minutes later, lookin' good!

 Sprinkled my toppings on...

 Yum.

 Four more minutes. By the way, it smelled awesome.

 And here they are!

 Artsy angle, you know.

 And here is the finished product!

 Greek-inspired pizza with olives, spinach, onions, and feta.

Enjoy!

Great East Lake.

 So this is the Great East Lake, found between Wakefield, NH and Acton, ME.

 I spent a week at this beautiful place. The weather was great compared to Central Illinois, as you can probably imagine.

 And this is the cabin I was lucky enough to stay in.

 A sailboat is thoughtfully displayed.

 Simple, but Maine-appropriate interior design.

Have a great day, everyone. :)