Idonteatnuts's Blog

You know when timing seems to work out great for an idea or blog? Well, that is me and that is now. I am obsessed with this book series by Janette Oke called the Canadian West Series. Truthfully, these books were not written for people my age. I am basing this off the fact that my sister read them when she was 10! I know, I am 31, what am I doing reading these books for 10 year olds?! But seriously, they relax me before bed.
Anyway, I found this recipe the other night for a favorite canadian dessert and had to try it out.
Nanaimo Bars. Don’t ask me how to pronouce it because I still can’t get it right.

These are great because you don’t have to bake them. Layer 1 uses coconut! Yum

I didn’t want to show you the picture I took of the melted butter with cocoa and sugar and beaten egg. It was gross looking. That is all I am going to say.
Oh hey, coconut!

Mix all that together for the first layer which is like the crust. Then you pat it down in the prepared baking dish that is lined with foil. Layer #1 needs at least 1 full hour in the fridge to harden.

Layer #2 is a sweet creamy layer. The Canadian recipe calls for a custard powder to be used for this, but you can substitute vanilla pudding powder instead.
You must first beat some butter, then add vanilla. Add your vanilla powder and some milk to that mixture and then confectioners sugar. Did you know in Canada (and in the UK), they call confectioner’s sugar “icing” sugar? Makes sense, right?! Oh, but when you mix this all together, you get a smooth, creamy, almost frosting-like consistency. Do you best not to stick your fingers in though. You have to remember that this bar is not being baked at all. I mean, I might have had to stick my finger in it just to let you know that it tasted right. I mean, I have to test these things out for you people!

When your bottom layer has hardened, then you can smooth over the cream mixture.

The 3rd and final layer is chocolate!!! I was very thankful when I found I had some chocolate chips in the freezer that I could use for the top. They are mini-chocolate chips. Don’t laugh at me.

Melt them with some butter and spread on top. Oh wait! Wait wait wait. I forgot to mention that the first 2 layers need to go back in the fridge when the 2nd layer of cream is added for 30 minutes. It needs to harden a bit or else it will be hard to spread the melted chocolate on top.

Put that in the fridge till the chocolate hardens. The next steps were my favorite. I will definitely use this method whenever I make bars from now on.
First, grab the sides of the foil and lift the bar out of the baking dish. Place that onto a cutting board. Then you can easily pull down the sides of the foil so you can cut the bars, after this next step.

Now you need to have a knife, towel, and hot water next to you for this. Take the knife and put it into the hot water for a second, then dry it with the towel. Carefully score the top layer only (chocolate layer). With each score you make, you must warm the knife in the water, then wipe it clean. It is important to do this so that when you cut into the bar, the middle layer of cream doesn’t smoosh out and mess up the whole bar. Trust me, it works great!

When you have scored every piece, then you can cut through the bar and viola!

Thankfully my Italian family had no problem eating my Canadian dessert!

Thanks to:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdPqwzWeP1c&feature=feedrec_grec_index
Bottom Layer:

1/2 cup butter,
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 large egg, beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup coconut (either sweetened or unsweetened)
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped***remember that my blog is named “I Don’t Eat Nuts”…so no nuts for me!

Middle Layer:

1/4 cup butter
2 – 3 milk or cream
2 tablespoons vanilla custard powder (Bird’s) or instant vanilla pudding powder
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar (confectioners or icing) sugar

Top Layer:

4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (or chocolate chips, 3 tablespoons of chocolate chips equals a one once square of chocolate
1 tablespoon butter

Nanaimo Bars: Butter or spray a 9 x 9 inch (23 x 23 cm) pan with a non stick vegetable spray. Or line with tin foil and spray the tin foil with cooking spray.

Bottom Layer: In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Stir in the sugar and cocoa powder and then gradually whisk in the beaten egg. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens (1 – 2 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract, graham cracker crumbs, coconut, and chopped nuts. Press the mixture evenly onto the bottom of the prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate until firm (about an hour).

Middle Layer: In your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until the mixture is smooth. If the mixture is too thick to spread, add a little more milk. Spread the filling over the bottom layer, cover, and refrigerate until firm (about 30 minutes).

Top Layer: Melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave. Spread the melted chocolate evenly over the filling and refrigerate until the chocolate has set.

So, I am not Southern and I don’t try to pretend I am, cause I am too busy pretending to be Irish!  Anyway, I had to try out this recipe once I got my pretty red dutch oven…sigh…

Chicken and Dumplings!!!  Thankfully, I don’t have tons of followers, so I won’t have people from the south mad at me for making this “wrong”.

Quite a few ingredients are required.  This was not a hard recipe at all.  Took a bit of time though.  Totes worth it

The first thing I wanted to do was get the prep work out of the way.  Ah miropoix!  How I have missed you.  Carrots, celery, and onions are the basis for just about everything.  Chopping these items up was always the first task at school and working in the kitchen.

Take a look at my gorgeous new dutch oven!

It’s sooooo heavy though.  Oh well.

The next main ingredient is the chicken.  Actually, I guess that is the MAIN ingredient, isn’t it.  I didn’t mess around with this.  I bought the whole chicken cut up already.  Don’t freak out though like I did when you see the kidney and liver and all that other good stuff.  I’m not adventurous enough to use those items…not yet at least.

This is a fryer chicken.  I guess the difference between a fryer and a roaster is size.  The fryers are smaller.

Next step is to dredge or coat your chicken pieces in flour.  It is also a good idea to salt and pepper your chicken just before you put them in the flour.  I used a cake pan for the dredging process.  It was the perfect size.

Add some butter and olive oil to the dutch oven. Then add your chicken to it. Brown on both sides.

Set aside the browned chicken and add your miropoix to the dutch oven.

No, do not “clean” out your dutch oven. You need all that good brown-ness for its flavor.

You need to then add a few seasonings. Ground thyme and ground turmeric add an interesting color.

See how the pictures is all foggy? Well, that is steam. Yup! Me and my stellar photo skills

Then you get to add the liquids (low sodium chicken broth and apple cider).

Add the chicken pieces back to the dutch oven. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes.

While that simmers, you can make your dumpling batter. This could not be easier. Sift!

Don’t you just love the peak that naturally forms when you sift! No?? It’s just me? Moving on…

Yum! Half and half

Now, I’m not gonna lie to you about this next part. It sucked. It took forever and my arms hurt Feel bad for me!
Take the chicken out of the liquid and put into a good size pan. Ugh. You have to remove the chicken from the bones and shred it. Bleh.

The 9X13 pan worked really for this.

Add the chicken back to the liquid. Get this, you get to now add heavy cream to this!

Now you can add the dumpling batter. I did it a tablespoon at a time. I used 2 tablespoons to make this happen and it worked quite nice.

Then you cover the dutch oven halfway for another 15 minutes so the dumplings have a chance to plump and cook and get really yummy. Cause they do!

Once that 15 minutes has passed, you are done! Just let the pot sit for about 10 minutes or so off the heat and then go nuts!

Like I said, I’m not southern, so this isn’t gonna be that wonderfully thick and rich chicken and dumplings that you will get if you travel down there. This worked just fine for me though. It was still very filling. I liked how the dumplings were gooey on the outside and kind of, almost, what is the word…cooked, yes, cooked in the middle

I was lucky to find this recipe from…

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/12/chicken-and-dumplings/

Ingredients
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
½ cups All-purpose Flour
1 whole Chicken, Cut Into Pieces (cut Up Fryer)
Salt And Pepper
½ cups Finely Diced Carrots
½ cups Finely Diced Celery
1 whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced
½ teaspoons Ground Thyme
¼ teaspoons Turmeric
6 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
½ cups Apple Cider
½ cups Heavy Cream
Dumplings:
1-½ cup All-purpose Flour
½ cups Yellow Cornmeal
1 Tablespoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1-½ cup Half-and-half
2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Parsley (optional)
Salt As Needed
Preparation Instructions
Sprinkle chicken pieces with salt and pepper, then dredge both sides in flour.
Melt butter in a pot over medium-high heat. In two batches, brown chicken on both sides and remove to a clean plate.
In the same pot, add diced onion, carrots, and celery. Stir and cook for 3 to 4 minutes over medium-low heat. Stir in ground thyme and turmeric, then pour in chicken broth and apple cider. Stir to combine, then add browned chicken. Cover pot and simmer for 20 minutes.
While chicken is simmering, make the dough for the dumplings: sift together all dry ingredients, then add half-and-half, stirring gently to combine. Set aside.
Remove chicken from pot and set aside on a plate. Use two forks to remove chicken from the bone. Shred, then add chicken to the pot. Pour heavy cream into the pot and stir to combine.
Drop tablespoons of dumpling dough into the simmering pot. Add minced parsley if using. Cover pot halfway and continue to simmer for 15 minutes. Check seasonings; add salt if needed. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.
*Adapted from Gourmet Magazine

This is one of those blogs that I don’t have to type anything cause it is pretty stupid.  However, I am super excited that I got this “machine” and I will be posting my “adventures” trying to make “meals” with it!

I’m gonna say that this was yumspice!  I didn’t even need any salt.  Yes, I will be making these again

It was very important, no IS very important for me to work on my baking skills, especially with bread.  So when I saw this recipe, I knew it was my chance.  Let’s begin.

oops, forgot something

and then…

and this is what happens…

That mixture has to cool till it is luke warm.  It takes quite a bit of time.  I actually ended up transferring it to a different container so it would cool quicker.  But while all of that is happening, you can get the yeast ready.

That is yeast, sugar, and warm water.  You mix it all together to dissolve the yeast and sugar.  Such a tricky part.  Cause if the water isn’t the right temperature, the yeast won’t activate.  And that is bad!

After about 7 minutes, this happened…

Don’t wait too long though, cause then it starts to spill over onto your counter and then you have a whole big mess and then…, but that didn’t happen to me!  Nope, not at all

Okay, flour!  Flour, flour, and more flour.

To that flour, you add your luke warm milk mixture and your yeast and 3 eggs.  Mix for a bit and add MORE FLOUR!!!

I know what you are thinking.  You are like “Why does that dough look all gross and not like it does on tv?”   Well, my dears, it is because I am making it.  And if I were on tv for cooking, then they would have to cancel the Food Network and Cooking Channel and all the other fun cooking shows!

Anyway, back to work.  Cover the dough with a clean towel and set aside in a warm place for at least 1 hour.

 

 

Time to prep!  You need 2 9×13 pans.  Don’t forget to spray them!  Then get out your cutting board.

 

Once the dough is ready, you can flip it onto the cutting board and split it in half.

You have no idea how happy I was when I saw this!  I didn’t screw it up

 

Then you roll out 1/2 of the dough and divide it into 12 sections.

 

As you can see, I am no baker.  Bakers are perfectionist!  It’s totally true.  Don’t worry, they know it.  It is a requirement really.  My sections were not even close to being even.  Oh well.

Rounding out the sections into balls is the next step and then placing them into the pans.

 

They need to sit for a bit.  Around 30 minutes to rise again.  So you must cover these with a clean towel or cloth again and set in a warm place.

 

They rose!!!

 

 

So I wanted to try out something since I had 2 pans of rolls.  So 1 pan I left alone and put into the oven and the other pan, wait for it…I smothered in melted butter and sprinkled with sea salt.  Yes, sigh…

 

Don’t worry, the other pan doesn’t miss out.  Just wait.

The rolls take 15-18 minutes.

This was the other pan of rolls.  According to the recipe I was following, they recommend you roll a stick of cold butter over the tops of the rolls right out of the oven.  The rolls were very happy with this

 

 

These were the buttered and salted ones!  They were so yummy!!!  Believe me, I am not tooting my own horn here.  I am talking about the magic of sea salt!  Sigh…

 

 

 

 

Once more with salt (ha ha ha, like Once More With Feeling for all my Buffy friends out there )

 

 

Recipe, Courtesy of Our Best Bites:

2 c. whole milk (if you’re in a pinch, you can use 2%, but whole is best. Don’t use 1% or skim)
½ c. + 1 Tbsp. sugar, divided
1/3 c. (5 1/3 Tbsp.) butter
2 tsp. Kosher salt
2 pkgs. active dry yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp.), preferably bread machine yeast
2/3 c. warm (105-115-degree) water
8-9 c. all-purpose flour
3 beaten eggs

http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/03/rolls-and-orange-rolls.html

 

 

So I thought I would make something with blueberries!  This is one of my all time favorite things to eat.  It is my dad’s recipe.  His blueberry cake with crumb topping.  It’s a classic that you must make, like now, so go ahead, run to the store, because all you will need to buy is some blueberries (frozen is fine).  That is what is so perfect about this recipe.  You already have everything you need minus the blueberries.  Check this out!

Egg, Sugar, Butter!  Who doesn’t have those just lying around?!

Flour, Baking Powder, and Salt!

You cream the first 3 ingredients together, then add the dry ingredients….wait, I forgot…this gets tricky…oh no! Get this!  You need some milk too!  Wait, it gets even WORSE!  You have to alternate the addition of milk and dry ingredients into the creamed ingredients!

 

 

 

 

So as you can clearly see, this may be the hardest thing you have ever created!  This takes talent people, real talent.

 

 

Okay, I’ll stop being ridiculous now.  Promise.   But this next bit is the best part.  The blueberries

 

 

This is where it gets a little tricky, no really.  Cause I love this stuff, so normally I make a double batch.  But this time around, it being the new year…blah blah blah…making a double batch for myself just didn’t seem right or i didn’t have enough blueberries to make 2 batches.   So the problem was that this amount didn’t quite fit into a 9 x 13 pan.  But I knew it would be too much for a 8″ or 9″.  Then it came to me!  My sister left me this adorable 7 1/2 x 11 pan and yes, folks, yes it worked perfectly!  This doesn’t mean you have to go out and buy yourself one, but if you have something a little bit smaller than a 9 x 13 pan, it should work great.  Okay, on with the show!

 

See, cute pan!  Now comes the fun crumb topping.

 

Flour, Sugar, Butter, Cinnamon.  Crumble together with a fork till it looks like ground beef.  No joke, it really does.

 

 

Told you!   Now sprinkle it over the blueberry cake and bake bake bake!

 

 

 

45 minutes!

 

LET IT COOL!  Please, at least a little bit.

 

The last time I made this I added more blueberries that you really should.  I won’t go into it, but let’s just say that you should really stick to the recipe amount.   Anyway, love this cake as much as I do, please!

 

3/4 cups of sugar

1/2 cup of butter (1 stick)

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

2 cups of flour

2 tablespoons of baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 and 1/4 cups of blueberries

Cream sugar, butter, and egg together.  Combine dry ingredients in separate bowl.  Add milk and dry ingredients alternately into butter and sugar mixture.  Fold in blueberries.  Put into sprayed pan.

Crumb Topping:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup flour

6 teaspoons cinnamon

Crumble together with a fork.  Sprinkle over top of cake and put in oven.  Bake for 45 minutes on 375 degrees.

 

 

Once I saw this bark, I HAD to make it. And I’m not your typical bark-maker-person-thingy… I have never purchased food items at Michaels’s and green chocolate is not my way of celebrating the holidays. But oh my gosh! You need to buy some of these awesome melting chocolate things with all the fun colors!
Okay, let’s do this!

You need these items:

And these items:

There they are!  Don’t they look all funny in the disc form?!

Then we need to measure out and chop the candy that needs placed on top of the bark base (is that the correct terminology? like i said, i am not a “bark” person).

Okay, then we measure out the melting chocolates.  I recommend having each chocolate in their own bowls and having their own spatulas set and ready to go before you start melting anything.  Cause chocolate does harden and you want to move fairly quickly.  Unless, of course, if I did this wrong, which is completely possible!

Okay, so melt away!  You need to melt the chocolate chips first and spread that out onto parchment paper.  I used wax paper cause I totally forgot I was out of parchment.  This was fun to do!  Again, no idea what I was doing but I just kind of figured it should look similar to this…

Now let’s take a second to appreciate the amazingness that is colored chocolate…

Come On!

Okay, now back to work.

And

I’m sorry, I just can’t get over the fun-ness of these chocolates!  Okay, now more fun!  And a little trick I found out for this next step…grab a chop stick!

And again

And Again

Then we start topping the fun holiday treats!

NO!  Don’t eat it yet!  NO NO NO!  It has to sit for at least 3 hours!  You heard me right!  Then you can chop it up and serve or package or eat it all or give it to your neighbors…the options are endless!  :)

 

Seriously, this was really fun to make!  I need to try out some more fun candy stuff.

Christmas Candy Bark

8 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips
8 ounces milk chocolate chips
5 ounces red candy melts
5 ounces green candy melts

1/2 cup Christmas Oreos, cut in half
1/4 cup red and green M&Ms (you can use regular M&Ms, peanut, peanut butter, whatever you like!)
1/4 cup Holiday Corn
1/4 cup Candy Cane Hershey Kisses, cut in half

Measure out the candy. Cut the Candy Cane Hershey Kisses in half and the Christmas Oreos in half. Set the candy aside.

Lay out a piece of parchment paper. You’ll use this to make the Christmas Candy Bark on.

Put 8 ounces of semi sweet chocolate chips and 8 ounces of milk chocolate chips in a microwavable bowl. Melt the chocolate but be careful not to overheat the chocolate.

Spread the melted chocolate onto the parchment paper into an 8 by 11 rectangle. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect.

Melt the red candy melts in a microwavable bowl. Place dots of the melted red candy melts on top of the melted chocolate.

Melt the green candy melts in a microwavable bowl. Place dots of the melted green candy melts on top of the melted chocolate.

Using a knife, swirl the candy melts and chocolate up and down. Then swirl the candy melts and chocolate back and forth.

Place the candy and cookies on the melted chocolate. Press down lightly.

Allow the Christmas Candy Bark to dry for at least 3 hours. Cut into pieces and enjoy!

With peaches that is! One of the best things in the summertime

This is such a delicious cake. You HAVE to make it, then EAT it, ALL!!!

I took this picture when the Kitchen Aid was on using the wisk…isn’t it cool! You can’t see the wisk but you can tell something is whirling! Okay, maybe I have had one too many pieces of peach cake…

Bum ba da DA!

Slice up the peaches nice and thin. Add 1/3 of the batter to the bottom of a loaf pan, then 1 of the peaches to the pan.

Then add the rest of the batter to the loaf pan, followed by the other peach.

Gosh, this is boring…but we aren’t done yet!

A lovely cream cheese mixture! Then drop it (or spread it as I over mixed…but how much fun is it to watch that Kitchen Aid mixer go, right?!) over the peaches

There is more!!

That’s butter! I know, right?! Not done yet…

A delicious topping. Forgot to put the flour in the picture, oh well.

NOW we are ready to bake!

50 minutes later…

YUM YUM YUM!!!

Peaches and Cream Loaf Cake
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 egg
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup milk
2 peaches, sliced
4 Tbsp cream cheese, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 Tbsp sugar

Topping:
2 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
4 Tbsp cinnamon and sugar mixture

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour a loaf pan.
In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder.
Now add the egg, oil and milk to the bowl, stirring well to combine.
Spread a third of the batter into the loaf pan. Top with half of the sliced peaches.Pour the rest of the batter over the peaches.Then top with the rest of the peaches.
In the same bowl you made the batter, (no need to dirty more dishes:) mix the cream cheese, vanilla and sugar. Drop dabs of the cream cheese mixture on top with the peaches. Cut up the 2 Tbsp butter in to small (thumbnail sized) pieces, place the dabs of butter on top of the peaches as well.
For the topping mix the flour, 3 tablespoons and 2 teaspoon of sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 2 tablespoons of butter.
Bake in preheated oven for 40 – 50 minutes, the baking time depends on the pan you use. It took me a full 50 minutes.

Courtesy of http://ccrecipe.com/2671/breakfast/peaches-and-cream-loaf-cake.html#more-2671

I got to use the hand beater thingy that I bought a while ago!  This thing is awesomespice…wait, did I just use that word??  Oh no.  Okay, let’s do this.

I found a recipe for “Beef Roll-Ups”.  Normally I wouldn’t go for something like this, but I was looking for something that my awesome cousin Courtney would be able to eat.  As few carbohydrates as possible is the key here people!  Another “obstacle” was that this meal was gonna be eaten at lunchtime at work.  Can you say “crockpot”?!!

Some fun ingredients to use.

Okay, now wait.  Don’t get all upset when you see the next picture.  I was kind of laughing while cutting up this stuff, but it worked for the recipe.

Ha!  No joke.  This huge chunk was needed.  So funny.

**WARNING**WARNING**  If you have a weak stomach, do NOT look at this next picture.

Oh my word!!!!  Right?!  Anyway, thankfully, it doesn’t stay like this.  :)  So obviously, everything goes into the crock pot (in the middle of the night so that you can eat this lunch at lunchtime, then go back to bed).

I wasn’t going to stop here though.  We needed something to balance out this meat pot.  So I found this recipe for a fresh tomato and fresh mozzarella salad.  But the best part was the salad dressing!!!!  Here is where the hand beater comes into play.

Okay, now back to the meat pot…

I know, I know.  Gross looking.  I think, for me, if the green chili peppers were not in this recipe, I would have liked it more.  So I probably will not be making this again.  But it worked for that day.

Thanks to my model, R

We had another guest with us that day…

Hee Hee…Peyton decided to join his mom on her birthday at work

Isn’t he so cute!!!

I got a quick shot of the birthday girl when she wasn’t looking

It was a good idea making the salad, cause Court loves stuff like that and also cause I got to make the salad dressing with the hand beater…have I mentioned that yet???

Wait, there is one more thing.  A little bit of dessert.

Sugar Free Chocolate Mousse.

No, those aren’t little bugs on top of the mousse.  Little mini choc chips.  Fun, right!

And that, my friends, is a quick and easy lunch that can travel!

Beef Roll-Ups:

2 pounds ground beef
1 onion – chopped
1 can enchilada sauce
2 cans cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup water
1 can chili peppers
3/4 pound Velveeta cheese – cubed
corn tortillas

Crock pot time is 7-8 hours.

Bocconcini (Mozzarella) and Tomato Salad:
Vinaigrette-
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
3-4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh oregano, or 1/4 teaspoon dry
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
pinch of red pepper flakes
3 garlic cloves, finely minced
Salad-
2 tablespoons (or in our case, 2 cans, cause we love olives)
1/2 lbs small mozz balls (Bocconcini)
5 ripe tomatoes, cut into 1″ thick wedges

Allow the minced garlic to stand in the vinegar for 10-15 min before preparing recipe. This will help take the “bite” from the garlic and mellow it. *Just so you know, this dressing has a HUGE BITE no matter what you do, but it is awesome.* Add the ingredients together and blend blend blend! Add to salad to taste. Make sure you are cautious with the amount you use. It is super duper strong!

Happy Birthday Courtney!! Love you

So lately there has been a tiny bit of extra stress in my life.  I knew that there had to be some outlet for me to relieve it…something..somewhere…  Oh wait…duh!

Hello Summer Salsa

A few simple ingredients.   4 ears of corn.   1/2 red onion.   2 Avocados.  1 lime.  1/2 jalapeno pepper.  1/2 red chili pepper.  1 tablespoon vinegar.  Salt to taste.

Yes, please cook the corn first.  There has been some confusion…just do it!

Hello avocados.  I love you.  Sigh…

Watch out…here comes a terrible picture!!!

I WARNED you!!!!  No seriously though, chop up the avocados nice and small.

Don’t you love my version of “1/2 a red onion”?!   It’s more like 3/4 of one.  Oh well.

This is my favorite picture.  I have always wanted to cut corn off the cob like this.  Don’t ask me why.  I just like the huge chunks that come off.  I love how organic it looks.  Is that cheesy?

So mix these guys together and then squeeze half of that lime into the bowl.   Make sure you get the avocado real good with the lime, cause you don’t want it turning brown…just wait…you will see how bad it will make your salsa look (you’re being forwarned).

Here is another crappy picture!  And some spicy jalapeno.  Chop em’ up real real REAL tiny if you are like me and don’t like heat!  Same goes for the red chili pepper.

So I realize that I shouldn’t ever use a white cutting board for this blog ever again.  Look how gross it looks after cutting up all that stuff.  It ruins the gorgeous red color of this chili.  Ah well.

Holy crap!  I totally forgot to mention the cilantro!!!  I don’t have a specific amount for this to give you.  Kind of depends on much you like cilantro.  I grabbed a huge handful, but there could have definitely been more.  So go crazy if you like!

So another recommendation, don’t use balsamic vinegar.  Not that it doesn’t taste good, but it turns everything brown  I am dumb and didn’t think about that ahead of time.  Luckily, I was serving this to my family that loves me and they also love to eat.  Thank the Lord!!!     Combine the rest of the ingredients together with the first 3 ingredients.

Told you.  Looks gross.  But it’s was liked by all!  I definitely recommend this for your next party.  And do it fast, cause that corn on the cob isn’t gonna be “fresh” too much longer.

Mini Meatballs in a Sweet and Tangy Sauce.  Just look…

My dad made a cameo for me

So that is it.  Not much to it at all.  I will totally do these again.