(Hey! It seems those gift guides really wore us out! It’s mid-January already! How the eff did that happen? Moving on.)
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At this time of year, I always feel ready to scale it back a little, food-wise. I try to eat more fresh food to make up for the holiday gorging on cookies and candy (this year I made approximately 842 salted caramels, of which I gave away approximately 300 and ate approximately 542).
But let’s be honest, shall we? While there are days when I want to lovingly chop hand-selected organic vegetables for a brown rice and tofu stir fry, there are other nights when I get home and I really want to order a pizza.
For those nights, I find it’s good to have a few shortcuts and tricks at the ready. I’m not talking Sandra Lee’s semi homemade (shudder) – just some pantry staples that make it possible for me to step away from the takeout menus and make something relatively healthy.
This is one of my best weapons:
This is Frontera Tomatillo Salsa, and it is insanely delicious. It tastes bright and acidic and almost citrusy, with a gentle bit of heat. I get it in the “international foods” aisle of my supermarket. (Frontera is a well-known Mexican restaurant in Chicago run by Iron Chef Master Rick Bayless, so it’s possible this is easier to find in the Chicago area. But if you can find it, I highly recommend you buy it immediately.)
Allow me to share with you its ingredient list:
Ingredients: Tomatillos, tomatoes, filtered water, onions, serrano chiles, cilantro, garlic, salt, evaporated cane juice, spices.
Look at that! I can pronounce all of those things! I could buy them all individually and make this myself! Except I don’t have to, because Rick Bayless has done it for me!
I use this salsa a zillion ways. One of my favorites is to stir it in at the last minute to a bunch of scrambled eggs, then serve with tortillas (or wheat toast) for a quick Mexican breakfast-for-dinner. Or I sautee an onion and carrot and celery, add a can of drained black beans and 4 cups of water, simmer it for 45 minutes or so, then swirl in a huge dollop of this stuff. Voila! Soup! I’ve even been known to spread it on sandwiches with cheese and avocado and tomato and pop it in the panini press for a super delicious twist on grilled cheese. Or I whisk together a dollop of this with a dollop of fat free greek yogurt or sour cream to make an awesome salad dressing for a taco-style salad.
Sometimes, I like to make my own salsa. For dipping chips, there’s nothing better, in my mind, than a freshly-chopped pico de gallo. But for a super-versatile, delicious, and healthy way to season foods quickly, this salsa is well worth checking out.
Frontera Tomatillo Salsa, $4.95 for 16 oz, at grocery stores and at FronteraKitchens.com
Bridget
Art of the Table in Grand Rapids carries a lot of things like this (I can’t say that they have this exact brand) but they have a wide variety of yummy salsas. Thanks for the ideas! We love making Mexican breakfast burritos, I bet this would be perfect for it.
January 22nd, 2010 @ 8:59 am
Ris
I love all things Rick Bayless, including this salsa. I dump it into a pot with ground beef, sauteed onions, and a couple of cans of beans (black, kidney, etc) and voila, chili with a delicious Mexican twist.
January 22nd, 2010 @ 10:39 am
Martha
I bought this on your recommend, as I am a HUGE chips and salsa fan (and nachos, and well, anything chips), and I found it to be quite awesome. It’s not quite as good as my mom’s salsa verde, but since I can’t get her to make it for me that frequently, this will do. Yummmmmmm…
January 24th, 2010 @ 10:17 am