Some Spicy Stuff and a Cool Cocktail

Another Lemoncello Drink
Here’s a recipe I found in Get Togethers: Rachael Ray 30 Minute Meals

Mam-Osas - makes1 drink
1 shot limoncello
4 ounces dry champagne
Lemon zest for garnish
Frost a non-crystal champagne flute in the freezer (I guess crystal doesn’t freeze well). Add limoncello to frosted glass and fill with chilled champagne. Garnish with lemon zest. It makes me think of summer just reading this recipe.

It was taco party at work yesterday. I made some black bean salsa –super easy, super good. I always keep Rotele in my pantry. It’s so handy for adding lots of flavor with very little fuss.

Easy Black Bean Salsa
3 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 (10 ounce) cans Rotele (diced tomatoes with green chili peppers), partially drained
2 tomatoes, diced
2 bunches green onions, chopped
1 bunch cilantro chopped fine
Juice of three limes (a lime doesn’t make much juice, but the taste is worth the squeezing)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Combine all ingredients and chill before serving. When there’s fresh corn I’ll add grilled corn kernels to this salsa.

Here’s another Rotele recipe.

Vegetable Picadillo

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup chopped green olives
2 (15 oz) cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (10 oz) can Rotele
1/4 cup raisins
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ cup slivered almonds
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
In a large saucepan, heat the oil. Saute the bell peppers, the onion and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the rest of the ingredients except almonds. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring as needed, until the flavors are blended, about 20 minutes. Stir in almonds and heat through. You can serve this on rice, with flour tortillas or in a taco shell.

Instead of almonds you could use toasted pumpkin seeds. We use lots of pumpkin seeds at our house, in chili, in cheese enchiladas and in quick breads.