Favorite Things #41 - New Restaurant Finds

One of the things I wanted to do over our time off of work was to try a new restaurant that was outside of our little area we always frequent. Tom was in when I told him I based my Yelp search on the word 'taco'. I found a place called La Condesa Gourmet Taco Shop and saw that they have a salsa bar that is stocked with about a dozen different salsas they make in house.

The salsas they offer range from traditional red and green salsas to varieties like pecan salsa, jicama salsa and even a peanut salsa. They were all great, but the pecan was definitely my favorite.


I ordered a Mayan Cochinita Pibil Taco and a Oaxaca Black Mole Chicken Taco. Both were amazing, but the mole was definitely my favorite. Tom got 2 Gaucho Steak tacos with Chimichurri and a Sonoran Carne Asada Taco. He loved his too. We actually liked this place so much that we invited some friends and went back a couple of days later.


So in 2013 I resolve to try some more new places outside of our usual neighborhood and comfort zone. Not sure how many of these trips Tom will be willing to take but I am hoping this is the year he turns a culinary corner. Cross your fingers for me.

The Best Thing I Ever Made - Cheesy Goodness

Happy 2013!!! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and spent a lot of time with friends and family. We had a very relaxing break from work and now are back to it for this short week. I am back with a recipe that falls into one of my favorite categories, CHEESE! I had a really hard time picking this week's selection but here it is...

Horseradish Mac n' Cheese with Bacon. Doesn't that just sound amazing?


Here it is in an adorable Pyrex dish.


Served up with a pickle, so good. I hope you give it a try.

I am resolving to get back into my healthier eating, so I won't be making this recipe again any time soon!

So did you make any New Year's Resolutions? Any you would care to share?

The Best Thing I Ever Made - Salsa

I love to make salsa, and I make it often. It is the one food that my husband really gets excited about and it could not be easier. My usual recipe is so simple: one can of diced tomatoes, 2 tbs yellow onion, 2 green onions, 1 clove of garlic, whatever chile peppers you like (usually 1-2) a pinch of cumin and salt to taste. Zap the stuff together in the food processor until it is whatever texture you like and you have a great, simple salsa.

When I made the salsa pictured below I thought there was no way Tom would try this, but apparently as long as it has the word 'salsa' in the name he is willing. He ate almost all of this in a very short amount of time. I would definitely call it a hit. In fact as I was typing this he saw the picture and said, I loved that!!



Avocado Salsa

Ingredients

* 1-2/3 cups frozen corn, thawed
* 2 cans (2-1/4 ounces each) sliced ripe olives, drained
* 1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
* 1 small onion, chopped
* 5 garlic cloves, minced
* 1/3 cup olive oil
* 1/4 cup lemon juice
* 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 4 medium ripe avocado, peeled
* Tortilla chips


Directions

* In a large bowl, combine corn, olives, red pepper and onion. In a small bowl, combine garlic, oil, lemon juice, vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper; mix well. Pour over corn mixture and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight. * Just before serving, chop avocados and stir into salsa. Serve with tortilla chips. Yield: about 7 cups.

Do you make your own salsa?