Orange Pomegranate Salsa

My mother-in-law is wonderful. She made this salsa, which is also wonderful. Flavorful, healthy and beautiful. 

Mandarin Pomegranate Salsa

Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients

Juice from 1 lime

2 T honey

½ tsp salt

Seeds from 2 pomegranates

4 green onions, chopped small

½ c cilantro, minced

1 jalapeño, seeded and minced (optional)

6 clementines, peeled, broken into segments and chopped roughly

2 avocados, diced

Directions

Mix lime juice, honey and salt in a large bowl. Add pomegranate seeds, green onions, cilantro, jalapeño and oranges. Stir well. Gently fold in diced avocado. Serve with tortilla chips, over a bed of spinach as a salad, or as a topping for grilled shrimp, salmon or chicken.

Notes

You can make this a day before serving. Wait to add the avocado until just before serving.

Check for pomegranate arils in your grocery store’s freezer!

If pomegranates aren’t in season, you can make this salsa with two crisp red apples instead, like fuji or pink lady. Dice the apples small and leave the skins on so the salsa still has a pop of red.

Cutting Avocados

Still peeling avocados? There's a better way to handle those slippery suckers. Observe:

1. "Roll" the avocado around a large, sharp knife and twist to open.
2. Whack the knife into the seed and twist to remove. If it's stubborn, get the seed off the knife by hitting the side of your sink. Please, be careful.
3. Using a butter knife, cut a grid into the avocado.
4. Slide a spoon between the avocado peel and flesh, "scraping" the peel's inside so you get all the healthy goodness out of the avocado.

Israeli Couscous with Lemon Dressing

Israeli Couscous with Lemon Dressing 
Adapted from Ina Garten, Foolproof 

Ingredients

2 c Israeli Couscous (see note)

Protein: 2  5-oz cans tuna, drained OR 1  15-oz can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

¼ c lemon juice

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 T capers, drained and chopped small

1 c roasted red peppers, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped small

½ tsp salt

1 c scallions, white and green parts, chopped

Directions

Bring water to boil in a medium pot. Add couscous and reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 12 minutes, or until couscous is tender. Drain in colander.

While couscous simmers, combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl and stir. Add drained, cooked couscous and stir well. Taste, and add ground pepper and more lemon juice if desired. Serve warm, room temperature or cold. Dish is good for a couple days kept in the fridge.

Notes

• Israeli (or Pearl) Couscous, found in the international aisle of supermarkets, is larger than typical couscous. It is round, and more like a pasta than its small, fluffier counterpart.

• Capers (shown below) are found near the pickles and condiments in the supermarket.

• This recipe is great with fresh or already squeezed lemon juice. I love the organic Italian Volcano lemon juice that I found at Costco. Although I’m sure there are many great products out there. You can order Italian Volcano Lemon Juice through a link found on their website. 

Pickled Vegetables

Pickled Vegetables

These vegetable snacks are perfect. Quick to prep, long lasting in the fridge, and delicious.
You really can’t go wrong. 

Ingredients

4 cloves garlic, peeled

8 cups water

4 cups white vinegar

3 tsp salt

½  c granulated sugar

½ tsp dried dill

1 tsp celery seed

1 tsp coriander seed

2 tsp mustard seed

½ tsp black peppercorns

3 large cucumbers, cut into 4" spears

1 bunch carrots, cut into 4" pieces

½ pound green beans

1 bell pepper, sliced

½ head cauliflower, cut into florets

2 jalapeños, sliced (leave seeds for added spice)

4 1 qt clean mason jars

Directions
1. The pickling liquid is called the brine. Make the brine in a large pot by bringing water and garlic to boil. Reduce heat and cook 5 minutes. Add vinegar, salt and sugar. Increase heat so mixture boils. Stir until salt and sugar dissolve, remove from heat.

2. In small bowl, mix dill, celery seed, coriander seed, mustard seed and peppercorns. Divide mixture between 4 jars.

3. With tongs, remove garlic from brine and place one in each jar. Stuff washed, cut vegetables in jars, shaking and wiggling them around to fit them in.

4. Pour brine into each jar, dividing amount equally. Let cool for an hour or so, then cover and refrigerate the jars. Pickled vegetables will be ready in a few hours, but will be best after 3 days or so. They’ll last about 2 months in the fridge, so munch on!

Tips

• Get creative with your vegetables! Experiment with different peppers, spices, or varieties of beans and carrots. Add onion for a little more zip, or use fresh dill for a more pickle-y taste. You really can’t mess this up, promise!
• Your vegetable to liquid ratio might vary based on what you use, and that’s ok! Just make sure most of your veggies in the jar are covered with brine, and give the jars a shake every once in a while to move them around. They’ll be just fine!