I’m a pig and a glutton, sometimes. I admit. It’s true.. The other day, for example, I made a wonderfully simple salsa, packed with the fresh flavors of late summer. That, in and of itself, doesn’t make me a glutton, but the fact that once I started eating it, I didn’t stop until I had polished off half of a family sized bag of tortilla chips does. In fact, for 2 nights salsa, chips and PBR (that’s Pabst Blue Ribbon-beer- for those not in the know) was my dinner. I look at it this way; at least I got my vegetables for the day!!!!

Seriously though, I love salsa in all its forms, from the simple pico de gallo, to complex mole like creations involving 15-20 ingredients or more, though I don’t make it as often as I should. Instead, I often take the lazy way out and just pick up a bottle at the store. Yes, I am ashamed of myself, especially as I so often gripe about people buying stuff at the store when it is so easy to make at home.

This time of year though, I’d be a fool not to make my own salsa. With so many of its ingredients at their peak of ripeness there is no way store bought can even come close to the beauty that is homemade salsa. A quick stroll through my local farmer’s market and I had all I needed to make some killer salsa, and at a fraction of the cost of the store bought stuff.

Grilled Vegetable Salsa
makes about 1 quart

4 pounds tomatoes
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
3-6 jalapenos, depending on how hot they are and how hot you like your salsa. I used 3 as my wife likes her salsa only medium hot.
1/2 bunch cilantro
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
salt

Preheat your grill. Peel the onion and remove the core. Cut it into 3 thick slices. Use 2 Tbsp. of the oil to lightly oil the tomatoes, onions and jalapenos. Grill until lightly charred and slightly softened.

When done, core the tomatoes and remove the stems from the jalapenos. Roughly cut the tomatoes into 1/6ths or 1/8ths. Place the vegetables in a blender, along with the garlic and blend until well blended but not completely smooth. You will need to do this in 2-3 batches. You shouldn’t need to add any liquid if you place the tomatoes in first. Meanwhile add the remaining oil to a large skillet and heat until smoking. Add the puree to the skillet-be careful as it will sputter and spit-and cook for 10 minutes or until the salsa thickens slightly and turns a darker red. Remove from heat. Allow to cool to room temperature. While the salsa is cooking finely chop the cilantro and add when cool. Season with salt. Place in the refrigerator and allow the flavors to mature for at least 1-2 hours before serving.

Once again life seems to have gotten in the way of blogging. I was gone the better part of last week for 3 days of training, for work and while I wasn’t able to get online and blog, let alone cook, it was a good time and very informative. An added plus was 3 nights of having a bed to myself!! No dogs hogging the space, no wife trying to pile up the covers on top of me, and no kid trying to sneak into bed then taking up 3/4′s of it by sleeping perpendicular to the way one is supposed to sleep. Sorry honey, I missed you, but it was glorious having a bed to myself!!!

Then, after I got back, my brother’s wife went into labor. After a long weekend in the hospital she finally gave birth to a beautiful little girl. We are so happy for them and my daughter is thrilled to have a little cousin. So thrilled, in fact, that when we went to see them, in the hospital, she was very disappointed that the baby wasn’t coming back home with us!

Needless to say, the last few weeks have been pretty busy, but that doesn’t excuse my lack of writing, so I will try to get back to something more regular, once again.

With summertime upon us, I often find myself sipping on Margaritas and other tropical, adult beverages. And of course, when sipping numerous adult beverages, it is inevitable that the munchies set in. One of my favorite ways to curb that appetite is tortilla chips and guacamole.

Guacamole is so easy to make I don’t know why anyone buys that heinous stuff that comes prepackaged. It is always so tart due to all the citric acid they have to use to keep it green, and it seems to have the consistency of baby food. It doesn’t even come close to the “real thing.” Good guacamole should be chunky, with a good citrus zip from lime juice, but it still should be well balanced and all the flavors should come through individually.

This is the recipe I use that has wowed friends, family and restaurant guests for years.

Guacamole

4 avocados
1/2 medium onion
2 medium tomatoes
1-2 jalapenos*
1/4 bunch cilantro, leaves only
1-1 1/2 limes
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
salt
pepper

Finally dice the onion. Core the tomato and cut in half width wise. Gently squeeze the tomato to remove all the seeds and watery pulp, then finely dice. Seed and mince the jalapenos. Finally chop the cilantro. Cut the lime in half and squeeze the juice of 1 half into a bowl. Combine with the rest of the chopped ingredients. Cut the avocados in half and remove the pit. The easiest and cleanest way to dice an avocado is to leave the flesh in the skin and cut it in the skin. To do this, make 4 slices, the length of the avocado, through the flesh just until the knife encounters the skin. Turn the avocado 90 degrees and repeat.

Now just take a spoon, slip it just under the skin and scoop out the flesh into the bowl. Add the cumin, a little salt and pepper, and mix just until everything comes together and the avocado is just starting to break up, holding it all together. Taste the guacamole and adjust the seasoning and add more lime juice, if necessary. You need enough lime juice to help keep the guacamole from oxidizing and turning brown and to help elevate all the flavors, but the lime juice shouldn’t overpower the other flavors.

To store the guacamole, place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the guacamole and push it down to remove as much air as possible. This will help to slow down the oxidization process by limiting the amount of air that comes into contact with it.

*If you like your guacamole with more kick don’t add more jalapeno or the pepper flavor will overpower. Instead choose a hotter pepper such as a Serrano, or use jalapenos and add a bit of ground cayenne to bump up the heat.

I am amazed by many of my blogger friends out there. Where do you find the time to post so often? I try to post regularly but I often find life interfering with those plans. I try to get out 2-3 posts a week, usually, but, like this past week, I didn’t have time to get anything done. Between work, family and other writing assignments I just couldn’t fit it in. I know, I need to make it more of a priority, but sometimes other things just have to take precedence, especially family time. And, well, I felt that I needed a little break. I am constantly surprised by how much time is taken up trying to keep a blog fresh. Yes, I know, I’ve said that before, but its true. From recipe development, to cooking, to photographing, to photo touch up and writing, a post can easily take up a few hours.

But enough of my excuses for not writing. That’s not what you came here for; to listen to me whine. I’m back to cooking after a short break and surprise, surprise, this post is again inspired by Latin cuisines. I love the cuisines of Latin America, especially that of Mexico. Like so many foods from rural and less prosperous areas, much of the cuisine is simple and straight forward. That in no means implies that it is bland or boring. Quite the contrary, in fact. Foods from such areas are usually robust and full of flavor. They also have that comforting quality, that speaks of home, that often haute cuisine lacks. Not that all dishes are simplistic. Mexican mole is a great example. Ask any chef and they will tell you that moles can be some of the most time consuming and complex sauces out there. There are some mole recipes that contain upwards of 30 ingredients and require numerous steps in its completion.

The dish I offer up today is of the simplier variety though. Carnitas are one of my favorite dishes. Simple yet flavorful, it simply diced pork that has been braised then allowed to fry in the fat that has rendered out of the meat. Plenty of fat is what makes this dish so tasty so look for pork shoulder (butt) that hasn’t been trimmed of too much of its fat. Served simply with corn tortillas, a little pico de gallo and lime. It doesn’t get much better!

Carnitas

5 pounds pork shoulder (butt) bonless
water
salt
1 lime

Dice the pork into 1″ cubes, leaving most of the fat intact but removing any really thick silver skin that remains. Place into a pot and just barely cover with water. Season with salt and the juice from 1 lime.

Turn the heat on to medium and allow to cook for about 1 1/2 hours. At this point most of the water should have evaporated. Turn the heat to medium high. Allow the rest of the water to evaporate. At this point the only liquid left in the pot should be the fat that rendered out during the braising. Allow the pork to fry, in its fat, until it has browned and crisped up slightly.

Plate immediately and serve with pico de gallo, lime wedges and tortillas. That is plenty of a meal for me, but if you like accompany it with refried beans and rice, or maybe a few fried plantains.

It’s hard to believe that something so simple can taste so fantastic, but then again, pork fat can work wonders on just about anything!!!!