A Salsa kind of night

First things first... pictures below are borrowed from Internet....... We were super hungry so gobbled up the food prior to the pictures..

It's a weeknight and with grandparents in the house, there has been a lot of Indian food. The kids, the grandparents and us, we all needed a break... So Mexican menu with its flair of spice and its simplicity of 'assembling' was perfect!

We cooked in the house and then took everything on the deck to enjoy the weather, play games and enjoy the food- the summer way!

Menu:

Nacho: Tortilla chips smothered with cooked black beans, salsa, cheese and Guac

Taco: Toasted shells with black beans, roasted vegetables and all toppings

Quesadilla: The black bean quesadilla with Guac is the perfect combination

Accompaniments: Pico De Gallo, Salsa Verde and Guacamole along with finely chopped Habanero chilies, Cilantro and of course lettuce!

And trust me when I say this, my family loves Mexican food and the best accompaniment to the Mexican food is the 'Fresh Salsa' So make small portions and enjoy! Here is my recipe for the quick Salsa Verde....

Portion: 1 cup

Ingredients:

1. Green Tomatillo 4-6 washed and quartered

2. Garlic Cloves: 2 peeled and washed

3. Jalapeno: Sliced and De-seeded: 1 (If you like it spicier, feel free to use Habanero Chili)

4. Spices: Salt, Black pepper: Per Taste

5. Olive Oil: 2 tsp

Process:

1. In a flat pan, heat the olive oil

2. After 1-2 minutes place all the ingredients in the pan for 'pan roasting/ Fire Roasting'

3. The flat heated pan helps in 'charring' the ingredients which is what you want

4. After 3-4 minutes, place the lid on the pan to let the tomatillo juices flow out and get cooked

5. Turn off the flame and let it all cool

6. Pulse in a food processor for 1-2 minutes.

Note: I like my salsa, chunkier to I don’t pulse it too much

Note: Tomatillo is quiet tart by nature, so cooking it well makes it tangy and reduces the tartness, you don’t need additional lemon.

If you don’t have Tomatillo you could fire roast the red tomatoes, however you do need to be careful since tomato is juicier than tomatillo so cover the pan sooner, you may add lemons to the red... needless to say, this will not be 'Verde'