Robb's Salsa Recipe

I made a batch of salsa last night, and figured I would share my "recipe", as if there's anything to making salsa -- put crap in food processor and chop the hell out of it.

This is how I did it last night, but it usually varies a bit depending on what's available at Wegmans.

Ingredients

• 2-3 lbs. "Tomatoes on the Vine"
• 1-2 Vidalia onions, depending on size
• 2 -3 Jalapeno peppers
  
• 1 big Poblano pepper
• 1 tbsp. Fresh of chopped Garlic
  
• 1 bunch of fresh Cilantro
• 2 nectarines or peaches
  

Directions

• Heat cast iron skillet on high, get it really hot. Add a little dab of oil.
• Cut poblano pepper and onion into quarters and place in skillet to sear outside. You don't want to completely cook the onions and peppers, just sear them on the outside to bring out a nice roasted smoky flavor and soften them up just a tad.
• Place everything into a food processor and chop the crap out of it. May need to do multiple batches in the chopper depending on its size. Chop to a consistency you like, some like it chunky, some smooth, and everything in between.
  
• Pour into a sealable bowl and store in refrigerator. Let the flavors meld together for awhile before enjoying for best results.
• If you choose to share, DON'T DOUBLE DIP! That's nasty.
  

Variations

• The peaches sound odd or even downright gross if you've never tried it, but they add a certain sweetness without being overbearing. BTW, peaches and nectarines are pretty much the same thing, except peaches have fuzz and nectarines don't. I prefer the non-fuzzy nectarine.
  
• Roasting the vegetables on the grill would probably be even tastier than the cast iron skillet method.
  
• Add corn and black beans, and maybe even a bit of cumin for a bit of southwestern flair
• To turn up the heat, add more Jalapenos, Habaneros, or some of your favorite hot sauce. I have young children now, so I try to not get carried away with heat.
• Of course, green peppers are popular in salsa. I find them a bit overbearing though when raw.
  

Venison And Mushrooms In Gravy

This is a simple "recipe" we did tonight that was extremely good -- very tender meat and great flavor. We didn't really have a recipe, so I don't know what to call it (Bambi swimming in gravy?)

1 lb. venison, cut in 1" cubes
2 cups mushrooms, sliced or cubed
Beef gravy, mix or pre-made.
Flour
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder

1. Heat up a cast iron skillet with a little bit of oil.
2. Mix the salt, pepper, garlic powder into some flour on a plate or in a plastic bag.
3. Dredge meat cubes in the seasoned flour and brown each side in the pan. Don't worry about cooking all the way through, just searin the juices. Once browned, remove the meat from the skilet and set aside.
4. Sautee the mushrooms in the same pan, using a little oil or butter as necessary to soften them up. Remove and set aside with the meat.
5. Pour the gravy (or mix up the gravy mix according to directions, we used 3 packages but 2 would have been fine) into the skillet.
6. Put the meat and mushrooms back into the skillet, lower heat, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes or so, until meat is tender and fully cooked.

We dumped this over white rice and it was delicious.

Next time I would probably try adding some sauteed onions in with the mushrooms as well. There's really no reason why you couldn't substitute some other meat for the venison, e.g. elk, caribou, bear, rabbit, squirrel, or even beef.

Winter Warmth

One of my favorite winter time recipes...

1. Fill a rocks glass with ice
2. Fill with bourbon
3. Enjoy responsibly.

Chicken Mushroom Soup

Came up with this one trying to emulate a soup I had at Chilis once. Not sure how close it is since they seem to have it when I go there anymore.

INGREDIENTS
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can chicken broth
1 can sliced mushrooms
1 boneless chicken breast
garlic powder
black pepper
salt

DIRECTIONS
Cut chicken into 1" cubes & brown. Combine all ingredients in slowcooker and cook on low. Scale up for larger pots of soup.

Italian Beef

Got this one from my Mom. Makes good sandwiches on hard rolls.

INGREDIENTS
6 lbs sirloin tip roast
2 onions
1 stalk celery
1 green pepper
1/2 bottle ketchup
2 T. BBQ sauce
2 T. Vinegar
1 t. Pepper
2 T. Salt
2 T. Chili powder
2 cups water

DIRECTIONS
Cook roast all night in crock pot. Flake meat & take off any fat. Put back in crock pot. Combine all other ingredients pour over meat. Leave on low all day.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients
1 package whole mushrooms
pepperoni
sliced salami
sliced ham
grated parmesan cheese
1 egg
either heavy cream, provolone, or mozzarella cheese.

Directions
1. Pull stems from mushrooms.
2. Lay out mushroom caps on baking pan.
3. Put stems, Pepperoni, salami, & ham in food processor to chop finely.
4. Combine meat w/ egg & mix well.
5. Add grated cheese to desired consistency.
6. Pack mushroom caps w/ mixture.
7. Put cheese on the caps, or pour cream over them.
8. Bake (~350 deg) until cheese in bubbly & turning brown.

Beer Can Chicken

This is a yummy treat in the warmer weather. Speaking of warmer weather, who the hell turned off Global Warming? I was starting to enjoy the warm December, but now it's freakin cold!

Anyway, beer can chicken. Slow roasted on an open fire and still tender and juicy.

1. Fire up the grill. I like charcoal and wood chips, but you can use gas.
2. Rub the whole chicken with Montreal seasoning or any other spice you like. Salt, pepper, garlic powder is a nice simple rub.
3. Drink half a can of beer, leave the other half in the can.
4. Sodomize the chicken carcass with the can of beer, making sure not to spill any beer.
5. Prop up the bird on the grill so it looks like he's taking a dump. The can should be fully upright.
6. Cover up and let it sit until done.

Don't worry too much about overcooking, the evaporating beer will keep it moist.

Robb's "Award Winning" Chili Recipe

For printable copy http://frontiernet.net/~nicholson150/Chili.pdf

Instead of duplicating the recipe here, I'll just include it with a handy iframe....

Robb's Southwest Chicken Tortilla Soup

I ordered chicken tortilla soup at Red Robin one day and liked it. But I thought I could at least match it, if not make it better at home. After we had a roasted whole chicken for dinner one night, with lots of broth and leftover meat, I came up with this recipe. I've altered it a little bit each time, so there is really no "wrong" way to make this -- it's hard to screw up. Great to have cooking in the fall on football Sundays!

Ingredients:

• A Left over roasted chicken, deboned & cubed
• Chicken broth or stock, bullion/water as needed
• Frank’s Red Hot (cayenne pepper sauce) I don't measure so it might be about 1/4 cup or so?
  
• Spicy V8 Juice (maybe about 1 cup or so, this is optional as sometimes we don't have any)
  
• 1 can black beans, drained/rinsed of the “sludge”
• 1 can sweet yellow corn
• Finely chopped fresh cilantro (1 bunch)
• 3-4 slices bacon, chopped and cooked (optional, I always forget this and it always tastes great anyways)
  
• Garlic cloves, minced (a few spoonfools, depending on how much you like garlic)
  
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 Jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• Little bit ground cumin to taste
  
• Dinosaur BBQ “Foreplay” and/or Chili powder to taste
• Black Pepper to taste
• The chicken and broth are probably plenty salty but you can add more if desired
  

Cut the chicken into small cubes or pull apart with a fork, depending on how you like chicken in soup. Put all the ingredients above into a crock pot and cook it on low all day. When you're ready to eat, scoop it into a bowl and crumble some tortilla chips on top, sprinkle some cheddar or "taco" cheese on top, and add a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy!

Easy Long Island Iced Tea "Mix"

New Year's Eve is right around the corner, so I figured I would share my recipe that makes perfect Long Island Iced Teas easy. Pre-make the mix and refrigerate, then just add the ice and Coke when ready to serve.

1. Fill an empty 2 liter pop bottle with 1+ cup each of Vodka, Gin, Tequila, Triple Sec, Rum.
(If you are watching carbs, cut back on the triple sec. )
2. Add one canister of Crystal Light Lemonade mix.
3. Fill rest of way with water and shake until all lemonade mix is dissolved.
4. Refrigerate until ready to consume.

To serve:
Fill glass with ice and pour mixture over ice, leaving room in glass to top off with Diet Coke. If you choose, you can garnish with a slice of lime or lemon.