Adrienne’s Famous Bean Salsa

I’m not sure how long my sister-in-law, Adrienne, has been making this bean salsa for my family. I’ve been out of state for a while so I haven’t been savvy to who brings what side dishes to gatherings. But everyone in our family knows about it so it’s probably been a while.

All I know is that when hubby and I moved back to NY this summer, she invited us to join her and my brother at her parents’ cottage on the lake for an afternoon. We were sitting on the patio in the shade, watching boats go by and sipping cold beer. Hubby and I had just eaten lunch so we weren’t particularly hungry, and we pretty much ignored the bean salsa that was sitting on the table. For a little whole.

Then, during a lull in the conversation, I picked up a tortilla chip and scooped some out.

Then I couldn’t stop, even though I was full. So nummy. Scoop after scoop.

Afterwards, I wanted it again, but didn’t want to make it just for hubby and I because I knew that it makes a lot. And it’s one of those recipes that’s very difficult to halve because you’re using a can of beans here, a can of corn there, an envelope of seasoning there, etc.

But then Adrienne invited some people over. Now was my chance! It’s a little silly to bring over someone’s own recipe, but I did it anyway.

Here are my ingredients:

Start with the green bell pepper.

Dice it up, and then do the same with a sweet onion.

And then a couple tomatoes.

Next, open up cans of black beans, black eyed peas, and corn. Drain and rinse, then add to the diced veggies.

Then take a tablespoon of minced garlic. This took me forever to prepare, peeling and mincing a ton of small cloves. Better than the stuff from a jar, though.

Plop it on top of everything else.

Oh, and then cut open a lime

And squeeze it over the whole thing.

Now for some seasonings… Oregano…

Basil (from the tube in my fridge)…

And cilantro (also from a tube).

Finally, in a little bowl, combine some olive oil…

and vinegar (I wasn’t sure what kind, so I used white wine vinegar)…

and a packet of Italian dressing mix.

Mix it up, and pour on top of the salsa!

And with that, you’re done!

Chill it for a few hours, then serve with tortilla chips.

It’s so addicting. Seriously. The dressing mix tenderizes the veggies and makes such a delicious flavor. You’re supposed to drain before serving, but I happen to love the Italian dressing/ veggie juice mixture sitting at the bottom of the bowl, so I didn’t.

So when can I have this again?

Zippy Barbecue Sauce

Recently, my younger brother asked what grilling recipes I could recommend. Turns out, I didn’t have any. I live in a condo and we have silly rules like “no grills” and “use the correct parking tag” and “no more happiness” (extra points if you got the Brian Regan reference). So I wasn’t able to give him any recipes, though I did suggest branching out into meats that he isn’t used to grilling, like pork or shrimp.

Not too long after that, I had some leftover rotisserie chicken in the fridge. In thinking how to make it appetizing, I decided to cut it up and drench it in BBQ sauce. I was pretty set on that, too, so imagine my disappointment when I pulled out a nearly-empty bottle of BBQ sauce from the fridge. Time to make my own!

Truth be told, I selected this one based partly on the positive reviews but also based on the fact that I had the ingredients. Who knows what better recipes are out there.

I started taking pictures after I started dumping together ingredients.

I started off with some ketchup, water, and molasses.

Some Worcestershire sauce…

And some white wine vinegar…

Add some Dijon mustard.

And top it off with some brown sugar, kosher salt, hot pepper sauce (I used Buffalo wing sauce), garlic powder, and ground black pepper.

Here’s a shot of everything that I included:

After everything was in the bowl, I whisked it.

Then I read the directions and saw that I was supposed to simmer it for a while, then let it chill for 8 hours to let the sweetness of the sugar overcome the tang from the vinegar. I elected to add a touch of white sugar instead of waiting. But I did let it simmer for 10 minutes, as directed.

Then I added my chicken and let it cook for a few more minutes.

The verdict: VERY GOOD! Hubby had a few bites before asking where the simultaneous tang and sweetness came from. I’ll definitely make this again.

It would go so well smothered over chicken, wrapped in foil, and grilled. Oh, summer. I plan on making someone with a grill do this for me this summer.