The BEST Mexican Corn Salad recipe

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avocado, cooking in 15 minutes, corn, easy cooking, easy dinner, easy dinners, easy salads, eat, eating, entertaining, feta, food, fresh, fresh cooking, grill, light dinners, quick cooking, simple entertaining, summer, summer salads, summertime, tomatoes

It’s late summer and corn is in season right now in Ontario and it is DELISH! I know after a few meals of corn on the cob we all want to switch it up a little … so this is a perfect alternative to corn on the cob.

Not sure if you are familiar with Mexico’s all-dressed corn-on-the-cob…but this recipe turns it into a summery salad. If you don’t like spicy foods, use smoked paprika in the crema; otherwise, chipotle powder or canned chipotles gives the salad an authentic smoky kick or in a pinch use Sriracha. The crema is also delicious with nachos, on burgers, chicken, grilled fish, honestly anything!

Chipotle Lime Crema

• ½ cup (125 mL) mayonnaise (reduced fat is fine)
• ½ cup (125 mL) sour cream
• 2 Tbls fresh lime juice
• Finely grated zest of 1 lime
• 1 clove of garlic finely chopped
• ½ tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp smoked paprika or ground chipotle pepper
• Salt to taste

Corn Salad

• 6 cobs of corn, shucked
• 1 orange pepper diced finely
• ⅔ cup dice finely a Vidalia onion
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 whole avocados diced
• ½ cup chopped cilantro
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cups arugula (the peppery taste is a nice compliment to the sweetness of the corn)
• 1 cup (250 mL) crumbled feta or cotija cheese if you can score that
• Lime wedges

 

Step by Step:

For the crema, whisk all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Transfer to an airtight container. Refrigerate at least 24 hours and up to 1 week.

Preheat grill to high. Clean and oil barbecue grate. Place corn on grill. Cook, turning occasionally, until cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. (Alternatively, you could boil the corn in unsalted water for 5 minutes then quickly char it directly on the flame of a gas burner.) Transfer to a baking sheet and cool completely.

* TIP! Start with a large bowl and then place a smaller bowl upside down. Stand corn on end. Slice downward with a sharp knife to cut kernels away from cob. Less Mess!  Place corn in a large mixing bowl with onion, peppers, avocados, tomatoes, cilantro, olive oil, lime juice, salt and pepper. Mix.

For each serving, place a little mound of salad greens in a bowl, if using. Spoon in some corn salad. Top with a dollop of crema and sprinkle with feta. Serve with lime wedges.

Enjoy!

www.monicaskitchen.com

 

The Best Bolognese sauce, hands down. Instant Pot Recipe.

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basil, comfort food, cooking, easy cooking, easy dinner, easy dinners, easy pasta, eat, entertaining, fall dishes, food, fresh, fresh cooking, fresh pasta, gluten free, instant pot, italian, Italy, kid friendly, make ahead meals, Parmesan, pasta, penne, pork, quick cooking, sauce, sausage, simple entertaining, spaghetti, sugar, veal

I can’t say enough good things about my Instant Pot. I bought the 8 quart one this winter and I can’t get enough of it. 

I typically make my bolognese sauce on the stove and it takes roughly 6 hours on a slow simmer to come out perfectly. 
Using my instant pot it took 35 minutes on high pressure and viola my sauce is ready!

The sauté feature is a huge time and prep saver as you can sauté in the actual pot. 

The key to this sauce is the meat ratio and I blitz all the vegetable in the food processor before I add it into the meat. This bolognese sauce is more of a ragu than your typical spaghetti sauce. Also another tip I don’t use beef, I only use veal and pork and prom sausage. This makes the sauce much more mild. 

What you need:

• 1 1/2 pounds ground pork
• 1 1/2 pounds ground veal
• 1 pound Italian sausage meat (casing removed)
• 1 large white onion
• 2 carrots
• 3 celery heart stalks
• 4 garlic cloves 
• 3/4 cups of sundried tomatoes
• 1 huge handful of fresh basil
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 28 oz can tomato purée (try to find San Marizano tomatoes)
• 1 16 oz can of diced tomatoes
• Parmesan rind
• Dried Bay leaves (4) 
• 1/3 red wine
• Splash of heavy cream 

In a food processor add all the vegetables and basil and sun dried tomatoes. Blitz until their are no chunks and you have a very finely diced mixture. Set aside.

Plug in your Instant pot and press the sauté button – it will take a few minutes and it will beep and say hot.

Start sautéing the sausage meat so some of the fat renders down, once crumbly add the  ground pork and cook down and then add the veal. This whole process will take about 10 minutes to brown the meat. 

Once no longer pink, add in the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, basil and sundried tomatoe purée. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Then add in the 2 cans of tomatoes, salt and sugar and bay leaves. Throw in the Parmesan rind and 1/3 cup of good red wine. 

Put on the top of the Instant pot, press the meat/stew button (35 mins on high pressure) and sit back and relax! It will take about 5 minutes to come up to high pressure and then the timer will start counting down. Once it is finished, the Instant pot will shut off automatically. 

This sauce usually simmers on my stove for 4-6 hours. With this instant pot it now only takes 45 minutes! 

Typically a Bolognese sauce is served with a wider pasta noodle but you can serve it on whenever noodle you desire. Before serving add a splash of cream to the sauce. I can’t explain what it does to the sauce but it makes it amazing and rounds out all the meat and tomato flavour. 

This sauce freezes amazingly well (do not add the cream before you freeze it) and this recipe will give you roughly 10~12 cups. 

Mangia! 

Nice and light chicken pumpkin chili

Tags

chicken, chili, fast dinner, fresh, light dinners, pumpkin

Most people make chili during the fall and winter but it can be a perfect meal for spring and summer too… You just need to lighten it up a bit. 

This chili is made with ground chicken, and canned pumpkin. A friend delivered me some this winter when I tore my ACL and it was so delish I just had to make a big batch for myself!

It is easy peasy and takes 1 hour start to finish. If freezes great… To thaw just take it out the night before. Perfect lunch or dinner.

  
Ingredients: 

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1 small yellow onion, chopped, chopped

1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped

2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 pound ground chicken 

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with their liquid

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin purée

1 cup water

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/2 tablespoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

Ground black pepper, to taste

1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained (red or white) I used both

Fresh cilantro, sour cream and cheese for garnish 

Heat coconut oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, jalapeños and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add spices and cook for another minute. Add chicken and cook until browned. Add tomatoes, pumpkin, water,  salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and add beans. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes more. Ladle chili into bowls and serve. 

Delish! 

   
    
    
 

Light and simple turkey chili

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chili, fresh, fresh meals, light dinners, summer, turkey chili

This is absolutely delicious, takes minutes to prepare and you can make it in the crockpot. 

Perfect for spring, summer, fall and winter! Chili at times can be very heavy and filling, this version is light and fresh. 

Here is what you need:

• 1 lb of ground turkey (usually I prefer to use beef but for this chili, turkey gave a much lighter taste)
• 1 package of chili seasoning mix 
• 1 tbls of tomato paste
• 1 can of diced tomatoes 28 oz
• 1 can of corn or 2 ears of fresh corn sliced off the cob
• 1 19 oz can of black beans, or you can use kidney, pinto etc
• 1 onion diced finely
• 2 garlic cloves
• Pinch of salt 
• Toppings, sour cream or greek yogurt, cubed avocado, cilantro, grated cheese etc

Brown the turkey in a frying pan with 1 tbs of oil. After a few minutes add the onion and garlic. Once browned 2-3 minutes, add the mixture to a crock pot. Add in tomatoes, corn, chili seasoning mix, tomato paste and beans. Let simmer for 3 hours on high or 5 on low. 

To serve, top chili with whatever topping you would like. Enjoy! 

  

Simple and Delicious Salsa

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easy cooking, fast, food, fresh, garden, salsa, summer, tomatoes

Nothing beats a fresh homemade salsa served with hot and salty tortilla chips.

But did you know that you could make a fresh salsa in about 90 seconds?

Here is how:

You need approx 8-10 smaller tomatoes (I used Campari tomatoes)
1 jalapeño pepper deserved
1 red onion
1 garlic clove
Handful of cilantro
Pinch of salt

Half or quarter your tomatoes, quarter your onion, slice your pepper and garlic. In two batches toss your tomatoes into your food processor and pulse. You want to break them down but you don’t want them to be puréed. Pour into a bowl.
Next batch put in your garlic, onions, jalapeño, and cilantro and pulse until finely chopped. Put that into a bowl and mix together. Season with salt and taste.

Done and done! Enjoy your fresh salsa.