Whole30 Day 23 — Pineapple Salsa

Have you ever tried a recipe that everyone is raving about and when you try it you think, nope, not going to try that one again? That has been almost every recipe I have tried the last couple of days. It is frustrating.  The worst was some chicken burgers I tried.  The picture was so pretty and I wanted like them so much. The burgers were quick and easy but they were sooooooo bland.  I had to save them because I made them for lunch at work and I didn’t have time to make anything else.

Since there was pineapple in the chicken, I decided to make a pineapple salsa.  I know it sounds strange but the sweet of the pineapple and mint goes really well with the savory flavor of garlic and cumin.  This recipes makes a lot but it really goes with everything.  It’s good on chicken, fish, mixed with rice, not whole30 but I have done it before and I am sure it would be good on things I haven’t even thought of yet.  The salsa lasts a long time so you can experiment.

Pineapple Salsa

• Difficulty: Easy
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1  20 oz can crushed pineapple

2 cloves garlic — minced

2 tablespoons fresh mint — minced

2 tablespoons lime juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cumin

cayenne pepper — to taste

Mix all ingredients together and keep in covered bowl in the fridge. Keeps for several weeks.

 

Coriander Scented Untoasted Blend ( Aka Curry Powder)

 

I am not a stranger to making my own spice blends.  However, this blend is the first time I have ever made a spice blend grinding whole spices. All I can say is WOW!!!!! IT SMELLS AMAZING!!!!  I am sorry for yelling but I don’t have scratch and sniff posts……. yet. Seriously, I could wear this stuff as perfume.  I am very excited to try this blend in my next recipe.  Mr. Iyer suggests using this blend instead of store bought curry powder in any recipe with curry powder.  I used a mortar and pestle to grind my spices but you can use a dedicated coffee grinder to do it too. The first recipe using this spice blend will be posted on Monday.

Coriander Scented Untoasted Blend

• Difficulty: Easy
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Ingredients

1 TBS coriander seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp black peppercorns

1/4 tsp tsp cardamom seeds from a green or white pods

1/4 tsp whole cloves

1 dried bay leaves

2 tsp dried Thai chilies or 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix everything together and grind in a spice grinder or a mortar  and pestle.  The texture should be similar to course ground black pepper.  Store in an airtight container for 1 month.