I told you about all of the jalapenos.  So after a few batches of salsa, we needed to branch out with some more experiments.  First, I attempted guacamole.  The results were not as immediately good as the salsa, but after tinkering a bit, I made some pretty tasty guacamole…

I started by mushing up some avocados in a bowl.  I then squeezed the juice of an entire lime all over the avocados and mushed it up more to distribute the juice throughout.  I then diced up a jalapeno and added the entire thing (minus the stem, I hope that’s not even a question ) to the bowl.  I actually started with just the outsides of the jalapeno, but through the “tinkering” process ended up gradually dumping in the whole shebang — seeds and all.  Next a teensy bit of salt, cumin and cayenne.  Finally, some minced garlic and plenty of cilantro.  NGHubby and I are big time cilantro fans, so I put in WAY more than the recommended 1 tablespoon — isn’t that the freedom of cooking anyway?  Like the salsa, there should probably be onion in there…if you’re into that kind of thing.

Here’s the ingredient list.  Now go forth and conquer.

Guacamole from Scratch

• 3 Haas avocados, halved, seeded and peeled
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 1 clove garlic, minced

Recipe adapted from Food Network, Alton Brown

Coming next: NGHubby’s bacon-wrapped jalapenos

- Clarissa

A couple weeks ago NGHubby came home from Costco with a huge bag of jalapenos — HUGE.  I had talked quite a bit recently about trying to make salsa with a real jalapeno (normally I cheat with Rotel).  So, with a huge bag of jalapenos, I had a great chance to give it a whirl (and another whirl, and another, and another…).  I experimented a bit and came to the following recipe that was awesome — if you can take the opinion of this German-Irish girl — and much like I’m used to eating at restaurants.

Salsa from Scratch

• 3 roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 jalapeño, diced – Include seeds proportionate to how hot you can handle your salsa.  I used about half of the seeds from the jalapeno
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
• Juice of 1 lime
• Dash of cumin
• Dash of salt
• Dash of sugar
• Normal people would also include some onion – maybe 1/2 of an onion.  That’s if you, unlike me, don’t have anybody in your household deathly afraid of onions.

Chop the tomatoes and jalapeno (and onions, if you choose) and throw it all into a food processor or blender.  Pulse until the tomatoes are close to the consistency you want — I was going for restaurant type consistency, so you want to be careful not to over-pulse.  Add the rest of the ingredients and pulse just enough to integrate everything.  Finally, pour it all into a pretty bowl and serve with some nice chips.  Or eat it all right there before anyone else arrives.  Whatever suits your fancy.

Now for my next problem – what to do with the other 34 jalapenos left in the bag?  We have eaten jalapenos in and on just about everything this last week.  So I’ll give you a few more great jalapeno recipes as soon as I can replicate them.

Hasta luego!

- Clarissa

I recently had a debate with myself about getting prints of my photos.  When I received my first camera as a child, prints were the only option.  We took 24 pictures — being careful not to waste any pictures on “unnecessary” subjects — then we dropped the film off at the store, waited a day (an extremely long wait for a 10-year-old), and came back to pick up the prints.  Simple as that.  We then put the prints neatly into an album and the album on a shelf.  Done.

Now, with digital photography completely taking over, we can take as many pictures as our hearts’ desire with no regard to “waste.”  We see the photo immediately on the camera, and take another and another, as many as those ever-increasingly-sized memory cards will hold.  When we feel like it, we upload/email/sync the photos to our computer.  And then what?  We can email the photos, post them on blog, share on Facebook, and on and on.  But what about those prints and albums we used to set on the shelf and pull out when the grandparents came to visit? That’s the exact question I’ve been debating.  For quite a while, I tried going totally digital and not buying prints or albums.  After two years, though, I realized that I never looked back at those photos on my computer, and missed just pulling out an album to look back through the great memories it holds.  Well, last week I ordered some 300+ prints from events over the last two years.  So, the sentimental me who likes to pull out a photo album to browse occasionally won over the practical me who thinks about the 9 cent per photo cost and about packing those albums next time we move.  I’m sure I’ll have the same debate next year   What do you think on the prints vs. digital debate?  Have you gone completely digital, or do you cling to the album of prints?

Here’s an idea for somewhere in the middle — use photos as your home decor.  It’s personal and a whole lot cheaper than art – so it fits both the sentimental and practical sides.  I created this wall collage from photos NGHubby and I have taken in our travels.

We also use family photos in our decor, from our wedding pictures to this frame — perfectly made for those of us with nine siblings

How do you use your photos?  I’d love to hear your ideas.

- Clarissa