Tomato Avocado and Onion Salad

Hey blog friends!

I'm back for another month of The Secret Recipe Club. 

This month I was assigned to Nayna's vegetarian blog, Simply.Food. She has lots of fun recipes and since I'm a meat eater, it was nice to see new-to-me recipes. What really caught my eye were her Egg Fried Rice, Oreo Cheesecake, and White Lemon Chocolate with Pistachio Nuts. Yum! Ultimately I chose a simple and delicious side perfect for any meal and that screams summer! 

We loved this salad and decided to add avocado to give it that extra creamy flavor. The lime juice and cilantro really top it off nice. I love the colors, it's perfect for summer, and I know we'll be making it all the time!! 

Thanks, Nayna. It was a blast perusing your site this month. So many great recipes to choose from, and this one sure didn't disappoint!







































Tomato Avocado and Onion Salad
adapted from Simply.Food

1 ripe tomato
1/2 red onion
1 avocado, sliced
juice of 1/2 a lime
salt and pepper
cilantro, for garnish

Method:

Slice the tomato, red onion, and avocado. Season sliced tomatoes and avocado with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with lime juice. Top with cilantro. Serve immediately.

Check out my past Secret Recipe Club posts!  

An InLinkz Link-up

Linking up here.
   

Peace, and bacon grease!

Black Bean Salsa-Stuffed Avocados

Time for another month of Secret Recipe Club! One of my fave times of the month :)

I was assigned to Melissa's blog, Melissa's Cuisine. I wanted to try so many recipes (and plan to!), like her Sausage and Egg Breakfast Boat, Red Velvet Ice Cream, and Bacon Appetizers. I seriously must try all of those!! 

But I decided on her Tomato, Corn, and Black Bean Salsa. Mmm you can't go wrong with a good salsa. Perfect for summertime!

I decided to serve it in avocados just for that extra umph. Really, I'll look for any reason to add avocado to a recipe! Avocado goes great in a salsa or paired with a salsa!

Bust out some tortilla chips (or Tostitos scoops like I love!) or just eat straight from the black bean salsa-topped-avocado half with a fork.

Black Bean Salsa-Stuffed Avocados
adapted from Melissa's Cuisine

• 1/2 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
• juice of 1/2 a lime
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon cilantro, chopped + more for garnish
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 avocado

In a large bowl, combine black beans, corn, tomato and onion.
In a small bowl, combine the lime juice, olive oil, and cilantro.
 
Pour the marinade over black bean mixture. Season with salt and pepper as needed. Refrigerate salsa at least 30 minutes before serving.

Cut the avocado in half. With the skin on, dice small squares within each half so it will be easy to scoop out avocado pieces with each bite of salsa.



Printable Recipe

This salsa was delicious, especially paired with the seasoned avocado. I didn't try it with tortilla chips but I know it would be amazing with that salty crispy touch from the chips too.

Or served atop some grilled chicken or fish. Basically, I see so many things for this black bean salsa!! It's got a bright future ahead of it  :)



Check out my past Secret Recipe Club posts!

An InLinkz Link-up

 


Linking up here.

 
Peace, and bacon grease!

Grilled Mexican Pizza

I made a meatless meal...

And loved it!

I mean, I knew I loved the ingredients involved. But I didn't know I liked them that much that I wouldn't even miss the meat. 

You see, I've been trying to eat a little better these days. And this recipe was packed full of bright and flavorful veggies, + I got it from Cooking Light which means it's gotta be better than scarfing down a huge burger or fried chicken, right? 

 















































Please don't hold this healthy thing against me though, k? Especially if you're following my instagram...  you may or may not see endless photos of margaritas and frozen yogurt and starchy chips and loaded sweets and sushi and... you get my drift.
 
But this recipe though... 

If this is what health{ier} looks like, I'm on board.

 

Grilled Mexican Pizza
adapted from Good Housekeeping

• 10-12 inch ready-made thin pizza crust
• 1/2 can refried beans (or however much you like to cover the crust)
• 1/2 cup (or more) shredded Mexican cheese
• 1 corn on the cob 
• 1/2 a red onion, diced and divided 
• 1 avocado, diced
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon lime zest
• 1 cup shredded romaine lettuce
• 1 medium tomato, diced 

Prepare outdoor grill for covered, direct grilling on medium. 

Grill corn until charred and cooked. Using a knife, cut off grilled corn kernels into a bowl.

You can grill one side of the crust first, if desired. Spread refried beans evenly on one side of the crust, leaving 1/2-inch border; sprinkle with cheese and half of the diced red onions. Place crust on hot grill rack; cover and grill until grill marks appear, about 8 to 9 minutes.  

Meanwhile, gently stir avocado with 1 tablespoon lime juice. Toss corn with lime zest and remaining lime juice. 

Top grilled pizza with romaine, tomato, avocado, remaining diced onions, and corn mixture. 


*Note: The measurements can be adjusted depending on your preference. 

Printable Recipe

 



Rainbow pizza, is what I should call this. 

So many things going on! Creamy avocados soaked in lime juice, grilled corn, fresh romaine, juicy tomatoes, and sweet red onions atop refried beans and that crispy crust. Exactly.

This was my first time grilling a pizza, and it surely won't be the last. I've gotta eventually move up to making my own pizza dough and crust! That's on one of my bucket lists.


Linking up here.




Peace, and bacon grease!

Avocado, Goat Cheese + Roasted Tomato Crostini

Well how the heck are ya? It's about time for another recipe. Apparently I'm on a cute-little-appetizer kick. 

 

























































This time, it's avocado + goat cheese + roasted tomatoes. Salivation and grinning-ear-to-ear were my first reactions too.  

 

Awhile back, I had seen this alluring Parmesan with Roasted Garlic dipping oil and had to have it. Only thing is, I'm not much of a bread person. So these little guys were the perfect opp to use that dipping oil. The less bread, the better. Except when it comes to Red Lobster's Cheddar Bay Biscuits. And when I saw goat cheese as an ingredient, I couldn't just go with plain goat cheese. No, no. So I got all fancy with some special tomato basil goat cheese.

Avocado, Goat Cheese + Roasted Tomato Crostini
slightly adapted from Food.com

*Yields: 20 crostinis

• 1 ciabatta baguette
• dipping/olive oil (I used Parmesan with Roasted Garlic dipping oil)
• 20 cherry tomatoes (or more)
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper
• 1 large ripe avocado
• 4 oz goat cheese (I used tomato basil goat cheese)
• juice and zest of 1/2 of a lemon
• 2 dashes hot sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut baguette into 20 half-inch slices. Brush slices with dipping/olive oil and bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Reduce oven to 300 degrees.

Cut tomatoes in half and place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper, and a drizzle of dipping/olive oil. Roast for 30 minutes.

Cut avocado in half lengthwise, remove pit, and scoop out the inside into a large bowl. Add goat cheese, lemon zest and juice, hot sauce, and salt and pepper to the bowl and mix. Place dollops of avocado mixture onto baguette slices and garnish with 2 (or more) roasted tomato halves.

Printable Recipe

Sprinkle a little balsamic vinegar on top if you please, like I did.

A balsamic glaze would have really cut down on the vinegar taste since I just straight drizzled balsamic vinegar itself on top. And it would make for prettier pictures, that's for sure. That dark, thick gorgeous glaze. Team balsamic glaze all the way. Learn from me.

linking up here.

Peace, and bacon grease!

Avocado Salsa

More avocados! See, told ya I was making up for lost time. I've still got a lot of making up to do, I mean, I went like 25 years of my life without it! 

Here's another Cinco de Mayo recipe to get your avocado fix.





































No cooking required at all, definitely my kinda simple. 
































Avocado Salsa
slightly adapted from Right at Home (half the original recipe)

• 2 ripe avocados, diced into large chunks
• 1 lime
• 1 roma tomato, diced into large pieces
• 1/2 a red onion, diced
• 1/2 of a jalapeno, seeded and chopped
• 1/8 cup cilantro leaves, chopped finely
• salt and pepper to taste

Place avocado in a large bowl. Squeeze lime juice over the avocados. Add diced tomatoes and onion, jalapeno, and cilantro to the bowl. Stir all ingredients well. Cover bowl with plastic wrap to keep avocados from turning brown. Refrigerate until served.

Printable Recipe
 

And yes I served them with Cool Ranch Doritos. I love them way more than plain tortilla chips.

What are your plans for Cinco de Mayo? Any fun parties you're attending? I'll be at home posted up on the couch eating Mexican foods and drinkin margaritas.

That is all.

Peace, and bacon grease!

Bacon and Roasted Garlic Guacamole

Welp, this stuff is pretty amazing.

You know about roasted garlic, right? It's soft, it's a bit sweeter, it makes all things better. 

Except your breath. 

 

































And you already know my thoughts on bacon.

It too makes everything better.

































Except scallops. That is the one thing I don't like wrapped in bacon. I'm weird.


But roasted garlic and bacon make this guac oh-so-special. I dare you to try it and not like it. Double dog dare you.


























Bacon and Roasted Garlic Guacamole
adapted from Fabtastic Eats

• 1 head of garlic
• olive oil
• 2 strips of bacon
• 4 tablespoons red onion, minced
• 3 avocados, seeded
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
• salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Slice off the top of the head of garlic to expose some cloves inside. Place the heads on a piece of foil, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper and wrap in the foil. Roast until cloves are lightly browned and tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and unwrap to cool.

While garlic is roasting, chop bacon and cook in a skillet until crisp. When bacon is almost done, add in minced red onion and cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and drain off grease on a paper towel and set aside.

In a medium bowl, toss in avocados and squeeze in all of the roasted garlic. Add the lime juice and cayenne pepper. Mash together roughly.  Stir in the bacon and onion mixture, and cilantro. Add salt to taste.


Printable Recipe

Would you believe I didn't like guacamole until I was an adult? 

I said I was weird! And now I'm making up for all that lost time.








































Linking up here.  


Peace, and bacon grease!

Endive, Avocado, and Bacon Salad with Chipotle Ranch Dressing

Time for another one of the many challenges I participate in... the Eating the Alphabet Recipe Challenge, hosted by the lovely Brenda at Meal Planning Magic!

This month the letters were E or F, and remember you have to choose a vegetable, fruit, bean or grain. I chose endive because I had never eaten it before.

 






















Did you know there are different kinds of endive? I didn't, until I got to the store and saw just plain endive, which looked like lettuce kinda, and Belgian endive, which looked like tiny little white corn on the cob husks, and are hollow when peeled off the head. I went with the endive lettuce. When I got home I saw that the original recipe called for California endive. Good God, could endive be anymore confusing?  :)

Oh well, it was still delicious. I mean, how can you go wrong with all those ingredients in a salad? Avocado, bacon, homemade dressing with chipotles! And I added some diced onions, just because. And let's be honest here, the endive was just there to soak up all that dressing. What, isn't that the purpose of lettuce in a salad? :) I kid, I kid. Kinda.

Endive, Avocado, and Bacon Salad with Chipotle Ranch Dressing
adapted from All Day I Dream About Food

*Yields: 2 small side salads

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons mayo
• 2 tablespoons Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 gloves garlic, minced
• 1 chipotle pepper in adobo, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon adobo sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon dried dill weed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Salad:

• 1 head of endive lettuce, chopped
• 1 avocado, chopped
• 1/2 a roma tomato, diced
• 2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1-2 tablespoons red onion, chopped
• 1-2 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese

For the dressing, combine all ingredients in a sealable glass jar and shake vigorously.

For the salad, divide chopped endive lettuce among two salad plates. Sprinkle with avocado, tomatoes, bacon, onion, and cheese. Drizzle with dressing. Remaining dressing can be stored in fridge.
  

Printable Recipe

























Be sure to check out my past Eating the Alphabet Recipe Challenge entries. You're bound to find some keepers.

   
Linking up here.  


Peace, and bacon grease!