Sweet Whiskey Salsa Marinade

Tonight, Geoff and I decided to have Salmon, but we wanted something different with it.  Geoff began thought of adding diced tomato and brown sugar to make it similar to BBQ sauce.  I said, why not add a Poblano pepper, diced onion, and a diced tomatillo.  Right before we were done I was feelin' lucky, so I said, let's add whiskey.  It turned out delicious, so here it is...

2 tsp oil (we used grapeseed, but olive would work too)
1 Tbsp butter
2 tsp brown sugar
1 diced pepper (poblano, habanero, chili or jalapeno will work)
1/3 cup diced fresh onion
1/2 cup diced fresh tomato
1 medium, diced tomatillo
1-2 Tbsp whiskey

Start with the oil and butter in a hot pan, add your brown sugar, onion and pepper.  Allow it to reduced down until just before the onions start to brown/carmelize (but make sure they are soft).  Then add your tomato, and tomatillo with their juice.  Allow to cook down a bit more before adding the whiskey, you don't want it to get too runny.

Salt to taste, and use over fish, shrimp, chicken or just rice.

Crockpot Tomatillo and Black Bean Soup with Fresh Lime

This soup started as a random endeavor simply because I had a bunch of fresh tomatillos from the farm, and needed something to do with them, and it was so delicious that it has become one of our favorites.

(Makes about 6 servings)

Ingredients:

1 T olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

8 tomatillos, chopped in 1/4 inch pieces (about 2 cups chopped tomatillo)

1 jalapeno (fresh or pickled; chopped)

1 T finely minced garlic

1 T dried cilantro (optional)

2 tsp. ground cumin

2 cans (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed well

2 cans (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes with juice or

2 large fresh tomatoes, diced with juice

4 cups vegetable broth, canned or homemade

1 cup water

1/2 cup uncooked brown rice

1/2 cup fresh squeezed lime juice

salt to taste

garnish with cilantro (optional)

Instructions:

Chop onions and tomatillos into pieces about 1/4 inch. Heat olive oil in large frying pan, then saute onions, tomatillos and jalapenos about 5 minutes, then add garlic and cumin and saute 1-2 minutes more. While vegetables saute, dump beans into a colander placed in the sink and rinse until no more foam appears.

Put tomatillo-onion mixture into large 4-5 quart crockpot.  Add beans, tomatoes with juice, vegetaBLE stock, water, and brown rice. Cook on high for 4 hours (This could also be cooked on low for 8 hours.)

After 4 hours (or 8 hours if using low) turn the crockpot to low setting, and let it cook 15 minutes to lower the temperature, then add the fresh lime juice and cook 10 minutes on low. Serve hot, with chopped cilantro for garnish if desired.