salsa... finally

Several months ago I blogged about the Salsa Festival in the town of Maricopa where we sampled some really good, really different salsas. I challenged myself to "invent" a salsa with a unique ingredient by the end of summer. I know it is technically "fall" but since it is 90 degrees as I write this, I think I made the deadline!

I asked a lot of people what they thought a unique salsa ingredient would be and I kept getting the same answers: grapes, mango, pineapple, orange juice. And I steered clear of them! My salsa has not one, but two unique ingredients: pumpkin and pears! Before you turn up your nose at it, just try it.  I have taste-tested it on two different groups of unsuspecting people and they all liked it.

You will need Ro-Tel tomatoes, canned pumpkin (NOT pie filling!), a pumpkin, a pear, lime juice, garlic, onion, cilantro, sugar, brown sugar, salt and cumin.

Cut the pumpkin in half, then cut each half in half. Scoop out seeds and membranes before carefully removing the outer skin (shell?). You will end up with a lot of pieces; what you don't use in this batch of salsa will keep in a baggy in the refrigerator for several weeks for the next batch... and the next batch!

Coarsely chop (I used a hand chopper) several pieces. Now the pumpkin is ready to use- although you can leave it out if pumpkins aren't in season or you don't want to spend the time prepping it. The pumpkin flavor comes from the canned pumpkin; the fresh pumpkin gives a bit of color and CRUNCH!

Kristin's Pumpkin & Pear Salsa

2 cans Ro-Tel tomatoes & green chilis, one mild and one original, not drained

½ cup canned pumpkin

1 TBSP chopped onion

½ tsp jarred minced garlic

½ tsp lime juice

1 ripe Bartlett pear- cored, peeled and cut into 1-in pieces

⅓ cup fresh cilantro leaves (more if you like cilantro-y salsa!)

⅓ cup chopped fresh pumpkin

⅓ tsp sugar

1½ TBSP brown sugar

⅛ tsp salt

⅛ tsp ground cumin

Put all ingredients in blender. Set on puree and pulse 4 or 5 times, or until desired consistency. Enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips. Makes about a quart of salsa.  © 2011

Let me know if you make this salsa- and how you like it. Suggestions are always welcome! 

"Salsa has now passed ketchup as America's favorite condiment. Isn't that amazing? You know it's bad when even our vegetables  are starting to lose their jobs to Mexico."

~ Jay Leno on the Tonight Show

Amazing Arizona... 100 things

I am, unashamedly, a desert rat. While I greatly enjoy visiting other places, Arizona is home. There are many things I've grown to appreciate about Arizona...

... the beauty of the desert...

... surreal sunsets.

I have spent many happy hours traveling around Arizona as a child and as an adult. I am convinced one could spent a lifetime exploring the state and never see everything it has to offer. 

Several weeks ago the Arizona Republic ran an article titled "100 Best Things About Arizona." They tied it to Arizona's statehood centennial in 2012, compiling a random list of "the top 100 places to see and things to do around the state." The list includes natural wonders, man-made wonders, restaurants, hotels and museums. Most of the ten items that Clay Thompson (perhaps my favorite columnist since Erma Bombeck died) contributed to the list are more experiences than actual places- "a well-stocked, regularly maintained hummingbird feeder" and "sitting under a bush beside a small trout stream about an hour north of Payson, wearing a floppy hot to fend off a light monsoon shower" for example.

While I disagree with some of their picks- for example, the Arizona Biltmore Resort is not uniquely Arizona; it's just a nice resort like dozens of others- most of them are ones I would have picked. In fact, I've already been to or done more than a third of them.

The article got me to think about what I would put on that list... things I have not yet seen or done. As my list began to take shape, I wondered if I could see/do everything on it by the end of 2012- my own personal tribute to Arizona's Centennial celebration. Realizing there are roughly 60 weeks until the end of 2012, a list of 100 seems a bit daunting, but I'm willing to give it a try. And realistically, I'll consider this challenge a success if I see/do 56 (my age in 2012!) of them.

But I don't want to have all the fun by myself.  I am challenging YOU to make your own list and start touring Arizona. Maybe I'll see you around the state! In the meantime, here, in no particular order, is my list- items with an * are ones that were in the article I haven't seen/done and would like to; the rest are uniquely mine:

1.      Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West  (Scottsdale) *

2.      Boyce Thompson Arboretum  (near Superior) *

3.      Musical Instrument Museum  (Phoenix)

4.      Roy Purcell Murals  (Chloride)

5.      Flintstone's Bedrock City  (Williams)

6.      Hobo Joe Statue  (Buckeye) 

7.      Frog Rock  (Congress)

8.      Over Easy  (Scottsdale- one of Guy Fieri's DDD places)

9.      Oatman  (Town near Kingman) *

10.    Mount Lemmon Ski Lift  (near Tucson) 

11.    Standin' on the Corner Statue  (Winslow)

12.    Biff's Bagels (Flagstaff) *

13.    Balloon Ride over Arizona (anywhere)

14.    Arcosanti  (Mayer) *

15.    Saguaro National Park  (near Tucson) *

16.    Tovrea Castle  (Phoenix)

17.    Interstate-15 Virgin River Gorge Scenic Drive  (NW part of state)

18.    Antelope Canyon (Lake Powell Navajo Tribal Park) *

19.    Wings Over Wilcox  (Wilcox)

20.    Mystery Christmas Tree  (I-17 near Cordes Jct)  (revisited)

21.    Shoshone Point  (hike at South Rim of the Grand Canyon) *
22.    Kofa National Wildlife Refuge- Palm Canyon (north of Yuma)
23.    Recycled Gas Tank Sculptures  (Black Canyon City)
24.    Kartchner Caverns  (Benson) *
25.    Arizona Folklore Preserve  (Ramsey Canyon)
26.    Yuma Territorial Prison  (Yuma)
27.    Walking Bridge over Tempe Town Lake  (Tempe)
28.    El Tovar Hotel  (Grand Canyon) *
29.    Queen Creek Olive Mill  (Queen Creek)
30.    Salsa Brava  (Flagstaff- another one of Guy Fieri's DDD places)
31.    Clifton's Cliff Jail  (Clifton)
32.    Fina's Tree  (Tucson)
33.    Organ Pipe National Monument  (south part of state) *
34.    Junk Art of Chloride  (Chloride)
35.    Wrigley Mansion  (Phoenix)
36.    Velvet Elvis (pizza place in Patagonia) *
37.    SeaLife Arizona Aquarium  (Phoenix)
38.    Matt's Big Breakfast  (Phoenix- another one of Guy Fieri's DDD places)
39.    Copper Queen Hotel  (Bisbee) *
40.    Canyon de Chelly  (NE part of state) *
41.    Tumacácori National Historic Park  (south of Tubac)
42.    Vertuccio Farms Corn Maze (Mesa)
43.    Queen Mine Tour  (Bisbee) *
44.    Tombstone  (Tombstone) *
45.    Mystery Castle  (Phoenix) *
46.    Pima Air and Space Museum  (Tucson)
47.    The "Boneyard"  (Davis-Monthan AFB)
48.    Bisbee  (Bisbee) *
49.    Garden of Gethsemane  (Tucson)
50.    Phoenix Police Museum  (Phoenix)
51.    World's Largest Rose Bush  (Tombstone)
52.    Bola Tie Exhibit at the Desert Caballeros Western Museum  (Wickenburg)
53.    Horseshoe Bend Lookout  (near Page)
54.    Apple Annie's Orchard  (Wilcox)
55.    Phoenix International Raceway  (Phoenix)
56.    The Thing  (between Benson and Wilcox)
57.    Tubac  (Tubac) *
58.    Haus Murphy's  (Glendale- another one of Guy Fieri's DDD places)
59.    Arrow Tree  (Alpine)
60.    Lee's Ferry and Navajo Bridge  (near Page)
61.    Holiday Light Parade  (Prescott)
62.    Riordan Mansion State Historic Park  (Flagstaff) *
63.    "Taj Mahal" in the Desert  (Dome) (revisited)
64.    Butterfly Garden  (Patagonia)
65.    Niels Petersen House  (Tempe)
66.    Picacho Peak Civil War Battle Re-enactment  (Picacho Peak State Park)
67.    Luhr's Building and Luhr's Tower  (Phoenix) *
68.    Chino Bandido  (Phoenix- another one of Guy Fieri's DDD places)
69.    Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge  (Hoover Dam)
70.    Hadji Ali's Tombstone  (Quartzsite)
71.    La Posada Hotel  (Winslow) *
72.    Commemorative Air Force Museum  (Falcon Field in Mesa)
73.    Rosson House Museum  (Phoenix)
74.    US-89A Arizona Strip/Vermillion Cliffs  (northern part of state) *
75.    Kitt Peak National Observatory  (Tohono O'odham Reservation)
76.    Quartzsite Yacht Club  (Quartzsite)
77.    Verde Canyon Railroad  (Cottonwood) *
78.    Arizona Balloon Classic  (Wild Horse Pass)
79.    San Pedro House  (near Sierra Vista) *
80.    Thee Pitts Again  (Glendale- yet another one of Guy Fieri's DDD places)
81.    Ride a Glider over the desert (Peoria)
82.    Glendale Chocolate Affaire  (Glendale)
83.    Apache Trail Scenic Drive  (Tortilla Flat and beyond) *
84.    Shrine of St. Joseph  (Yarnell)
85.    Rooster Cogburn's Ostrich Ranch
86.    Barrett's Village  (Quartzsite)
87.    Humphreys Peak  (Flagstaff) *
88.    Mary Coyle Ol' Fashioned Ice Cream  (Phoenix)
89.    Hall of Flame Museum  (Phoenix)
90.    Wigwam Motel  (Holbrook) *
91.    Giuseppe's on 28th  (Phoenix- yes, another one of Guy Fieri's DDD places)
92.    Running of the Bulls  (Cavecreek)
93.    Release the Fear Melted Weapons Sculpture  (Phoenix)
94.    Petrified Forest  (near Holbrook) *
95.    Duppa  House  (Phoenix)
96.    London Bridge  (Lake Havasu) *
97.    Cerreta Fine Chocolate Factory Tour (Glendale)
98.    Arizona Lavender Festival  (Concho)
99.    Strawberry School  (Strawberry)
100.  Greer  (Greer) *

** Links will take you to my blog post for that item**
*** You can see my Amazing Arizona... 100 things wrap-up here. ***

the happiest place on earth

We are Disney enthusiasts. You know, those people who absolutely love everything about Disneyland... the lines, the people, the parking, running to get a fast pass, the churro carts (yep, we know the location and hours of every one!), the rides (over and over and over again!) and, of course, THE Mouse!

Richard and I were recently at Disneyland... all alone... without children... or grandchildren. And contrary to what our children told us before we left, we had a fabulous time! Besides riding rides and running for fast passes, we took time to stroll through ALL the shops, sit on a bench and people-watch and really enjoy the sights and sounds in "the Happiest Place on Earth." Throughout this trip, I learned some Disney truths:

1. No matter how old you are, there is nothing like the thrill of going through the turnstile at the front of Disneyland on the first day of your Disney vacation and seeing the back of the train station and the flower beds shaped like Mickey.

"It [Disneyland] has that thing- the imagination and the feeling of happy excitement- 

that I knew when I was a kid."

~ Walt Disney

2. It's okay to act nutty wacky silly child-like.

"Laughter is America's most important export."

~ Walt Disney

3. Even if it is scorching hot (and it was!) in October, a little pixie dust will make it "fall!"

"It's kind of fun to do the impossible."

~ Walt Disney

4. Dreams really do come true! (Notice the scores!!!)

"All of our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them." 

~ Walt Disney

5. Without a doubt, it's all about the mouse!

"I only hope we don't lose sight f one thing- that it was all started by a mouse."

~ Walt Disney

6. Disneyland fireworks are the BEST anywhere. Period.

"Disneyland is a show."

~ Walt Disney

7. Even when you don't go with other people, you will see friends at Disneyland. (This time we were able to meet up with Janne's friend who I only knew through Facebook. We enjoyed spending some time with her and her sweet family!)

"We believed in our idea- a family park where parents and children [and friends!] 

could have fun together."

~ Walt Disney