Hello!

Happy New Year 2013!

My resolution for this year was to be vegan for a month.  Well the truth...only lasted 8 days.  New resolution, add more vegetables to my omnivore diet.

I have been out for a while, but I am back.  I have a few recipes from last year to post within the next few days.

For now, just a few tips.

The spices in Puerto Rican cuisine that I use more often:
adobo, garlic powder, ground oregano, cumin powder, ground cilantro, dry bay leaf, dry cloves, Spanish paprika.

Other must have spices:
Italian seasoning, dry rosemary, red pepper flakes, ginger

A kitchen staple:
sofrito - This can be used in practically any meal.  It contains mostly green peppers, sweet peppers, onions, garlic, cilantro.  All you do is with the food processor grind it into a pesto consistency.  Store in the fridge if using within a week or freeze for longer storage.  When cooking a meal this will be your base.  Just sauté in a little oil  and add other ingredients as you normally would.  It just adds pizzaz to your meals!  I don't have a recipe, just eye ball ingredients according to taste.

Adding tomato paste to a regular jar of spaghetti and seasoning to your taste, brings a jar sauce to life.  I start with my sofrito as a base or just use aromatics like carrots, celery and onions small diced.  Sauté in olive oil, then add the tomato paste with a bit of water to dilute, then add your sauce, salt and pepper, you might want to add Italian seasoning, basil...or whatever your palate wants...simmer for 15-20 minutes.  Always check your seasoning, you might want to add a pinch of sugar to cut the tomato acidity.

Everyone cooks different.  So with that said, you can follow the same recipe but the outcome might be different.  It all depends on the pots, your oven/stove temperature (they always differ), the ingredients...my best advice, experiment and observe the process of how an ingredient becomes a meal.

Hasta pronto!

Maddy