Sunday, November 16, 2014

Restaurant-style Salsa (AIP)

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I'm on AIP Day 46. It's become so routine that I'm not really feeling much of a struggle most days. This year there are TONS and TONS more recipes all over the internet and now even in cookbooks, which makes the going so much easier than last year. I'm not seeing as much control over my psoriasis as I would like. I've got several patches of scale on my scalp, on and in my ears, under my nose, and on top of my hands. I've been eating the strictest I have in months, and I can't even begin to tell you how frustrating it is that I'm not seeing more improvements.

I'm on a parasite cleanse with my local holistic doctor. The cleanse means I'm detoxing, and detoxing means I'm experiencing nightmares and flares sporadically. I'm keeping a close eye on it, but right now I'm considering it a temporary setback in order for more progress in the longterm. In the meantime, I'm working on staying as strict AIP as possible, staying on somewhat of a schedule, and keeping my stress low. I've been cutting back on different things slowly throughout the last few months, and it's definitely been a huge help. I can now sit down and read for 30 minutes without feeling guilty.

Looking on the brightside of this setback is that I've had lots of recipe developing going on! And because I'm strict AIP, that means ALL of my recipes in the works are strict AIP too! No mods! And more recipes always means good things for you, my readers.

So we already talked about nightshades and why they aren't AIP in my Tomatoless Soup post. And I also obsessed briefly over my loss of Mexican food. (Yes, it's that serious.) I have to admit that I was already pretty excited about my Tomatoless Soup recipe because it wasn't spaghetti sauce. I was afraid that when it came to subbing tomatoes, that it would only work if it had the herbs to help blend the flavors. I'm so glad that I was proved wrong. The recipe was actually supposed to be a beet soup, and it turning into a wonderful bowl of Tomatoless Soup was actually a happy accident.

This salsa creation, however, is no accident. When I tasted the Tomatoless Soup, the wheels wouldn't stop turning and the creative juices wouldn't stop flowing. This recipe HAD to happen. Luckily, after the soup is already made, this recipe comes together fairly quickly and doesn't take much work or any odd ingredients. The focus here though is going to be on FRESH ingredients. Don't try it with dried cilantro and garlic; it's going to be very bland if you do. If you've reintroduced seed-based spices, then feel free to add in a little punch of ground cumin for some extra Mexican zip. But don't fret if you can't do the cumin yet. The recipe is convincing enough without it. Try it with some tostones or plantain chips or on a taco salad!

Restaurant-style Salsa
1 cup Tomatoless Soup
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup lime juice
½ c fresh cilantro leaves
2 cloves garlic
1 medium onion, peeled and rough chopped
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp garlic powder

Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and pulse until well-combined. Don't over blend the mixture. The chunkier the onion, the chunkier the salsa. Still, the recipe will be more of a restaurant-style, pureed salsa than a chunky version.