I’m not a cilantro fan, but watermelon as a salad with a little heat is actually yummy.

The ingredient list is easy:

Chunks of watermelon – bite size
Cilantro chopped
Jalapeno – diced really itty bitty
Red Onion – diced really small

Toss and serve.

Enjoy!

Recently, we were discussing breakfast.  It came out that one person ate her breakfast as a salad. She cooked up her eggs and bacon, and ate it over salad.  Well, here we were a week later, and out of bread, rolls, wrap, pita, etc.  I thought, well, what the heck – let’s try breakfast as salad, because well, heck it’s salad season.  So I cooked up my breakfast and put it over some nice greens with avocado, and salsa.  The salsa is difficult to see under the egg, but it’s there.  I really enjoyed my breakfast this way though I will let my salsa warm up a little first next time. Really cold salsa with warm eggs is too much of a temperature difference.  A zap in the microwave or letting it come to room temp would be a little better.

Ingredients:

• Salad Greens
• Home made Salsa
• Avocados
• Pancetta
• Eggs
• Salt
• Pepper
• Miscellaneous Herbs

Prepare your eggs and Pancetta in your favorite way.  Create a salad and place the cooked eggs and pancetta on top. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and herbs.  Enjoy!

Peppers – rough chopped

Tomatoes – rough chopped

Onions – rough chopped

Throw it all into a food processor, along with a hot pepper (if desired) a splash of apple cider vinegar and a touch of salt.

Cover with lid

Pulse until it’s the consistency you like….

Stop here (or if you like continue)

For Guacamole -

Slice Avocado in half.

Twist the two halves apart.

Smack the knife into te pit  and twist to remove the pit.

Twist the knife to help pop out the pit.

Score Avocado in both directions on both halves.

Scoop out into a bowl.

Add Salsa and mix together.

Voila – takes longer to read this than to actually do it.  Happy Cinco De Mayo.  Add herbs, lime or anything else you want.  This is my really fast worknight version that my kids, my husband and I love to nosh.

Oh yeah – and there are leftovers…

Grilled Skewered Shrimp
Prep: 20 minutes
Grill: 10 minutes
Makes: 6 servings (2 skewers each)

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
• 1 can (about 8 ounces) tomato sauce
• 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Directions:

1. Stir the picante sauce, tomato sauce, sugar and lemon juice in a large bowl. Add
the shrimp and toss to coat.
2. Thread the shrimp on 12 skewers.
3. Lightly oil the grill rack and heat the grill to medium. Grill the shrimp for 10
minutes or until they’re cooked through, turning and brushing often with the picante
sauce mixture. Discard any remaining picante sauce mixture.
Tip: For even easier preparation, you can buy frozen large shrimp already peeled and
deveined. Just thaw and use instead of the fresh shrimp.
–
Pace® Rib Eye Steaks
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 beef rib eye steaks (about 1 pound each), 1-inch thick
• 1 jar (24 ounces) Pace® Picante Sauce
• 1 package (8 ounces) Monterey Jack cheese (2 cups)
• 1 small onion, chopped (about 1/4 cup)
• 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced (about 1 tablespoon)

Directions:
1 small tomato, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1. Heat the oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the steaks and cook for
about 10 minutes or until medium-rare, turning the steaks over halfway through
cooking.
2. Add the picante sauce and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cook for 10
minutes.
3. Divide the cheese between the steaks. Cover and cook until the cheese melts. Top
with the onion, pepper and tomato.
–

Simply Spicy Grilled Chicken
Prep: 5 minutes
Grill: 40 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

• 3/4 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
• 3/4 cup barbecue sauce
• 2 pounds chicken parts, skin removed
• 1 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
• 2 green onions, sliced (about 1/4 cup)
• Orange slices (optional)
• Fresh thyme leaves (optional)

Directions:
1. Stir the picante sauce and barbecue sauce in a small bowl. Reserve 3/4 cup for
the rice.
2. Lightly oil the grill rack and heat the grill to medium. Grill the chicken for 20
minutes. Brush the chicken with the remaining picante sauce mixture. Grill for 20
minutes or until the chicken is cooked through, turning and brushing often with the
picante sauce mixture. Discard the remaining picante sauce mixture.
3. Cook the rice according to the package directions without salt. Stir in the reserved
3/4 cup picante sauce mixture and the onions. Serve the rice with the chicken.
Garnish with the orange slices and thyme, if desired.
Serving Suggestion: Serve with grilled zucchini and sliced ripe tomatoes topped with
chopped fresh basil. For dessert serve pineapple chunks.
Nutritional Values per Serving : Calories 552, Total Fat 14g, Saturated Fat g,
Cholesterol mg, Sodium 736mg, Total Carbohydrate 51g, Dietary Fiber 2g, Protein
49g, Vitamin A %DV, Vitamin C %DV, Calcium %DV, Iron %DV
–
Grilled Tomatillo Tuna Steaks
Prep: 20 minutes
Marinate: 30 minutes
Grill: 10 minutes
Makes: 6 servings

• 1 1/4 cups Pace® Salsa Verde
• 6 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 6 tuna steaks (about 1 1/2 pounds)
• 1 medium avocado, peeled, pitted and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 4 green onions, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

Directions:
1. Stir 3/4 cup salsa, 2 tablespoons cilantro and lemon juice in a 3-quart shallow,
nonmetallic dish or resealable plastic bag. Add the tuna steaks and turn to
coat. Cover the dish or seal the bag and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Lightly oil the grill rack and heat the grill to medium. Grill the tuna steaks for 10
minutes or to desired doneness, turning them over once halfway through grilling
and basting often with the marinade. Discard the remaining marinade.
3. Stir the remaining salsa, cilantro, avocado and green onion in a small bowl. Serve
with the tuna steaks.
–
Firecracker Flank Steak
Marinate: 1 hour
Prep: 10 minutes
Grill: 10 minutes
Serves: 8

Ingredients:
1 jar (16 ounces) Pace® Picante Sauce
2 cups orange juice
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 beef flank steak  (about 2 pounds)
Hot cooked rice
Chopped fresh parsley

Directions:
Stir the picante sauce, orange juice, oil, brown sugar, soy sauce, mustard and ginger in a shallow, nonmetallic dish or gallon size resealable plastic bag. Add the beef and turn to coat. Cover the dish or seal the bag and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
Lightly oil the grill rack and heat the grill to medium. Grill the beef for 10 minutes for medium-rare or to desired doneness, turning the beef over once during grilling and basting often with the picante sauce mixture.
Heat the remaining picante sauce mixture in a 1-quart saucepan over medium-high heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cook for 10 minutes or until the mixture is thickened, stirring occasionally.
Slice the beef and serve with the picante sauce mixture and rice.  Sprinkle with the parsley.
For a flavor twist, substitute 1 can (about 20 ounces) crushed pineapple, undrained, for the orange juice.

Ingredients

• 1 tbs Olive Oil
• 1 onion – diced
• 2 cloves garlic – diced
• 1 1/2 lbs chuck roast – diced
• 1 pint beef broth
• 2 cups roasted corn (frozen)
• hot peppers – seeded and diced
• 1 jar salsa (use your favorite brand – I used homemade)
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can of black bean drained and rinsed
• 2 tbs tomato paste
• 1 lime
• salt
• pepper
• sour cream

Directions:

Heat up oil, sauté onions, garlic and beef in bottom of deep pot – add in a little salt and pepper to the beef.  When the onions are soft, pour in beef broth.  Simmer until the beef is about ready, then add the other ingredients one by one.  Let the temp come up and add the next ingredient. Squeeze Lime into soup. Salt and Pepper to taste.  Add more than one pepper if you like it really spicy.  We like the slightly spicy taste, but we’re weak stomached wimps when it comes to really spicy. Dollop sour cream on top of your soup when serving.  If you have some avocado, dice it up and add it too.  We ate them with chips instead of crackers – and that’s my suggestion for you too, because it turned out so great.

Pace did a giveaway last year for the Superbowl, and is doing it again.  We love Pace, don’t we.  Actually, we do love Pace, my husband is a salsafied salsa fiend. He eats a quart of salsa a week because he loves the fresh tomato taste.  Salsa is one of the healthiest dips/sauces around because it has lots of fresh vegetables and not a lot of fat and sugar.  You can top eggs, sandwiches, chips, burgers, beef, chicken, spaghetti.  It’s such a versatile topping, though you can just go at it with a spoon.

In preparation for Super Bowl XLIV (taking place this Sunday, Feb. 7 in Miami), here are four of Pace Kitchens’ favorite recipes for Super Bowl Sunday, to help make your party more festive and more memorable. Note:  Giveaway at the bottom of the page.

Warm Spinach Dip with a Kick

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Makes: 32 servings (2 tablespoons each)

• Vegetable cooking spray
• 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
• 4 ounces shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (about 1cup)
• Tortilla chips or fresh vegetables

1. Spray a 2-quart saucepan with the cooking spray and heat over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the onion and cook until it’s tender, stirring occasionally.
2. Stir the spinach and flour in the skillet. Gradually stir the milk in the skillet. Cook and stir until the mixture boils and thickens. Stir in the picante sauce and cheese and cook until the cheese is melted. Serve with the tortilla chips for dipping.
–

Sweet & Spicy Chicken Wings

Prep: 10 min.
Bake: 35 min.
Makes: 24 pieces

• 12 chicken wings or 24 chicken drumettes
• 1 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1. Cut off chicken wing tips and discard. Cut chicken wings in half at joint. Place chicken into foil-lined shallow baking pan.
2. Stir picante sauce, honey and ginger in large bowl. Toss chicken with 1/3 cup of picante mixture.
3. Bake at 500°F. on lowest oven rack 35 min. or until crispy and cooked through, turning chicken over once halfway through baking. Remove chicken and toss with remaining picante mixture.
–

Sweet & Spicy Barbecued Brisket

Prep: 10 minutes
Marinate: 8 hours
Bake: 4 hours 30 minutes
Makes: 10 servings

• 1 trimmed beef brisket (about 5 pounds)
• Ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 2 cups Pace® Picante Sauce
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 10 Pepperidge Farm® Classic Sandwich Buns with Sesame Seeds or PepperidgeFarm® Farmhouse Premium White Rolls with Sesame Seeds

1. Season the beef with the black pepper and garlic powder and place into a 3-quart shallow baking dish. Stir the picante sauce, brown sugar and Worcestershire in a small bowl.  Spread the picante sauce mixture over the beef. Cover the dish and refrigerate overnight.
2. Bake, covered, at 300°F. for 4 1/2 hours or until the beef is fork-tender. Slice or shred the beef. Divide the beef and sauce among the rolls.
–
Salsa Verde Meatballs

Prep: 15 min.
Bake: 20 min.
Makes: 16 meatballs

• 1 1/4 cups Pace® Salsa Verde
• 1 1/2 lb. ground beef
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup finely crushed tortilla chips
• 4 green onions, minced

1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. Thoroughly mix 3/4 cup salsa, beef, egg, tortilla chips and green onions in large bowl. Shape mixture firmly into 16 meatballs.
3. Place meatballs into 3-qt. shallow baking dish. Top each with 1 tsp. salsa.
4. Bake 20 min. or until meatballs are cooked through. Serve with remaining salsa.

Mini Meatballs: Prepare beef mixture as directed above. Shape mixture firmly into 48 mini meatballs. Place meatballs into 4-qt. shallow baking dish. Bake at 350°F. 10 min. or until meatballs are cooked through. Serve with remaining salsa.

Pace Giveaway!

Last year we enjoyed giving away some Pace Salsas, so we are thrilled to offer it again.  This time we are giving away a two pack of Pace Salsa Verde and Pace Picante sauce.  I’m sorry we’re late moving on this, so it won’t arrive for Superbowl Sunday, but it will arrive in time for Valentines Day.  We’re closing this giveaway at half time of the Superbowl. I think Pace salsa is one of the must haves for your superbowl party.

The rules:

1. In the comments, tell me which of these recipes you’d be most likely to make, or give me one of your favorites, that would contain a Pace Salsa.
2. Also in the comments, tell us who you think will win (guesses after half time will be tossed out).
3. US residents only
4. One entry per household
5. Contest closes at halftime on Sunday, February 7th, 2010

Extra entries:

One extra entry each(2 total) for a tweet or if you subscribe to either by @Cookerati (twitter) , a reader or an RSS feed, or become a facebook fan (see link on right), or with network blogs and another one if you subscribe to our weekly newsletter.  Leave a comment with a link to your tweet and/or your twitter name and let me know if you subscribe, fan or friend us.

The winner will be chosen among the people who follow the rules, and also (if we have one) someone who has chosen the winning team.

PACE® NATIONAL LEFTOVERS DAY RECIPES

Pace® Cheesy Turkey Bean Skillet

Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cubed, cooked turkey
• 1 cup Pace® Mexican Four Cheese Salsa con Queso
• 1 can (about 15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup coarsely crumbled blue corn tortilla chips

1. Heat the turkey, queso and beans in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over
medium heat to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low. Cook
for 5 minutes or until the turkey mixture is hot and bubbling.
2. Top the turkey mixture with the tortilla chips just before serving.

Tip: You can omit the crumbled tortilla chips and serve the turkey mixture as a quesadilla filling or a warm dip.

Southwestern Turkey Chili

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
Makes: 6 servings (about 1 1/2 cups per serving)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 / 2 cup chopped celery
• 1 / 2 cup chopped red pepper
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 cups Swanson® Chicken Stock
• 2 cans (15 ounces each) great Northern beans
• 1 jar (16 ounces) Pace® Chunky Salsa
• 2 cups chopped cooked turkey
• Shredded pepper Jack cheese
• Cubed avocado

1. Heat the oil in a 4-quart saucepot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery
and pepper and cook until they’re tender. Stir in the flour and cumin and
cook for 2 minutes. Stir the stock in the saucepot. Cook and stir until the
mixture boils.
2. Stir the beans, salsa and turkey in the saucepot. Heat to a boil. Reduce the
heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes.
3. Garnish with the cheese and avocado.

Monterey Turkey Tortilla Casserole

Prep: 15 minutes
Bake: 40 minutes
Makes: 4 servings (about 1 cup each)

• 1 cup coarsely crumbled tortilla chips
• 2 cups cubed cooked turkey
• 1 can (about 15 ounces) cream-style corn
• 3 / 4 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
• 1 / 2 cup sliced pitted ripe olives
• 2 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese (about 1/2 cup)
• Chopped green or red pepper
• Tortilla chips

1. Layer the crumbled chips, turkey, corn and picante sauce in a 1-quart
casserole. Top with the olives and cheese.
2. Bake at 350°F. for 40 minutes or until the mixture is hot and bubbling. Top
with the pepper. Serve with the chips.

Picante Turkey Rolls

Prep: 10 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

• 4 flour tortillas (10-inch), warmed
• 1 / 4 cup cream cheese, softened
• 1 / 2 pound thinly sliced deli turkey breast or cooked turkey
• 1 / 2 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
• 1 large avocado, peeled, pitted and chopped (about 1 cup)

1. Spread 1 tablespoon cream cheese on each tortilla to within 1/2 inch of the edge. Top each with about 4 turkey slices, 2 tablespoons picante sauce and 1/4 cup avocado.
2. Roll up the tortillas tightly, leaving the ends open. Cut each roll in half. Serve with additional picante sauce for dipping.
To make appetizer rounds: Cut each rolled tortilla into 1/2-inch slices and arrange on a serving platter. Serve with additional picante sauce for dipping.

Pace® Mucho Queso Pizza

Prep: 15 minutes
Bake: 15 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

• 1 cup Pace® Mexican Four Cheese Salsa con Queso
• 1 prepared pizza crust (10-inch)
• 1 / 2 cup shredded cooked turkey
• 1 / 2 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves

1. Heat the oven to 400°F.
2. Spread the salsa con queso onto the pizza crust to within 1/2-inch of the edge. Top with the turkey, tomatoes, cheese and basil.
3. Bake for 15 minutes or until the salsa con queso is hot and bubbling.

Salsa Verde Turkey Wraps

Prep: 15 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

• 1 cup Pace® Salsa Verde
• 2 cups diced cooked turkey
• 1 large red pepper, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 large avocado, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 / 2 cup sour cream
• 4 flour tortillas (10-inch), warmed
• 2 cups shredded lettuce

1. Stir 1/2 cup salsa, turkey, pepper and avocado in a large bowl. Stir the remaining salsa and sour cream in a small bowl.
2. Spread 1 / 4 cup sour cream mixture onto each tortilla to within 1/2 inch of the edge. Top each with 1 cup turkey mixture and 1/2 cup lettuce. Fold the sides of the tortillas over the filling and then fold up the ends to enclose the filling. Cut each wrap in half before serving.