Warm Tomato Basil Bruschetta

I loved the way Shua made this bruschetta for our little dinner together in her cute Boston apartment. Simple, fresh and toasty. Feel free to alter the ingredients to your taste. I usually keep adding garlic and onion until my stomach begins to protest.

To make: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice the bread and spread out on a cookie sheet. In a bowl, toss the tomatoes, garlic, onion, basil. Drizzle the olive oil and toss again. Top the bread with tomato mixture, salt and pepper it to taste and bake until the edges brown.

This is my kind of comfort food.

French Baguette, sliced 1/4" thick
6 roma tomatoes, with seeds removed and diced
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 medium red onion, finely choped
A good sized bunch of fresh basil chiffonade (maybe 1/4-1/2 C)
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Baked Spinach Artichoke Dip

The amount of each ingredient is flexible. You can always add a little bit at a time. I like mine chock full of the vegetables with little creaminess. This isn't the most appetizing photo, but I always forget to snap a shot before we all dive in.

3 Tbsp mayo
1 C sour cream
1/2 - 2/3 C grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 - 2/3 C mozzarella
2 15 oz. cans of artichoke, coarsely chopped (Costco marinated or TJ's canned)
4-5 cloves of garlic, finely minced
2/3 of a 16 oz. bag of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 T lemon juice

Paprika, salt and black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In an 8x8" dish, mix all of the ingredients together except for the salt, pepper and paprika. Bake for 30 minutes or until surface is lightly browned and bubbly.

Top with a dash paprika, salt and black pepper before serving.

Serve warm with tortilla chips, crusty bread, pita, etc.

Serves 8-12

Tomato Bean Salad

Something I made up, thinking it would resemble something like Bi-Rite's bean salad. It was pretty close, I think...I'm sure their dressing is a little different. You can play with the lemon and oil, but the avocado can add quite a bit of tasty fattiness too.

1/3 C beans, soaked and cooked (for ideas, you can check out Rancho Gordo's site)
4-5 small tomatoes, cut into wedges
1/4 thinly sliced onion
1/2 avocado, cubed
4" cucumber, cubed
1 tsp lemon juice, fresh
1 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Toss all ingredients together and refrigerate to let the flavors come together. Or consume immediately.

Pao de Queijo

My favorite Brasilian breakfast food! Perfectly chewy, crusty, cheesy, and warm (usually). Oh, even when it's cold it's divinely delicious as long as it's not day old. Then, it's disgusting. Universally liked as my Jaru team can testify--Russia, Puerto Rico, Texas and California were represented in an unofficial pao de queijo study and the results were unanimous--yum.

If mochi and cheesy biscuits could have a baby, this would be him. I like to bake them at 350 degrees for the last 10 minutes so they're more biscuity on the outside. You know, for that contrast of textures I love so much.

The recipe below is adapted from a recipe from a sister in Uberlandia. All measurements are according to what it looks likes and how it feels, as is the norm with home cookin'. Joanna Yang did her best to quantify the recipe. I only adjusted it a liiiitle bit since I wasn't actually there to watch the sister make it.

Look! Joanna made them soooo perfect.

1 C water
1 C milk (whole is preferred but I used 1%)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C canola oil (she said about 80% of 1 C which made my first batch oily)
2 C mandioca flour
2-4 large eggs (depending on consistency)
1/2 C parmesan cheese
1/2 C powdered Mexican Cotija cheese

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Boil the water, milk and salt and remove from heat. Add the oil and whisk together. Remove from the heat and pour in the Mandioca flour. When cool enough to touch, mix in the eggs. This is what it looks like when it is a little too wet:

Stir in each egg and check it out. It should resemble mash potatoes, but not be super greasy. Add in the cheeses.

Oil hands and roll into 1" balls with less than 1" apart. Bake for 30 minutes. Be patient. They're hot. Let them cool on the tray.

This makes a full cookie sheet of more than 2 dozen

Callison's Seasoned Skewers

First tried Seasoned Skewers at the 2008 Fancy Food Show in San Diego. Apparently, it's the same "technology" they use to flavor dental floss. It's pretty exciting stuff. All you do is thread the skewers into your meat, wait 15 minutes and flavor is imparted! It can be pretty subtle, but a dash of coarse salt and some dipping sauce completes it.

Here, I threaded chicken thigh cubes and pan fried them without oil in a cast iron skillet then served them with a yellow curry sauce you can buy at Trader Joe's. I liked the Garlic Herb but the Ginger Mango tasted artificial.

A-Cup-A-Cup-A-Cup Dip

Anna and I can devour this rich, creamy dip in hours. Yes, this kind of eating is the stuff legends are made of.

1 C mayo (Best Foods, please)
1 C sour cream
1 C chopped green pepper (bell pepper? Anna adds 1 serrano chile pepper, minced)
1 Tbsp instant minced onion
1 Tbsp dried parsley flakes
1 tsp dried dill

Combine all the ingredients by hand and place in a 3 or 4 C bowl suitable for serving. If possible, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours for the flavors to blend or serve immediately.

Place in the center of a tray and surround with sturdy chips, crackers, and vegetables for dipping.

Makes about 3 cups

Taco Snack Mix

Try to reduce as much salt on the ingredients as you can because the seasoning packet is already pretty salty. Reminds me of a similar flavoring for the "Spicy" chips at Trader Joe's. Anna no like, but I do!

1/2 Taco Seasoning Mix Packet
a little less than 1/4 C Butter
2 C Pretzels
2 C Unsalted tortilla chips
2 C Chex (wheat is pictured here, but corn is my favorite)

Melt butter, stir in the seasoning and toss all in the seasoning.

Dolmades with Priscilla Yap

How authentic this is, is beyond my judgment. We just wanted to make something different (something a little impressive) using ingredients I have at home. I like them. Better at room temperature or cold even. Next time, I'll try it with ground beef or lamb!

3 C of any combination of cooked rice: brown sticky rice, white rice, brown rice, old rice
2 medium lemons, juice of
4 cloves of garlic
1 medium onion, diced
3 stalks of green onions, diced
4 Tbsp cilantro, chopped (or parsley and/or mint)
1/2 C of walnuts, chopped (usually it's pine nuts, slightly toasted, not minced)
Salt and pepper to taste
2-3 Tbsp olive oil

1 Jar of grape leaves (32 oz? jar will provide for about two batches of this recipe)
1/4 C chicken broth or water

Heat the pan, then oil then onion. When softened, add garlic. Allow to cool. Meanwhile, mix the rice with the green oinon, cilantro or herb(s) of your choice with the nuts and season with salt and pepper and oil. Start with 4 Tbsp of lemon juice and add more salt and lemon juice to taste, keeping in mind that the leaves will add acidity and saltiness.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. After draining the leaves, remove the stem from one leaf and lay flat on a cutting board or flat working surface. Spoon a rounded tablespoon in the middle of the leaf and roll up (like an egg roll), tucking in the sides as you roll up. Place seam side down into a 13x9x2" pan. Keep going until all the rice is used up. Add the 1/4 C of water or broth to the pan and bake for 20 minutes.

Makes about 24-28 dolmades

Two happy cooks.

Tea Smoked Chicken in Lettuce Cups

My first time smoking anything! Used jasmine rice in a metal tiered steamer like in the photo below. It was quite an experience. A little on the scary side, but really exciting seeing what it really means to smoke something. I never thought of it, but over the stove it's like dry steaming something.

Prep Time: 30 min

Inactive Prep Time: 4 hr 30 min

Cook Time: 16 min

1 tablespoon Szechuan peppercorns
1 teaspoon five-spice powder
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs
1/4 cup white rice
3 tablespoon Chinese black tea
2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons Shao-sing wine or medium-dry sherry
2 tablespoons soy sauce, preferably dark (See Cook's Note)
1 tablespoon peeled and minced fresh ginger
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 T brown sugar

5 scallions (white and green), thinly sliced
mint leaves, chiffoned (optional)
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
1/2 head iceberg lettuce
Sriracha sauce or other Asian chili sauce, to taste
Juice of 1/2 lime

Toast the Szechuan peppercorns in a dry skillet until fragrant, about 4 minutes. Cool slightly, and then crush in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle with the salt and five-spice powder until very fine. Rub seasoned salt all over the chicken thighs. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.

Bring the chicken to room temperature about 30 minutes before cooking.

Line the bottom of a wok, skillet or heavy pot with a double layer of aluminum foil. Mix the rice, tea and brown sugar together and mound on the foil. Set a steamer on top, and evenly space the chicken on the rack. Cover and cook over high heat. Hot smoke the chicken until smokey-brown colored and cooked through, about 12 minutes.

While the chicken cooks, whisk the Shao-sing wine or sherry, soy, ginger, and sesame together in a small saucepan. Bring to boil over high heat, remove from heat and steep for 5 minutes. Brush over cooked chicken.

To serve: Dice the chicken into very small pieces. Toss with the scallions and peanuts in a medium bowl. Cut the lettuce leaves into 40 squares or triangular scoops. Place a drop of Sriracha on top of each lettuce cup, and top with about 2 teaspoons of the diced chicken. Squeeze lime juice over the top, and drizzle the remaining soy-ginger sauce over the chicken. Serve.

Makes about 40 cups, from Foodnetwork.com


Can't tell, but the smoke under the lid was curling and churning in dark, threatening waves. SO FUN!

Mango-Curry Shrimp Salad in Wonton Cups

48 wonton wrappers in a package about 3x3"
Vegetable oil
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
5 teaspoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons mango chutney (mango, ginger from Trader Joe's)
3/4 teaspoon Thai green curry paste, not sauce or curry but paste.
12 ounces peeled cooked medium shrimp, coarsely chopped
1-2 stalks of celery, minced
Fresh cilantro leaves

Preheat oven to 325°F. Place wonton squares on work surface; brush both sides lightly with oil. (Or with a can of oil, spray both sides.) Press each into miniature muffin cup, oiled side down. Bake until wonton cups are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Cool completely in tins. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Remove cups from tins and store airtight at room temperature.)

Whisk mayonnaise, chopped fresh cilantro, lime juice, chutney, celery and curry paste in medium bowl to blend. Stir in shrimp. Season salad to taste with salt and pepper. (Salad can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Place wonton cups on serving platter. Spoon 1 teaspoon shrimp salad into each cup. Garnish with cilantro leaves.

Makes 48 cups, from Epicurious.com

Bacon, Leek & Cheddar Mini Quiches

You’ll need four mini muffin tins for this recipe (or two if your tins have 24 cups). If you don’t have enough muffin tins, you can assemble the quiches in batches, storing the remaining egg mixture and dough in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it. See link below for more detailed photos.

3/4 lb. bacon, cut into medium dice
3 cups medium-diced leeks, washed and drained (about 3 leeks, white and light green parts only)
1-1/4 cups half-and-half
1 cup grated extra-sharp Cheddar (4 oz.)
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
2 Tbs. chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
Cooking spray
2 1.1-lb. packages frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed according to package directions (preferably Pepperidge Farm brand)
Flour as needed for rolling out the dough

In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until browned and crispy, 6 to 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel. Pour off all but 1 to 2 Tbs. of fat in the skillet. Set the skillet over medium heat and cook the leeks, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.

While the leeks cool, combine the half-and-half, Cheddar, eggs, egg yolks, thyme, salt, pepper, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Add the cooled leeks and the bacon and stir to combine.

Assemble the mini quiches
Lightly spray four mini muffin tins (or two if your tins have two dozen cups) with cooking spray.

Working with one sheet of puff pastry dough at a time, use a floured rolling pin to roll the dough on a lightly floured work surface into a 10- by 18-inch rectangle. Stamp out 3-inch circles of dough with a cookie cutter and gently press the rounds into the mini muffin tins, making sure that each round is centered and that the dough extends up to the top of the tin. Fill each with about 1 Tbs. of filling—you can fill right to the top of the dough. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling until all the filling is used. You may not need all the dough; save leftovers for another use. You can bake the quiches immediately or freeze and bake them later (see Make-Ahead Tip, below).

To bake
Heat the oven to 400°F and position racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven. Bake the quiches, switching the position of the tins halfway through baking, until the filling is puffed and the crust is golden brown, about 20 minutes.

To Make Ahead
Unbaked quiches can be frozen for up to a month. Freeze the quiches in the muffin tins for about 2 hours, or until set. Remove them from the tins and transfer them to an airtight container, setting parchment or plastic wrap between layers, or seal them in a plastic bag. To bake, transfer the quiches back to the tins and bake immediately, without thawing. Baking time for frozen quiches will be about 30 to 35 minutes.

4 dozen mini quiches, from Finecooking.com

Spinach, Feta & Sun-Dried Tomato Phyllo Triangles

2 10-oz. packages frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
2 cups crumbled feta cheese (about 12 oz.)
3/4 cup roughly chopped fresh mint (I omitted)
1/2 cup roughly chopped sun-dried tomatoes (oil-packed and drained)
1/2 cup pitted and roughly chopped Kalamata olives
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 Tbs. chopped garlic
2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs. finely grated lemon zest
3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 1-lb. package phyllo dough (preferably a twin-pack), thawed according to package directions
1/2 lb. (1 cup) melted unsalted butter, plus more as needed for baking, unconventionally, I used a bottle spray of oil. I haven't baked them yet to see if they'll turn out as crisp and brown as the butter

Position racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and heat the oven to 375°F. In a large bowl, combine the spinach, feta, mint, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, eggs, garlic, lemon juice and zest, pepper, and salt. Mix well.

Unroll the phyllo and lay it flat on a clean, dry surface. Cover completely with plastic wrap. Working with one sheet of phyllo at a time, and keeping the rest covered with the plastic wrap to keep it from drying out, place a sheet vertically in front of you. Brush the phyllo with butter and cover with another sheet. Butter the top sheet and cut the phyllo lengthwise into equal 3-inch-wide strips. Spoon 2 tsp. of filling on the lower end of each strip as shown in the left photo below. Fold up the phyllo strips as you would a flag to create a neat triangle, being careful not to roll too tightly or the triangles will crack when baked. Transfer to a baking sheet and cover with plastic. Repeat with the rest of the phyllo and filling until you run out of filling.

Butter two sheet pans. Arrange the phyllo triangles on the prepared baking sheets in a single layer. Brush the tops of the triangles with melted butter and bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes, switching the positions of the pans halfway through baking.

Make Ahead Tips
Assembled, unbaked phyllo triangles can be frozen for up to a month. Freeze the triangles on the baking sheet. When frozen, transfer them to an airtight container, setting parchment or plastic wrap between layers if needed, and return to the freezer. Bake as directed above (do not thaw the triangles first); baking time will be 20 to 25 minutes.

Makes 6 dozen triangles, from FineCooking.com

Ham, Gruyere & Honey-Mustard Palmiers

1 sheet (about 9 oz.) frozen puff pastry, thawed
2 Tbs. honey Dijon mustard
3 oz. (about ­1 cup­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­) shredded Gruyère
1/4 cup (about 1 oz.) finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano
4 oz. very thinly sliced baked ham

Heat the over to 425°F. On a lightly floured work surface, roll the pastry to a 10x14-inch rectangle. Using the back of a spoon, spread the pastry evenly with the mustard. Sprinkle on the Gruyère and Parmigiano in an even layer.

Arrange the ham in a single, even layer, tearing or cutting pieces to fit. Lay a piece of parchment or waxed paper on top and gently roll and press with the rolling pin to compress the layers. ­Gently peel off the paper without disturbing the ham.

Cut the rectangle in half widthwise to make two 10x7-inch bands. Gently roll one long edge of a band into the center and then roll the opposite edge in so the two rolls meet in the ­middle and resemble a double scroll. Press lightly to stick the two rolls together. Repeat with the second band. (The rolls can be assembled to this point and held in the refrigerator for several hours or frozen, tightly wrapped, for up to 1 month.)

With a very sharp knife, slice each band into about 22 pieces, just under 1/2-inch each. Arrange the palmiers on two ­parchment-lined or nonstick baking sheets and bake until deep golden brown and no longer doughy in the center (break one open to be sure), 10 to 12 minutes. Be careful not to burn the ­bottoms. Let cool on a rack and serve just slightly warm or within an hour if possible.

Makes 44 palmiers, from Finecooking.com

Cobb Deviled Eggs

My own creation, I would use less blue cheese and make sure it's crumbled and added last.

12 boiled eggs, cooled and shelled and then cut in half
4 T sour cream
1 tsp hot sauce
2 tsp mustard
2 tsp mayonnaise

2 stalks of green onions, finely minced
2-3 strips of bacon, cooked, cooled, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

paprika or cayenne pepper
2 T blue cheese, crumbled crumbled!
1 roma tomato, seeded and finely chopped

Spoon all the yolks out and beat together with sour cream, hot sauce, mustard, and mayo. Stir in the remainder of the ingredients except for paprika/cayenne, the blue cheese and tomato. Spoon or pipe the yolk mixture into the egg white halves and use the last three ingredients to top.

Queso Dip

Meghan talked about this famed Texan nacho cheese dip as being her favorite and I always wondered what the difference was between nacho cheese and queso. Psst, the secret is the salsa and the sausage. Ahunna recommends spicy Jimmy Dean sausage in a bulk roll.

Velveeta (we got the standard block. Was that a pound?), cubed
1 can of Ro-tel Original salsa with diced tomatoes and green chili, I think it was 10 or 16 oz.
Sausage cooked and drained we used hot italian links
Tortilla chips

You can use more or less velveeta depending on how much cheese you want. We didn't use the whole box, but at least half. Toss all in a pot (see below) and heat on low medium heat, stirring to make sure the cheese doesn't burn until the velveeta is melted.

Romeo & Juliet from Brasil

A guava paste/jelly that is soft, sticky and syrupy sweet brought home by Wela after a trip to Brasil. Like Membrillo, except with guava instead of quince. Serve thinly sliced with cheese and drizzled with a thick, thick, thick cream. A perfect combo--like Romeo and Juliet, so they say in Brasil.

Tortilla Pizza

Sun Dried Tomato and Habanero tortillas by TJ
4 Cheese Mix- Parmesan, Asiago, Mozarella, Provolone
4 cloves of garlic, minced
Chopped Tomatoes or sun dried tomatoes jarred in oil
fresh arugula
Fresh Basil, thinly sliced

Heat olive oil in a pan. Add the red onion and cook until softened then add the garlic. Heat the tortillas on both sides in a dry pan. When you flip the tortilla for the first time, sprinkle some cheese, then some garlic/onion mixture and heat till the cheese is melted. Then top with tomatoes and basil.

Easy Roasted Garlic

Honestly, the easiest way to make roasted garlic, yet takes a lot of time. You take the whole head of garlic and place it in a small cake pan. I roasted almost 5 heads a time so if you do just one, you may not have to bake it as long. I then let it sit in a 325 degree oven for almost 2 hours, checking on it to make sure it didn't burn or get too dry. When you have an oven mitt on and squeeze it, it should give and be soft, maybe even a few cloves will fall apart a little. After you let it cool, you can peel each clove and use it in any potato dish, sandwich, salad or spread on toasted bread like above with olive oil drizzled on top. SO GOOD.

3 Cheese Pizza with Onions, Sage and Arugula

“Why a trio of cheeses? Fontina for its melting quality and nutty flavor, Gorgonzola for its biting blue punch, and Parmigiano-Reggiano for its uncanny ability to amplify other cheeses.” I’m glad Gourmet wrote that little introduction for this because I wasn’t able to find Fontina at Stater Bros. or Trader Joe’s and instead used Mozzarella—which was a bland alternative, yet had the “melting quality”.

Made for a special Mentor/Mentee time with Sherri Lin! Dough was crisp and thin yet light. Not too airy, nor doughy. Served with sliced pears and TJ salami.

Active time: 45 minutes
Start to finish: 2 ¼ hour

For dough
1 (1/4 oz.) package active dry yeast or 2 ¼ tsp
About 2 C unbleached flour
¾ C warm water (105-115 degrees)
1 tsp salt (originally 1 1/2 tsp)
1 ½ tsp extra-virgin olive oil

For topping
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
¼ lb Italian Fontina, cut into ½ inch pieces (2/3 C) OR about 1 C shredded mozzarella
2 oz Gorgonzola dolce, crumbled
½ C thinly sliced red onion (1 medium)
6 large fresh sage leaves, thinly sliced crosswise (about 1 Tbsp)
½ oz. shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano about ¼ C
¼ lb. loosely packed baby arugula (about 4 C) I used the an herb/spring mix from TJ’s but I thought a plain arugula would have been better

Make Dough
(If using a pizza stone, place it on the oven floor of a gas oven or on the lowest rack if using an electric oven and preheat oven to 500 degrees. Allow for 1 hour for the pizza stone to heat.)

Stir together yeast, 1 Tbsp flour, and ¼ C warm water in a measuring cup and let stand until mixture develops a creamy foam on surface, about 5 minutes. If mixture doesn’t foam, discard and start over with new yeast.

Stir together 1 ¼ C flour with salt in a large bowl. Add yeast mixture, oil and remaining ½ C warm water and stir until smooth. Stir in enough flour (more or less about ½ C, I used less) to make dough come away from sides of bowl. Dough will be wetter than other pizza doughs you may have made.

Knead dough on lightly floured surface with lightly floured hands (reflour hands when dough becomes too sticky) until smooth, soft and elastic, about 8 minutes. Form dough into a ball, put on a lightly floured surface, and generously dust with flour. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm draft-free place until doubled in bulk, about 1¼ hours. Dust a wooden peel or a large baking sheet without sides (I used a baking sheet with short sides with cornmeal or line with parchment paper.

*Really read this paragraph before starting: Do not punch down dough. Carefully dredge dough in a bowl of flour to coat and transfer to a dry work surface. Holding one edge of dough in the air with both hands and letting bottom just touch the work surface, carefully and quickly move hands around edge of dough (like turning a steering wheel), allowing weight of dough to stretch round to roughly 10”. Lay dough flat on peel or baking sheet. Continue to work edge of dough with your fingers, stretching it into a 14” round.

Make Topping
Brush dough with olive oil, leaving a 1” border, then scatter Fontina and Gorgonzola over dough (leaving a 1” border).

Scatter onion and sage leaves over cheese. Sprinkle the pizza with the Parmigiano-Reggiano, then line up far edge of peel with far edge of stone in oven and tilt peel, jerking it gently to start pizza moving. When edge of pizza touches stone, quickly pull back pizza.

Bake until crust is golden and cheese is bubbling, 10-12 minutes. Slide peel under pizza to remove from oven, then top with arugula.

Note: Dough can rise slowly, covered with plastic wrap (or it will dry out on top), in the refrigerator for 1 day. Bring to room temperature before using.

Makes 1 14” pizza, which serves 4-5 people, adapted from Gourmet January 2006

Black Bean & Corn Salad

Francine Hardy would make something like this to complement her Texan brisket and mashed potatoes. Oh! So good!!!!

1 15 oz. can black beans
1 15 oz. can of corn (no salt)
2 red or orange bell peppers
1/4 C chopped red onions
3 cloves of garlic, minced
a little less than 1/4 C olive oil
3 T red wine vinegar
1/3 C chopped cilantro
1 T lime
1/2 jalapeno, minced (optional)
salt and pepper to taste (but if serving with salty chips, you really should omit)

Combine all in a bowl and let it sit for at least an hour for flavors to develop. Serve with chips or as a side dish.

Serves 6-8