I first shared my Fresh Salsa recipe a couple of years ago.  It is just so delicious.  This past weekend, we had our in-town kids and grandkids over for dinner and I made the first batch of the summer.  The smell and the taste were perfect for the evening and everyone really chowed down on it.  I decided to update this post from 2 years ago in case you missed it! Trust me, you don't want to miss it! 

     But, no matter what, they taste delicious.  By the way, the best way to solve the blossom-end rot is to add calcium to your soil!
      We were having another family get together a couple of weekends ago and I had enough tomatoes to make some fresh salsa.  Man, it is so good! I like making my own salsa because then I can make it to the lack of heat level that my husband and I like yet have a lot of flavor!  Here is how I do it:
     

        If you don't have a garden, this salsa is still great with store bought tomatoes! And, it goes fast, so be prepared to make it again and again! I hope you enjoy it! 

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     Have you ever eaten something that is really good,but still needs a certain "Je ne sais quoi" to push it right over the top to heavenly deliciousness?  Well, now I "sais quoi" or in other words, I know what that something is!  That something is pickled onions! 
     Don't be shocked! If you were like me, when I was young I could take or leave onions.  They were strong tasting, made my eyes water when I chopped them, and gave me bad breath.  But, as my taste buds have matured, I have learned that a burger isn't a burger without a slice of onion and if I refrigerate my onions, the eye burning isn't such a problem.  (Also, I can brush my teeth and use mouthwash to cure the breath issue.) So many casseroles and other recipes just wouldn't taste right without that onion flavor added to them. So, needless to say, I have come to love the onion.  
     While Maddy and I were at Disneyland recently, we discovered a really good restaurant there called The Red Rose Tavern. (You can read about it in this post.) They serve a Beef Poutine in that place that is so delicious.  I have been working on a copy cat recipe for it! But, before I share the entire recipe, I wanted to share with you the thing that topped it off so perfectly, and that is pickled onions! 

     I know that pickled onions have been around for awhile, but it was on the Poutine that I first noticed them.  They seemed to lift the dish to a higher level.  Since then, I have noticed them being used in so many places! They are often on sandwiches at sandwich shops .  They are terrific on salads, on burgers, or even in tacos. I haven't tried them on hot dogs yet, but I can only imagine how good they would taste! They are so easy to make that they are now becoming a staple condiment in my refrigerator.  Here is how I make them: 

Our Favorite Pickled Onions

     I hope that you give these a try! They are easy, economical and the perfect accompaniment for so many dishes!  
     Now that you have the Pickled Onion Recipe, you are ready to get the rest of the Poutine recipe! Check back for that soon! 

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Hey! Alicia here with another recipe from a country of my ancestry. This month we're doing Denmark. Have you tried æbleskivers yet? They were so good and fun to make and eat.

This week we made smørrebrød, the Danish open faced sandwich.

In my research of Danish food, I kept coming across smørrebrød, an open faced sandwich that is basically the national lunch of Denmark. Believed to have started in the late 19th century when factory workers would pile leftovers onto a dense rye bread (rugbrød) to bring for lunch. From there a tradition was born, and it comes with some rules.

Smørrebrød, which literally translates to butter bread, always starts off with a rectangle of Danish rye. Rugbrød is dense and full of seeds and cracked wheat unlike what you normally think of rye. This makes using it for a regular sandwich too much. It's also difficult to find in the US so I had to opt for traditional rye. Next time I might try using a hearty wheat bread as a substitute, because when I tried to cut my rye into the traditional rectangle, it didn't work very well.

Once your foundation is set, you apply a hearty layer of butter. now that your bread is butter you have smørrebrød, and now you can add different toppings.  Toppings should be added with thinner toppings at the bottom and chunkier on top. If you're eating more than one smørrebrød, you should always start with the herring (the traditional starting fish of smørrebrød) and other seafood, move onto other meats next and end with your cheese smørrebrød. You don't use your hands to pick up the sandwich, rather you must use utensils to enjoy the smørrebrød.  

One chef I watched on Youtube said with a good smørrebrød you shouldn't be able to see the bread.

We didn't have herring, but I did get baby shrimp which I combined with hardboiled eggs and a delicious dill mayo. Our next course was roast beef with pickles, red onions, and prepared horseradish. Last we finished up with a cheese, apple, and slivered almond smørrebrød. The cheese we used was Grand Cru. It tastes similar to gruyere but is cheaper. I also found Danish bleu cheese, which I thought was serendipitous. But it is really strong so I don't recommend using as much as I did.

I love these smørrebrød! They were so delicious and filling. I love the artistry that goes into their preparation (though I think I went a bit overboard with the shrimp). I don't have any recipes for you but there are tons all over the internet. I say get creative and have fun with your smørrebrød
                                                                         toppings! Let us know if you give it a try!