Black Bean Salsa

2 cans black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can corn, drained (or equivalent fresh)
5-6 small tomatoes (I use the campari tomatoes from costco!!)
1 -2 avocados, cut up
1/2 of red onion, chopped
1/4 cup + cilantro, chopped
3 T. lime juice(I just squeeze about 2 limes over it)
2 T. red wine vinegar (or balsamic)
2 T. olive oil
1 tsp. salt

Cut up veggies, then mix dressing & pour it over. This keeps good for several days. And it makes a big batch. You can substitute a can of black beans for garbanzo beans for a little bit more crunch if you like. You can grill chicken and turn this into a salad if you like. Or just eat it as salsa, either way-- I make this constantly.

Pomegranate Salsa

I made this a while ago for the group, but I never posted it. It is one of my top two salsas! I know it isn't really pomegranate season at all, but I thought I'd post it anyways.
1 large pomegranate--seeded
5-6 Roma tomatoes--diced
1 small lime or lemon
3-4 avocados --diced
1/2- 1 c. red onion --diced
1 tsp. Tabasco sauce or other hot suace
1 tsp. Accent (optional)
Seed the pomegranate, cut up avocados & tomatoes into smaller chunks. Chop up red onion. Mix it together and then squeeze the juice of lime all over it. Add additional 3 items & mix together once more. Serve with tortilla chips & enjoy!

Habanero Salsa (recipe from New Mexico State University)

This is a salsa recipe for home canning. The Habanero adds a citrus like flavor to the salsa...and heat! It makes 16-18 pints

7 qt peeled,cored,chopped paste tomatoes (Roma)
4 cups seeded,chopped long green chiles
5 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped,seeded,Hot peppers (Habanero,Jalapeno,Yellow wax)
3 Tbsp oregano leaves*
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro*
2 cups bottled lemon juice
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp black pepper
2 Tbsp ground cumin*

Combine all ingredients except cumin,oregano,and cilanro in a large pot and bring to a boil, stirring frequently, then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add spices and simmer for another 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Ladle hot salsa into pint jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process in a boiling water canner: 15 min. at 0-1,000 ft. altitude; 20 min. at 1,001-6,000 ft, 25 minutes above 6,000 ft.

This recipe works best with paste tomatoes. Slicing tomatoes require a much longer cooking time to achieve a desirable consistency.

The only changes you can safely make in this recipe is to substitute bottled lemon juice for vinegar and to decrease the amount of spices and herbs. Do not alter the proportions of vegetables to acid and tomatoes because it might make the salsa unsafe.

*optional

Mango Salsa

Okay, this is not really a side dish, but we like it whenever we make any mexican dishes. I don't know how long it actually keeps in the fridge, because it never lasts more than two days at our house.

8 vine ripened tomatoes (or a mix of hot house and vine ripened ones)
1 white onion
1 avocado
2 mangos
1 bunch cilantro
2 limes, juiced
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 jalapeno (or spicier pepper if you so choose)
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 Tbsp cumin
1 tsp seasoned pepper
salt to taste

Chop it all up and stir together. If it sits for an hour before you serve it, the flavors mesh better, but it is darn good freshly chopped as well. You can also add orange or yellow bell peppers if you want more color.

Cranberry Salsa

I finally got this recipe from my aunt. It is SO yummy! When she served it at a Christmas party two years ago, I wanted to grab the plate and hide in a back room until I had eaten it all. hee hee.

1 – 12 oz bag fresh Cranberries, rinsed, drained, and finely diced (in a food processor or blender)
¼ cup green onion, finely sliced
2 small jalapenos peppers, seeded, finely diced
½ cup sugar
¼ cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
2 T fresh ginger, finely grated
2 T fresh lemon juice

2 - 8 oz packages cream cheese

Mix first seven ingredients together. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (This is important!).

Spoon over cream cheese brick and serve with Wheat Thins or Ritz ers.

Avocado & Pomegranate Salsa

1 Large pomegranate - seeded
3-4 avocadoes - diced
5-6 Roma tomatoes - diced
1/2 c. red onion - diced
1 small lime or lemon - the juice
1 tsp. Tabasco hot sauce or any other hot sauce
1 tsp. Accent (optional)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Seed Pomegranate, cut up avocadoes & tomatoes into smaller chunks. Chop up red onion. Mix togeter and then squeeze the juice of the lime or lemon over it all, add additional three items and then mix. Serve with Tortilla Chips & ENJOY!

This is a very festive looking dip for the holidays, all the green and red look great on the table and my friends and family always ask for it during the holidays.

Note: Pomegranates are in season usually from October through December.