Tag Archives: refreshing

Watermelon Black Bean Salsa

Posted on May 25, 2012 by Veronica

For the Holiday Recipe Club‘s Memorial Day blog hop, the secret ingredients to choose from were watermelon, beer, and pork. I think I’m on a salsa kick because my last recipe for the HRC on Cinco de Mayo was for Fresh Mild Salsa, and the first thing I thought of when I saw that watermelon was one of the ingredients for Memorial Day was the salsa recipe my hair dresser gave me back in February. I have been craving it ever since I read the recipe, imagining how wonderful it must taste, and I was trying to wait until watermelon were truly in season here in Wichita to try it (that happens in August for us), but with the added incentive of the Holiday Recipe Club blog hop, I knew the time had come.

This stuff is the bomb, yo! The only change I made was to add in some lime juice, which I feel was essential to achieve the salsa flavor and balance the sweetness of the watermelon. The beans, which may seem strange, are somehow a perfect fit with the flavors & textures. I could eat this as a meal, it is so good! It is juicy, and seriously addictive. It is, however, best if eaten within four hours of making it as the watermelon leaks more and more water and becomes mushy after a while. To serve this at your Memorial day barbecue or another gathering, just have the watermelon prepped in a separate container than the other ingredients, then stir them all together and refrigerate an hour before serving and you’ll have a bowl of salsa perfection ready to wow your guests.

Watermelon Black Bean Salsa

Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture

2 cups diced seedless watermelon
3/4 cup finely diced sweet onion
3/4 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely diced
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
Juice from 1/2 a lime
2 teaspoons brown sugar, packed
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
Tortilla chips

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients but the chips. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Drain if necessary before serving. Serve with chips within 2-3 hours of making.

Yield: 3-1/2 cups.

Veronica’s Note: I advise wearing latex gloves when handling and dicing the jalapenos, as the oils can burn your skin.

Recipe source: Jennifer L.

A big thank you to Erin for creating this club! I’m having a lot of fun with it. If you’d like to join or find out more, check out the Holiday Recipe Club website. And don’t forget to check out the other Memorial Day recipes by clicking the linky frog below.

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Posted in Condiments & ETC., Holiday Recipe Club, Lighter Fare, Snacks & Appetizers and tagged cool, easy, Holiday Recipe Club, Memorial day, picnic, refreshing, watermelon black bean salsa. Bookmark the permalink.

Watermelon & Tomato Salad

Posted on June 7, 2010 by Veronica

I got this recipe from my friend, Pia, who has a wonderful blog with tons of ethnic recipes, particularly Filipino since she is from the Philippines. Now, I know what you were thinking when you read the title of this post. You’re wrong! Watermelons and tomatoes CAN be put together in a salad–and it is delicious! This salad is sweet, salty, acidic, tangy, and is so refreshing. You will love it.

Watermelon & Tomato Salad
Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture

5 cups seedless watermelon, cut into cubes
1/2 lb. tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium red onion, thinly julienned
freshly ground black pepper
chopped cilantro for garnish

In a large bowl mix chopped watermelon and tomatoes. Stir in sugar and salt and place in fridge to marinate for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, mix in red wine vinegar, olive oil and onions. Keep chilled.

When ready to serve add freshly ground black pepper and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Serves 8.

Nutritional Info (per serving): 106 calories; 7 g fat; 11 g carb; 1 g fiber; 1 g protein

Recipe source: Inato lang Filipino Cuisine and More

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Posted in Lighter Fare, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegetarian & Vegan and tagged easy, recipe, refreshing, salad, summer, tomato, watermelon. Bookmark the permalink.

Blueberry Lemon Trifle

Posted on May 13, 2009 by Veronica

We have several diabetics in our church group, with whom we joined last Saturday for a barbecue in the countryside. To accommodate their sugar abstinence, I brought two sugar-free desserts: rugelach & blueberry lemon trifle. Both desserts were enjoyed by diabetics & non-diabetics alike, but this is the one I will continue making for myself (Den can fend for himself–the trifle is mine!) because it’s low in calories and it tastes FABULOUS!

If you prefer to make this with full-fat and full-sugar (oooooh, I bet that would be even better!), follow the suggestions in parentheses.

Blueberry Lemon Trifle

1 sugar-free angel food cake (or 1 pound cake)
1 lemon, juiced
1 1/2 cups skim milk (or whole milk)
1 (8-oz) tub fat-free sour cream (or regular sour cream)
1 (8-oz) tub sugar-free cool-whip, divided (or regular Cool Whip/real whipped cream)
2 packages fat-free/sugar-free instant lemon pudding (or regular instant lemon pudding)
3 pints blueberries, rinsed & dried

Cut the cake into cubes and lay them out on a cookie sheet, then sprinkle the lemon juice evenly over them (I actually dipped my clean fingers into the juice & dabbed the juice on–you could use a pastry brush too) & carefully toss. Don’t mash the cake–keep it as pretty as possible. This won’t be as difficult with pound cake b/c it’s not as delicate so you don’t have to be as careful. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk the milk, sour cream & half of the cool whip until smooth, then beat in the pudding mixes until it starts to thicken.

Set a few blueberries aside for garnish. Put 1/3 of the cake cubes in the bottom of a trifle bowl, sprinkle on 1/3 of the blueberries (1 pint), then spread 1/3 of the pudding mixture over it. Repeat two more times, then spread the remaining Cool Whip over the top & garnish with the reserved blueberries. Chill until ready to serve–can be made up to two days in advance–or just sit it down on the table and dig in.