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Salad Meals to Beat the Heat
In this recipe round up, I have gathered my best and most delicious summer salad meal recipes in one post, for days when it’s too hot to cook!
February 3, 2019
Pumpkin Seed Salsa
My dearly-loved pumpkin seed salsa recipe is a winter time winner - the rich, nutty pumpkin seeds enhance out-of-season tomatoes to acheive a super flavourful and eminently scoop-able appetizer.
*GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED – THANK YOU!*
Pumpkin seeds don’t often elicit the kind of fanatic devotion that, say, pine nuts or hazelnuts do. However, if you have access to really fresh ones, pumpkin seeds are AMAZING.
They have a full, rich, nutty sweetness, with a complexity of flavour that suits all kinds of recipes. They have off-the-charts health benefits. They last a long time without going rancid. And did I mention they are delicious?
We tend to snack on pumpkin seeds in nut mixes and granola, but they can be used in any sweet or savoury dish where you might use nuts (pesto, I’m talking to you). Mexicans are way ahead of us in this respect; pepitas (as they are called in Spanish) are used to enhance and garnish all kinds of foods.
My pumpkin seed salsa is a long time favourite recipe. It’s a basic fresh tomato salsa with finely chopped toasted pumpkin seeds mixed in. These add a rich, nutty flavour, and soak up some of the liquid produced by the fresh tomato and lime, helping to make the salsa more chip-scoop-friendly.
Pumpkinseed salsa a great recipe to crack out in the winter time, when the tomatoes might not be at their best – the toasted pumpkin seeds (with friends fresh lime and cilantro) cover for a slightly sad tomato.
This recipe also works will with canned tomatoes – which helps with the grocery budget.
Of course, I wholeheartedly recommend using Rancho Vignola organic pumpkin seeds. As you know, I am a huge fan of their products – the absolute freshness and quality of everything they sell, from nuts, to seeds, to dried fruit, to confections, is bar none.
As such, their pumpkin seeds are always fresh, always full of flavour, and always come in an unusual very dark green (almost black) colour that I have come to adore.
Pumpkin Seed Salsa
Pumpkin Seed Salsa is made with nutty toasted pumpkin seeds, chopped and mixed with fresh red salsa ingredients. It’s a perfect wintertime snack — a delicious taste of sunshine. This nutty, flavourful salsa is a delight in the winter months.
Ingredients
160 ml (⅔ cup) raw green pumpkin seeds
2 large cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 large shallot, peeled and chopped
1 small jalapeno, seeded and chopped
30 ml (2 Tb) extra-virgin olive oil
4 ml (¾ tsp) sea salt
2.5 ml (½ tsp) white sugar
45 ml (3 Tb) fresh lime juice
2.5 ml (½ tsp) chipotle puree (I make this myself using canned chipotle, pureed with a hand blender)
½ bunch of cilantro, leaves and soft stems included
750 ml (3 cups) roughly chopped ripe tomatoes (go for the pricier small vine-ripened tomatoes in the winter months)
Instructions
- Toast the pumpkin seeds in your toaster oven until most of the seeds pop, but make sure they don’t burn. Stir once or twice while the seeds are cooking. They will take from 5 to 8 minutes to toast. Set aside to cool.
- In a food processor, puree everything except pumpkin seeds and tomatoes. Add the pumpkin seeds and process until the pumpkin seeds are finely ground, but not totally to a puree. Add all the tomatoes with their juice and process again until the tomatoes are chopped small. Taste for salt, sugar and lime – you may need to add more of each.
- The finished salsa will be on the smooth side, a bit runny, but still scoopable with a tortilla chip. And most importantly, it will be delicious.
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If I should win Ron would like to come as well. He had to miss your last China Town class. He is willing to pay full price.
Ooh another great way to use my pumpkin seeds from Rancho! Sounds like a fantastic night out!
Would love to try your Moroccan class! At 50% is even better!
This class sounds amazing! I have always wanted to learn how to cook Moroccan food and to have a Indian-Moroccan sounds sounds so cool. I hope I am one of the people chosen for the class. Thank you Rancho Vignola and chef Heidi Fink for offering this discount.
Love the recipe, thank you so much
I’m stoked to be a part of your cohort Heidi! Thanks for all you bring to keep the food profile high in Vic!