Ch-ch-ch- Chai!

A while back, I received sets of cocktail, chai, and recipe dice from a company called Leafcutter Designs. The general idea is that you roll the dice and create a cocktail, chai, or recipe based on what you roll. It's a great way of brainstorming.

And it's a lot of fun, too. And tasty.

I'll admit that I don't follow the dice every single time - I mean, no one's looking, so if I roll an ingredient I don't have, I don't use it. Or I might tip one over now and then to get an ingredient I like better.

And pretty soon I'm going to cross out "arugula" on the recipe dice and maybe change it to endive or radicchio.

This time, I decided to roll the chai dice. I was in the mood for chai and didn't want to look up a recipe. I figured that the dice would lead me to some good flavors.

The funny part was when I rolled the dice and saw that I rolled black tea, I had no idea if I had any plain black tea.

I have a LOT of different teas, but most are mixed flavors, many are herbal, and some are green. I dug through my box 'o tea and through the random packets, and I found one black tea teabag. Just one.

But it was enough to make a single glass of chai and that was all I wanted.

The thing about the dice is that while you roll ingredients, you don't roll amounts, so two people could roll exactly the same thing and end up with completely different things.

Even with chai, where there are some pretty specific flavors that are expected, there can be a lot of variations. For example, I used a dried ginger product instead of fresh, and I used vanilla extract instead of a vanilla bean. And I used a whole cinnamon stick, but I could have opted for ground.

The "milk" die says milk on all sides, but I could have made my chai with almond milk or soy milk or any other milk. And I made a hot chai. I could have made a cold drink with chai flavors, too.

I liked this version. I might make it again. Or, you know, just roll the dice and see what happens the next time.

Chai

1 cup milk
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 green cardamom pods
1/8 teaspoon dry ginger bits
5 coriander seeds
1 cinnamon stick

Put all of the ingredients except the cinnamon stick in a small saucepan and heat gently.

You could also heat the milk in the microwave in the mug you're going to use, but keep in mind that it tends to foam up, and you risk having it foam and spill out of the mug if you don't watch it carefully.

Let the spices steep in the milk for a minute or two. Go ahead and taste it and see if it's strong enough. If not, let it steep longer. If you steep so long that the drink cools off too much, just re-warm it.

Hey, we're having fun here. There's no wrong way to do this.

Put the cinnamon stick in the mug you'll use. If you want a stronger cinnamon flavor, you could also let it steep with the rest of the spices. Your drink, your choice. I liked the idea of using it as a stir stick, so that's what I did.

Strain the milk into the mug. Serve.

Note: I got the dice at no cost to me from Leafcutter Designs for the purpose of a review. I already wrote about them here, but. I continue to use them because they're fun. You'll probably see them used here again.

Fresh Tomatillo Salsa

Tomatoes are one of the things that I look forward to every summer - the winter ones just aren't that good. But tomatillos are also very much a summer fruit. It's not that they're not as tasty in winter - it's that they're hard to find.

Tomatillos can be used raw or cooked, just like tomatoes, but my favorite way to use them is in raw salsas, to take advantage of the wonderful fresh flavor and the lively green color. They also make a great cooked sauce for tacos or enchiladas.

This fresh sauce is great with chips, but I also like it with eggs. Or on tacos. Or on cooked meats. I might even have used is to add some flavor to some cottage cheese. But I'm not sure I really want to admit that.

Speaking of cheese, though, a little smear of cream cheese on a cracker, topped with a bit of salsa, would be a great appetizer or snack.

The easy way to make this salsa is in a food processor or blender, pulsing to chop the vegetables finely and evenly, without making it too smooth. Well, unless you want a smooth salsa. I don't judge. You can also dice it all with your favorite knife.

Tomatillo Salsa
Makes about 1 quart

5 large tomatillos (about 1 1/4 pounds)
1 medium onion, peeled
1 small purple* bell pepper
1/4 cup pickled** sliced jalapeno peppers
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
Juice of one lime
Several generous grinds of black pepper
1/2 teaspoon of Garlic Gold*** or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Kernels from 1 ear cooked corn

Cut the tomatillos, onion, and bell pepper into chunks and add them to your food processor or blender along with the jalapenos, salt, lime juice, pepper, and garlic gold.

Pulse until you have small pieces. Add the corn and pulse a few more times.

Taste and adjust seasonings, if desired.

Transfer to a storage container. This can be used immediately, but I like it better after it has had  a little time to rest and for the flavors to mingle.

* I used a purple bell pepper because I wanted to add an unusual color to the salsa, but any color will do. If you don't have a fresh bell pepper lurking around, you could also use a few pieces of jarred, fire-roasted red pepper.

** You can use fresh jalapeno, if you like. Two will be fine. Leave the seeds in if you want the salsa spicier, or take the seeds out if you want a milder salsa.

*** You can find Garlic Gold with the rest of the dried spices or online. It's dried crunchy granules that are milder and less harsh than garlic powder.

Tuna in the Style of Lobster Roll

I grew up eating canned tuna, and it was pretty much either a tuna salad sandwich or tuna noodle casserole.

And the tuna in the can was pretty much always the same, too. I don't know if that was because mom purposely bought the same tuna every time, whether all the brands were that similar, or whether there weren't a lot of choices at the time.

So when the folks at Wild Planet Foods offered to send me some of their canned tuna, I was pretty sure I would like it. I didn't dislike the tuna I'd been eating for decades, so I didn't expect this one to be very different.

When I opened the first can from Wild Tuna, I was pleasantly surprised at the quality. It looked a whole heck of a lot better than what I was used to.

Since then, I've used a few different cans that I got from Wild Planet - every one they sent was different - and I've liked all of them so far. Because the quality was better than the average canned tuna, I decided that it deserved better treatment in a sandwich.

Instead of making a mixed, mashed and combined tuna salad that was heavy with mayonnaise, I left the tuna in larger chunks, and dressed it lightly with the mayonnaise.

Tuna in the Style of Lobster Roll

1 tablespoon diced onion
2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish or diced sweet pickle
1 large pimento-stuffed green olive, diced
2 tablespoons mayonnaise (or as desired)
1 5-ounce can Wild Planet tuna, drained

Combine the onion, relish, green olive and mayonnaise in a small bowl. Stir to combine. Add the tuna and mix gently to coat the tuna without breaking it up too much.

This makes enough for two hearty sandwiches. Lobster rolls are typically served on hot dog buns, but this is also great on any sandwich bread you like. Lettuce and tomato are nice additions, but it's great without anything added.

This isn't just for sandwiches, though. It would be good as a salad on top of greens, or scooped onto half of an avocado.

About Wild Planet

Mercury is a big concern in tuna, and the folks at Wild Planet have figured out (after a lot of testing) that smaller, younger tuna caught near the surface are safer than larger, older, deep-dwelling tuna - so they've been buying pole- and line-caught younger fish since the company was founded in 2001.

Besides tuna, the company also sells a variety of other seafood in cans, pouches, and jars as well as canned roasted chicken.

For more information, check out Wild Planet Foods online.

I received tuna at no cost to me. I wasn't required to create a recipe.