A daily series, Connect! Unite! Act! seeks to create face-to-face networks in each congressional district. Groups regularly socialize but also get out the vote, support candidates and engage in other local political actions that help our progressive movement grow and exert influence on the powers-that-be. Visit us at Daily Kos every morning at 7:30 A.M. Pacific Time to see how you can get involved. The comment thread is fun and light-hearted, but we're serious about moving the progressive political agenda forward.
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What's Your Favorite Salsa ?
Mine is Pico de Gallo, about which more later, but I suspect for many it will be Sriracha. This stuff is all the rage, I've never seen a salsa get so popular so fast, and without advertising. There's a cool little documentary out about this L.A. phenomenon that I discovered in my research. Here's the trailer:
OK, so Sriracha is a hot sauce, more of a condiment that you put on a finished dish to spice it up than a salsa that is integral to the preparation of the dish. Think of Huevos Rancheros. This wouldn't be the same dish at all without the Salsa Ranchera over it, but a shot or two of hot sauce is optional. Here's what's in my fridge right now:
On the left we have Salsa Casera, home-style sauce, from the giant Herdez corporation. This is a cooked salsa. In the olden days, when Mexican salsas were not available in your local supermarket, Mexican cooks made their own. I've messed around with all manner of cooked salsas but mine never taste as good, so I use store-bought. The Herdez red is what I use for Huevos Rancheros and Arroz con Pollo. The one with the custom label is 50/50 Herdez green and Santa Cruz green. The Herdez is too mild for me and the Santa Cruz too hot, so I mix 'em. I put that salsa on bean burros and sometimes we use it on Chimichangas. The next ones over are picante, or hot, sauces. All hot sauces are made of puréed chiles and vinegar, they differ in flavor depending on which chiles and spices are used. When I was young, again, before you could find Mexican sauces, most people, even Hispanics, used Tabasco sauce as their hot sauce, it was the most common one. I keep some Louisiana-style sauce around for certain dishes, though not Tabasco brand. Jacques Pépin puts a shot of Tabasco in his Hollandaise. The next one over is Salsa Huichol. This salsa is from the Mexican state of Nayarít and is made with Cascabél chiles, really good on seafood cocktails. Poblano's Salsa Ranchero is the hot sauce I use most often. It's made here in Tucson and I just love the stuff. They vary the heat in their salsas by using more or less Habanero chiles in the blend. They have one called Mexican Hot Sauce that'll really make your forehead sweat. Next is the aforementioned Santa Cruz green. Santa Cruz chili products are made in Tumacacori, just south of Tucson. Some people in SoCal were offended by the smell of the Sriracha plant in Irwindale, called it a public nuisance, but I was at the Santa Cruz factory once when they were doing a batch and I loved it. Búfalo chipotle sauce is another product of the Herdez company. It was the first chipotle sauce on the market in the US. Finally, there's Castillo's Salsa Picante Sonora. This stuff is in every Mexican restaurant in town. It's made in Hermosillo, Sonora and is a little less vinegary than Poblano's salsas.
My all-time favorite salsa is one I make myself: Pico de Gallo, or Rooster's Beak. It's not a cooked sauce, it's a salsa crudo or salsa fresca, a raw or fresh sauce. In English we'd probably call it a relish rather than a sauce. It can be as simple as chopped tomatoes and white onions with a splash of vinegar and it's on every table with every meal in northern Mexico. Pico de Gallo is essential for a torta, taco or Sonoran hot dog, and it's my favorite thing to put over a grilled Rib-eye or New York strip. Here's what's in it:
My procedure is as follows: First chop up a tomato or two. This will determine the quantity of salsa you'll end up with. Will one tomato do, or do you need two, or three ? Put the chopped tomatoes in a bowl and add a little salt to get the juices flowing. Next, add chopped onion. I've seen it done with green onions and white onions, I use purple ones. How much onion ? Put some in and sniff it to see if you've got enough. I do a lot of cooking with my nose. Press in some garlic. It doesn't take much, I used two tomatoes and one clove of garlic for this batch. Now a squeeze of lime juice and a dash of white wine vinegar. Sniff after each addition. For the chiles, I use serranos. I remove the seeds and veins and mince them. Sniff to see if you have enough. Finally, throw in some chopped cilantro. It's an essential ingredient, if you don't like cilantro, you don't like Pico de Gallo. Here's what it looks like:
Alright then, there's my treatise on salsas and the recipe for the best Pico de Gallo on the planet. What's new with y'all ? Got any links to share and ...
What's Your Favorite Salsa ?
Latest Updates on Regional Meet-Up News Can Be Found Below the Orange Group Hug.
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Our team is here to provide support and guidance to new and existing volunteer leaders of each regional and state group, helping them with recruiting, organizing and executing social and action events.
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THINK GLOBALLY, ACT LOCALLY
by Thinking Fella ♥ for Four Corners Kossacks
On Saturday, November 8th, 2014, the Four Corners Kossacks met to have a beverage or two, lament our electoral losses, cheer our wins, get updates on races still ongoing, listen to past local election history, learn more about each other, and plot our future strategies.
L-R: Thinking Fella, Matt S., (McLachlan campaign manager) red moon dog, nzanne, Gary Norton, Wally White, (termed-out former La Plata County Commissioner & long-time Dailykos lurker) and Jeff H.
Please visit Thinking Fella's diary for more photos! Enjoy! You can still REC it. You can join Four Corners Kossacks by sending a Kosmail to Thinking Fella.
by John Crapper ♥ for Seattle and Puget Sound Kossacks
Four days after the mid-term elections Seattle & Puget Sound Kossacks had lunch with Representative Joe Fitzgibbon, WA 34th, Chair of the Environment Committee and serving on the Finance, Transportation and Local Government Committees.
Special thanks goes to bleeding blue for making this all possible!
Invited attendees: Marcee Stone-Vegich - Chair of the 34th LD & Ted Barker Vice Chair, Robin Everett - Washington State's Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign Coordinator and Mary Manous with Weldon DeBusk both on the development team creating the Cascadia Climate Action Calendar which compiles monthly the events and actions of all major environmental groups in the Puget Sound Area.
My take-away as leader of Seattle & Puget Sound Kossacks from this meeting. Political reality can't be changed. We must deal with it as best we can. We must also support those fighting for climate sanity as best we can. But when it comes to climate change we cannot afford to wait on politics to be "right" to get something done. We can't afford to just chip away at the edges. We need to pursue the most effective path possible to make climate sanity a reality. Under current circumstances politics may not be that path in the next two years in Washington State.
Instead it will be the Climate Action Hub. And in my neck of the woods it will be promoting the Cascadia Climate Calendar and urging people to get involved.
Please visit
John Crapper's diary for more photos! Enjoy! You can still REC it. You can join
Seattle and Puget Sound Kossacks by sending a Kosmail to
John Crapper.
by cooper888 ♥ for Sacramento Kossacks
We heard from navajo and Meteor Blades about the initiative by Daily Kos to have active Kossack groups in each of the state capitals. DK is looking for engaged Kossack's ready to roll up their sleeves and participate in many different types of activism/advocacy. For example, delivering petitions to the state capitol, participating in various protests, marches, rally's at the capitol, etc. As Meteor Blades pointed out this won't happen over night and is a long term strategy but I think if we all take the lead in our respective states we can make this dream happen sooner than DK leadership expects.
L-R: Front row: Sychotic1, tgypsy, tb92, trevizolga, Mrs. side pocket. Second row: Arundsdel (sp?), Laurel in CA, Kestrel, Meteor Blades. Third row: Kestrel's two friends, smileycreek, paradise50, Dave. Back row: Clif, Mr. Arundsdel, Neil, cooper888, side pocket, Left foot forward, got mooned & Nate
Please visit cooper888's diary for many MORE photos! Enjoy! You can still REC it. You can join Sacramento Kossacks by sending a Kosmail to cooper888.
Event Organizers! Please contact wink from Netrootsradio.com by KosMail to schedule airtime with them to live broadcast the date of your Event. Wink & Justice will then promote it on The After Show radio program!
Wednesday, December 10th
Colorado COmmunity Meet-up with Drinking Liberally
TIME: 7:00 PM
LOCATION: Three Dogs Tavern
32nd & Julian • Denver
ORGANIZER: Send Leftcandid a kosmail to attend
RSVPs:
1. Leftcandid
2.
3.
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Maybees:
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Latest diary: DENVER: Caffeinating & Drinking Liberally, December Editions COming Right Up!
Wednesday, December 10th
Kansas Kossacks Meet-up Focused on Johnton County, What's Next?
TIME: 7:00 PM
LOCATION: Overland Park Doubletree Hotel
10100 College Boulevard • Overland Park
ORGANIZER: Send tmservo433 a kosmail to attend
RSVPs:
1. tmservo433
2. glitterscale
3. Choisie
4.
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Maybees:
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Latest diary: Overland Park, KS Kossack Meetup December 10
Thursday, December 11th
Kansas Kossacks Meet-up Focused on McPherson County, What's Next?
TIME: 7:00 PM
LOCATION: Deerfield Estates Clubhouse
816 Clubhouse Dr • McPherson
ORGANIZER: Send tmservo433 a kosmail to attend
RSVPs:
1. tmservo433
2. CWinebrenner
3. sandzen
4.
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Maybees:
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Latest diary: Connect! Unite! Act! Event, December 11 McPherson County Kansas
Saturday, December 13th
SF Kossacks Holiday Party at Daily Kos HQ
The usual Pot Luck drill
TIME: 6:00 PM
LOCATION: Daily Kos HQ
Address given privately by kosmail • Berkeley
Near Ashby BART
ORGANIZER: Send navajo a kosmail to attend
- POTLUCK SIGNUP -
HQ will be providing the main course of our buffet:
• White bean sausage cassoulet
• Marinated chicken skewers
Vegetarian options:
• Butternut squash with farro, parmesan, spinach and onion
• Ratatouille with polenta squares
Please volunteer for beverages, side dishes & desserts needed below.
Beverages:
20 bottles of wine [20 complete (navajo, smileycreek, enhydra lutris, glescagal, side pocket, skywriter, cooper888, maggiejean)]
16 six-packs of beer [11 complete (paradise50, 714day, side pocket, jotter, skywriter, Steven Payne)]
8 six-packs soft drinks [8 complete (linkage)]
4 six-packs non-corn syrup soft drinks [0 complete]
4 six-packs diet drinks [0 complete]
6 six-packs bottles of water [2 complete (sfbob, maggiejean)]
Appetizers:
8 appetizers, anything goes here. Whatcha' got? [4 complete (jforests, boatsie, side pocket, Steven Payne)]
Side Dishes:
6 green salads needed, each to feed 10 [6 complete (jforests, Lorikeet, ceebee7, remembrance, simplify, cooper888)]
4 (10-12 pcs) dinner roll sets, plus butter cubes [1 complete (kimoconnor)]
Desserts:
6 hand-held desserts (dozen each) [4 complete (syd, norm, gmats, jpmassar)]
70 paper plates [jakedog42 & susans]
70 dessert plates [jakedog42 & susans]
70 appetizer plates [jakedog42 & susans]
140 cocktail napkins [jakedog42 & susans]
70 dinner napkins [jakedog42 & susans]
100 plastic forks [jakedog42 & susans]
70 plastic knives [jakedog42 & susans]
100 clear plastic beverage cups [jakedog42 & susans]
RSVPs:
1. Markos
2. Will Rockafellow
3. Susan Gardner
4. Meteor Blades
5. Faith Gardner & Roxie!
6. navajo - 4 bottles red wine
7. side pocket* - 2 six-pks beer, 2 bottles of wine, pesto-stuffed mushrooms
8. Mrs. side pocket*
9. smileycreek - 1 bottle red, 1 white wine
10. paradise50 - 1 six-pks beer
11. remembrance* - gobi aloo, vegetarian
12. Glen The Plumber* - apparently, nothing...
13. TLO*
14. jakedog42* - plates, cups, napkins & utensils
15. edrie
16. dharmasyd* - brownies
17. catilinus
18. boatsie - Cowgirl Creamery cheeses & crackers
19. liberated spaces
20. citisven
21. kimoconnor* - dinner rolls & butter
22. susans* - plates, cups, napkins & utensils
23. maggiejean* - biblical water & wine
24. 714day* - 3 six-pks of beer
25. Steven Payne - 2 six-pks of beer
26. scaboni - appetizer
27. skywriter* - 1 six-pk of beer, 1 bottle of wine
28. jpmassar - dessert
29. jotter* - case of IPA
30. aha aha*
31. jeremybloom
32. norm* - sugar-free cake
33. Lorikeet* - vege salad
34. cooper888* - 2 bottles of wine + cooler of ice
35. got mooned* - Mixed Greens w/ Grapes, Pears, Prosciutto, Honey ToastedWalnuts & Gorgonzola w/ Raspberry vinaigrette
36. Hunter*
37. elfling*
38. Cassia
39. Friend of elfling
40. Friend of elfling
41. Friend of elfling
42. Friend of elfling
43. tmservo433
44. Simplify* - kale salad
45. jforests* - greek salad, cheese ball appetizer/crackers
46. jforests SO and baby girl
47. Brian82
48. ceebee7* - green salad
49. Elisa +Ari & Eli
50. jglass
51. jglass's wife + 2 sons (6,9)
52. Walter + toddler
53. Denise
54. Denise's teen
55. Michaela
56. enhydra lutris* - 3 bottles wine
57. enhydra lutris's SO
58. Bonnie
59. gmats* - brownies/cookies
60. linkage - soft drinks
61. sfbob - bottled water
62. Kerry
63. Kerry's partner
Maybees:
Thinking Fella
LaughingPlanet*
Mark
LinSea
*address given
Sunday, December 28th
Koscadia Meet-up with navajo & Pipe Ceremony with Ojibwa to Bless Quilts
TIME: 2:00 PM
LOCATION: Private home
[Kosmail Sara R for the address] • Portland
ORGANIZER: Send Sara R to attend
RSVPs:
1. navajo
2. Ojibwa
3. Sara R
4. winglion
5. Angie in WA State
6. loggersbrat
7. llbear
8. Drewid
9. also mom of 5
10. watercarrier4diogenes
11. ozsea1
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Maybees:
exlrrp
quill
pdxteacher
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Latest diary: Koscadia Meet Up 12/28 -- special guests navajo and Ojibwa
Saturday & Sunday, January 17-18, 2015
Dkos Asheville 24-hour Meet-up
This is what community is about; sharing, giving, creating together. And this is what being a progressive is about; working for social, economic, and environmental justice.
Each day we start from where we are now; and we move forward from here. -davehouck
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...we have built ourselves a network of like minded brothers and sisters who are in this fight for life. A place we can come to find inspiration, power, solace and community.
-randallt |
TIME: 1:00 pm Saturday till 1:00 pm Sunday
LOCATION: Crown Plaza Resort Asheville
One Resort Drive • Asheville
ORGANIZER: Send randallt a kosmail to attend
RSVPs:
1. randallt
2. davehouck
3. Joieau
4. Gordon20024
5. SteelerGrrl
6. SteelerGuy
7. LamontCranston
8. Otteray Scribe
9.
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Maybees:
Joy of Fishes
IamGumby
smiley7
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Latest diary: DKos Asheville: Open Thread
navajo maintains the above event list. Kosmail her if you have any diaries
about your event or if you have changes or additions.
EVERYONE is welcome, tell us what you're working on,
share your show and tell, vent, whatever you want.
This is an open thread. Nothing is off topic.