Cafe Rio Salads

Ingredients:
Tortillas (large, burrito size)
Crispy tortilla strips (like those skinny chips)
Guacamole
Sour Cream
Pico de Gallo
Tomatillo Dressing
Lettuce (I use Romaine, then shred it into strips)
Shredded cheese (Cheddar or Fiesta mix work well)
Chicken
Lime Rice
Corn Salsa

Directions:
Make above dishes as explained in previous posts (click on links above).
In a shallow, round, tin pan (like a pie crust pan, but with vertical sides instead of slanted), lay your warm tortilla. Then add shredded cheese (or add before warming up tortilla so the cheese will be melted). Then add rice, chicken, corn salsa, and lettuce. Then add remaining ingredients as desired. Dressing should be last.

Prep Time: Okay, honestly, it took me about 3 hours to make all this stuff on the same day. But it's so good and the left-overs can last for a long time. The other idea is to have a dinner party & then assign each person/couple one of the big dishes.

Source: My sister Erin

Variations: We turned this into burritos last week because I forgot to buy lettuce. The crispy tortilla strips aren't necessary, but they sure make it taste like the original salad.

Marcos' Rating: 9

Guacamole

Ingredients:
1 tomato, peeled, seeded, chopped into small pieces
2 Tbsp chopped green chili
1 Tbsp lime juice
2 large avocados, peeled & chopped
1 clove garlic, well mashed
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1 tsp salt

Directions:
Blend all ingredients in blender to a rough puree. Or mash by hand and mix well.

Prep Time: 10-15 mins

Source: My mom

Variations: I'm really lazy so I leave out the onion & green chili. And I don't peel the tomato either.

Marcos' Rating: n/a (Doesn't eat this)

Tomatillo Dressing

Ingredients:
1 pkg dry ranch dressing mix
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup mayo
1 or 2 tomatillos, finely chopped
1 clove garlic
1/3 bunch cilantro, finely chopped
1 Tbsp lime juice

Directions:
Shake/mix well & store at room temperature before serving.

Prep Time: maybe 3 minutes

Source: My sister Erin

Variations: I just put in 1 tomatillo

Marcos' Rating: 10

Pico de Gallo

Ingredients:
4 tomatoes, seeded & finely chopped
1 white onion, finely chopped
1 bunch cilantro
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Directions:
Add all ingredients together & serve fresh.

Prep Time: at least 10 minutes of chopping (much less if I had a Magic Bullet)

Source: My sister Erin

Variations: Again, add amounts to taste. And I don't have a garlic press so I just use garlic powder (1/4 tsp = 1 clove). It still tastes great!

Marcos' Rating: 9

Corn Salsa

Ingredients:
4 cups frozen corn
4 fresh tomatoes, seeded & chopped
1 purple onion, finely chopped
2 diced avocados
2 cans black beans, rinsed & drained
1 can black eyed peas
cilantro, chopped, to taste
4-5 limes, juiced
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar

Directions:
Let corn thaw in bowl--don't cook it.
Add all ingredients together.
Add lime juice & spices to taste

Prep Time: At least a half hour due to chopping, seeding, & rinsing

Source: My sister Erin

Variations: You can increase or decrease amounts as desired. I only put in half the onion.
When eating as left-overs, you'll probably have to dig out all the avocados the second day because they turn brown.

Marcos' Rating: 7

Lime Rice

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp butter
3 cups long grain rice
1 yellow onion, chipped into small pieces
4 cloves garlic
6 2/3 cups water
8 tsp chicken bouillon
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 tsp cumin
2 small cans diced green chilies
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp lime juice

Directions:
In small saucepan, saute butter, onion, and garlic.
In large pan, bring water to a boil. Add bouillon, cilantro, cumin, chilies, lime juice, and salt.
Add onion, garlic, & rice.
Reduce heat & simmer for 30 mins.

Prep Time: chopping time (depends on how good your knife is) + saute time (about 5 mins)

Source: My sister Erin

Variations: I usually don't put in the whole yellow onion just because I don't like a lot of onion in my food. Also, this last time I only used about a third of large bunch of cilantro.

Marcos' Rating: 8

Cafe Rio Salad Chicken

Ingredients:
5 lbs boneless chicken
1 small Zesty Italian Dressing
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp cumin
3 cloves garlic

Directions:
Add all to crockpot. Cook on low, 5-7 hrs. Shred & let sit in juices until serving.

Prep Time: 2 minutes tops

Source: My sister Erin

Variations: I use frozen chicken so there's quite a bit of juice. And I never put in 5 lbs. I usually put in about 2-3 lbs worth but I still use the same measurements for the rest of the ingredients.

Marcos' Rating: 8 when by itself, 8.5-9 in the salad

No Bake Double Good Dessert

Ingredients:
Chocolate sandwich cookies (Oreos), crushed
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
12 oz. frozen whipped topping (Cool Whip), thawed
1/4 cup melted butter

Directions:
Crush cookies, reserve about 1/4 cup.
Add melted butter to crushed cookies and press to 9x13 pan.
Cover and put in freezer while preparing everything else.
Beat together softened cream cheese and powdered sugar.
Add peanut butter.
Fold in whipped topping.
Spread on top of crushed cookies.
Sprinkle with left-over cookies and drizzle on chocolate syrup as desired.
Freeze 1-2 hours.
Thaw 10-15 minutes before serving.

Prep Time: about 10 minutes (less if cream cheese is already softened)

Source: Allrecipes.com (click here for original recipe, picture, customer ratings, and suggestions)

Variations: You can add more or less chocolate and peanut butter for taste. Also, I didn't crush the cookies very well because I like bigger chunks.

Marcos' Rating: N/A (he doesn't like peanut butter so he didn't taste this)