:: Cheesy Salsa Baked Tortilla Chips

Well I would just like to say thank you for all the support and well wishes during the lead up to the release of "My Baby's Waiting", the good news is that we went number 1 in Ireland last week, so all the hard work payed off!  I spent last week in LA for a little break in the sun, and totally gorged on a mix of completely unhealthy American food and some over the top healthy salads, so I am glad to be back to some sort of food normality.  Settling back in today before life takes over, so here's a tasty recipe!

Cheesy Salsa Baked Tortilla Chips

There are a few little entertaining dishes I always have up my sleeve to impress with minimum effort. These tasty baked tortilla chips are just one of them- made in a matter of minutes they are perfect for serving with drinks. Feel free to experiment trying different types of cheese here but more often than not I use cheddar- I also sometimes add some sliced red onion to give them an extra kick.

Cheddar cheese.
Salsa sauce.
Plain tortilla chips.

Preheat the oven to 200oC.
Place as many tortilla chips as you can on a large baking sheet. Spoon a teaspoon full of salsa on each tortilla chip and top with a little grated cheese. Place in the oven for 6-8 minutes or until the cheese goes a nice golden brown. Serve straight away and enjoy!

:: Red Cabbage and Carrot Coleslaw

Now I don't know about you but when it comes to coleslaw I am extremely picky and only homemade will do. There is absolutely nothing worse than the soggy, boring, mayonaise laden coleslaws available from supermarkets which have been sitting in the salad bar all day long. Don't get me wrong, some places can get it right, but they are few and far between. It is extremely inexpensive and takes only a few minutes to make a really tasty coleslaw at home, plus you can add whatever you want to it! This is my plain coleslaw recipe but feel free to experiment with it, add your own ingredients and ideas!

Red Cabbage and Carrot Coleslaw

I have a handy dandy Magimix food processor and it makes this recipe so simple and takes only minutes to prepare. If you don't have one, it's no big deal but it makes this easy recipe a little more time consuming. This crunchy coleslaw is the perfect accompaniment to any meat or poultry dish.

Serves 4-6 people
3 carrots, grated
1/2 head of red cabbage, finely chopped or coarsely grated
3 spring onions, finely chopped
3 tablespoon of mayonaisse
1 tablespoon of wholegrain mustard
A good pinch of ground black pepper

Add all the vegetables to a large mixing bowl. Add the wholegrain mustard, ground black pepper and mayonaisse and using a large spoon combine all the ingredients until the carrot and cabbage is evenly coated. Transfer to a large serving dish, cover with cling film and place in the fridge until you are ready to serve. The coleslaw should last 2-3 days kept in the fridge.

:: Warm Chorizo, Red Onion and Baby Potato Salad

There are things in this world that excite me, things which in many ways do not excite the majority of the rest of world.  One of these little things happened the other day while I was on a walk around the cliffs in Howth- I came across a kind of mini crate sitting right in the middle of my path.  Now you see to a normal person, this would just be a bit of wood and they would casually pass by without thinking twice.  Not me though, I was turning it over inspecting the cracks, the colours and the rusty nails!  I'm not crazy I swear!  It's just I have a little bit of an obsession with photography props and this perfectly formed little piece wood makes an ideal platform to shoot food pictures upon.  I dragged the mini crate home, despite objections from Sofie, and as you can see from the photo's here I think you'll agree it was well worth it- it gives a great rustic feel to the shots!

Warm Chorizo, Red Onion and Baby Potato Salad

I'm totally in love with this dish at the moment, its a perfect summer garden dinner.  I normally just serve this as a side dish but you can beef it up by adding a few eggs to the dish and baking them until cooked.  I can't tell you tell you just how tasty this little recipe is, you will just have to try it!

Serves 4
Approximately 16 baby potatoes.
300g of chorizo.
2 red onions, finely sliced.
Juice of 1/2 lemon.
A good pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Add the potatoes to a pot and cover with water.  Place over a high heat and bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 10-12 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft when poked with a fork.  Remove from the heat and drain.  Place a large frying pan over and medium high heat and add the chorizo, you shouldn't need any oil.  Fry the chorizo slices for 2-3 minutes until they are really red and crispy.  Remove the pan from the heat and squeeze over the juice of half a lemon.  With the back of a fork or a whisk, combine the chorizo and lemon juices.  Add the red onion to the pan and stir through.  Finally chop the potatoes into bitesize pieces and add to the pan gently tossing so that all the ingredients are combined.  Season with sea salt and black pepper and serve warm as a tasty side dish.

:: Shameless Plug: Please Buy Industry's Debut Single "My Baby's Waiting"!

A quick break from the normal foodie proceedings here on The Good Mood Food Blog, just mention that I'm a member of brand new pop band, Industry and we have just released our debut single "My Baby's Waiting" today Friday the 19th of June.

I would really appreciate any help you can give, tell your friends, family, neighbours, cats all about us, and if there are any fellow bloggers who would be willing to stick up a little piece about us that would be amazing!

We really need as many people to buy the single as possible, and if you can spare 99 cent, you can get your hands on it! 

Ok so here are the all important details- 5 easy steps to getting your very own copy of "My Baby's Waiting":

Step 1. Text 'music 3365' to 57501 on your mobile!
Step 2. Recieve a text with an activation code!
Step 3. Go to www.downloadmusic.ie and enter your phone number and pin code!
Step 4. DOWNLOAD "MY BABY'S WAITING"!!!
Step 5. Enjoy and spread the word!

*Please note the song is only available to Irish residents, but you can follow the band on www.industryofficial.com*

Here is the video to the single: