Leftovers Night...

   I hate to let food go to waste. Cardinal sin in my book. Even vegetable scraps go to the compost pile. When I lived in Nicaragua for a year, I would give my neighbor the scraps for his pig. 
   Recently, I took my husband back to my old Nicaraguan neighborhood for our  honeymoon (San Juan del Sur is located in a half moon-shaped bay on the Pacific ocean - not a bad honeymoon at all!) and the neighborhood kids walked up without a word TO HUG ME! I said, "Do you remember me?" And one girl said, "Yes, you used to give us machihue ("Mah-chee-weh" - meaning, slop) for our pig."  I couldn't believe it. Two years after I had left, and they remembered me for that!! Ha...
   Anywho, Wednesday night, I barbecued a bunch of chicken legs, and we had 5 or six left, and I had just made some Roasted Green Pepper Salsa (below), so I thought of an interesting twist on tacos:

BBQ Chicken Tacos

about 6 chicken legs, or 1/2 pound chicken, pieced (previously BBQed and refrigerated)
1 large green tomato, diced
1 cup shredded purple cabbage
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried cilantro
1 tsp chili powder
(If you want more heat, add 1-2 tsp Louisiana hot sauce)

In a skillet, warm chicken with extra bbq sauce. Add green tomato and let cook on medium heat until it softens, about ten minutes. Add cabbage and herbs. Serve with heated corn tortillas. (I heat mine with a little butter in a skillet; brown for about a minute on both sides.) And a dollop of sour cream!

Roasted Green Pepper Salsa

6-7 green bell peppers
four cloves garlic
olive oil
salt

Place peppers, halved or quartered, on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and salt. Bake at 425 F for 15 minutes. Turn slices over and bake another five minutes.

2 medium sized onions, sauteed
3 medium sized tomatoes
big handful of fresh cilantro
1 whole jalapeno, seeded and diced
juice of 3 limes
1-2 tsp cumin
salt

Peel skins off of peppers and place in food processor or blender with all other ingredients. Let refrigerate at least a few hours until chilled completely.