Welcome to Next Week’s Menu, pre-July 4th edition! The overwhelming majority of you suggested I find a way to tackle some pesky, leftover herbs, and I aim to please. This week, I have some suggestions for how to use up cilantro, the least-versatile of all the leftover herbs. Along with that, we’ll use lime and sour cream, which are often purchased with cilantro to make your taco dreams a reality. Stay tuned for more herbs in the coming weeks.
My own Chicken in Tomatillo Cilantro Sauce starts right off the bat with a bunch of cilantro. Though the recipe doesn’t call for lime and sour cream, I use them as toppings on all of my tacos, and these are no exception.
I’m going to go ahead and plug WCPA one more time with the perfect accompaniment to any Mexican dish: Pico de Gallo. Cilantro and lime join tomatoes, onions, and jalapeños in the food processor to make a wonderful salsa. The extras will keep in the fridge for at least a few days and would be perfect for Fourth of July.
Thai-inspired food is another one of my favorite ways to use up the herbs I have sitting in the fridge. I love the sound of this Thai Noodle Salad with Peanut Lime Dressing from Pinch of Yum, which uses both cilantro and lime. Search around Pinterest for other Thai salads, and I’m sure you’ll find cilantro in many of the recipes.
Baked Honey Cilantro Lime Salmon in Foil from Creme de la Crumb is another tasty looking way to finish off some of that cilantro and lime. As a bonus, this recipe is easy to make on a weeknight.
Since next week is a holiday week, I thought I’d throw in a breakfast recipe that will help you use up your sour cream. Try Edna Mae’s Sour Cream Pancakes, from The Pioneer Woman, my blogger inspiration. Note: do not use cilantro in this recipe, in case that wasn’t abundantly clear. You should have used all your cilantro by now in the first four recipes.
Ina Garten’s Easy Cranberry and Apple Cake is probably the most delicious way to use some of that extra sour cream clinging to the bottom of the container. This remains one of my favorite cakes EVER, and I’ve been known to experiment with different fruit combos (spoiler alert: they all taste good).
Happy cooking! Please share your favorite ways to use up these ingredients in the comments below.
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