Southwestern and Mexican foods are the "hottest" thing going these days.

Whether you're interested in appetizers and dips such as salsas, guacamole and pico de gallo, main dishes like enchiladas, green chili stew and posole, drinks like margaritas and sangria or just how to make tortillas, you can find great recipes for each if you know where to look. We'll try to help you!

1) Peel, pit and mash 2 or 3 avacados (don't worry about a few small lumps - I like it that way).

2) Add 1/2 cup salsa (Step up a notch, the avacado will cool it off. If you usually eat mild, use medium. If you usually eat medium, use hot).

3) Add 2 T. of lemon juice to keep it from getting brown too quickly. Mix it together, chill (if there's time) and serve.

4) We usually make our own salsa. There is a great salsa recipe in the first link below.

More recipes below, keep scrolling down.

I N G R E D I E N T S:

2 cans Cream of Chicken Soup

1 cup Picante Sauce

1 can (4.5 oz. to 6 oz.) green chili peppers (more or less to your taste)

1 t chili powder

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

2 cups shredded cheese (monterey jack or "taco blend")

10 taco sized flour tortillas, warmed

1 medium tomato, chopped

1 green onion, sliced

I N S T R U C T I O N S (rolled)

MIX soup, picante sauce, green chili peppers and chili powder to form picante sauce mixture

MIX 1 cup of the above picante sauce mixture, chicken and cheese

SPREAD about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll up and place seam-side down in 9" X 13" shallow baking dish. Pour remaining picante sauce mixture over enchiladas.

BAKE at 350ºF for 40 min. or until hot. Top with tomato and onion.

I N S T R U C T I O N S (New Mexican style)

MIX soup, picante sauce, green chili peppers, chili powder, chicken

LAYER create a layer of tortillas on the bottom of a 9" X 13" shallow baking dish. Add a layer of the above chicken and sauce mixture, then a layer of cheese. Repeat until tortillas are gone. Make certain you end with a final layer of cheese.

BAKE at 350ºF for 40 min. or until hot. Top with tomato and onion.

Hint: You can adjust this recipe (zesty to mild) by increasing or decreasing the amount of green chili (chile)peppers and/or chicken to your taste.

Serves 6-8

I N G R E D I E N T S:

1 Box "Jiffy" Corn Muffin Mix

1/2 t. chili powder

3 jalapeno peppers diced (remove stems, seeds and veins(more or less to your taste)

1/2 small red pepper diced<br />

I N S T R U C T I O N S (Mexican style)

PREPARE Jiffy mix per package instructions adding the extra ingredients (peppers and chili powder)with the rest of the wet ingredients.

BAKE per package instructions. </p>

I N S T R U C T I O N S (New Mexican style)

SUBSTITUTE 1 small can of diced green chilis (3 to 4.5 oz) for the jalapenos and follow the rest of the instructions above.

Hint: You can adjust this recipe by increasing or decreasing the amount of jalapenos, chili powder and/or green chilis to your taste. The red pepper is mostly for color.