By Laura McAlister
Journal Editor
When entering Lori Sours’ Mountain Brook home, it’s obvious this is one all about family and entertaining.
The formal dining room table can seat at least 15, and the kitchen is a warm, open space where Lori said she loves spending time preparing meals for family and friends.
While Lori is quick to say she’s not a chef, she can cook. And when it comes to her secret for entertaining, it all goes back to family.
Lori, the only girl in a family of four boys, grew up in New Mexico. There, her family would meet weekly around the dining table for large Sunday suppers. Sometimes the menu was Italian – her mother is Italian – and often it was authentic Southwestern cuisine.
When she left her home state, she missed the fresh salsa served so often at the dinner table, as did her brother, Mark Coffman. After months of searching for a recipe to replicate the salsa they grew up with, Mark finally found one that met his expectations and asked his sister for assistance in bottling and distributing it.
At the time Lori was adjusting to a new life in Atlanta with her husband David and daughter Kathryn. She reluctantly agreed.
“At that point I was just kind of sick of hearing him talk about it,” she said. “So I said I would help.”
In 2008, Lori and Mark started Salsa Senorita with a medium salsa. Although the siblings operate the business out of their homes on opposite ends of the country – Mark lives in Los Angeles and Lori moved to Mountain Brook about two and half years ago — they now have four different varieties of the salsa, which is stocked in close to 20 stores in three states, including Alabama. Recently a distributor, International Wines of Birmingham, picked up the brand.
Lori said the secret to their salsa, and what makes it authentic, is the ratio of tomatoes to peppers and onions – the three main ingredients.
“This isn’t a real tomato-y salsa,” she said. “We don’t use any tomato sauce or puree. It’s all equal parts, and all the ingredients are fresh. That’s what makes it authentic Southwestern style. This salsa is really like a jar of veggies.”
Lori uses it in almost anything when entertaining. In fact, she prefers it to the condiments most Southerners consider staples, like ketchup.
“Every recipe I see that uses ketchup, I replace it with salsa,” she said. “I love spicy food, and salsa also has a lot less sugar than ketchup, so it’s really better for you.”
Most of the Southwestern cuisine Lori prepares for family and friends is quite healthy, unlike some of the cheese-smothered concoctions found in many American-Mexican restaurants.
It’s also easy and affordable to entertain with, she said. If friends come by on the fly, Lori said she can quickly chop up an avocado and add some garlic and few tablespoons of Salsa Senorita for an easy yet tasty guacamole. She sprays flour tortillas with a little cooking spray, sprinkles them with cumin and chili powder and then bakes them in the oven to serve as chips with the spread.
“I use the big tortillas,” she said. “Then I’ll get cookie cutters and cut out chips. I found these pumpkins, which is fun for fall and Halloween.
“You can also make these sweet. Instead of chili powder and cumin, sprinkle them with sugar and cinnamon and bake for a few minutes at 350. It’s really easy, and it’s healthy.”
Easy, healthy and fresh are key to Lori when she’s cooking.
Some of her go-to meals, especially in the fall and winter months, are black bean chili and tortilla soup.
Her black bean chili can be served with or without meat. In addition to her salsa and canned black beans, she adds fresh seasonal vegetables like bell peppers and squash. Her family prefers a little kielbasa in the soup, but Lori said it’s just as good without.
During the holidays, Lori said her family celebrates with the traditional turkey on Thanksgiving, but the day after, it’s always Southwestern. She said her tortilla soup makes it easy. She just replaces the typical chicken with leftover turkey, and of course this recipe is flavored with her salsa. Scraps of flour tortilla are stirred in as a thickening agent, she said.
All her Southwestern dishes are served up with garnishes of lime, shredded cheese, avocado and Salsa Senorita.
Even though Lori may not be a chef in the technical sense – she actually has an MBA in marketing – she has certainly shown family and friends that she can cook.
“I just love to cook, especially when I have time,” she said. “I love finding shortcuts for the recipes I grew up with, and I love spicy food, so I love using salsa in my recipes.”
For more about Salsa Senorita or recipes from Lori, visit www.salsasenorita.com.
