Salsa Verde

I promised you Salsa Verde to go with your tamales =)

WHAT YOU NEED:
A blender, or food processer, because it's not a proper Mexican kitchen without one =)
1 Lime
2 Jalapeños
1 Serrano
1 bunch fresh Cilantro *Picking really good Cilantro is easy - smell the stems in the grocery store. If it brightens up your day, that's the one you want to buy*
5-7 Tomatillos (depending on size)

About 1/2 TBSP. Sea Salt

HOW TO:

Rinse tomatillos under warm water. Cover with water in sauce pan. Bring to a boil, only a couple of minutes, until las cáscaras (the peels) start to fluff a little, and the flesh of the tomatillo starts to change color. Seriously don't leave in the pot more than 3-5 minutes. They'll be gross and mushy.
In blender, squeeze juice from the lime.
Cap jalapeños and serrano.
Seed peppers, depending on how much/little spice you want in your salsa. Serranos are hotter than jalapeños, but I tend to seed the jalapeños and not the serrano. It's just my personal taste that I like the heat from the serrano seeds and not really the extra flavor and bite of the jalapeño seeds.
Blend peppers and lime juice.
Wash cilantro really well and cut the stems off. Blend into mixture. Add salt.
When tomatillos are done cooking, rinse under cold water for a couple of minutes. Pull off las cáscaras, and toss into blender as well. Blend to your heart's content. Some people like chunky salsa. I like it ... saucy =)

DISFRUTE!!!!

Slow Cooker Carnitas with Mango Chutney

Okay, so here's "mommy brain" for ya: I just found this post saved as a draft, from April 16th!!! Haha!! I totally forgot all about it! Those of you with toddlers, you know what I'm talking about! Days, weeks, even a month or two pass, and then you go, "What was I supposed to do the other day.... Oh shoot, that was January!" Plah! (And I hear it never gets better!) Oh well, right in time for "Cinco de Mayo"! Ha*

Carnitas are typically pork, fried and then braised, or slow roasted and then chopped up and fried. I found a recipe on allrecipes.com and made it, of course completely tweaked, with beef instead. And I made mine extra S-P-I-C-Y! So spicy, in fact that I enjoyed a little of it and my husband enjoyed the rest.

I started with my crock pot - where most good food starts these days. When I put the meat on to slow roast, I peppered it up with ground anise, fresh ground black pepper, lots o' sea salt, crushed red pepper, Mexican oregano, a little too much dried garlic, and not enough dried onion! I added two organic bell peppers - one red, one yellow - sliced, and I think I threw in a couple of bay leaves for good measure ;)

When your roast is done, just let it set in its juices for a little while, to rest and also to cool enough to pull the meat. You'll want to pull it apart as opposed to just chopping it up, in my opinion - it makes it more palatable and sandwich-ready.

For the Mango Chutney, I started with the juices from the crock pot (with all those amazing spices!) in a skillet on medium-high heat and let a bit reduce at a time, adding more when it started to get thicker, adding frozen mango pieces, and more salt and black pepper along the way...

We enjoyed our carnitas on bolillo rolls (you can find at most grocers, and definitely ANY Mexican tienda), topped with a few slivers of red onion! Yum-yum!

I hope you have success with yours =) Leave me a comment!

Ajwain Butternut Curry

Ajwain is described at Penzey's as Thyme + Pepper, and that's exactly how it smelled when I was in the store last Sunday.* I was intrigued at it's smell, because, except for a tiny amount in Italian dishes, I really am not a big fan of Thyme. I read a bit about it on Wikipedia, and although there are differences (obviously), when I cooked it, it really DID smell like that wonderful spice in the store!!!

Tuesday night I was going to make a Butternut Squash Soup that I found a recipe for, and well, by now you should realize what I'm about to say... I CAN'T stick to a recipe! I ended up making a fabulous curry. Following is the recipe -- a little of what I did, and a little of what I should've done - as usual! =)

WHAT YOU NEED:
1 Butternut Squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed (considering the time of year, the one I bought was the largest my grocery store had. In summer, it might've been considered a medium... Let's say about 2 lb. after cubing)
3 TBSP. butter
Sea Salt
Thyme + Fresh Ground Black Pepper = "Ajwain" (Grind in food processor together to really blend the flavors!)
6 oz. Organic Low-Sodium Chicken Broth (or homemade is even better!)
A HOST of spices: Dried Minced Garlic, Dried Minced White Onion, Ground Anise Seeds, Parsley Flakes, 5 Dried Sanaam Peppers (if you are feeding children leave these out!), Curry (I used some sweet-mild-red-ish leftover curry we still had, out of a packet... I really couldn't tell you which one it is! Sorry!), 3 small pieces Australian Crystalized Ginger, a very small bit of Ground White Pepper
1 can of Coconut Milk (okay, there are two types in the Asian section of the grocery store... I don't know the difference, but one is thicker. It is more expensive. Buy the cheaper one, it is thinner and better in curries!!!)

HOW TO:
I really suggest fresh Butternut Squash. Frozen would just turn to mush in an instant.
Put Butternut Squash, 1 TBSP. butter, and a pinch of salt in large soup pot, on Medium heat. Stir more or less continuously. Add another TBSP. butter and pinch of salt as you see the first one has melted. Same with third... You are coating the squash with butter and salt, lightly sauteing. Do not let the butter get too brown.
Sprinkle in "Ajwain", a bit at a time and stir. (I don't measure very often, so my best guess here is... to your taste. Is it getting pretty fragrant? That's what you want!!)
Add 1/3 of Chicken Broth at a time. You are still stirring often. Let each 1/3 of broth reduce quite a bit before adding the next. (This is a little time-consuming.)
By time the chicken broth has boiled and reduced three times, the squash will be cooked through. Add the can of Coconut Milk and remainder of spices, reduce heat to low. Let simmer for a few minutes, stirring a couple of times.

Serve over Quinoa and Steamed Veggies! YUM! (SUPER healthy, cheap, and you won't miss meat!!! Did you know that Quinoa has THE most protein in the plant kingdom?)

PS - If you want to go completely vegan, use coconut oil in place of butter, and vegetable broth instead of chicken!)

SERVES: 6

COST: Around $13 ($2.16/serving)


*My mom & dad might be some of the most thoughtful and generous people alive!!! They sent me a gift card - and AMAZINGLY by God's sweet provision, a coupon came in the mail on the same day!!! So, check out my loot!

$25 goes a lonnnnnnnng way at Penzey's!

The 3 jars on top are going to my best friend. The other 3 jars I have long been coveting =)

Sanaam, in the center, was a hit in the butternut squash curry! It's Scoville Unit ranks around 40,000!!! It lit my husband on fire!!! I was not brave enough to actually take a bite out of one, but I did enjoy the heat it left in the curry =)

Seriously, four oz. of parsley was bigger than my head!!! Quite a bit of that is heading your way as well, Debby! =)

Nachoverload

My husband and I like our nachos OVERloaded! Lots of veggies, lots of beans.... You know how at Thanksgiving you always take "a little" of everything and then you have a volcanic eruption of goodness you don't know what to do with (but secretly you love it and wish you had added a few deviled eggs as well) on your plate? ... And you forgot to wear your fat pants! Well, that's nacho night at our house.

WHAT YOU NEED:

3 chicken breast, diced
1 tsp. olive oil
1/2 TBSP. butter
A boatload of spices -- ground onion, ground garlic, ground chili, cayenne, salt, black pepper, dried Mexican oregano

1/2 red onion

3 cloves garlic

1 organic red bell pepper

2 zucchini

2 large (or 3 average) jalapeños 

6 green onions
1 can of salsa verde -- unless you want to make it at home!
1 bag organic corn chips
3 cups of beans -- cooked in the crock pot that day =)
16 oz. mixed ("Mexican blend") shredded cheese

WHAT TO DO:

Soak beans overnight (I used white because that's what I had on-hand); cook all day long, with salt and dried minced white onion (Penzey's is THE best!!)

Saute diced chicken in the olive oil and butter, add spices early on.
Half-way through add the following diced veggies: red onion, garlic, bell pepper, zucchini, jalapeños, and green onions (cut in 1-2 inch pieces).
Add salsa verde at the end. You really only want it warm and mixed with the rest of the chicken and veggie mess.
Layer chips, some cheese (protects the chips a little from bean juice and salsa), beans, chicken/veggie mix, and more cheese; broil.

Ok, if you are like me, you like your nacho fixings on your chips, and actually appreciate the slightly soggy chips at the bottom. If you are like my husband, you would rather eat your nacho slop with a fresh chip out of the bag each bite... Either way, slop it how you like it on foil, on a cookie sheet, and put on the lowest rack in the oven and heat for just a couple of minutes under the broiler. **Make sure that no chips are showing - burnt corn chips are naaaasty!**

For easy clean-up, just serve your nachos on the foil on the plates!
Serve with some guacamole or sour cream on top, if desired.

COST:

At least another week's time before you fit into your jeans again...

SERVES:

Six American adults, or a nation of malnourished yoga gurus.

Did you know that nachos are named after a man named Ignacio who created the fun TexMex classic? His nickname was "Nacho".

Enchiladas

The word enchilada in Spanish means "inspiced". Not "in spice", but something can become spiced. It's a fun word, and a super fun thing with their language! They can just make up words easily, thus enabling them to express something a little more easily, more compact...ly...

One time at a Mexican restaurant here in the States my husband and I saw an item on the menu described as encebollado -- "inonioned". Cute.

Anyway, I'm going to teach you to make a REAL Enchilada. The way a real, true-blue Mexican would. In their home. Not just at a Tex-Mex restaurant! At anytime of the day, too. Enchiladas are not restricted to dinner only... As most countries around the world do not restrict meat and vegetables to dinner only either. Most people around the world don't have the luxury of eating whatever they want at any point of the day. Most people, the world over, eat what they have on hand at every meal and are grateful to keep their children nourished.

'nuff soap box! On with the food!

WHAT YOU NEED:

Sauce... leftover Mole is good =)

Corn Tortillas

Queso Quesadilla (Easy to find! If it's not at your grocery store, go to a local tienda)

If using a green sauce, top with Lettuce and Queso Fresco (ONLY use the packaged, pasteurized kind!!! Again, if not at the store, go to the tienda)

Slice Queso Quesadilla.
Fold corn tortilla in half.

Fill a saucepan or skillet with sauce.
Keep on low-medium heat.
Dip proto-quesadilla in sauce.

Fold some of the sauce over the folded tortilla.

Yep... Just like that!

Cook in sauce ONLY for a minute or two -- until sauce bubbles slightly. All you're doing is melting the cheese inside and "inspicing" the tortilla =)

It'll look like "schlopp schlopp, beautiful schlopp"... but without the cherry on top ... and it's okay if it looks messy! All Mexican food looks messy. If it actually tastes good =)

(I'm sure he really enjoys this on my blog!)

... My wonderful husband has enjoyed THREE straight meals involving Mole sauce over the past 24 hours!!!

I Promised You Mole, and Mole You Shall Have!

I'm exhausted... I made Mole today. I ignored my husband and child. I spent the entire day in the kitchen. We skipped church. But... I made Mole.

I won't lie, making Mole IS labor-intensive. When toasting the peppers, we had to turn on fans and vents, and at one point my husband and child actually left the house for a half-hour because they were coughing and gagging and my daughter's face was turning red!! In Mexico, they always have their windows open. No one has AC -- it's too expensive, and seriously, the electricity goes out too often to turn something like an AC unit on anyway! =)  So, winter in the midwest found me making Mole in a very tightly closed-up house and chile oil in the air.

Anyway, it IS worth it!!! When I tasted that Mole, it took me far away. It made my sweet adoptive Mexican family come back to me. They ate my Mole with us. (I think they would've been proud of me for making it from scratch!!) My husband, and our friend Amanda, and I ate Mole and each talked about our individual experiences in Mexico. We compared cultural notes. We brought something to life that in a sense is gone. I know that not everyone I knew a decade ago is dead. But since I almost never have contact with them, they are so far gone to me that they are only a memory and it hurts. But the sweet/tangy/spicy homeyness I brought to life made me feel close to friends again. It took me back to many a wedding, baptism, and Quinceañera.

Below are a few pictures, but I owe the recipe (as far as I ever follow a recipe) to a blog I found called "Mexico in My Kitchen". Here is the link if you want to make it, too:
http://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/2009/02/how-to-make-mole-poblanocomo-hacer-mole.html

I substituted the tomatoes with tomatillos (once again, because red tomatoes make me barf), left out the bread and added a tiny little bit of arrowroot starch (which it might have done without!), lessened the amount of almonds, and increased the amount of onions, garlic, and raisins.

Cut peppers open, removing seeds, and toast each side... but only for a minute because they burn quick!

Once you toast the peppers, grind the spices, fry the plantain, pumpkin seeds, almonds, raisins, onion, garlic, and tomatillos, blend with chicken broth and chocolate in blender, and then stew for a little bit.

In large stock pot add Mole sauce to about 12-15 chicken drumsticks, and stir AT LEAST every two minutes. Scrap the bottom of the pan because it sticks very quickly!!!

Serve with Mexican Rice and corn tortillas! (ummm, I'll write more about Mexican Rice once I master it!)

Here is my dear friend Amanda, about to dig in! She was sweet enough, as was my husband, to actually eat my rice! Ayayayay! I need work on that part of it =)

PS -- You might wonder why I tagged this post as both "peppers that don't bite" AND "spicy"... Well, it's not all that spicy like hot-spicy, but it's rich, flavorful, and might be a little spicy for the average American tongue! There is a Mexican saying that goes: "Comida sin chile no es comida", which means: "Food without spice isn't food". You could even say the emphasis is more like "Food without spice JUST isn't food", or "Food without spice isn't REAL food". Anyway, whichever way you interpret it, they are right!!! It is now my mantra.

WHAT WAS I THINKING???

I think my blog is turning into a what-not-to-do tutorial...

Spicy Granola Bars.*

Bad idea! (Even if your husband IS kind enough to say he loves it, begs you not to "waste" it by throwing it away and promises to eat it --- because, come on, you know it's going to sit on the countertop for three weeks until I decide to trash it while he's at work... And he would never notice anyway!) I think it was late at night, I was hungry, and honestly our pantry is getting pretty bare right now... Just a bad idea!

I should have seen it coming! The first batch of oats & nuts I toasted ended up as toasty as can be, and not in a good way. They ended up in the garbage can, smelling up the kitchen for a couple of days. It was a sign... Too-toasty of toasted oats is just too much toast.

WHAT YOU NEED:

2 cups rolled oats

5 oz. almonds

4 oz. dates, chopped
6 oz. honey
2 oz. grape jelly
1 TBSP. butter
pinch of sea salt
Penzey's Pumpkin Pie Spice
Penzey's Cinnamon
cayenne pepper
Ghirardelli cocoa powder
(Basically, clean out your pantry, throw it all together... But... don't call it good eats....)

HOW TO:

Heat oven to 350. Spread oats and almonds on cookie sheet lined with foil. Heat for 15 minutes, turning once halfway through.

Mix butter, honey, jelly, dates, and spices together over medium heat and bring to slight boil.
Add the dry ingredients, only mixing until no liquid is apparent.
Put mixture into well-greased 9x13 baking dish. Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes. Turn off oven, leave in for another 10-15. 

COST:

$3 + ingredients that had been sweet, wonderful Christmas presents in their original state.... =(

*This Granola Bar recipe is based off the other Granola Bar recipe I shared a few days ago, an Alton Brown recipe. I did not tag "Good Eats" on this post because, well... I blotched it horribly!!!