I will be the first to admit that homemade Mexican food has always been a bit intimidating for me. Not because I didn't feel up for a challenge but more so for the fact that I just don’t have the time to immerse myself in a day long cooking extravaganza just to put a plate of food on the table! Most Mexican style recipes I’ve come across are accompanied by a large list of hard to find ingredients and recipes for sauces and add ins that are required to make the original recipe! I’d find myself halfway through reading the directions before I closed the book and focused my attention on a task less daunting. I created this recipe in hopes of limiting the amount of Mexican take out my family was ordering while still being able to create something delicious and satisfying for my family to enjoy on a weeknight. I will admit that this recipe comes with a long list of ingredients, most of which you probably already have on hand, and quite a few steps but if you follow the order they are written, you can have this ready to serve in about 40 minutes. Not too shabby for a hearty weeknight dinner! Serves 4 For the Chicken 1 lb. Skinless Boneless Chicken Breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes 1 T. Olive Oil or Canola Oil 2 tsp. Cocoa Powder 1 tsp. Cumin 1 tsp. Coriander 1 tsp. Dried Oregano 1 tsp. Garlic Salt 1/2 tsp. Chipotle Chili Powder (1 tsp if you like a bit more spice) 1/2 tsp. Salt 1/4 tsp. Cinnamon For the Rice 1 Cup Basmati Rice, rinsed and drained 1 1/2 Cups Chicken Broth 1 T Tomato Pasta 1 T Butter 1/2 tsp Salt Additional Ingredients 1 Red Bell Pepper, medium dice 1 Onion, medium dice 2 Garlic Cloves, minced 1/2 cup Chicken Broth 1 Can Black Beans, rinsed and drained 1/4 Cup Chopped Fresh Cilantro 3 T Olive Oil or Canola Oil, separated Cilantro, Avocado, Lime and Sour Cream (for Serving) In a small bowl combine the cocoa powder through cinnamon to create the spice mixture. Add the chopped chicken, olive oil and spice mixture to a medium size bowl and toss well until the chicken is completely coated. Set aside on the counter and start the rice. For the rice, add the rice, chicken broth, tomato paste, butter and salt to a medium size sauce pan. Bring the rice to a boil and then cover with a tight-fitting lid and reduce to a simmer. Simmer on low heat for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat after 20 minutes (if using an electric burner, move the pot to a cool spot on your stove top) and let sit in the pot for an additional 10 minutes without lifting the lid. After 10 minutes, fluff the rice with a fork. While the rice cooks, heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat with 2 T olive oil. Once the oil is hot and shimmering add the chopped onion. Sauté for about 3 minutes until the onions begins to appear translucent then add the bell pepper. Continue to sauté for another 5 minutes until the vegetable start to take on a bit of color and become soft. Be careful not to let them get too dark, stir them frequently as they cook (hence the word sauté!) Next, add the minced garlic and continue to stir until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Transfer the onion and pepper mixture to a separate bowl and add the remaining 1 T of olive oil to the Dutch oven. Once the oil is hot, add the spiced chicken in an even layer to the bottom of the Dutch oven and let in sit for a few minutes before stirring. This allows the chicken to develop a bit of a crust. After a few minutes stir the chicken to allow the other side to crisp up a bit. Once the chicken is fully cooked, about 5 minutes in total, return the onion mixture to the Dutch oven. Add the chicken broth to the pan and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to get up those tasty little charred bits. Add the black beans and simmer the whole mixture on medium low heat for about 3 minutes, until the chicken broth has reduced by half. Remove from the heat and stir in the cooked rice and chopped cilantro. Fill a few bowls with heaping spoonfuls of the rice mixture and top with a big squeeze of fresh lime juice (try not to skip the lime as it brightens the dish and adds a ton of flavor), additional fresh cilantro, avocado and sour cream! Delish!
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Pasta is my ultimate comfort food. There is just something about a big bowl of noodles covered in a thick, rich sauce that warms me to my core. On weekends, I will sometimes spend all day laboring over a big pot of Bolognese or "Sunday" sauce but I don't have as much free time these days so I decided to create a version that was easy to pull together but didn't lack that slow cooked flavor. My original inspiration for this recipe came from a tomato sauce recipe I discovered in Food52's Genius Recipes by Kristen Miglore. It's a simple sauce of tomatoes, butter and onions that takes literally almost zero effort to whip together and delivers a delicious result that can be used on just about anything. I tweaked their version a bit and added meatballs to the simmering sauce to create a version that can be made on a week night when you have a little extra time. I hope you enjoy! Serves 4 Easy Tomato Sauce 1 28 Ounce Can of Whole San Marzano Tomatoes 5 T Butter 1 Medium Onion, Sliced 1 T Honey ½ tsp Salt ¼ tsp Ground Cinnamon Meatballs 1/2 lb. Lean Ground Beef 1/2 lb. ground pork 1 Large Egg 1/3 Cup Whole Milk 1 Cup fresh ground day old white bread crumbs (I give mine a spin in my food processor) ½ Cup Parmigiano Cheese, ground (I grate my cheese in the food processor until it looks like coarse sand) 1 T Chopped Fresh Parsley 1 Large Garlic Clove minced fine 1/8 tsp Fresh Grated Nutmeg ½ tsp Salt Fresh Ground Pepper to taste 2 T Olive Oil Rigatoni, cooked to package directions. Grated Parmigiano or Pecorino Cheese for serving. In a Dutch oven, add the tomatoes, butter, onion, cinnamon, salt and honey. Heat until the sauce begins to simmer and the butter has melted. Cover and continue to simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. You can prepare the meatballs while the sauce cooks. After 30 minutes, the onions should be tender. Add the sauce to a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Return the sauce to the pot and continue to simmer. Add the ground meat to a medium size mixing bowl. Whisk together the milk and eggs and add to the beef. Add the bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, garlic, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Using your hands, mix the ingredients together until they are well combined but be careful to not over mix or your meatballs will be tough. Gently press the meat mixture into the bowl and make a cross using your hands into the top of the meat to divide it into 4 equal portions. Take each quarter of meat and roll it into two equal size meatballs. Continue with the rest of the mixture until you have 8 meatballs in total. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, fry the meatballs for 3-4 minutes until a crispy, brown crust forms. Flip the meatballs and repeat on the other side. Remove the meatballs from the oil and drain on a plate lined with a paper towel for a minute. Add the meatballs to the sauce, cover and cook for an additional 15-20 minutes at a simmer until the meatballs are cooked through. I usually cook my pasta while I wait for the meatballs to finish cooking. Spoon the pasta into shallow bowls and top with two meatballs and a ladle full of sauce. Grate fresh Pecorino or Parmigiana over the top and enjoy! When I lived in Philadelphia, my husband and I would frequently wander around town stopping at local restaurants to nibble at bar snacks and have a cocktail or two. My favorite drink to order was the classic aviation but to my surprise, I always had difficult time finding a bartender who could whip this delicious drink together. I decided to prefect the recipe at home so that I could make this awesome cocktail whenever I wanted. I really love the floral notes this cocktail delivers...and the punch it gives isn't so bad either! Be careful, these will sneak up on you! Makes 2 Cocktails 4 ounces of Hendricks Gin 1 ounce Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur 1/2 ounce Creme De Violette 1 1/2 ounces Meyer Lemon Juice (sub regular lemon juice if you can't find Meyer lemons) 2 Luxardo Maraschino Cocktail Cherries Add the cherries to two coupe glasses. Fill a shaker 3/4 way with ice. Add the gin through lemon juice and shake for 10 seconds. Strain into the coupe glasses. Cheers! I originally discovered these tasty cookies from my aunt who makes them every year in the fall. She very kindly passed along her recipe to me and I've made a few slight adjustments to create a delicious cake like cookie. You will quickly discover that these are highly addictive! You can never eat just one! Enjoy! Makes 2 Dozen Cookies 1 Cup Butter at room temperature 1/2 Cup Sugar 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar 1 Large Egg 1 Cup Pumpkin Puree 1 tsp Vanilla Extract 3 Cups Flour 2 tsp Baking Soda 1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon 1 tsp Kosher Salt 1/4 tsp Nutmeg 1 bag of Premium White Chocolate Chips Preheat your over to 350 degrees Using a standing mixer, beat together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrap down the sides of the bowl and add the egg, pumpkin and vanilla. Continue to mix on medium-low speed until well combined, scrapping down the sides of the bowl as needed, about 2 more minutes. The mixture will appear a bit curdled, that's OK, it will come together when you add the dry ingredients. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients with the mixer running on low, 1/3 at a time, until just combined. Be careful to not over mix the dough. Add the chips and give the dough one last mix. Using a cookie scoop, scoop the dough onto parchment lined baking sheets, about two inches between each cookie and bake for 15-20 minutes, they should be slightly browned on top. Cool on a wire rack and store in an air tight container for up to 5 days. Every holiday season this breakfast makes a regular appearance around my house. It's perfect to serve for a crowd because it takes little effort, you can plan ahead and its freaking delicious. Another reason I really love this recipe is that its incredibly versatile to suit anyone's taste. Feel free to play around with the flavor combinations. Maybe blueberry and vanilla, chocolate and hazelnut, bananas and honey?! The options are endless! I really hope this family tradition makes a regular appearance around your breakfast table as well. Serves 6 Butter for greasing the baking dish 10 Large Eggs 1 Cup Whole Milk 1 ¾ Cup Heavy Cream 1/3 Cup Sugar 1/3 Cup Maple Syrup 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract 1 ½ teaspoons Cinnamon ½ teaspoon Salt 1 Cup Apple, peeled and diced ½ Cup Walnuts, chopped 1 Large Loaf of day old Challah bread, cubed into 1 inch pieces (roughly ten cups) Powdered Sugar for Serving Maple Syrup for serving Grease a large oval baking dish with butter. In a very large bowl whisk together the milk, cream, sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Add the diced bread, apples and walnuts to the egg mixture and stir to combine until the bread is soaked through with the custard. Pour the bread and custard mixture into the prepared baking dish and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight or for at least an hour before baking. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the baking dish on a sheet pan to prevent bubbling over and making a mess in your oven. Bake for 1 – 1 ½ hours or until the custard is set and the top is puffed and golden brown. Start checking around the 45-minute mark to make sure the top isn’t getting too dark. If it appears to be browning quickly, cover loosely with aluminum foil and continue baking until the custard is set. You can tell once the custard is set by inserting a knife into the center and separating the bread a bit to make sure no liquid is visible. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with warm maple syrup. I look forward to my summer tomatoes every year, especially the beautiful yellow sun sweets which always grow in abundance. I sometimes find myself with various bowls of these little sugary tomatoes all over my kitchen and I'm constantly trying to find creative ways to use them up. Although this is probably best categorized as an appetizer, I love to have this for a quick light dinner with a chilled glass of crisp white wine. Its quick to pull together and not too heavy during those hot summer nights. Feel free to use whatever tomatoes you have on hand. The slow roast helps bring out the sweetness in just about every variety. Serves 4 as an appetizer and 2 as a dinner For the Tomatoes 1 1/2 lbs Cherry Tomatoes 3 T Olive Oil 2 Garlic Cloves thinly Sliced 1 tsp Salt Fresh ground black pepper A generous handful of fresh herbs ( Use a mix of whatever you like. I like to use oregano, rosemary, thyme, sage and basil) Use as many or as few as you like For the Whipped Goat Cheese 4 oz. Goat Cheese at room temp 4 oz. Cream Cheese at room temp For the Bread 1 Baguette cut into 1 inch thick slices 3T Olive oil 1/2 tsp garlic salt and fresh ground pepper Preheat the oven to 320 degrees. In a baking dish, toss together the tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and herbs until the tomatoes are well coated. Roast in the oven for 45 minutes. While the tomatoes are cooking, add the goat cheese and cream cheese to a mixing bowl. Using a rubber spatula or a mixing spoon, cream the cheese together until they become well combined and spreadable. To prepare the baguette, preheat the grill the medium high or if you don't want to use the grill just set your broiler to high. Mix the oil, garlic salt and pepper together in a small bowl. Using a pastry brush, brush the oil onto the baguette slices. Grill the bread until it start to turn golden brown and char in some places. If using a broiler, set it under the flame and watch it closely until the bread starts to char a bit. To serve, spread the cheese onto the warmed bread slices and top with the tomatoes, spooning over some of the juice. Enjoy! *Variation - sometimes I like to add toasted pine nuts to the crostini for an added layer of flavor and texture. Give it a try if you have some on hand. This delightful sauce is incredibly versatile for just about any type of seafood! Its tangy, salty and slightly sweet. Kind of, sort of a tarter but with much more oomph! Serve it up alongside some peel and eat shrimp, drizzle it over grilled fish, or one of my favorite ways to use it, spread generously as a condiment for a fish sandwich! It’s perfect for summertime! You'll be scooping spoonfuls of this stuff onto your plate. Serves 4 generously 1/2 cup Mayo 1/2 cup Sour Cream Juice from 1 lemon 1 T Dijon Mustard 1 T Whole Grain Mustard 1 T Capers, drained 4 Bread and Butter Pickle Slices 2 Large Scallions, white and light green parts chopped in large pieces 2 tsp Agave A handful of fresh dill A handful or Fresh Cilantro Fresh Ground Pepper to taste Add all the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until everything is well combined and the herbs and scallions are chopped finely. Taste for seasoning. I generally never feel it needs salt due to the pickles and capers, but if you think it needs some then add a little pinch. You can also tinker with the tang, if it's too sour for your taste, add a bit more mayo. Transfer to a serving bowl and chill until ready to use. You can also make this a day in advance, I find that it can be even better the next day! I'll admit that on some week nights, I am just too exhausted by the thought of making dinner, but the idea of ordering takeout, picking it up and overpaying for something that is just so-so is equally exhausting. I have been on a mission to create easy meals that can be prepared with little hassle and minimal cleanup for nights such as these. This lemon veggie orzo is satisfying, somewhat healthy (at least healthier then takeout) and a snap to throw together. If you feel so inclined, grill up some fish or chicken to serve along with the pasta but this dish can easily hold its own. It can also be served at room temp or eaten directly from the fridge the next day if you have any leftovers. Serves 4 1 lb Orzo cooked to package directions 1 Bunch of Asparagus, trimmed of woody ends and cut into 1 inch pieces 2 T olive oil 1 Lemon, zest and juice 1 tsp Garlic Salt Pepper to taste 1 Pint Grape Tomatoes, halved 2 T fresh minced parsley 1 T olive oil Salt and pepper to taste 2 T butter 1 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and start the water for the Orzo. On a baking sheet toss the asparagus pieces with 2 T olive oil, lemon zest, garlic salt and fresh ground pepper. Spread the pieces out evenly and roast in the oven for 15 minutes. Start the orzo the same time you add the asparagus to the oven. While the asparagus and orzo cook, grab a large mixing bowl or serving bowl. Add the halved tomatoes, 1 T olive oil, juice from 1 lemon, parsley and a generous pinch of salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Stir together and allow the tomatoes to macerate while to asparagus and orzo cook. Remove the asparagus from the oven once it is slightly charred but still hold a slight bite. Drain the orzo and add both the asparagus and pasta to the bowl with the tomatoes. Add the butter and stir until everything is combined and the butter has melted. Toss in the cheese and mix until everything is coated. You can serve this dish immediately or at room temp....it’s not fussy I’ve recently been inspired by a lot of Indian and Pakistani cuisine and wanted to create a dish that highlighted some of the unique flavors and ingredients found in that style of cooking. Garam Masala is a blend of spices used frequently in Indian cooking. It is smoky and sweet and packs a punch without having to use a ton of spices. Pomegranate molasses is another ingredient that is frequently used in Pakistani cooking and delivers a sweet, rich flavor to the marinade. That hardest part about this recipe is letting the steak marinade for a few hours but after that, it’s a relatively easy meal to throw together. You can use this marinade on a variety of meats but I choose skirt steak because it’s what was on sale that week. Feel free to experiment with different cuts of beef, chicken or even lamb! Serves 4 1 ½ lbs. skirt steak ¼ cup sunflower oil 1 lime, zest and juice 1 ½ tsp garam masala 1 T pomegranate molasses 1 T cilantro finely chopped 1 tsp salt fresh ground pepper to taste Add the oil through pepper to a baking dish large enough to accommodate your steak. Wisk the ingredients thoroughly until well combined. Add the steak to the dish and coat with the marinade. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4-6 hours. Remove the steak from the fridge 30 minutes prior to cooking, you want to take the chill off. Pre-heat your grill to high heat. Once the steak has rested, coat your grill with cooking spray and cook the steak 2-3 minutes on each side depending on how you like your steak cooked. I had I thin cut of meat and I like a medium rare steak so I only cooked it for a quick 2 minutes per side. Once the meat has reached your desired level of doneness, transfer the steak to a rimmed dish to cool, you don’t want to lose the juice while the meat is resting. Let the steak rest for about 10 minutes then, using a sharp knife, cut the steak in thin strips at an angle, against the grain. Top with fresh cilantro and serve. *This dish goes great with a fresh salad or some roasted sweet potatoes. I’m one of those people who absolutely needs to eat breakfast every morning, but with a full-time job, a baby and a hectic schedule, I don’t always have the time to make myself something healthy and delicious. Some days, I just need something a little more special than a bowl of cereal. The tangy yogurt sauce mixed with the runny eggs and smoked paprika is oddly satisfying. The combination my sound strange, but I promise, you don’t want to skip this one! Serves 2 ¼ cup Greek Yogurt 1 T fresh lemon juice (about ½ a lemon) Salt and pepper 2 T Olive Oil 4 Eggs ¼ tsp smoked Paprika A few small basil leaves and chopped chives (don’t leave these out, they brighten the flavors of the dish) Toasted sourdough for serving Mix the yogurt and lemon juice in a small bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide the yogurt sauce between two plates. Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat until it moves easily around the pan. Carefully crack the eggs into the hot oil, mind the hot oil splatters! Sprinkle the eggs with the smoked paprika and season with salt and pepper. Cover the eggs with a lid and cook for about two minutes. They will set quickly so keep an eye on them. You want the whites set but the yolks still runny. Place the eggs on top of the yogurt sauce, two for each plate. Garnish with basil and chives and serve with the toasted sourdough! Now dig in and forget its only Tuesday morning…. |