Carne Asada

LOVE this recipe. When we moved to Rochester, NY there were no Mexican restaurants to be found. We were heartbroken. So I learned how to make Carne Asada. Tasty. Thank you Tyler Florence.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds flank or skirt steak, trimmed of excess fat
• 1 recipe Mojo, recipe follows
• Olive oil, for coating the grill
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 16 (7-inch) corn tortillas
• Shredded romaine or iceberg lettuce, for serving
• Chopped white onion, for serving
• Shredded Jack cheese, for serving
• 1/2 cup Pico de Gallo, recipe follows
• 2 limes, cut in wedges for serving

Directions

Lay the flank steak in a large baking dish and pour the mojo over it. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 8 hours, so the flavors can sink into the meat. Don't marinate the steak for more than 8 hours though, or the fibers break down too much and the meat gets mushy.

Preheat an outdoor grill or a ridged grill pan over medium-high flame (you can also use a broiler). Brush the grates with a little oil to prevent the meat from sticking. Pull the steak out of the mojo marinade and season the steak on both sides with salt and pepper. Grill (or broil) the steak for 7 to 10 minutes per side, turning once, until medium-rare. Remove the steak to a cutting board and let it rest for 5 minutes to allow the juices to settle. Thinly slice the steak across the grain on a diagonal.

Warm the tortillas for 30 seconds on each side in a dry skillet or on the grill, until toasty and pliable.

To make the tacos, stack up 2 of the warm tortillas, lay about 4 ounces of beef down the center, and sprinkle with some lettuce, onion, and cheese. Top each taco with a spoonful of the Pico de Gallo salsa and garnish with lime wedges. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.

Mojo:

• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 jalapeno, minced
• 1 large handful fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1 orange, juiced
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil

In a mortar and pestle or bowl, mash together the garlic, jalapeno, cilantro, salt, and pepper to make a paste. Put the paste in a glass jar or plastic container. Add the lime juice, orange juice, vinegar, and oil. Shake it up really well to combine. Use as a marinade for chicken or beef or as a table condiment.

Yield: approximately 1 1/4 cups

John Wayne Casserole

John Wayne Casserole

Combine and spread in 9X13 buttered dish …

2 4 oz cans diced chilis
1 lb jack cheese
1 lb cheddar

Mix and pour over cheese mix …

4 egg whites (beat until stiff and fold into 4 egg yolks)
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1/8 tsp pepper
½ tsp salt
1 tsp flour

cook at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove and add sliced tomatoes on top and cook for another 30 minutes longer.

Apple Crisp

This recipe is from a dear friend of mine. She's a foodie so trust her. This is much less sweet as the last apple crisp I posted. This one is my mom's new favorite apple crisp. And I'll be making it today for Thanksgiving tomorrow.

Apple Crisp
by Liz Smith

6 large apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup flour
1 stick butter
1 1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

Place sliced apples in mixing bowl, stir in white sugar and cinnamon and mix well. Arrange into 9" round or square baking dish. Combine brown sugar and flour; cut butter into mixture with a pastry blender. Stir in rolled oats. Spoon mixture over apples, pressing down lightly. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Enjoy with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!

Buttermilk Waffles

I got this recipe on foodblogsearch.com it is a very fun site to search. It as adapted from Cook's Illustrated which always makes me happy. These waffles are light and delicious. I can't get enough of them these days.

2 cups flour
2 Tbsp cornmeal
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs separated
2 cups buttermilk
4 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled
Nonstick cooking spray

Start preheating your waffle iron. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, salt, and baking soda. In another mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolk with buttermilk and melted butter until combined.

Clean your whisk and beat the egg white to soft peaks.

Fold in the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients, the batter will be quite thick. Then add the egg whites and gently fold them into the batter.

Spray your waffle iron with some nonstick spray and spread the batter onto the iron. Cook until the waffles are golden brown, about 2 - 5 minutes depending on your machine instructions.

For freezer toaster waffles, leave the waffles golden and slightly underdone. They can be frozen then popped into the toaster for a quick breakfast.

Saffron Rissoto

I have fallen in LOVE with Rissoto. My gourmet buddy Liz introduced me to the fine art of Rissoto a year ago and I learned it's actually fun to make and not as intimidating as it should be. It needs love. So while you're fixing your salad or preparing your side dish, just go back and stir the risotto often. If you love it, it will love you.

This recipe I just found from an email from Self.com, in my quest to get more healthy. We enjoyed it tonight and it was delicious! I'm convinced that pretty much anything cooked with wine is a fabulous. I added some marscapone cheese as well. Mmmm.

Ingredients

• 28 oz chicken stock
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1 cup white wine
• Large pinch of saffron
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus shavings for garnish (optional)

Preparation

Bring stock to a low simmer in a medium pot. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat for 1 minute. Cook onion until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add rice and a pinch of salt. Sauté until rice is translucent, 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine and saffron; bring to a simmer, stirring, until rice has absorbed most of wine. Add 2 ladles of stock to rice; simmer, stirring, until rice has absorbed most of stock. Continue adding stock, allowing rice to absorb it before adding the next ladleful. Cook until rice is al dente and mixture is a little loose. Stir in butter. Turn off heat. Stir in grated cheese. Cover and let sit 2 minutes. Divide among 4 bowls. Garnish each with cheese shavings, if desired.

Corn Bread

Mmmm MMMM. Nothin' says lovin' like a great slice of hot fresh corn bread. I like my cornbread to be more of a dessert and this recipe does the trick. Yeah ... bisquick. I don't really use bisquick for anything else except this recipe. Today I'm going to try using buttermilk instead of milk. Thanks to April for giving me this recipe back when I was first learning that cooking involved more than just going Costco.

CORN BREAD

2 Cups Bisquik
4-6 Tbs cornmeal
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup melted butter
put into a 9x9 greased pan and bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes.

Peanut Butter Kisses Cookies

This is a classic yummy cookie. I got it straight from Hershey Kisses themselves. Thank you!

Hershey Kisses (of course)
1/2 cup shortening
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
2 Tbs milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 - 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
granulated sugar

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove foil from Kisses (do I really need to say that?)
Beat butter and peanut butter until well blended. Add sugars and beat until fluffy. Add egg, milk and vanilla and beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt and add to peanut butter mixture.

Roll dough into small 1 inch balls (These are the one cookie that I actually seek out the smallest cookie to maximize cookie to kiss ratio). Place on UNGREASED cookie sheet.

Bake 8 minutes. You don't want to see them brown at all b/c then they are already too crunchy. SOFT is the key on these. Immediately press a kiss into the cookie and sorry to say you should wait a couple minutes before you dive in and try one.

Easy Chili

Very VERY easy chili and tasty. I got this from my friend Becca years ago when I was eager to find a new quick and easy crock pot recipe. It's been looooved many times since. And I change a little bit every time too.

The Base that never changes ...

1 packet of ranch dressing mix
1 packet of taco seasoning mix

I use a variety of canned this or that...

1 can of kidney beans
1 can of black beans
2 cans of chopped tomatoes
1 ca if corn

I saute lots of these

onions chopped fine
garlic chopped fine (never enough garlic)

Think I'll enter the Ward Chili Cook-off in two weeks with this one.

Crepes

Mmmmm ... Just the sound of the word brings me back to Paris almost 10 years when I was footloose and fancy free. I'd just look at the little crepe stands and stare in amazement at the beautiful art of swirling the thick batter around. The crepe makers thought I was staring at them and get a free crepe for being their eye candy for a moment. Fiiiiine by me. Free crepe doused in Nutella from an unknown French man? Ooooh, the intrigue. This was also the same trip that another French man told me he wanted to "paint me like the Titanic" (as in... in the buff) ... but that is a story for another night.

So Crepes ... From my dear French friend Lyna. The secret here is let the batter sit for at least an hour if not overnight. The longer it sits the thicker the batter.

Crepes

1 cup flour

3 eggs

2 Tbs sugar

1 ½ cup milk

Mix the first 3 and ½ cup of milk. Stir until blended and then add the remaining milk. Let batter sit aside for 10 minutes to an hour. The longer it sits the stronger the crepe will be. Turn on stove top to medium heat. Lightly grease a small 6-8 inch fry pan. Pour a thin layer of batter into pan and rotate pan around until batter evenly covers the bottom. When lightly browned flip and cook another minute.

My favorite toppings ... Nutella, of course. Strawberries n' whip cream. Butter and lots of it. And Lyna's Special Sauce which includes equal parts butter & sugar and a hint of almond extract.

Conference Drink

This is Charlie's favorite drink from his childhood. Grandma Kuch made this every General Conference (twice a year for those who read this and aren't LDS). He often spices it up with worchestershire sauce or tabasco. And of course it served with a big long celery stick.

Grandma Kuch's Spicy Tomato Drink
aka Conference Drink

1 cup celery chopped fine
1 can tiny shrimp
1 Tbs horseradish
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 cup ketchup
1 Tbs sugar
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 big can of tomato juice (Marilyn loved the Glorietta brand)

mix together and refrigerate.

Zucchini Strand Spaghetti

Do you have Zucchini-haters in your family too? My husband obviously was never served Zucchini the right way. But since we've been married, it has been my quest to fit zucchini in wherever I can. And this is one of our favorite family meals. Yes, even my 3 and 4 year olds eat this.

The secret ... DON'T OVER COOK IT. It takes little time to cook and you want it a little bit crisp. So make it the last thing you cook.

This recipe is adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

Zucchini Strand Spaghetti (or Penne in this case)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3/4 pound whole-wheat dried spaghettini
3/4 pound zucchini
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup grated Parmesan, plus a small piece

I also decided last minute to add ...

1 bell pepper
2 shallots
1 bunch of green onions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 10 minutes.

While the water comes to a boil and the pasta cooks, cut the zucchini with the fine French-fry cutter on a mandoline or a good old cheese grater. I have made this before and just cut thin strips. The thinner cut your zucchini, the less it needs to be cooked. I usually saute my onions and garlic for a bit and then add the zucchini just to warm it up.

Heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the garlic and saute briefly until light brown. Turn on the exhaust fan and add the red pepper flakes. Quickly mix in the basil and remove from the heat. When the pasta is al dente, drain through a colander, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.

Pour the pasta into a warm serving bowl; add the zucchini, basil oil (optional, recipe below), the garlic mixture, and 1/2 cup of the cheese. Toss well, adding cooking water as needed to make a smooth sauce. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper, as needed. Grate about 2 tablespoons Parmesan over the top and serve at once.

If I'm too lazy to make the basil oil, I just mix it all in with the onions and garlic together. But and herb oil ALWAYS tastes better.

Basil Oil (or any other herb-flavored olive oil)

Makes 1 1/3 cups

For soft herbs, such as basil, parsley, cilantro or tarragon: Use 4 cups packed leaves to 2 cups pure olive oil.

For woody herbs, such as rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano or lemon verbena: Use 1 cup packed leaves to 2 cups pure olive oil.

In a blender, puree the herbs and oil until completely smooth. Put the mixture in a saucepan and bring it to a simmer over moderate heat. Simmer for 45 seconds, then pour through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl. Don't press on the mixture, but you can tap the strainer against your hand to get the oil to drip through faster.

[Chirello has steps here to strain again through a coffee filter and let it settle for a few hours but I skipped all this and still had a gorgeous, delicious, unbelievably potent basil oil.]

Note: Fresh herb oils are better to toss into pasta at the end rather than cook with, so the oil keeps its fresh, uncooked taste.

Thanks Smitten Kitchen for another great recipe.

Quick Apple Crisp

One of my all time favorites. I use Granny Smith apples here on the west coast. But if you are anywhere near apple country in the east coast and pick up some Mccouns, eat some for me.

This was a recipe I got 6 years ago from a coworker who was starting her 2nd career as a Pampered Chef consultant. I loooved the idea of using yellow cake mix. But I have embellished the recipe, quadrupling the butter amount (of course), adding oats, and much more cinnamon.

Ingredients:

5 Granny Smith Apples
1 package of Yellow Cake mix
2 Tbs sugar
2-3 Tbs cinnamon
1 1/2 sticks of butter
2 Cups oats

ice cream and/or whip cream (homemade of course)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Mix crumbly topping first.
3. Core and peel apples. Slice them thin and dump them in your lightly greased pan.
4. Cook for 25-30 minutes until you can stick a fork in the apples and have go straight through.

German Pancakes

Classic German Pancakes. My kids loooove to watch them Poof in the oven. This recipe I got from Smitten Kitchen which I frequent often. However, I had NOOO white flour. (Yeah we've been chocolate chip cookieing quite a bit.) So I used whole wheat flour instead. And I was out of milk so I used buttermilk instead. (It's Friday people, I'm out of a lot of things.) Still tasted wonderful! But definitely a thicker consistency than what they should be.

German Pancakes
From a blender cookbook

4 eggs
1 T sugar
1/2 t salt
2/3 cup sifted flour
2/3 cup milk
2 T soft butter

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Butter well 2 9-inch cake pans. Put eggs in blender container, cover and process at “stir” until light yellow in color. Push “mix” button, remove cover and add remaining ingredients; process until smooth. Pour into prepared pans and bake 20 minutes; then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake 10 minutes.

Slide onto hot plates. Serve with lemon slices, powdered sugar and butter if you follow recipes to the letter, raspberry syrup, maple syrup or fresh berries.

Cabbage and Corn Slaw with a Cilantro Orange Dressing

Yep. That's exactly what I thought when I saw this picture the first time on Epicurious. "A slaw that I might actually enjoy!" The citrus dressing instead of a typical mayo-based dressing is very refreshing. And it is more healthy too! I highly recommend cutting the corn straight off the cob. The canned corn is just okay in comparison.

____________________
1/3 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/3 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
1/3 cup canola oil or vegetable oil
2 (8-ounce) bags coleslaw mix
4 ears of fresh corn, shucked, kernels cut from cob
2 medium carrots, peeled, coarsely grated
1 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, cored, cut into thin strips
6 medium green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Whisk orange juice concentrate, rice vinegar, and canola oil in small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD Dressing can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.

Combine slaw mix, corn kernels, carrots, red bell pepper strips, sliced green onions, and chopped cilantro in large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat. Season slaw to taste with salt and pepper. Let stand 15 minutes for flavors to blend. Toss again and serve.

Chocolate Chip Goodness

Oh yeah baby ... These are by and far my favorite treat to make. Seriously. Chocolate Chip cookies and an ice cold glass of milk. What could be better?

A cookie may taste good but to me, but it has to look even better. I'm not a flat greasy cookie girl. I like them soft and chewy. There is only one secret in this recipe to make them look so good. And here it is .... CREAM THE BUTTER AND SUGARS for as looooong as you want. I often make dinner while I'm letting them cream. A good 5-10 minutes is nice. You'll see the color change a bit.

That's the secret. Now go bake, eat and enjoy your food hang over.

½ lb. butter

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

¾ cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 Tbs. vanilla

3 cups flour

¾ tsp. salt

¾ tsp. baking soda

1 package chocolate chips

Cream butter with sugars. Add the next 5 ingredients. Mix. Fold in chocolate chips. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

And Thus it Begins...

Okay. So this is post one of my food blog. It's time for me to keep a recipe file. So here it is. I'm going to cook what I like and organize my recipes while doing it. And I'll even take a picture or two of what I'm cooking so I can remember just how yummy it really was.

My goal, to combine my recipes from my email, external hard drive, computer, favorite websites, favorite blogs, recipe books, and hand stuffed recipe book. Eventually I will have all my favorite things to eat right here, so I can enjoy them forever and not keep asking myself "Just where is that darn recipe?"

And what better way to start than with my favorite chocolate chip cookies.