Guacamole de los Ninos

My 10 year old is a whiz in the kitchen. He has a knack for what works and what doesn't. Like me, he often prefers not to follow a recipe and go by taste instead. He wanted to make guacamole the other night and so just using the following ingredients he eyeballed what he thought would be the right amounts. I did the chopping, his little brother did the mashing and he did everything else. On a jagged piece of paper I took notes as I am apt to do myself when playing around in the kitchen. I am sure this recipe has been printed with exact proportions but this really did come from the top of his head. I want to add that this was one of the best damn guac recipes I have ever had.

2 Haas avocados, almost to the point of being too ripe
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 small to medium onion - ours was Vidalia
1 lemon, juiced
3 smallish Campari tomatoes
1/8 cup (eyeballed) cilantro
Salt to taste

Directions

Cut the avocado in half. Remove pits and skins. Place meats in a medium, deep, bowl. Finely chop the 2 cloves of garlic and add to the avocado. Juice the lemon and add to the bowl. Cut the tomato, keep the seeds but discard the stem, into small bites, add to bowl. Chop the onion finely and add to the bowl. Finally, mince the cilantro and add to the mixture. Using a potato masher, mash all the ingredients until all are well blended. Add salt to taste and refrigerate for at least two hours to let the flavors all marry and settle. Enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips.

Grilled Steak with Chimichurri Sauce and Pan Seared Potatoes with Oregano and Sea Salt

I love this sauce which finds its origins in Argentina. The fresh herbs blended in with garlic, olive oil and red wine vinegar come together perfectly for a sauce that is the perfect accompaniment to any meat, chicken or fish dish!

Chimichurri Sauce
 Ingredients:
1 cup of parsley (I used a combination of flat leaf as well as curly from our back yard)
1/4 cup of cilantro and some of the cumin seeds (optional - from our back yard)
2 cloves of garlic crushed
1/4 - 3/4 tsp of crushed red pepper
1/2 cup of good quality olive oil
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
sea salt to taste

Remove leaves from stem and place in a mini food processor. Add the garlic, red pepper, olive oil, red wine vinegar and sea salt. Pulse until smooth. Remove and pour into a pretty pitcher or small serving bowl.

Drizzle over steak (fish, chicken, potatoes or rice) as desired.


Or drizzle over crusty baguette with leftover chicken or steak for a fabulous sandwich the next day!

***

Pan Seared Potatoes with Oregano
Ingredients
6 -10 small new potatoes thinly sliced
Oregano, dried
Sea Salt
Olive oil

Coat bottom of large saute pan with good quality olive oil. Place potatoes in pan, careful not to overlap. Cook until each side is nicely browned. This should take just a minute or two per side. Remove and place on to paper towel to drain of excess oil. Then place potatoes side by side in a shallow baking dish. Repeat as necessary until all potatoes are cooked. Once potatoes are in dish, sprinkle with oregano and sea salt. If potatoes form 2 or more layers be sure to season all the layers.

Place in 300 degree oven for 10 minutes or until ready to serve.

Dip into chimichurri sauce for additional flavor!

(Cook your meat as desired. We grilled a London Broil that I seasoned with garlic powder,charcoal, meat tenderizer and a bit of sea salt.)

Pardon my absenteeism ... Corn salad and another Book Review

I haven't been in the kitchen much over the past week or so. I do miss it, but our lives have been so crazy with the end of school madness and parties and sports and try outs for next year's sports teams. Not only have I not been in my kitchen, I have barely been home. Add to that, that our grill is broken and needing to replaced and I must admit that I have lost the desire to create in my kitchen. It's been awfully hot and humid lately and even with the air on full blast lately, I just don't feel like turning on the ovens.

We've been dining on lots of salads -- luckily the children don't mind -- with bread and cheese and fresh fruit. The above collage was from one of our Memorial Day meals. We ate outdoors, picnic style... kids love picnic foods. Toss some fresh pesto on some ripe tomatoes... add some artisan cheeses and fresh bread from a local bakery and what more could you possibly need? Fresh cherries and strawberries!

I did make the above corn salad -- a recipe that I adapted from The Barefoot Contessa. Her corn salad is one of my favorites. I substituted the basil for cilantro... added a couple of  tablespoons of lime, a teaspoon of local honey. The result was that it was a spectacular hit and something a little different than our favorite.

Corn Salad:

6 ears of corn, cooked on the cob, peeled from the cob
1/2 cup of fresh cilantro, Julienned
1/2 of a medium to large red onion, finely chopped
1 tbs. olive oil
2 tbs apple cider vinegar
2 tbs fresh lime juice
1 tbs good honey
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook corn about 5 minutes, remove from heat and cool by running under cold water or placing in an ice water bath. Using a sharp knife, gently slice the corn away from the cob. (This can get a bit messy!)
Place kernels in a bowl. Into bowl add cilantro and onion. Whisk together vinegar, lime juice and olive oil and pour over corn. Add salt and pepper if desired. Chill for an hour or two. Or leave overnight. This is fabulous the next day.

I've been on a foodie memoir kick lately. After I finished A Homemade Life I had to run out and pick up The Sharper the Knife, The Less You Cry by Kathleen Quin. Another fabulous, exciting page turner. Without giving the story away, told in vignettes, recipes included, I will tell you that girl gets fired from the Corporate World and uses her savings to follow her love of cooking and enrolls at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. This book is a feast for all the senses!

Southwestern Inspired Salad with Cilantro and a Lime Vinaigrette

I've been on a huge salad kick lately... as well as a cilantro and lime kick. I was trying to figure out how to incorporate them together and one thing led to another which led to this flavorful semi sweet, semi salty and semi tangy salad.

Feeds 4 adults (or 2 adults and 3 kids!)

2 bags of Boston, Bibb or Romaine lettuce, washed and rinsed. (I used a Boston and Arugula mix and when in season I buy locally from our local farms or farm stand)
1 can of black beans drained and rinsed
1 can or 1/2 bag of frozen corn thawed to room temperature
1 can black olives, drained
1/2 cup Queso Fresco or mild Feta
1 handful Peppadews, sliced
1/8 Cup cilantro leaves (approx), leaves should be whole, pulled from the stems
1/2 Cup Grandma's Dressing
Juice of 1 lime (if lime doesn't yield much juice use 2)


In a large salad bowl add all of the ingredients and mix well. Let bowl sit and make the dressing.
Just prior to serving add about 1/8 Cup of the dressing. If you need more feel free to add.

Serve with tortilla strips or sliced chicken if desired.

Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

We love cilantro around here. This time of year, as the temperatures start to rise, cilantro becomes a staple. I decided to make a cilantro dipping sauce for our chicken and based it loosely on a Tzatziki sauce. The result was nothing less than delicious, cool and refreshing. We also decided that this would be wonderful served with grilled or chilled salmon. Last night we had it with grilled chicken.

I prepared the chicken by rubbing each piece, trimmed and de-fatted, with a little bit of olive oil (to keep it from sticking to the grill) and seasoned lightly with sea salt, garlic powder and freshly ground pepper. Then I handed it over to the husband to toss onto the grill!

For the Cilantro Yogurt Sauce:

1/2 cup of low-fat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup of low-fat mayonaise
1 heaping tablespoon freshly minced cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced
Juice of 1 large lime (or 1 1/2 smaller limes)
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Refrigerate for an hour before serving.

Holy Guacamole!

My nine year old made this. This is seriously the best guacamole I have ever had! I went out to lunch with my husband to a fabulous South American/Pacific Rim restaurant with a guacamole that is sublime. I wanted more and my son always wants to cook. We took a basic guacamole recipe and tweaked it. Rick Bayless, watch out!

Ingredients

• 3 Haas avocados, halved, seeded and peeled
• 1 ½ lime, juiced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• A good shake of ancho chili powder (or any red chili powder)
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and dice, or 3 Plum or Campari tomatoes
• 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 1 clove garlic, minced


Directions

Scoop the avocados (discard pit and skin) and place the meats in a large bowl. Squeeze the lime, set aside. Dice the onions and tomatoes, set aside. Using a mortar and pestle or a potato masher mash the avocado, add the lime juice, tomatoes, garlic, onion and cilantro and mix well. Add spices, mix well. Let sit for at least 20 minutes before serving.

Paella Mexican Style! (One Pan Meal)

Paella (pronounce pie-aye-ah) is a Spanish dish, originally of the Valencia region. Typically it consists of several types of meat such as chicken and sausage (chorizo) and various types of seafood such as clams, mussels, lobster and shrimp. A soufrite is a tomato based sauce that serves as the flavor and essence of the dish. A good soufrite can often take hours to make. Rice is then cooked in the soufrite and then the seafood and meats are added. It's a wonderful dish. My husband has a fabulous recipe which I will share at some other time.

I had some chicken and some sausage to use the other night and thought I might make a much easier, faster version of paella that promised to be equally as tasty. I gave my dish a Mexican flare and instead of slaving over a soufrite I used salsa! What a wonderful burst of flavor it added... instead of the saffron, I added cilantro. And black beans and corn. And shrimp. Our quick and easy shortcut was nothing less than spectacular and was devoured by the entire family.

From start to finish the dish took no longer than 30 minutes.

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, trimmed and cubed

4 sausages (preferably chorizo) sliced into 1/2 inch slices

1 can of black beans, drained
1 can of corn, drained (or 1 cup of frozen corn)

1 container of fresh chunky of salsa
Long grain rice, enough for 6 servings

Olive oil

2 cups of water

Sea Salt, to taste
Garlic powder, to taste
25 medium/small shrimp, cooked and deveined

In a large saute pan add about 1 tbs of olive oil. Turn pan to high to heat the oil, then as soon as it starts to sizzle turn the heat to medium and add the chicken. Coat each piece with a little sea salt and a good shake of garlic powder and cook until it browns. When browned sufficiently remove from pan onto a plate lined with a paper towel. Set aside.

Add sausage to saute pan and cook well, until sausage also browns. Place on a paper towel lined plate. Set aside.

Add a drop more of olive oil and add the rice. Cook until the rice browns slightly, then add the fresh salsa and water. Cook per directions on the box, until the water is absorbed and the rice is cooked. If needed add more water.

When rice is cooked, turn heat to low and add chicken, sausage, shrimp, beans, and corn. Keep on low heat. Chop cilantro, about a handful, and sprinkle over the rice mixture prior to serving.

This dish is so simple and yet so easy to make!

Spicy Pan Seared Pork Chops

Sometimes we get in a cooking rut and cook what's easiest or most familiar. Last night I decided to climb out of my box. (Daddy was too busy to grill!) I wanted something with flavor, a little kick and something that would taste as good from the stove top as it would from the grill.

I could not be any more pleased with the result of this fabulous dish!



I have to warn you, if you like bland foods, this might not be for you. If you like a little heat, this is a must try dish. I made this with Cilantro Lime Rice, which was the perfect refreshing accompaniment!

To make your dry rub you will need the following:

2 tbs paprika
2 tbs cayenne pepper
2 tbs garlic powder
2 tbs brown sugar
2 tbs Italian Seasonings
just less than 1/3 cup of salt

You will also need the following for the sauce:

1/2 cup dry white wine
2 - 3 cloves of minced or finely chopped garlic
1/2 chicken stock


Mix together the marinade ingredients really well. You will have extra that will keep well in a tightly sealed jar for a month of so.

In a large saute pan add a table spoon or two of olive oil and heat.
As the oil is heating, rub generous amounts of the dry rub on to both sides of the pork. Add the pork to the pan. (The meat will sizzle nicely when the oil is hot enough.)

Sear each side, (about 2 to 3 minutes per side) until nicely golden brown. Reduce heat and cook for 20 - 30 minutes depending on the thickness of the chop.

When the chops are done, remove from the pan, and to the pan juices (there should be a good amount) add 2 - 3 cloves of freshly pressed or crushed garlic, 1/2 cup of dry white wine, 1/2 cup of chicken stock and gently stir all the spices and seasonings off the pan. Pour sauce in to a small pitcher. Toss the chops back into the pan for to keep warm until everyone comes to the table.

If you would like to serve this with the Cilantro Lime Rice, simply cook regular long grain white rice as you normally would. As the water is boiling add juice of 1 lime. While rice is cooking, finely chop some fresh cilantro leaves, and add to the rice when it has finished cooking. Toss well so that the cilantro is well blended.

For vegetable I simply served a green salad.

Asian Inspired Father's Day Lunch

Menu

Hoisin Garlic Barbecue Chicken, Peanut Dipping Sauce
Asian Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing
Asparagus lightly sauteed in Sesame Oil
Cilantro Rice

Blueberry Pie
Apple Pie
Home Made Vanilla Ice Cream

My apologies as I have no pictures of any of the final products... I had completely forgotten!

When planning a sit down meal for 13 people, 5 of them children, I needed to come up with a menu that was pleasing to children and adults alike... something that could be prepared fairly quickly with three kids snapping at my heals. Times like these require help and shortcuts.

While I love to make my own dressings and marinades, there are some prepared varieties that are so spectacular that you are better off going with those.

This is my Secret Sauce. It is nothing less than fabulous!

Prepare your chicken as you would for your favorite BBQ sauce. I like to offer smaller pieces, roughly the size of my palm, with the option of returning for more. (I do have small hands!) I place the chicken in a marinating dish and let sit 3 - 4 hours so that the marinade really has a chance to penetrate the meat. Grill as usual and enjoy. Or you could cut your chicken in to strips, thread a skewer through the meat and voila, a chicken lollipop that the kids will adore!

Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce

1 lemon
2 packets of sugar or Splenda
4 Tbs. low sodium soy sauce
4Tbs. natural peanut butter
1 tsp. garlic powder
4 Tbs. water
dash of crushed red pepper or cayenne pepper
I made my own Peanut Sauce as it is incredibly easy. I doubled this recipe and placed it in small ramekins on the table.

The Secret to my Asian Salad is Marie's Sesame Ginger salad dressing. It doesn't stray from those dressings found at the best Japanese restaurants.

Asian Salad



2 heads of Romaine lettuce, lettuce cut into 1 inch pieces -- I slice right across the lettuce and break the leaves up in the salad bowl
4 or 5 scallions, trimmed, using both green and white parts
1 cup of petite peas -- if cooking prior to making salad, let cool fully before adding to the lettuce to prevent leaves from wilting
1 cup of shelled, cooked edamame
1 cucumber, cubed
1 large handful of raw pistachio meats
6 asparagus stalks, diced, tips removed (I cooked them prior-- in boiling water 3 minutes. DO NOT overcook)

Place all ingredients in salad bowl and just prior to serving add dressing

Cilantro Rice



I used regular Uncle Ben's rice and followed the cooking instructions on the box.
I added 1 tbs. olive oil to the water
and 1 good dash of sea salt prior to the water boiling.

While the rice was cooking I chopped up some cilantro, about 2 heaping Tbs. (You can add more or less as you like.)

After the rice was cooked I stirred in the cilantro and let it sit until it was time to serve. I quickly reheated it in the microwave for 1 minute

Asparagus Lightly Sauteed in Sesame Oil

2 bunches of asparagus ends trimmed
1 dash of sesame oil
1 Tbs. olive oil
dash of garlic powder, to taste
dash of sea salt, to taste

Clean and trim asparagus
Place in large saute pan, in boiling water for 3 minutes, no more!
Remove from water, drain well
Replace to saute pan
Add the oils, seasonings, stir well so that all the stalks are covered
Saute lightly over medium heat for another minute or two.
Remove pan from flame.

May be served hot or at room temperature.

My mother in law brought the pies... they were absolutely fabulous. I can get the recipes for those who wish.

The kids made the vanilla ice cream using our LLBean Ice Cream Ball. We followed their recipe.

1 quart cream or half and half

3/4 Cup of sugar

1 Tbs. vanilla

It was mighty tasty, especially on the home made pie!

Five Star Chicken with Green Sauce

I have this recipe for a cilantro, garlic and lemon sauce that is really to die for. It goes with everything. I love it on chicken, either grilled or lightly sauteed with a touch of olive oil in a pan lightly seasoned with salt, pepper and dried Italian herbs. It's divine on a white fish. I wish I had some left over... I'd spread some over a nice slice of grilled ciabatta or a similar bread and use it as a sandwich spread... oh well!

My family gives this sauce Five Stars!

A Most Versatile and Delicious Sauce

Even after last week's chicken, even after my Most Delicious Sandwich I still had some leftover Cilantro Garlic sauce (recipe below). I came home from Rebecca's skating practice and needed to whip something together for dinner very quickly. Pasta came to mind and so I tossed some water on to the stove and searched for ingredients. I found a box of elbow pasta, then grabbed the jar of cilantro garlic sauce, some crumbled feta, some leftover broccoli florets, and tossed it all together. Oh wow, what a great pasta sauce that made! Next time I will add some chick peas, black or Kalamata olives and grape tomatoes. Hmmm, I wonder what other uses I can find for this most versatile and delicious sauce!

One of the Best Darned Sandwiches I Have Ever Had!

I love to make sandwiches. Not the boring ham and cheese variety. I like to use fresh ingredients and give things a little twist. I would just love to open up a gourmet sandwich shop one day. My sandwiches titilate the senses. My husband always prefers mine to his own. Today I came home starving. I wanted something fairly healthy, satisfying and easy to fix. I saw a ball of fresh mozzarella in the fridge next to the jar of the cilantro garlic sauce (recipe below) I made the other night for dinner. I grabbed the sliced sour dough from the freezer (I keep all my breads in the freezer) then turned my griddle on to toast the bread. I sliced up a tomato (I like Campari this time of year since I can not get fresh or local) and the mozzarella. I spread some of the cilantro garlic sauce on one slice of bread then placed the mozzy on top of it. The sliced tomatoes went on the other slice. As the bottoms started to brown, getting those lovely grill marks, I placed one half on top of the other and used a weight to press the sandwich down. I kept it on for a minute or two.

I cut the sandwich in half and took a bite. Seriously, it was the best tomato mozzarella sandwich I have ever had! The sandwich had so much more flavor than it would have had I just used olive oil and fresh basil and stayed nice and crispy right through to the last crunchy bite!

Cilantro (or parsley) Garlic Sauce

I made this sauce and served it with Jasmine rice, chicken and peas last night. It was intense -- rich lemon and garlic flavors and just enough cilantro to taste. Rave reviews by everyone! If cilantro is not your thing you could easily substitute parsley.

Ingredients:

1 medium garlic, cloves peeled

1/2 tsp. Sea salt

1/2 cup cilantro (fresh)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Juice of one lemon

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

In a mini-prep food processor (an absolute must have) blend all ingredients until well blended. Pour into a pitcher and serve with grilled chicken, steak or shrimp!