3-8-2011 Latin Dinner take 2

Last night my father in law came over for dinner. I knew he would love arroz con pollo, so I decided to make a Latin themed dinner. The arroz con pollo is beyond delicious, arroz con pollo translate chicken with rice. It is a lot of work with lots of steps, but well worth the effort. I highly recommend giving it a shot, you will not be disappointed. I also made patacones (fried plantains), and a spinach salad with mango and avocado to round out the meal. It was just perfect!

I posted the Arroz con pollo recipe in a post about a month ago (why I am calling this post Latin Dinner take 2), here it is again:

 Arroz Con Pollo

• 1 (3 to 4-pound) chicken, cut in 8 serving pieces
• 1 medium yellow onion, quartered, plus 1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 4 cups chicken broth, homemade or canned low-sodium broth (can use veggie broth)
• 1 cup light beer, such as lager
• 3 tablespoons Adobo Seasoning, (I found it at Whole Foods, prob have it at Fiesta too)
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce ( if you don't have parve use 1 T. soy sauce instead)
• 1 cup fresh chopped cilantro leaves
• 6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 3 cups white rice
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 medium carrots, finely diced
• 8 ounces green beans, trimmed and quartered
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons margarine
• 1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, ribbed and thinly sliced
• 1/2 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, ribbed and thinly sliced
• 1 cup pimento stuffed olives

Place the chicken, quartered onions, 1 cup of chicken broth, beer,  adobo, Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 of the cilantro, and garlic in a large pot or skillet over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, 30 to 45 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside to cool; once cool shred and set aside. Strain the broth into a bowl through a fine-mesh sieve discarding the onion pieces.

Pour the broth into a measuring cup and add water to make 4 cups of liquid. Return it to the pot or skillet and add the rice, peas, carrots, green beans, ketchup, and salt. Stir well and bring to a boil. Let the liquid evaporate to just below the level of the rice, about 10 minutes, and then reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the rice is tender and fully cooked, 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the peppers and the remaining sliced onions and cook until they're tender, 8 minutes. Shred the cooked chicken meat discarding the skin and bones, and add the chicken to the vegetables. Cook until it is heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Fluff the rice with a fork and add the chicken and vegetables to the rice mixture. Stir in the olives, sprinkle with the remaining cilantro and serve.

Patacones

1 plantain cut into 1.5 inch pieces (I bought mine at Wal Mart)

peanut or vegetable oil

kosher salt

Using a skillet, pour enough oil to come up about 1/2 inch on the sides. Heat oil over medium heat for about 8 minutes. Place the plantain pieces into the oil carefully. Fry on each side for about 3 minutes per side, until golden. Remove to a plate covered with paper towels. Smash each piece with the bottom of a glass. Return smashed piece to oil and fry 1 minute on each side until golden. Remove and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with kosher salt.

Serve immeadiately. Serve with green salsa (salsa verde) or sour cream, could use parve sour cream

Spinach Salad with Mango and Avocado and Honey Lime Dressing

1 5 oz. package baby spinach

1 mango, diced

1 avocado, diced

dressing:

juice of 1 large lime or 2 small,

1/2 T. yellow mustard

1 T. honey

1 T. canola oil

2 T. mayo

pinch salt and pepper

Mix the dressing ingredients until emulsified.

Place spinach, avocado, and mango in a salad bowl. Pour dressing over and toss with dressing.

Today is my brother's birthday. We are going to celebrate with him tonight at one of my favorite restaurants, the Mint. It is a Vietnamese/Thai restaurant. The owner and chef of Mint is a girl who I went to Culinary School with. Always fun to see fellow classmates become succesful.

They have the best Pad Thai, veggie eggrolls, and many other dishes I am in love with. They also have a sticky rice dessert that is out of this world. Can't wait to eat there tonight!

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3-4-2011 Cooking up a storm!

I'm taking a break right now from all of the cooking. I am almost to the finish line, a few more things and I will be there. Whew! Not only am I making a huge dinner for tonight, but I am also making a lunch for tomorrow too. Our lunch will include: Peanut Chicken Pasta Salad (look for recipe below), Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Salad, and Spinach Asparagus Salad- from Kosher by Design
Here is a picture of my table set for tonight: notice the Talenti jar vases, and Talenti jars holding up the cake (pic of cake in yesterday's post)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY DEAR HUSBAND!!!

Here are some of my challahs I baked this morning:

Here is the tower of Meat Emapanadas, que bueno y rico!:

Here is a recipe for a delicious pasta salad with a peanut sauce type dressing. I loooove peanut sauce, whenever I go to Thai or Vietnamese restaurants I slurp it up with anything and everything.

Peanut Chicken Pasta Salad

1/8 C. soy sauce (I prefer Kikkoman low sodium)

3 T. coconut milk

2 T. creamy peanut butter

1/4 t. toasted sesame oil
1/4 C. rice wine vinegar
1/4 C. sugar

8 oz. corkscrew or cavatappi pasta, cooked according to package

2 cooked chicken breasts, cut into small chunks

1/2 c. shredded carrots

2 green onions, sliced

1/2 red or yellow bell pepper, chopped

1/3 C. cocktail peanuts, chopped

Whisk together soy sauce, coconut milk, peanut butter, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, and sugar to make dressing. In a large bowl, place pasta, chicken carrots, green onions, and bell pepper. Toss with dressing. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

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3-3-2011 The Cake and Meat Empanada Recipe

Just finished making Josh's birthday cake. I am planning on standing it ontop of 6 empty Talenti gelato jars. I am so excited because the cake turned out great!  Here it is:
It is a little hard to see it in the picture, but it is a round cake with "ice cream cones" all around, and 2 ice cream cones on top turned upside down with the ice cream melting a bit.

I was going to make dinner tonight, I even already have the groceries for it. But, last minute Hubby and I decided to go to dinner and a movie! Woo hoo! I am happy because I have already been in the kitchen all day making challah and this cake.

Here is my menu for tomorrow night:

1. Challah

2. Moroccan Salmon

3. Mixed green salad with apples, dried cranberries and candied walnuts

4.  Cucumber Salad- see 2-24-2011 for the recipe

5. Hummus, Pickles, Olives

6. Mushroom Soup

7. Chuck Roast

8. Meat Empanadas with salsa golf

9. Twice Baked potato casserole- my friend Sue is bringing this, see below

10. Roasted Asparagus

11. Chocolate Birthday Cake and Cupcake cones

12. Mixed Berries

As you can see I have a lot of work to do tomorrow.

After having twice baked potato casserole at my house my friend Sue was dying for the recipe. The only problem is that there is no recipe because I threw it together without measurments. I ended up dictating over the phone how to make it, and she makes a mean version of it. One of these days I will tinker around with the measurement and give you this awesome recipe.

Talking about dictating recipes over the phone, I am reminded of my Moroccan Salmon recipe. A few years ago, my Israeli friend, Shai, showed me how to make it. The whole time we were making it, he was on the phone with his ima (mom) in Israel. She coached us step by step. This recipe is fabulous, here it is:

I am going to warn you, this recipe is labor intensive, but the results make it worth it

Moroccan Salmon

1 Salmon filet, cut into 2-3 inch strips

1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed

1 red bell pepper, cut into thin slices

2 T. tumeric

water

2 T. hot red paprika (found at Israeli grocery stores)

2 T. sweet red paprika

1/2 t. black pepper

1/2 t. salt

1 T. chicken powder (Telma- found in kosher section in yellow container- look for MSG free if available)

1/3 c. vegetable oil

4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced into razor thin slices

1 C. cilatro, chopped finely

1 lemon, cut into wedges

In a large sautee pan place red bell pepper and tumeric. Add enough water to just cover. Bring to a boil and boil until water is almost evaporated, there should be a little bit of water at the bottom, and the tumeric looks pasty.

Remove pan from heat and add the chickpeas ontop of the bell peppers.

In a medium sized bowl place the sweet and hot paprika, salt, pepper, chicken powder, and oil. Stir together. Add salmon to paprika oil mixture and completely coat salmon.

Remove Salmon from oil mixture and place in a single layer ontop of the chickpeas and bellpeppers.

Pour the remaining oil paprika mixture over everything in the pan.

Spread the chopped cilantro over the tops of each the salmon pieces, covering completely. Line the garlic ontop of the cilantro in a line running across the middle of the salmon from top to bottom,

Squeeze the lemon wedges ontop of everything, and place squeezed lemon in pan to the side

Cover pan with a tight fitting lid and place on stove. Cook over medium high heat for about 25 minutes, until salmon flakes easily. Can also be made on stove 10-15 minutes, then placed in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until ready to eat.

My hubby lived in Argentina for 6 years. He loved everything about living there: the people, culture, and the food. I try to recreate some of his Argentinean favorites every so often. He loves empanadas and salsa golf, hence why I am making them for him birthday dinner.

In Argentina, you find salsa golf everywhere, it is their equivalent to ketchup. It is really easy to make. A lot of times I will make salsa golf and drizzle it over sliced hearts of palm for a super easy and delicious salad or side dish. 

Here are those 2 recipes:

Salsa Golf

1 C. mayo

1/4 C. ketchup

mix together in a small bowl. store in refrigerator.

Meat Empanadas

1 box Pepperidge Farm puff pastry, thawed

1 pound ground beef

2 T. olive oil

1/2 onion finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tomato, finely chopped

2 T. tomato paste

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1 egg, beaten

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, until shiny. Add the garlic, tomato, and tomato paste and sautee 3 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook 5 minutes until the meat is cooked through.

Preheat oven to 400 F

Roll out each parchment sheet and cut into 9 squares. (you will have 18 altogether). Roll each square with a rolling so they are larger, about 6 inches. Place 1-2 tablespoons of meat mixture in the center of each square.  Fold dough over pinch to seal edges. Fold edges to form half moon shaped empanadas.

Place empanadas on a baking sheet, 2 inches apart. Brush the tops with egg.

Bake for 25 minutes until it is puffed and golden.

Serve hot or at room temperature with salsa golf.

I'll be back tomorrow to update you on my Shabbat cooking. Have a good night!

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3-2-2011 Grocery Store, Kosher Bimbo, and Quiche Recipe, Dinner Update

Going to the grocery store is my drug of choice. For me, wandering aimlessly around any grocery store is pure bliss. My mom hates going to the grocery store with me because she says I take way too long, I just can't help myself. I get lost looking at each and every item, it gives me great satisfaction.

Today I got the highest of highs, which rarely happens. I was walking through the kosher meat department and I notice a stand of Bimbo breads, I'm thinking what is this stand of non kosher bread doing in the middle of the kosher section?! All of the sudden I notice a sign saying, "Bimbo bread is now Kosher pareve!" I felt like screaming and jumping up and down with joy, it was hard to contain myself. Before you start thinking I am absolutely bonkers, let me explain. I grew up in a non kosher home eating and loving Mrs. Baird's white bread. Never have I been able to find any kosher bread that is even close to Mrs. Baird's bread. So, today when I stumbled onto the newly kosher Bimbo bread I was ecstatic. I felt like buying all three varieties, white, wheat, and honey wheat. I had to remind myself there will be plenty of time to try all 3, and so today I went with a loaf of whole wheat. Also, after doing a little bit of investigating I learned that Bimbo owns Mrs. Bairds, they should be very similar. I will let you know how it is.
Here is a pic of the display:

Yup! Look at the top left hand corner, see the hechsher!

I got an email from Dahlia today with the recipe for the mini quiches she made last friday. I suggest making these cute quiches for breakfast or brunch. I think the kids will love these tasty bites. You could also make it a larger quiche and slice it, you would need to increase the baking time.


Mini Quiche
3/4 C. crushed saltine crackers, can use unsalted if you prefer less salty
4 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
non stick cooking spray, (I prefer the crisco brand in a silver can with blue nozzle)
1 C. chopped green onions
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 C. milk
1 C. grated cheese, your choice, she used a mix of Cheddar and Mozzarella
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Preheat oven to 300 F.
Spray a mini muffin pan with cooking spray.
Combine crushed crackers and butter in a medium bowl.
Divide evenly among mini muffin cups.
In a medium saute pan, melt 2 T. margarine and then saute the green onion for 10 minutes over medium heat.
Cool, and divide evenly into each muffin cup ontop of the cracker crumbs
Beat eggs in medium bowl, add milk, cheese, salt, and pepper.
Pour by spoonfuls on top of onions in muffin tin about 3/4 full. Do not fill to top because it would run over.
Bake 15-20 minutes until set, watch carefully so they don't overbake. Serve immeadiately, or
Store in refrigerator or freezer and warm in oven just before serving.

Voila!

8:00 P.M.: Recipes from tonight are posted 3-1-2011

We just finished our awesome dinner. Hubby was relishing every bite, he was pleased to say the least. The golden beet salad was wonderful. I will definitely be making this recipe over and over again. It always feels good to eat healthy food that tastes great. Supposedly beets help ward off cancer, and are packed with many other nutrients.

The coconut tilapia stuck to the pan a little bit, next time I will be sure to use more non stick spray. The marriage between the coconut tilapia and pineapple chutney was a match made in heaven.
When the chutney was finished cooking I decided to use my immersion blender to make it smoother and less chunky. I added this to the recipe in the 3-1-2011 post.

Finally, the rice was rice. There is not much to be said for perfectly cooked plain brown rice, except that it went nicely with this dinner. I find when I make foods that are packed with huge flavors, a plain rice complements it really well, it is almost as if it cleans the palate in between tasty bites.

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3-1-2011 Coconut Tilapia Dinner Recipes

Well I haven't cooked in two nights, but all the cooking I am going to be doing in the next few days will make up for that.  Tomorrow night I am going to make coconut tilapia, pineapple chutney, golden beet salad, and baked brown rice. I don't know why, but whenever I make something with coconut, I feel like I have to make something with pineapple. (gonna call it The Pina Colada Effect!) Here are the recipes:

Coconut Tilapia

4-6 Tilapia Fillets
1- 1 1/2  C. shredded coconut, chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 C. bread crumbs
1 egg, cracked into a medium bowl and lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 400 F. Spray a pyrex baking dish with non stick spray, set aside
In a bowl mix together bread crumbs, coconut, salt, and pepper
Dip each piece of tilapia in egg, then into coconut
Place fish into pyrex in a single layer.
Bake for until the coconut is slightly browned, carefully flip over and bake again until slightly browned. The time will vary depending on the thickness of the fish, be sure to watch, the fish should  flake easily when done cooking.

Pineapple Chutney
1 can crushed pineapple
1 T. dark brown sugar
2 T. cider vinegar
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 yellow bell pepper, finely chopped
1 tsp. ground or fresh grated ginger, go with fresh for more flavor
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder

Place crushed pineapple, brown sugar, cider vinegar, and salt in a small or medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer. Add remaining ingredients. Cook until thick. This step is optional, but I used an immersion blender and made it a little more smooth when it was finished cooking.

Golden Beet Salad
1 1/4 pounds Golden Beets, trimmed
1 1/2 T. rice wine vinegar (I prefer seasoned type)
1/2 t. kosher salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 T. olive oil (I buy organic extra virgin)
1/2 t. dijon mustard
1 package of baby spinach, 5 oz.
3 T. toasted or candied walnuts (I really like the glazed ones that are Diamond brand found at walmart)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wrap beets in parchment, then foil, and place on a baking sheet. Roast until tender, about 60-90 minutes. Let cool completely
Peel beets (an easy way to do this is by rubbing the skin firmly with a dry paper towel), cut into matchsticks.

Make salad dressing, whisk together vinegar, salt, pepper, olive oil, and dijon.

In a large bowl place spinach, beets, and walnuts. Toss salad with dressing. Serve immeadiately.

Baked Brown Rice:

This recipe is by the amazing Alton Brown from the Food Network. This is a basic recipe that is very easy to make. Serves 6

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice, medium or short grain
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter or margarine
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place the rice into an 8-inch square glass baking dish.
Bring the water, butter, and salt just to a boil in a kettle or covered saucepan. Once the water boils, pour it over the rice, stir to combine, and cover the dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, remove cover and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve immediately.

Talk to you tomorrow after I make this dinner. I will let you know how it goes.

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2-27-2011 Sunday Funday

For dinner tonight we decided to go to a very family friendly restaurant, Chili's. The kids love that place. I would love it too, but everytime I go there I eat a week's worth of french fries. Ughhhh, I am feeling pretty greased out right about now.

After dinner and putting the kids to bed, I started brainstorming what I am going to be making this week. I also made my grocery lists. I only have 3 or 4 grocery stores to go to this week. It would be a miracle if I could go to just one grocery store.

Here are a few of the things to look for in upcoming posts this week:
Chicken with Peach Bourbon Glaze
Coconut Crusted Tilapia with Pineapple Chutney
Golden Beet Salad

Also, Hubby's birthday is this weekend, there will be a lot of cooking going on. I'm planning on making all of his favorite foods: (recipes to come)
Mushroom Soup
Moroccan Salmon
Meat Empanadas with Salsa Golf
Chocolate Birthday Cake with cupcake cones
Mixed Green and Apple Salad with candied walnuts

Hopefully, Hubby won't read this, because I want to suprise him with his birthday cake. For the cake, I am going to make cupcake cones (ice cream cones with cake baked inside) and decorate a round cake with these. I will post a picture of the finished cake.

If you are wondering why I am doing cupcake cones, it is because Hubby is the creator and owner of an amazing gelato company, Talenti Gelato. I can't believe this is the first time I am mentioning this. Talenti, is the best ice cream you will ever have. There is not a flavor that I don't love. You can buy it at most grocery stores, including, Whole Foods, Tom Thumb, Kroger, Albertson's, Super Target, and Sprouts. If you have never tried it, you must! Here is a link to his website:
http://talentigelato.com/
The double dark chocolate, pistachio, and Sea Salt Caramel are my favorite flavors.

Here is the recipe for Cupcake Cones:

Cupcake Cones
These cute cones are perfect for children. They will adore these.

1 box cake mix any flavor, I prefer Duncan Hines
30 flat bottom ice cream cones
1 can Duncan Hines frosting, can use any brand any flavor
Sprinkles
Red Dots candies, or cherry sours

Preheat oven to 350 F
Make cake mix batter according to package direction. Fill 12 cones half full with batter. Stand cones in a 12 cup muffin tin. Bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.
Repeat until all the batter is used, refrigerate batter when not using.
Once cone has cooled, frost each one, sprinkle on the sprinkles.  Place a red Dot, or cherry sour in the middle of each one. So cute! Pin It

2-25-2011 Dahlia Day

This morning my friend Dahlia made a delicious brunch for me and a few friends. She packed it up and brought it to the mall, where we picniced outside Starbucks. Dahila is an amazing cook. Everytime I eat her food, I ask her for the recipes. Today she made these awesome mini cheese quiches. Of course I asked her for the recipe. I will post it when here when I get it. She also brought her homemade pumpkin chocolate chip bread (yum!), berries, yogurt, and granola. The whole spread was exquisite. I  love to cook, but I also really love to eat other people's cooking. Dahlia, you rock! Below is a dessert recipe she gave me, she warns it is extremely rich, it's a chocolate lovers dream come true.

Chocolate Pie- Parve

Ingredients

• 2 cups chocolate chips,
• 1/3 cup coffee liqueur - can substitute with espresso
• 1 block silken tofu
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 prepared chocolate wafer crust or a  graham cracker crust

Directions

Place a small metal bowl over a saucepan with simmering water. Melt the chocolate and coffee liqueur in the bowl over simmering water, could use a double boiler. Stir in vanilla.

Combine the tofu, chocolate mixture, and honey in the jar of a blender. Liquefy until smooth.

Pour the filling into the crust and refrigerate for 2 hours, or until the filling is set.

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Here is one other recipe I got from Dahlia. She made this for a playgroup at her house once. It was beautiful, and delicious as well. The original recipe is from Ina Garten.

Roasted Vegetable Torte

Ingredients:

• 2 zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 1 red onion, cut in half lengthwise and sliced
• 1 garlic, minced
• olive oil
• kosher salt
• fresh ground pepper
• 2 red bell peppers, halved, cored, and seeded
• 2 yellow bell peppers, halved, cored, and seeded
• 1 eggplant, unpeeled, cut into 1/4 -inch slices (1 1/2 pounds)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

 

1 Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2 Cook the zucchini, onions, garlic, and 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat for 10 minutes until the zucchini is tender. Season with salt and pepper.

3 Brush the red and yellow peppers and eggplant with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast on a baking sheet for 30 to 40 minutes, until soft but not browned.

4 In a 6-inch round cake pan, place each vegetable in a single, overlapping layer, sprinkling Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste between each of the layers of vegetables.

5 Begin with half of the eggplant, then layer half of the zucchini and onions, then all of the red peppers, then all of the yellow peppers, then the rest of the zucchini and onions, and finally the rest of the eggplant.

6 Cover the top of the vegetables with a 6-inch round of parchment paper or waxed paper. Place a 6-inch flat disk (another cake pan or the bottom of a false-bottom tart pan) on top and weight it with a heavy jar. Place on a plate or baking sheet (it will leak) and chill completely.

7 Drain the liquids, place on a platter, and serve at room temperature.

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