Guacamole with Cottage Cheese

I have a deep love and appreciation for avocados.  I probably should considering I have one tattooed on my arm.  Because if I didn't love them....I guess that would make my tattoo silly now wouldn't it?

Let's just cross our fingers I never develop an allergy to them....cuz that would just be unfortunate

I'll take an avocado anyway I can get.  In a wrap or sandwich, chunked up in salsa, in deliciously fresh ceviche, eating it straight with a spoon and some salt, and of course everybody's favorite....guacamole!

 Guacamole is pretty much good no matter what.....but I'm going to go all Emeril on you and kick it up a notch! 

 

And that means adding cottage cheese to it.  Yes....you heard right....cottage cheese!  Don't go turning up your noise too quickly now.  It's CRAZY good!

The very first time I ever had it was at my sisters house when I was babysitting my (now 14 year old) niece.  She was probably 2 at the time so that would make me like...11.  Holy guacamole that was a long time ago!!  

I remember it all so vividly it's actually kind of odd.  As she was leaving she told me  to help myself to whatever food was in the house and that she had just made a small bowl of guacamole if I wanted some.  Well....apparently I wanted some. At the time I wasn't even entirely sure what was in it but I couldn't stop shoveling it into my mouth.  

I was doing that stupid thing where you're super addicted to it but are trying to convince yourself you won't eat that much.   I would eat a few chip fulls, recover it with the plastic wrap, put back in the fridge and go back to play with my niece.

Not even 5 minutes would go by before I was back in the kitchen for more....repeating the process.  After a few rounds of this I stopped wasting precious time and began scooping it straight from fridge.

Before I knew it I had almost devoured the entire bowl myself.  I was ridden with guilt and shame.  Sure anytime you do an kind of "sitting" whether it be baby, house, or pet, they always tell you to help yourself to whatever you want.  But your not actually supposed to eat it ALLLLL.  I was struck with panic and did the worst thing ever.  In an effort to not technically have eaten the bowl I left a few small spoonfuls in the bowl.  

True story. I know....shameful.  I can only imagine what was going through their head when they found that near empty bowl in their fridge. 

Fast forward....now I am an adult and can buy and make this for myself whenever I want.  AND I can eat the whole bowl and not feel bad.  I should probably make my dear seester a bowl sometime to make up for my transgressions over 12 years ago.  I'll put it on my to do list.  Let's just hope I can make it to her house before repeating the past

Enough about my gluttonous childhood...now for the recipe

Actually file this one as another NON recipe

Just make your guacamole the way you like it.  Mine includes jalepeno, garlic, chopped tomato, lemon, red onion, salt, and LOADS of lemon juice

Then add some cottage cheese.  I like the full fat large curd kind....but that's just me

Seriously....you gotta try it!  It's a great party food just in time for football season.   Not only does it add some protein to your snacking but it also stretches your guacamole further for a crowd.  Win and win!

And since I watch my carbs I like to eat mine on chicharonnes....Or pork rinds in English ;)

Ceviche Inspired Creamy Shrimp Salad

I looooooove ceviche.  It's like shrimpy delicious crack....I could eat it all day every day if I could.  The only downside is that it can be a bit time consuming and I'm pretty impatient

I was craving it but didn't want to put in the work or wait for the shrimp to "cook" in the lemon juice...which can take a while.  The solution to my laziness and impatience was to take all the flavors from my original ceviche recipe  but turn it into more of a shrimp salad.

Here's whatcha need:

Shrimp, cucumber, red onion, sweet bell pepper (not green), cilantro, lemon, avocado, mayo, and salt

I bought already cooked shrimp...that's what makes it this so much easier than the traditional recipe.  Take the tails off and chop them into bite sized pieces.  Then add your chopped onion, cucumber (seeded) bell pepper, cilantro, and avocado

Then squeeze in your lemons. I like ALOT of lemon.  And then for the "salad" portion of this I add mayo.....but just a little bit.

Season to taste with a little salt and it's ready to go.  All the flavors of ceviche but done in a fraction of the time

I ate it as lettuce wraps with Sriracha....AKA sauce of the gods in my world

Yummy

Ceviche Inspired Shrimp Salad

1 1/2 lbs. Cooked shrimp, chopped
1 cucumber seeded and chopped
1/2 large red onion finely chopped
1 sweet bell pepper (red, yellow, or orange) seeded and chopped
1 bunch cilantro chopped
5 avocados diced
Juice of 2-3 lemons
1/4 C. mayo
Salt

Combine all the ingredients and chill.  Eat on a tostada like ceviche, as lettuce wraps, or on bread like a traditional shrimp salad

Ceviche

The first time I ever had ceviche was at my friend Kristina's house in high school

 That day the clouds parted, the sun came out, and my life was changed forever.  f you think this sounds dramatic....it's not.  It's just really that good...promise

It's so refreshing and addictive....and the bonus of it all is that it's actually really healthy . It's just shrimp and veggies.....whose gonna complain about that? 

It's a perfect summer time dish because like I said, it's super refreshing and requires no heat....so you get a meal without heating up your house.  A bonus for me because living here in AZ I avoid turning on the oven and stove at all costs about 4 months out of the year

Here's the delicious ingredients you'll need

Fresh shrimp, cilantro, red onion, orange and yellow bell peppers, cucumbers, and lemons

Start by fine dicing your red onion

And your cilantro

Then start to finely chop your shrimp.  When you think you've chopped it fine enough...you haven't.  Keep choppin!   I usually buy the larger tail on shrimps and it takes me longer to take the tails off and chop, but this time I paid a little more and got the smaller tail off ones to make it go a littler faster

 In a non reactive pan (I suggest glass) mix together the minced onion, cilantro, shrimp, and the juice of your lemons.  I usually used about 10 or so.   You want to put it in a pan with alot of surface area (I use a 9x13 baking dish) so everything can lay out in an even layer to allow the lemon juice to cook the shrimp evenly

Correction....it's not exactly "cooking"  Let me drop a little knowledge here.......

Technically, to cook something you have to apply heat.  The shrimps reaction to the lemon juice is actually just a denaturing of the protein.  The same denaturing process happens in cooking....but with the use of heat.  In this process the denaturing is being done by acid.   Make sense?

I paid thousands upon thousands, upon thousands of dollars to learn that.  Wanna thank me for this tidbit of information?  Feel free to send a check on my behalf directly to Sallie Mae....please and thank you

I kid, I kid

Unless of course you REALLy want to....I won't fight it ;)

Here's how it will look right after you mix it all together

Put it in the fridge and let it "denature" ;)  Stir it occasionally to make sure it is all getting coated in the lemon juice

I let these ingredients sit on their own for about 2 - 2 1/2 hours

In the mean time, finely dice your bell peppers and cucumber

I've seen some ceviches where they leave the shrimp whole and everything is really chunky, but I prefer everything chopped small so that you get a little bit of everything in every bite

After about 2 1/2 hours you'll see a difference in the shrimp.  It will be firmer and orangeish in color compared to the translucent blue look from earlier.  This means your shrimp is now "cooked"

Now mix in your bell peppers, cucumber, and diced avocado.  Add salt to taste

Your ceviche is ready!

Eat it on a tostada or with tortilla chips

I warned ya.....this stuff is CRAAAAZY addictive.  I crave it so bad I sometimes have to make stops at the ranch markets for theirs to tide me over.....but it's nothing compared to this

I also made some Posole today in honor of Cinco De Mayo

Go Here for the recipe 

*Low Carb Note*  This could easily be adapted to low carb by eating it with pork rinds, lettuce leaves, zucchini chips, or simply with a fork

Ceviche

2lb. Shrimp, finely chopped (white fish can be substituted)

2 sweet bell peppers, finely diced

1 red onion, minced

1 bunch of cilantro, finely chopped

5-7 avocados depending on size

10 lemons (roughly)

Salt

Mix together the red onion, cilantro, shrimp, and lemon juice and let sit in a glass pan with alot of surface area (such as a 9x13 baking dish) for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours, stirring occassionally.

After the shrimp looks "cooked" stir in the bell peppers, cucumber, avocado, and salt to taste and let that sit and marinate together for another hour or so before serving

Super Fluffy Mexican Rice

Have you ever noticed how the rice in most Mexican restaurants is super duper fluffy?

Well, I don't know how they do it there but I have a method that will give you the absolute fluffiest rice you've ever eaten....like EVER!

It's so much better than those gummy and sticky rices that just feel like glop in your mouth.

The boxed Rice-A-Roni version are the worse culprits in my eyes.

Not that I'm a complete Rice-A-Roni snob,

Heck, if I went on a game show and won a year supply I wouldn't turn it away

I'm just not particulalry fond of their "Spanish Rice" after having perfected my own

There are 3 main steps that contribute to the said "fluffiness" factor

Key Tip #1 is to rinse your rice in a strainer under cold water for about 2 minutes

Mix it around so that each grain of rice gets rinsed thoroughly

The reason this is so important is that it removes much of the excess starch which leads to gumminess

You can use it right away if need be, but if I know I am making the rice ahead of time I like to rinse it then let it sit out and dry 

Next, prep your tomato and onion.  Drain the juice out of your canned diced tomatoes.  Pulse together with the onion in a food processor.  It should look something like this

It should be around 2 cups of this mixture.  I almost never measure it out but if for some reason  it looks like alot more than the 2 cups I would discard the excess

Key Tip #2 is to toast your rice in oil.  This is known as the Pilaf Method.  This helps by coating each individual grain in oil which prevents clumping and stickiness which then leads to......you guessed it....fluffy!

Cook your rice in the oil until it becomes a very light golden brown.  About 5-6 minutes over medium heat

 ^^ I know....this is an absolutely terrible shot.....but I put it on here just to show you that I at least made an attempt to show you the browning rice......even if it is terrible and lame

After the rice is browned a little, add your minced garlic and jalapeno

And yes, those are jarred jalapenos.  You can scoff if you'd like but it's just what works for me.  They are a little more mellow than the fresh and this recipe is one that I generally can make straight out of my pantry without special trips to the store.  I always have rice, tomatoes, garlic, etc.  But I hardly ever have fresh jalapenos.  

What I do have is one of those giant industrial sized jars of jalapeno slices you find on the big giant stuff aisle of Wally World  (at least that's what  I named the aisle)

Use fresh if the idea of this disgusts you

Next stir in your broth, tomato onion mixture, and salt.  

(^This picture is of the rice with the tomato onion mixture but not the broth.  I didn't want you to be confused)

Bring this up to a boil and then transfer the whole pot to a 350 oven.  If you don't have a dutch oven like me, you can always start the rice in a saute pan and just transfer it into a casserole dish covered tightly in foil

Baking the rice is Key #3

I actually prefer to bake all my rices.  The texture is so much better and it's almost no fail for all those people out there who have difficulty making rice

Bake for about 25 minutes, stirring after 15

After I take it out I stir in chopped cilantro.  I've heard some people don't like cilantro.  I think it's a silly myth because in my world.....how could you not love it?  Buncha hearsay nonsense!

 My Mexican husband gives his stamp of approval on this dish!  Pretty darn tasty

Mexican Rice

2 C. long grain white rice

14 oz can diced tomatoes, drained

1 small onion

1/3 C. oil

5 cloves of minced garlic

Jalapenos (optional)  minced

2 C. chicken broth

2 tsp. salt

Rinse rice under cold water for about 2 minutes. Shake dry.  Pulse drained, diced tomatoes and the onion in the food processor.  It should yield about 2 cups. 

Heat oil over medium heat and add the rice, cooking until lightly golden brown, about 5-6 minutes.

Add garlic and jalapeno

Stir in broth, tomato onion mixture, and salt.  Bring to a boil.  Transfter into a 350 oven.

Bake covered about 25 minutes, stirring after 15.

When you take it out, let it sit for a few minutes before stirring in chopped cilantro.  Fluff and serve!

Fiesta Corn & Black Beans

My husband has been working for a large catering company here in our area for a few years now.

He's done a few different jobs for them and one of them was to make hot entrees for their corporate catering side.

They put together about 600 hot entrees a day that were put into heat safe containers and then delivered them to various companies and schools that didn't have a cafeteria of their own

It was nice because he always brought home the leftovers and we hardly ever had to cook dinner or even shop for groceries!  Win win!

One of my favorite vegetable sides that they did was this delicious spiced corn.  I could eat my weight in it....and probably did at least twice.  Ive kicked it up a little bit and came up with my own version

The key to the deliciousness is the spice blend. 

 It's called 1, 2, 3 Spice

It's simply a ratio of  

            

 1 part Coriander

2 parts Cumin

      3 parts Chili powder

so you can make how ever much you like whether it be just a few teaspoons or a jar for you to keep in your cabinet

You can use already ground coriander, but I toasted and the whole seeds myself in a dry pan

Then ground them in a coffee grinder

It's sort of lemony in smell.  Alot of people haven't cooked much with coriander, but they really should!  It's delicious!

After your spice is all blended up.....melt a few tablespoons of butter in pan.  Add half a diced medium onion and cook until translucent.  Then add 1 can of black beans that have been drained and rinsed, 1 can of drained corn, and 1 can of diced fire roasted tomatoes (don't drain)

Add 3 teaspoons of your 1,2,3 and gently stir until it's heated through.  Season with salt to taste

I served this along side my Sour Cream Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Sour Cream Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Holy Moly!

It's been FOREVER...FOR-EV-ER  (envision the kid from Sandlot saying it)

since I've had the chance to blog

Work has been a BIATCH!

If  Dante had a 10th Circle of hell.....I'm pretty sure it would have been my job the last 2 weeks.

But I somehow made it through alive....

Barely.

No better way to jump back in then to share with you the enchiladas I grew up on.  

 Disclaimer: They are white people enchiladas.

Ok....so it's not like you have to be white to eat them....I just mean that they are in no way authentic.

At all.

In fact, since these were the only way my family ever made them I didn't even know Red Enchiladas existed.  I didn't even have my first one until I was in high school.

True story!

Here are the ingredientses

Did any of you Real Housewives of New Jersey fans catch that?

"Ingredientses"

Teresa?

Remember?

Her mispronunciations always make me chuckle

Start by cutting your tortillas into quarters and frying in oil just long enough to get rid of the "raw" taste

It takes maybe 30 seconds

And if you make them a little too crispy...you  just made yourself a tasty snack!  Homemade chips!!

Spread on paper towels to drain off excess oil

In a large mixing bowl combine the cream of chicken, sour cream, diced onion, green chiles,  & chicken

Gently stir in your cooked tortillas

Spread into a baking dish.

This made enough for me to fill a 9x13 disposable baking pan (I was taking it to a friend) and a small 8 inch square dish for us (but not quite full to the top)

So bottom line is it make ALOT!  Good for a crowd

Top with shredded chedda

Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes until hot and bubbly

 

It's some serious yumminess!

In the almost 23 years I've been on this earth we have only made it into actual rolled enchiladas twice.

I prefer the casserole approach because I get impatient rolling them and its easier to serve.  No muss or fuss over trying to cut into them correctly.  Just scoop and go!

But if you are more patient then I am you can roll them.  Just cook the tortillas whole in the oil  and mix the soup, sour cream, onion and chiles but DON'T mix in the chicken.  Fill a whole tortilla with a little sauce, sprinkle in some chicken, and place in a baking dish.  Top them with the remaining sauce and cheese. 

Sour Cream Chicken Enchilada Casserole

(2) Family size cans of cream of chicken soup

(1) 16 oz container of sour cream

(2) 7 oz cans green chiles

1 medium onion diced

1 1/2 cups cooked, diced or shredded chicken

3/4 # corn tortillas

Vegetable or canola oil

Shredded cheddar cheese

Cut the tortillas into quarters and fry in oil until soft . About 30 seconds.  Drain on paper towels

Mix together the soup, sour cream, onion, green chiles, & chicken

Stir in the cooked tortillas

Spread into a 9x13 baking dish and top with cheddar cheese

Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes until hot and bubbly

*Note: These can be made into rolled enchiladas by cooking the tortilla whole, and mixing the soup, onion, sour cream, and green chiles together but NOT the chicken.  Fill a tortilla with a little sauce and then sprinkle in some chicken.  place in baking dish.  Top with remaining sauce and then cheese and bake

Chile Relleno

Ay yai yai......

Arriba arriba.....

I'm on a Mexican food kick these days.  Maybe it's because after 6 months of marriage I finally changed my last name......

And maybe now that I have a mexican last name I subconsciously feel the need to unleash my inner Senora? 

Or maybe its because I'm doing the low carb thang right now and mexican food really pairs well with a LC lifestyle...ya know.....once you stop thinking about tortillas and chips and stuff =P

My lastest venture.....Chile Relleno!

What sparked this idea was when I found a big bag of Poblano peppers at 99c only for you guessed it....only 99c! 

And then I started thinking....you stuff it with cheese....low carb friendly....and then I could have a solely egg based batter and skip using and flour and.....

Tah dah! 

You got yourself another low carb Mexican dinner

You need...pablono chiles, 4 ROOM TEMPERATURE eggs (I'll explain) and cheeses of your choice

Start by roasting your chiles.  I don't have any pictures because I did mine at work.  I don't have a gas stove at home so I would  have had to do it on the grill and with it already being 106 here in Phoenix, standing outside and continuously turning them didn't sound too fun.  I sweat enough at work all day in our blazing hot kitchen.  The last thing I want to do is come home and sweat some more.

Give them a good char and then either place them in a bag and seal, or place in a bowl and cover it with saran wrap.  This will create steam that will make taking the skins off easier.

After they've cooled down, you can start removing the skins.  I do this by filling a bowl with water and gently rubbing them submerged in the water.  It helps wash away all the little bits easier than just rubbing them off with your hands

Now to start stuffing!   Make a slit on one side of the chile.  GENTLY pull out the seeds and membranes.  Fill with your cheese mixture.  I used half cheddar half pepper jack....but you can do whatever you like.

Now for your coating.  Like I said before you need room temperature eggs.  The reason is because you are going to be whipping the egg whites into stiff peaks.  Eggs whites whip MUCH MUCH easier when they are room temperature.  It's the exact opposite of whipped cream....where you want everything as cold as possible.

So separate your yolks from you whites and beat the living crap out of your whites

I didn't get a picture, but you'll also beat your yolks until they are foamy and lighter in color.

GENTLY....(and the keyword here is gently)  fold your yolks into your whites....don't stir or whip!

Time to start frying!

Get some canola oil nice and hot in a big skillet.  Take a scoop of your batter mixture and place it in the hot oil.  Spread it out with a spatula to around the size of your chile.

Place the chile seam side down onto the egg mixture.  Then spoon some more batter over the top.  After the bottom browned I also folded some of the bottom batter upwards to seal it all together.

Cook until golden, brown, and delicious. Salt them as soon as you pull them out of the pan

I threw mine in the oven for a few minutes just to make sure all the cheese was melted and then they are ready to chow!

Eat it with some low carb mexican rice (or regular rice) and you'll be set

Here's a link to the rice recipe
http://thebusybroad.blogspot.com/2012/05/low-carb-burrito-bowls.html 

Now I'm off to add some Tejano music to my ipod and  polish my maracas.

Kidding about the Tejano music....not really my taste.

Chile Relleno 

5 poblano chiles, roasted and skins removed

2 C. shredded cheese of choice

4 room temperature eggs seperated

Salt

Make a slit in your roasted and cleaned peppers.  Remove the seeds and membrane and stuff with your cheese.

Whip your eggs white to stiff peaks and beat the yolks until frothy.  

Fold the yolks into the whites.  

Heat oil in a large skillet.  Scoop some of the egg batter into into the pan and spread it out into the shape of the chile.  Place the chile seam side down onto the batter.  Scoop more batter on top of the chile.  Fry until golden brown.  Salt immediately. 

Posole

Now I may  only be 1/8 Mexican but I think I thrown down a pretty mean Posole!  I've been craving it since I last had it at Christmas time and Cinco De Mayo seemed like the perfect excuse to make it.  I normally don't "do" soups in this heat.  The thought of eating something steaming hot when its 97 outside makes my butt get swampy just thinking about it......but I decided this was worth an exception.

Here's what you'll need

Start by making your red sauce.  I've heard some people will use canned sauce or even enchilada sauce for a shortcut.....but I just can't bring myself to do it!  Once you see how easy making your own is and how much better it tastes you'll see why.

This is your basic red sauce.  The same stuff I use for making tamales. Start by taking the stems off the dried chiles and dumping out some of the seeds.  Place them on a baking sheet and warm them for about 3-5 minutes until you can smell them, but be sure not to burn them!

Then place them in a pot of hot water....enough to cover them.  Put the lid on and let them sit and soften for abut 30 mins.  After they are nice and soft place them in your food processor along with the salt, garlic, & cumin.  Thin it out to the right consistency with the soaking liquid.

Don't do what I did and try to shove it all in your mini processor because your too lazy to dig around for the big one.  Then you make big messes like this and it looks like your poor appliance is bleeding profusely.  Sorry little guy.

Then strain your sauce through a sieve.  No matter how long you blend it you will never get the skins of the peppers to totally break down so your left with little chunks that are funky and get all caught up in your grill.  It will leave you with a nice smooth sauce like this...

 Set your sauce aside for now and get to work on some juicy piggy!  Dice your pork shoulder as small as you can.  I know that can be hard to do with raw meat....and for gods sake don't cut yourself!  Just try to make it as close to the size of the hominy as you possibly can.  That way you can get both on your spoon and you don't have giant stew sized chunks of pork.

Brown the meat in your soup pot and take it out.

In the porky goodnesss that's left in the pan, saute your onions and bell peppers.  Once they start to soften add your pork back in along with your stock, hominy, and red sauce.  Bring to  boil then let it simmer until the pork becomes tender and the hominy softens.  Adjust seasonings if necessary.

Eat it with TONS of cilantro, citrus juice (I prefer lemon) and green onions mixed in.  Delish!

This makes a ton of soup, but if you going through the work of making it you might as well make alot!  And it freezes beautifully.



Red Sauce

16 dried chiles  (New Mexico, Ca etc)  usually ends up being about 5oz
2 tsp.Cumin
1 tsp. salt
4 garlic cloves

Rip of the stems and dump the seeds out of the chiles.  Warm in a 350 oven for 3-5 minutes until you can smell them but they don't burn.  Put in a pot of hot water, cover and let sit for 30 mins to soften.

After they soften, blend them with the salt, cumin, and garlic.  Add some of the soaking liquid until you get the desired consistency  Anywhere between 2 to 21/2 cups.  Strain the sauce through a sieve to get out all the pepper skins


Posole

2 # Pork shoulder roast diced small
1 Large diced onion
1 Large diced bell pepper
(2) 1# cans of hominy
Red sauce
10-12 C. Chicken broth

Brown the pork and then remove from pan and set aside.  In the same pan saute onion and bell pepper until soft and translucent.  Add pork back in along with the hominy, red sauce, and chicken broth.  Bring it to a boil then let simmer until the pork is tender and the hominy softens.  Adjust seasonings.