Home made Banh Mi

I know, I know, the seedy baguette isn't right but it was what I could find. I made home-made Spicy Lime Mayo, Do Chua and Black Pepper Marinade Pork Loin. Incredibly delicious. In the future I am hoping I can get the "right" bread at the best asian market.

It's Chipotle Season Again

It's that time of year again... Chipotle time.

Why yes, yes that IS 30 lbs of red jalapeno peppers...

Josh and Brittany stopped by with their little monkeys... Can you tell Jay is Josh's kid?

Dum Aloo, Dhal with fried spices, Jeera rice, Naan and mint Raita

So Sunday a couple of cold tired hikers showed up at my door. (Chris and Cassidy) I was warned ahead of time and had prepared a nice vegetarian (for Cass) Indian dinner for them.

Cass even pitched in and chopped Corriander ( Cilantro) for the Dum Aloo

We sat and ate it on the living room floor. Tasty Tasty.

Squid with Jalapenos, Chipotles and Greens

Rinse and drain Squid.

Clean Squid, remove Quill, seperate head from Mantle, skin and remove Wings, cut Tentacles from eyes and gunk (retaining ink sac if you want to make black crutons later), turn Mantle inside out and rinse any remaining gunk off, cut Tentacles in half making sure to remove beak. you should be left with a clean Mantle, clean Wings, and tasty Tentacle halves. Cut Mantle into rings and wing, maybe in half depending on size.

Ok, here goes! Cook diced Jalapeno , crushed Chipotle and minced Garlic in oil maybe 15 seconds. Do not burn your Garlic! Add clean stemmed and chopped Mustard Greens. Cook until wilted. Add Squid and Salt to taste and cook until Squid is opaque. Serve with your favorite Rice and a drizzle of Tamari sauce.

Enjoy!

Quick and Healthy Pizza

Slice a whole wheat pita in half. Pan roast Garlic. Toast pita halves and smear with roasted garlic. Top with marinara sauce. Cover with as much Onions, Tomatoes, Olives, Jalapenos, Fresh Basil and Mushrooms as you like. Add 2oz. chopped grilled Chicken and 1oz. Low fat Feta. Bake in 350 degree oven 15 min. Add an additional amount of Tomatoes and fresh Basil.
Eat both!

Spicy Pork stirfry with wild rice pilaf

Pilaf

Mince half a small onion, mince 1 clove garlic and mince 1.5" cube of peeled fresh ginger. Saute in 1 tsp oil until translucent add crushed red pepper or minced jalapeno. add 1 cup wild rice previously cooked per manufacturer instructions, handful of slivered almonds and diced scallion saute 1-2 min and set aside.

Stirfry

Heat oil with a lot of crushed pepper. Add thin sliced pork(10-12 oz.) and stir fry. Toss in 1 sliced onion, 1 large sliced bell pepper (whatever color you like), a bunch of sliced carrots (I prefer the matchstick slice), 2 cloves minced garlic, grated ginger and soy sauce to taste. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve with a side of tomatoes with fresh Basil and Balsamic

Cookin' with Hansen Kids

No, the Hansen kids are not the ingredients... they're the chefs!
Now, it's not all home made entirely from scratch or anything but, it was a fun project as we mixed and matched toppings!
Cookin' with the kiddos was Chris' idea and it was a good one!

The kids started with personal sized ready-made crusts and slathered on some pizza sauce from a jar.

Then added fresh chopped up tomato (chopped by an adult :-).

Then they sprinkled on chopped cilantro and some grilled chicken breast. Josh bought skinless, boneless chicken breast and grilled it on the Forman seasoning with a little basil then chopped it up.

Then they sprinkled on finely shredded mozzarella and mild cheddar (it came in a "pizza blend" bag of shredded cheese).

Then came pineapple (from a can) and shredded up bacon we had just fried up fresh.

They cooked for just 8 minutes.

Yummy yummy!

The kids really enjoyed having a meal they made themselves.

They did a large portion of the preparing

and it was goooood!

Then it was mom and dad's turn.
Ours included BBQ sauce instead of pizza sauce, grilled chicken, bacon, same cheese, red onion, fresh chopped tomato and cilantro, pineapple on Brittany's and fresh sliced jalapeno on Josh's.

Josh's Pizza.

Brittany's Pizza.

Eve followed up the delicious meal with a dessert that included a small bowl of sliced strawberry and bananas with whole milk poured over and topped with a few drizzles of honey.

Josh thought it sounded "weird".

Eve gobbled it right up and loved every bit!

Miranda's Pizza Recipe

Matt, Miranda sent me this recipe last week when she couldn't find the recipe for BBQ'd Peaches.
I think this is what she's trying to say... ;)

Mix up some dough per her instructions.
(Thank God for mixers)

Let the dough rise... etc.

Once your dough is ready, slap it. Fling it.
Show that dough who's boss!

Pizza is, of course, usually cooked in the oven. However, with a setup like this, why not cook it on the grill?

Just brush the crust with olive oil before throwing it on the grill, then flip, brush again, and top the pizza.

The variety of toppings is endless.

Topping off our lunches.

A closer look.

BBQ Sauce, Pepperoni, Sausage, Jalapeno, Onion, Cilantro...
You get the idea.

Pizza Sauce, Pepperoni, Sausage, Onion, Black Olive, and Mushrooms.

BBQ Sauce, Genoa, Roasted Garlic, Fresh Basil, Cilantro, Fresh Tomato and Parmesan Cheese.
Delightful!

Melissa's Salsa Fresca Verde

Even though I lost the salsa competition, I'll willingly accept defeat for this recipe.
(It was the fudge contest I was screwed on!)

Anyway, this salsa has become a staple with fish tacos...

3 c. tomatillo, chopped
1 (4 oz.) can diced green chiles
3 green onions, chopped
1 c. chopped onion
1-1 ½ c. cucumber, chopped (about ½ English)
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 tsp. cumin
½ tsp. oregano
2 Tbsp. seasoned rice vinegar
1 Tbsp. lime juice
1 chopped jalapeno, seeded & veined (about 2 Tbsp.)
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ c. chopped cilantro