In the Kitchen: A Cinco de Mayo Paloma

Cinco de Mayo is a great way to kick off and celebrate warm weather.  So, what could be a better accompaniment than a warm weather cocktail? Yes, margaritas are a staple, but there are so many other great Mexican drink recipes to share. One of my favorites incorporates grapefruit, tequila, and my favorite ingredient of all -salt. This drink is sure to please the pallet and cool your down!

What you'll need (for one drink):

2 oz silver tequila

1 cup grapefruit soda

1/2 lime

ice

salt

Ingredient tip: I suggest using Jarritos grapefruit soda (first soda company established in Mexico in 1950!) but Squirt or Fresca will do just fine. If you're using Squirt or Fresca and want it to be a bit more tart, add the juice of 1/4 grapefruit.

The plan:

Rim highball glass with salt by dipping the rim in a shallow bowl of water then into a shallow bowl of salt. Pour grapefruit soda in glass. Stir in tequila. Add ice and lime. Stir and enjoy!

If you aren't much for salted rims, simply just skip the first step and add a pinch of salt before stirring. I guess you could use sugar too... but salt is better.

La Paloma

What's that you say? You're not much for tequila? That's just fine! To keep in the Cinco De Mayo spirit, try out this great Michelada recipe that I posted last year. It calls for beer as the base, with some lemon and yes, salt!

In the Kitchen: Empanadas de la "Wellas"

My Abuela and her sister, my Tia Bina, (affectionately referred to as "the Wellas") are two  of the most influential women in my life (I'm lucky to be surrounded by so many inspirational women) , especially when it comes to cooking. My Abuela is always eager to whip something up for us in the kitchen. As a kid, it was something I took advantage of, but now I find it endearing as hell. And, now that I have my own home, I totally get it. I must have that Spanish gene that makes you just want to stuff people's faces and warm their bellies with good food and conversation just like every other woman I grew up around.

One of my favorite dishes that Abuela and Tia Bina make is Empanada. Stuffed with sautéed veggies and meat, the smell of a cooking empanada totally reminds me of being at Abuela’s house anxiously awaiting to perform my official “taste tester” duties.

These can be made as hand pies by rolling a 5 inch circle of dough, filling it, then folding it over and pinching it together with a fork. However, when Tia and Abuela make them for the massive amount of family around, they use this more “casserole” like preparation.

Here it is, from my family to yours:

Empanadas a la “Wellas”

What you’ll need:

Filling-

3 lb. roasted pork, shredded

or 3 lg. cans of tuna, drained

3 red peppers

3 green peppers

1 lg. onion

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 bay leaf1 can whole tomatoes

1 6 oz can of tomato paste

½ Cup oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Dough-

6 Cups flour

1 Tbsp. salt

1 lb. unsalted butter

1 Cup milk

2 Tbsp. white vinegar

3 eggs

1 egg, beaten and reserved for egg wash

Filling: Cook onions, peppers and garlic in oil until tender. Add whole tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Cook for 45 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Add tuna or pork. Drain and set aside

Dough: Mix salt and flour. Add butter. Mix like pie dough. Add eggs. Add the vinegar to the cup of milk. Add milk mixture to the flour mixture. Incorporate all ingredients then set aside.

Divide dough in half. Roll out half of dough and place in jelly roll pan. Add filling. Roll out second half of dough and place on top. Crimp edges with a fork to seal. Brush top with beaten egg. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, until top is golden brown. Once removed from oven, let it set for a couple minutes afterward.

I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as we do. The smell of a freshly baked empanada is like a warm hug. I love how food connects us all in that way. What recipes do you remember growing up with?

In the Kitchen: Ben's orange brined pheasant

B has been doing a great job as an ecotarian, refraining from eating any meat that isn't local. And in this case, our pheasant was extremely local and a product of his Thanksgiving hunting trip.

This is probably one of my favorite dinners he has ever made. The brine made each bite succulent and utterly divine. B served it with rosemary roasted red potatoes and sauteed onions, which was a perfect pairing.

Here is his method of preparation:

2 small pheasants
1 1/2 gal water
1 cup  kosher salt
1 can orange juice concentrate
1 lemon, sliced
1 orange, sliced
5 cloves garlic, chopped
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1/4 cup fresh cracked pepper
3 tbs butter, melted
3 tbs maple syrup

Combine all ingredients EXCEPT for the pheasants into a large stock pot. Bring to a boil. Once brine has reached a boil take off the heat and let cool completely. Put your pheasants into the pot ribcage down and leave for 2 days rotating periodically. Once you are ready to prepare your pheasant to cook, rinse the birds off completely and pat dry.

To roast: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Roast pheasant with potatoes, onions and olive oil for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, reduce heat to 325 degrees. Baste with 3 tbs melted butter 3 tbs maple syrup. Return pheasant to oven for 30-35 minutes or until an internal temperature of 155 degrees.

In the kitchen: Savory Oatmeal

Steel Cut oats have always been up there on my most versatile food list but for some reason, other than stuffing them in haggis, I never thought of making them in a savory fashion. I've put brown sugar, honey, milk, honey butter, preserves, and dried fruit all over oatmeal but lately, the craving for something a little more savory has reared it's head in the morning.

I did some research and one person had mentioned thinking of oatmeal more like risotto when you're looking to buck the sweet trend. So, that's what I did.

Here's the simple and quick recipe I came up with:

What you'll need:

Steel  Cut Oats
1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 pinch of kosher salt
1 tsp. fresh grated Parmesan Reggiano

The plan:

• Make your oats as directed. Most make more than one serving but I always do 1/4 cups oats to 3/4 cups water for a single serving. 
• One your oats are done, transfer to a small bowl
• Add salt, Parmesan, and olive oil
• Enjoy!

Caramelized Onion and Brie Puff

Ever since my post on hosting my first Thanksgiving I've had quite a few friends ask about the caramelized onion and brie puff that I served. Turns out my family liked it too because I made THREE more throughout the holiday season.

So, due to popular demand, I give you directions to making a spectacularly cheesy and onioney brie puff of your own.

Originally, I followed Claire Robinson's recipe from her Food Network show, 5 Minute Fix. However, she makes two 5 inch puffs while I like to make one 7 inch puff. Here is her recipe with a few changes to make it a single recipe.

What you'll need:

• 1 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 large Vidalia or Spanish onions, thinly sliced
• Kosher saltand freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
• 1 large round brie cheese
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

The Plan:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.


Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and saute until just brown, about 10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of water and cook stirring often, until dark golden brown and creamy, about 25 minutes. Let the mixture cool to room temperature.


Roll a sheet of pastry to a 12-inch square on a marble surface or parchment paper to prevent sticking. Place the caramelized onions evenly  in the center of each pastry. Put a brie round on top of the onions and brush edges of both pastry squares with beaten egg. Fold pastry up and over cheese to completely enclose the cheese in the pastry. Press the seams together to completely seal.

Flip the puff round, seam side down, on a silicone mat or parchment lined baking sheet. (If you have it, this bakes exceptionally well on stoneware too!) Brush the top of each pastry round with beaten egg. Bake until golden brown. 20 to 25 minutes.

For a decorative flair, I like to cut off a small corner of the puff pasty and make simple leaves and stick them to the top of my puff with the beaten egg

An important note on serving: Make sure you let the puff cool for around 30 minutes before slicing into it. This might be the hardest step of all considering how good it will look and smell, but should be followed to prevent a molten stream of lava-like cheese from spilling out all over the plate and becoming completely separated from the pastry shell!

Enjoy!

Love a Pavlova

This past weekend I decided to try out a recipe I saw on one of my favorite blogs, Heart of Light. I am always on the lookout for a great gluten-free dessert and this is right up there with flourless chocolate cake for me! Truly divine.

Behold, Anna Pavlova

After making the Pavlova and taking the leftovers to work, I got a lot of questions regarding what Pavlova is. So, I did some looking around and it turns out it was named after Russian dancer, Anna Pavlova in the 1920's. The big debate is  whether or not it was originally a creation of New Zealand or Australia. Much of the (little) research I did, attributed it to NZ...sorry Aussies.

It's a pretty dramatic story considering it is basically just made from eggs and sugar.

To make my Pavlova, I followed Rachel's recipe here. I did not however, add the balsamic vinegar (B's request) and next time I make it I will probably put the meringue into a pastry bag and pipe them into little nests to better house the fruit. To make sure the Pavlova were completely done, I turned the oven off after they were crisp (around 10 am) and didn't open it again until we were ready to eat them (about 7 pm).

For the fruit topping I just thawed out a bag of Trader Joe's mixed berries, then added some sugar and lemon juice. We added a little extra kick by topping it off with alcohol infused raspberry whipped cream and it was pretty delicious. Note: said whipped cream did not accompany the leftovers to work. Sad, I know.

Summer Drink Recipe: Micheladas

After a long day at work, or even a hot afternoon full of work in the garden, Micheladas always hit the spot when I want something a little more refreshing than a plain old beer. This is a recipe I shared last year with the 30k Millionaire Crew and it was a hit!

Michelada's date back to around 1940 and are typically a version of Bloody Marys but with Mexican beer instead of vodka. Traditionally, they have ingredients such as clamato, salsa, and Maggi (a Nestle's brand variety of tomato soup). If it has any type of hot sauce included, it is usually referred to as a "Michelada Cubana".

As a self-pronounced amateur foodie I am normally jazzed when food is at it's weirdest state, however I prefer the boring version of Michelada referred to as "Michelada Regular". It is simple, clean, refreshing and totally undemanding when it comes to dinero. Sometimes you really can't beat that. Especially when you are pairing it with the kickin' flavors associated with tasty Mexican cuisine. Follow the recipe below and fall in love with a new Mexican favorite.

The super simple plan:

Throw in one bottle Mexcian Beer (use something lighter like Corona or my personal favorite, Pacifico) and the juice of two lemons. Mix and pour over ice. Rim the glass with Salt. ¡Ole!