Martha Stewart's Cinnamon Spiced Mexican Horchata

I have been going back and forth about whether I should post this recipe or not, because as good as it is (and it's really good), and as lovely as the pictures are (don't you like them?), this is not very authentic horchata. I say that because it has cow's milk in it, and traditionally, Mexican horchata is made of rice milk. And traditionally, you must wake up at the crack of dawn, soak the rice all day, and then grind it to a paste (by hand!) in your molcajete (what's that sound I hear? Ah, yes, cue the tiny violin).

Alternatively, you buy a little plastic baggie of powdered mix from the Mexican section of the grocery store, and you mix it with water. Which, by the way, I am pretty sure is what most Mexican people around here actually do when they want to drink horchata. Who has time to grind rice in a molcajete all day long?

So this drink, while delicious, is sort of Martha's irreverent devil-may-care-what-the-real-thing-is interpretation of horchata, and I have to say, it's good! It's creamy and delicious and the milk pairs well with Mexican food, which can be spicy! I imagine you could probably even just use unsweetened rice milk from the grocery store if you want to make it more authentic, or if you happen to be allergic to cow's milk, or you are vegan or WHATEVER. You don't have to make any explanations to me! I love you just the way you are, non-milk drinking friend.

If you want to make this a more grown-up drink, you can add in a little dark rum. It's quite tasty!

Martha Stewart's Cinnamon Spiced Mexican Horchata
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2011
Serves 4

Ingredients
4 cups milk (use whatever fat content you like best)
1 cinnamon stick
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup rice flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
optional: 1/2 cup dark rum

1. bring milk and cinnamon stick to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat, and transfer to a pitcher or bowl. Mix in sweetened condensed milk, flour, vanilla, and cinnamon. Chill until cold (a good 2 hours should do it).

2. strain mixture with a sieve, and add in rum (if using). Pour over ice, and garnish with a cinnamon stick, or a little sprinkle or cinnamon. Enjoy!

Authentic Homemade Fire Roasted Mexican Salsa!

This salsa makes me angry. It makes me angry because I have been paying $4 for little jars of salsa for year and years, and now I find out that making your own big jar of salsa is not only delicious and easy, but it's also dirt cheap! Do you have access to some tomatoes, garlic, onions, and jalapeno peppers? Then you have the making of some great salsa on your hands.

This being me, I am also excited to have more control over the ingredients, and I can keep out nasty villains like corn syrup, excessive sodium, and preservatives, and risky chemicals like BPA or whatever else they use to line cans and jar lids. But that's just me and my ever lasting quest to get more healthy food into my family!

I have only made this one way, but I like to think that this is a good base recipe for making different flavors of sauce. Here are some suggestions for flavors:

Three Pepper: Add 3 cored bell peppers to roasting pan, in red, orange, and yellow
Garlic Chipotle: Replace jalapeno with 1 - 2 canned Chipotle peppers (depending on how spicy you want it) and 1 tsp adobo sauce. Increase garlic to 5-6 cloves
Pineapple: Add 2 thick slices cored fresh pineapple, or 1/2 a cup drained canned pineapple
Spicy Smoky Peach: Add 1 fresh peach, slices in half and pit removed, and replace jalapeno with 1/2 a chipotle pepper + adobo (or more if you like it hot!)
Double Chipotle: Add 1 - 2 canned chipotle peppers + adobo sauce, and 1 teaspoon smoke chipotle chili powder

Authentic Homemade Fire Roasted Mexican Salsa Recipe
adapted from Everyday Food, June 2011

Ingredients
4-5 ripe tomatoes, sliced in half, and seeds removed
2-4 jalapeno peppers, tops cut off, and seeds removed (use your discretion here - if you like your salsa mild, use one pepper with the seeds removed. It you like it really spicy, do 4 peppers with the seeds still in, since that's the spiciest part.
2 cloves garlic, skin on
1 large white onion, peeled and cut in half
1 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped (about 1 cup loosely packed)
lime juice
sea salt
cracked black pepper
additional pepper if desired, such as cayenne or chipotle

1. Turn on oven broiler. A gas stove is best, since you will get that awesome flame kissed flavor, but an electric stove will work too. Place tomatoes and onion cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet, along with garlic and jalapenos. broil 5-10 minutes, until tomatoes and onions are softened and charred (if garlic begins to burn, remove it early). Remove from boiler, and let cool to handle.

2. Roughly chop tomatoes, onion, and jalapenos, and peel garlic. Place in a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Add chopped cilantro, the juice of 1 lime (about 1.5 tablespoons), sea salt, pepper, and chili (if using), and pulse until incorporated. Taste, and correct seasoning. Serve immediately, or transfer to a container, and refridgerate up to 4 days (or, you could can it and stock your pantry!) enjoy!

Best Ever Turkey Burger with Spicy Chipotle Mayo

Gentle reader,

(can I call you that? Are we good enough friends that I can call you that? Because I really want to. Pretty please?)

I have a terrible confession to make. I have been sitting on a big stack of my most favorite recipes, and most of them are not on this blog. I KNOW, RIGHT?? What kind of food blogger doesn't post their best material? Lame ones, that's who. (Bad, bad blogger. Minus one gold star for me).

In my defense, I really, really care about these recipes, because I LOVE them. I want you to love them as much as I do. So if I feel like it's not perfect (and is it ever perfect? like, ever?), I don't want to post it. If the pictures are mediocre, I won't post it. If it didn't come out exactly right this time, NO POST. Are you sensing a theme here?

It's just that I love these recipes so much, and I want you to love them too. I want to make you fall in love with chipotle turkey burgers, black bean chili, and pumpkin roulade cake the way my family has. I want you to be able to make them for your family and friends over and over again. I want them to be your favorite family recipes too.

However.

That's not really going to happen if I never post the recipes, is it? So here you go: This is my family's favorite turkey burger recipe! It's not perfect. The pictures could be better. There could be a lot more of them. I could have written a better and more convincing arguments for just how good it is. But honestly? I'd rather just get it out there, imperfections and all.

So this is for you, gentle reader. I hope you try it, and I hope you like it as much as we do.

Best Ever Turkey Burger with Spicy Chipotle Mayo
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2009
serves 4

If you are going to make this recipe, you have to make it with the mayo at least once. Even if you don't really like mayo, please try it! It really takes what is a good burger to a whole new level. You can find chipotle chilis in the hispanic section if your grocery store, or at ethnic or specialty markets.

Ingredients
1.5 lbs ground turkey
1 small red onion, minced
1/4 cup minced cilantro
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
kosher salt
black pepper
----------------------------
8 thin slices Swiss cheese
4 sesame seed buns
4 lettuce leaves
8 slices bacon
4 dill pickles slices
---------------------------
1/2 cup good quality mayo, like hellman's or best (NOT miracle whip)
1/4 cup sour cream
1 canned chipotle chili
1 teaspoon adobo sauce

1. In a medium bowl, mix together ground turkey, minced onion, minced cilantro, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper, and shape into 4 patties. Grill over medium heat until cooked through, or bake in the oven 15 - 20 minutes until cooked through. Add slices of Swiss cheese at the end of the cooking time, and let melt over the burgers (YUM).

2. Meanwhile, puree mayo, sour cream, chipotle chili and adobo sauce until smooth. If you like, you can adjust how much chili to put in based on your tastes, but I think this amount is just right.

3. Toast buns. Build your burger: I recommend trying it with all the ingredients before you mess with it - all the flavors really do work together beautifully. Spread mayo on one of the buns. Layer together lettuce, patty, dill pickles, and bacon. Enjoy!

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

Boy howdy, are these cookies delicious! I had all these grand plans for making Christmas cookies this year, and believe me, my plans were grand. I was going to make no less than 12 different types of cookies, and share them with all my family, friends and neighbors, and be know as the most awesome home baker in all the land.

HA HA HA.

I did end up making about 5 batches of cookies all told, but you know... stuff happens. And I didn't even especially like most of the cookies I tried... except this one! This cookie recipe is so different and unexpected. I love the cinnamon and chile with the chocolate, which makes for a delicate chocolate cookie that is spiced but not spicy. It has a really unique flavor profile, and is definitely something different. If you like Mexican food at all, you will love this cookie!








Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies
adapted from Martha Stewart's Holiday Cookies

Like a snickerdoodle cookie, this cookie is made with cream of tartar and rolled in a cinnamon sugar mixture, but ground chile gives it a "smoky, earthy" flavor. You can find ground chile (such as arbol, ancho or chipotle) in the spices section of your grocery store, or you can substitute cayenne pepper if ground chile simply cannot be found (but you will lose some of the smokiness).

I am also giving the gluten-free version of this recipe that I have adapted, but you can always make it with all-purpose flour like the original Martha Stewart recipe. Simply substitute all purpose flour cup for cup with the gluten-free flours mentioned below.

A note about gluten-free flours: After trying and testing virtually every gluten-free flour and combination of flours out there, this is it. Oat + sweet rice flour is the absolute perfect combination of flours for cookies, and nothing can match it for natural taste and texture. This is how a cookie is supposed to taste, and you would never even know it's "gluten-free:" it's that good! So don't mess with something that ain't broken, I say. Use these flours!



Ingredients
1 cup oat flour
1 cup sweet rice flour
1/4 cup UNLEAVENED all-purpose gluten-free flour, such as Bob's red mill (some come with baking soda already in the flour, and this will mess things up!)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1.5 cups white sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon chile

For sugar and spice powder
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground chile


1. preheat oven to 400 degrees, with racks in the upper and lower thirds (or be lazy with me, and put one rack right in the middle. I'm too busy to be bothered with the turning and rotating of baking sheets during baking. Sorry Martha!)

2. Whisk together 1 cup oat flour, 1 cup sweet rice flour, 1/4 cup all purpose gluten-free flour, 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon chile powder. Set aside.

3. In a stand mixer, combine 1 cup (2 sticks) room temperature butter with 1.5 cups white sugar for a full 5 minutes, until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Reduce speed to low, and add flour mixture. Beat until just combined.

4. In a small bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon chile. Roll 1 heaping tablespoon of dough into a ball and role in the sugar-spice mixture. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet, and bake until cookies are set in the center and beginning to crack, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Enjoy!

Stacked Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas with Salsa Verde

I love me some enchiladas, but some times they can be a big ol' pain in the rear to put together. There is just so much labor involved! And I don't know about you, but I don't have forever and a day to put dinner together. Sometimes, I just need to be able to put something delicious and nutritious together fast, because we are hungry now. I really like this recipe, because unlike more "traditional" rolled enchiladas, these go together in about 2 minutes. The biggest task is frying the tortillas, and if you are feeling lazy, you can even skip that.

And OMG.

The taste is amazing.



It's a little bit like a Mexican lasagna. I love the layers of tortillas, cheese, salsa, and chicken. I like the tangy zesty salsa verde contrasted with the mild creamy cheese. It's pretty delicious! This one is definitely going in my regular rotation. And it only gets better for lunch the next day!




Stacked Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas with Salsa Verde
Adapted from Bon Appétit
Serves 6 - 8
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Total time: 1 hour

I made these enchiladas using The Best Salsa Verde Ever, but if you can't get ahold of any tomatillos you can always use the jarred stuff from the supermarket. I just can't promise it's going to taste as good. Because The Best Salsa Verde Ever is, well, the best salsa verde EVER.

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
12 corn tortillas
4 cups salsa verde
3/4 cup sour cream
8 oz grated muenster cheese (about 2 cups packed)
fresh cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
vegetable or olive oil

1. Roast chicken breasts in the center of the oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, until chicken is firm and registers 180 degrees at the center on a instant read thermometer.

2. While chicken is roasting, heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy bottomed skillet. Lightly fry each tortilla for about 15 - 30 seconds on both sides, until the small air pockets form, and tortilla begins to bubble.

3. Remove chicken from oven, and shred with 2 forks. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees.

4. Spread 1/2 a cup of salsa verde over the bottom of an 8x8x2 glass baking dish. Layer 4 tortillas on the bottom of the dish, covering the bottom of the dish, overlapping if necessary. Scatter 1/2 of the chicken over the tortillas. Carefully spread 1 + 1/2 cups of salsa verde over chicken (really - those tortillas will sop up a lot of moisture). Carefully spread 1/4 cup sour cream over salsa. Sprinkle with 1/2 of the cheese. Cover with 4 more tortillas, and layer with remaining chicken, 1 cups of salsa, and 1/4 cup sour cream. Cover with remaining 4 tortillas, 1 cup salsa, and and remaining sour cream, and top with 2nd cup of cheese.

wow. That was complicated. Ok! Let's make it easier:

Layer these in this order:

1/2 cup salsa
4 tortillas
1 cup chicken
1 + 1/2 cup salsa
1/4 cup sour cream
1 cup cheese

4 tortillas
1 cup chicken
1 cup salsa
1/4 cup sour cream

4 tortillas
1 cup salsa
1/4 cup sour cream
1 cup cheese

5. Bake in preheated oven until cheese and salsa are bubbling and lightly browned, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle with some chopped cilantro. Enjoy!

Authentic Mexican Salsa Verde, or, The Best Salsa Verde a Gringa can Make

Isn't salsa one of those thing that it never really crosses your mind to make yourself? Salsa's like, that stuff you buy in a jar from the store, right?

WRONG, yo. You can make this stuff yourself, and hello?? It's so easy. And it tastes amazing. It's great on enchiladas and burritos (obviously) but also tastes amazing spooned over scrambled eggs or as a topping for BBQ hot dog. And THIS! This is seriously the best salsa verde I have ever had. And I should know. I honeymooned in Mexico. That makes me an expert, right? right?? Anyway, it's tangy and mildly sweet, with a kick of fresh cilantro, parsley, and mint. It makes all other salsa verde pale in comparison, and once you make this you will KNOW that fresh is better than canned any day. Make yourself a big batch and enjoy it all summer!

Have I gushed enough? Are you convinced yet? Do I need to gush at you any more? Because I can keep going all day if I need to.





On a more somber note, I have some seriously tragic news to share concerning this salsa. I can't eat it. I mean, I can't eat very much of it. I can have a taste, but that's about it. See this cute little baby? This pinchable, squeezable, roly poly little bit of cuteness with the sad expression on his face?



He's got acid reflux. And it makes him cry. All the time. (in case you didn't have a baby yesterday like I did, all babies spit up and it usually doesn't bother them at all, but some kids have it worse and it's really painful and uncomfortable. It's called GERD and it sucks). And you know what makes him cry especially hard? Acidic foods. Like... all mommy's favorite foods. Lemons. Strawberries. Tomatoes. Salsa verde. I eat them. He cries. I don't eat them, he cries less. (But he still cries).

It took us a while to figure this out, because James ::never:: spits up. EVER. So we ruled out acid reflux as a cause for his crying months ago. Thing is, the darn kid re-swallows it every time. So while we never see any spit-up, it's there, burning his little throat and making him cry. This week we took a second look at the baby's behavior, and it's definitely reflux. Poor baby. And I just thought he hated me all this time.

So now mommy gets to subsist on a diet of bland food. AWESOME. I'm SO looking forward to eating rice cakes for the next year, I can't even tell you how thrilled I am (sarcasm, in case you missed that). I guess that just means more salsa verde for you (lucky dog)!



Authentic Mexican Salsa Verde, or, the Best Salsa Verde I have Ever Had
from Bon Appetit, June 2007
Makes 4 cups

People not from Los Angeles: Do no fear the tomatillo. Yes, it has a Spanish sounding name for "tomato," except it's green, and it has a papery husk. It's the tomato's tart, tangy paper clad country cousin, and you really ought to get to know eachother.

Because I say so.

And I'm the boss. Of this blog, anyways. See? So pretty.








Ingredients
3 pounds bright green tomatillos, husked and rinsed
2 jalapeños, seeded

1 + 1/2 teaspoons cumin
6 small cloves fresh garlic, peeled

1 medium bunch cilantro
3/4 cup Italian parsley
1/3 cup fresh mint, packed
1 + 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Kosher salt
cracked black pepper


Method>

1. Put the tomatillos and jalapeños in a large heavy pot, and cover with water. Bring to a boil, and boil for 15 minutes until tomatillos are soft. Let sit for 15 minutes.

2. Drain tomatillos and place in a food processor with cumin and garlic cloves. Pulse until coarsely chopped. Add cilantro, parsely, and mint, and pulse to combine. Blend until herbs are incorporated, and sauce begins to liquify (but there are still small chuncks).

3. Return sauce to pot. Add vegetable oil, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and simmer 15 - 20 minutes, until sauce thickens. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let cool and store in the fridge. Enjoy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup with Lime and Sundried Tomatoes

Let's say you want to feed a family with one chicken breast. And let's say that you also want to to feed them something nutritious, with lots of whole foods and fresh ingredients. And lets ALSO say that whatever you make, it has to taste AMAZING. Well do I have a recipe for YOU!

When Nate and I got married (has it been 3 years already?) my parents gave us a week at a timeshare in Cancun, Mexico. If you are like me, you like to pack your vacations as full of activities and sightseeing as possible. Mayan pyramids! Freshwater lagoons! Underground rivers! Swimming with Dolphins! Jet skis! Snorkeling! Dancing! Dining!



But not this time. If you have ever been through the insanity of a wedding, you know that once the rings are on and the gown is off, all you want to do is lay on a white sandy beach for a week and chilaaaax. Which is exactly what we did. Every day we got up at noon, wandered down to the palapa for a quick bite, and then spent the rest of the day zoned out on a beach chair, piña coladas in hand. Oh, I suppose occasionally we also, I don't know, read a novel or two as well. It was kind of heavenly.

One of the great things about Mexico is, well, Hot Damn! Do they have great Mexican food! We had some pretty amazing meals while we were there. But honestly, I think one of my favorite meals from that trip was the tortilla soup we had at the palapa every day. It's simple, requires few ingredients, is healthy and low in calories (if you care about those things!), and packs a lot of punch in the flavor department. Limes. Sundried tomatoes. Queso Fresco. It's kind of amazing. Don't trust me? Try it. You'll like it!

Chicken Tortilla Soup with Lime and Sundried Tomatoes

In this recipe I had to use "mexican cheese blend" because, well, when you have a newborn baby you can't exactly just run out to the store everytime you forget something. So I had to make do. If you CAN find it near you, I recommend buying "queso fresco" a mild and crumbly fresh Mexican cheese. If you can't find it that's ok: a mild cheddar should do you just fine.

SOUP INGREDIENTS
1 quart low sodium chicken stock
1 chicken breast
4 corn tortillas, slightly dried out (just leave them out while you do other stuff)
1 can fire roasted tomatoes
1 jalapeño (optional) seeded and minced
1 medium onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 large juicy limes
2 splashes olive oil
kosher salt
freshly cracked pepper
1 pint cherry tomatoes
queso fresco

OTHER OPTIONAL TOPPINGS
avocado cubes
chopped cilantro


RECIPE
preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pat the chicken breast dry, then add a splash of olive oil to chicken. Salt an pepper liberally on both sides, and roast in over for 25 - 30 minutes until golden and cooked through.


Meanwhile, heat a splash of olive oil in a large heavy bottomed cast iron pot (a regular soup pot us ok too). Saute onions, garlic, and jalapeño in the oil until just golden.

Add the stock to the pot.

And add the fire roasted tomatoes.

Add the juice of two limes. Mmm. Limes. Yummy. Bring to a simmer.

Remember that chicken? Bring it out of the oven, and let it cool down for 10 - 15 minutes, until it's cool enough to handle. Then, shred that sucker. Use two forks. It's easy!

When it's done, it should look like this. Add that to the pot with the stock. Ok.

THE END. Goodbye.

Just kidding.

Oh yeah. Toppings. DUH. Remember those tomatoes? We are going to roast them! Cut them all in half, and toss them with a splash of olive oil, some kosher salt, and some pepper. Roast them in the over at 200 degrees. When they are chewy (40 minutes or so?) they are done.

Slice the tortillas into matchstick thin slices.

Until they look like this.

Saute them in a little oilve oil on high heat, until they are crunchy.

Ok. NOW you are done.

Unless you want some other stuff. Like avocados. Or cheese. Oh, and those tomatoes? I was totally going to take a picture of them. But I ate them all before I could. They were really good. No. Really, REALLY good.

To assemble, ladle soup into bowls. Top with tortilla strips (don't add the tortilla strips until JUST before serving. Otherwise they will get soggy. Ad nobody like soggy tortillas. Yuck.) Top with tomatoes, cheese, avocado, whatever.



Enjoy!