Conversations in produce

When I finally decided to make restaurant-style salsa, it required a trip to the grocery store for a few ingredients, including peppers.

I’m not the most proficient grocery shopper. I’m getting better, but it’s taken me quite a while to get the hang of shopping without having to backtrack up and down multiple aisles. I hate backtracking at the grocery store.

So imagine my consternation when I could not find the jalapeños that my recipe required. I stared at the peppers sitting on the shelves, willing the jalapeños to appear. They did not.

A store employee walked by.

“Um, excuse me,” I said, catching his attention.

“Can I help you?” the friendly, unsuspecting produce man asked me.

Me: Yes. Do you have any jalapeño peppers?

Friendly, Unsuspecting Produce Man: No, I’m sorry. But I’ve got some serrano peppers.

I cocked my head at the peppers in front of me. The serranos were cute, but there were three other types of peppers vying for my attention. Another thing I hate about the grocery is making decisions.

FUPM: Serrano peppers are a step down from jalapeños in spiciness. Do you need a spicy pepper?

Me: I need a jalapeño pepper.

FU(and patient)PM: I don’t have any jalapeños. But I’ve got some serrano peppers. If you want, I can let you try one.

Me: Oh, no, that’s okay. I don’t like peppers.

The produce man walked away in a cloud of confusion. I bought some serranos (because they were cute) and ancho poblanos (because I like Spanish).

Once home, in a fit of freedom, I didn’t measure any of the ingredients for my salsa. I just threw it all in the food processor. I almost lit my mouth on fire.

The moral of this story is: Hold out for the jalapeños.

Easy chicken salad

These days, I am loving leftovers for lunch. And easy meals. And light, springtime recipes. My chicken salad fits the bill in every way.

This is the recipe that I “created” with inspiration from other chicken salad recipes that I scanned.

Ingredients

• Cooked chicken (I used half of a rotisserie chicken from the grocery because I was pressed for time – delicious!)
• Hard boiled egg(s)
• Apple(s)
• Mayonnaise

I have purposefully left off the amounts so that you can feel free to tailor the recipe to your taste buds. (Freedom is a theme in my life that is extending even into the culinary arts!)

Ingredients I didn’t use, but might’ve if I’d had them in the house

• Grapes (Other recipes called for grapes instead of apples.)
• Craisins (These can be added to pretty much any side dish to exponentially increase  its edibility and attractiveness.)
• Sliced almonds (Because they crunch and I think they make even something as basic as chicken salad seem a little bit more sophisticated: “What’s in this chicken salad?” “Oh, y’know, it’s just chicken, mayo…and sliced almonds!” Oooohh.)

Directions

After cooking (or buying) your chicken, cut it into bite-sized cubes. (The size of these cubes will depend upon the size of your mouth and the mouths of your loved ones – use your best judgment. Again, there’s freedom here.) Chop your hard-boiled egg(s) and apple(s). (See above for instructions on sizing.) Add mayonnaise to taste. (Remember that no matter how much you like this stuff, it’s not good for you. Less is less…on your waistline.) Mix and serve with crackers or on bread.

Give your homemade pizza that “special something”

One of my favorite dinners as of late has been homemade pizza. I use my trusty Better Homes & Gardens cookbook for the crust recipe. It’s a basic recipe, but Joe and I like to “dress up” our pizza.

First, we both love garlic. When we were in Joe’s hometown one time, we ate some amazing pizza (Steubenville has the best pizza, according to my husband) that had garlic salt pressed into the bottom of the crust. Yum! Now we do that, too.

This next tip may be a no-brainer for you, but this is not how my family did it growing up, so I never knew. When you bake your pizza, put a little bit of sauce on the crust and put it in the oven. With ten minutes left, remove it, add more sauce and all of your toppings. (This keeps your cheese from getting burnt or chewy!) I like to add a little garlic salt at this point as well.

After you bake your pizza for the remaining ten minutes, it’s ready to go. I like to add a little parmesan cheese on top right after it comes out of the oven. Joe likes crushed red pepper.

You could also try making a white pizza – instead of pizza sauce, brush some olive oil on the crust. Put fresh tomatoes on top of your mozzarella cheese. (And, speaking of mozzarella, here’s a great tip: If you buy blocks of mozz, stick it in the freezer for 20 minutes before you grate it to keep it from falling apart. Works perfectly!)

I also used a food processor for the first time this week. It makes making the dough so much easier! I’ll never knead by hand again!

Enjoy!

Award-Winning White Chicken Chili

Last fall, I won a chili cook-off at my church. Although this isn’t really chili season, this is a recipe worth tucking away until a cool fall evening.

Ingredients

~1lb. chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 can diced tomatotes
1 can corn
2 cans white beans
1 can green chilies
1 package taco seasoning
1 package powdered ranch dressing mix

Directions

Mix all ingredients into crockpot. DO NOT drain the cans. Cook on high until chicken is thoroughly cooked through (probably at least an hour). Top with sour cream and eat with tortilla chips.

Joe’s favorite cheesecake

Knowing I would be visiting Joe this weekend, I decided to make his favorite dessert – cheesecake! I’ve made this for Joe more than any other dish or treat, probably because he’s so lavish with his praises of it.

[Side note: The "funny" - or not so funny - thing about the cheesecake that I made for this weekend is that I forgot it in the refrigerator at work when I left Friday afternoon! Poor Joe. ]

My mom has been making this cheesecake for as long as I can remember. It’s super-easy, so enjoy!

Ingredients

• 12 oz. cream cheese (1.5 packages)
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• Graham cracker crust

Directions

1. Before beginning, leave cream cheese out to soften. This should be done several hours in advance.
2. Combine all ingredients with electric mixer until it is a thick liquid.
3. Pour into graham cracker crust.
4. Keep in refrigerator overnight and serve the next day!

Really, it couldn’t be easier! The key is to let the cream cheese soften long enough; if you don’t, your cheesecake will be irreparably lumpy. Still edible, but lumpy. (I speak from experience.)

We’re going on a picnic!

I haven’t spent quality time with Joe in a week and a half and, let me tell you, I’m ready to see him! This evening we’re going on a picnic and I’m super excited! Let me share with you the recipes I made for tonight’s little jaunt:

Garlic Fried Chicken. Mmm…. This stuff was so easy to make and tastes delicious – probably my favorite fried chicken ever!

 

 

 

 

 

Antipasto Picnic Salad. I’m honestly not sure how this stuff is going to taste. First of all, I used the recipe as more of a guide. I didn’t need to make salad for 25 people, so I just threw in whatever amounts of the ingredients that I wanted, minus the giardiniera (because it sounds disgusting). The problem might come with the dressing, where I guesstimated instead of using exact measurements. At least it looks pretty, right?

 

 

 

 

 

Red Velvet Cake Bites. Bakerella is amazing and I will never reach the heights of baking superiority that she has. My cake bites don’t look pretty, but I’ve been assured that the taste more than makes up for it. Yum!

(I worried for a while how the cake bites would turn out.)

Here’s a recipe for a delicious alfredo sauce that gives Olive Garden a run for its money.

Joe and I really like to cook together, but we have two very different cooking styles; I am a “rules girl” and like to have a recipe with very clear instructions to follow, whereas Joe considers a recipe a guide, at best (I think it’s the Italian in him).

When Joe is in charge of choosing a meal, he looks for several recipes online to use as “guides.” Since he never records any of his recipes, no dish ever tastes the same twice – although it’s always good! However, a couple of weeks ago Joe made an incredible alfredo sauce when we had lunch with some friends and I convinced him to write down the recipe for me (this is big news, folks!). We made it for my family this past weekend and received rave reviews.

So, here it is for your dining pleasure – the yummiest* alfredo sauce I’ve ever had!

Ingredients

• 3/4 quart heavy whipping cream
• 2 sticks real butter
• 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 cup feta cheese
• 3 garlic cloves
• EVOO
• salt and pepper

Directions

1. Sauté 3 minced cloves of garlic in the olive oil.
2. Add the cream and the cheeses. Stir for about five minutes. The sauce will continue to thicken. Simmer on a low setting to keep the cheese from sticking.
3. Add the butter and continue to stir until all the ingredients are smoothly blended together and the sauce is hot. (Cut the butter into smaller chunks to melt faster.)
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Make sure to put some extra alfredo sauce on the table in a small bowl to dip the bread!

*Although it is the yummiest alfredo sauce I’ve ever had, it is probably the least healthy as well…so enjoy, but sparingly.

An authentic chai recipe

In South Asian hospitality, everything centers around the masala chai. It is a rich tea that is served everywhere – in homes, shops and along the side of the road. I copied down a recipe from an authentic South Asian cookbook while I was there, so I’m going to share it with you now. I’ve had to alter the recipe slightly because of the measurements, but I think you’re going to like this! (By the way, South Asian chai is nothing like the chai I’ve tasted here; it’s much better.)

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk (We used water buffalo milk there, but you probably won’t be able to find any here.)
• 1 cup water
• 3 tsp sugar
• 1 freshly crushed cardamom, still in the shell
• 2 tsp strong tea leaves (I think a standard black tea bag would work as well.)
• A few lemon grass leaves (optional)
• 3 tsp masala (Masala is actually the mixture of spices that makes up chai. If you make this mixture once, you should have enough for several servings of chai.)

Masala

Ground and store the following ingredients:

• 2 rounded tsp black pepper
• 2 rounded tsp cinnamon
• 2 rounded tsp cloves
• 2 rounded tsp dried ginger
• 3 tbsp whole cardamom

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in a pan and heat.
2. Stir constantly to avoid scalding the milk.
3. Pour and enjoy! Serves two.

Chai & mahendi...as South Asian as I could get!

Homemade flour tortilla chips

I was paging through my mom’s trusty Betty Crocker cookbook looking for a fun appetizer when I found a recipe for homemade flour tortilla chips. I doctored the recipe a little bit and here it is. I love these things and can’t wait to make more! They were a hit with my family and my office mates.

1. Cut round, flour tortillas (whatever size you prefer) into eighths.

2. Lightly brush a 9×13 pan with olive oil.

3. Lay your tortilla triangles in the pan, then brush over them lightly with the olive oil. Make sure they’re not overlapping too much.

4. Sprinkle garlic salt over your tortilla triangles.

5. Bake on 350º for ten minutes.

It’s okay if some of your tortilla chips turn a light brown; I actually like those the best, because they’re the crispiest!