Friday, July 22, 2011
Public Service Announcement: Don't Drink and Bake..
It's important to note that I do have Mike's permission to share his latest cooking endeavors in the kitchen. We all know that it's not safe to drink and drive, but how about drinking and cooking? As a firefighter, I can't express enough how many things could wrong in such a scenario, but leave it to Mike to be a multi-tasker. This is new look for Mama's Chocolate Cake...in fact we can all agree this is a new version of the "Not Mama's Chocolate Cake".
Mike would like all of you to know that you shouldn't "Drink and Bake".
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Oscar's Chili Verde
This is hands down the best chili verde that I have ever had! It is smoky, spicy and utterly freakin' delicious! When you have the time to put forth towards it...it will not disappoint. This is my good buddy Oscar's families' recipe that has been passed down through 3 generations. Myabe not 3 generations...but you catch my drift. He has perfected it, and it will make your taste buds sing! The way this recipe is written it is spicy...so those faint at heart...beware.
Ingredients:
Pork shoulder (roughly 4 pounds trimmed) and cut into 1/2" cubes
12 tomatillos
4 jalapenos
2 onions quartered
12-14 cloves of garlic (peeled)
2 pasillas
6 dried chili de arbol
1/2 bunch of cilantro separated
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons of ground cumin separated
4 tablespoons of granulated garlic separated
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon of chili powder
Directions:
Cut the pork into 1/2" cubes. Trim as much of the fat as possible to keep it low calorie:). Sprinkle the chili powder, half of the granulated garlic and half of the cumin onto the pork. Mix into the pork evenly and put into an oiled, preheated dutch oven to sear. After turning the pork once add the red wine vinegar and continue to cook while you are putting the sauce together. In a separate cast iron skillet, roast the tomatillos, the garlic, onions, jalapenos, pasillas and chili de arbol. You want a good char on the outside of all pieces and you might need to do this in a couple of batches depending on the size of your skillet. Once all vegetables are roasted, place in a blender with the remaining cumin, granulated garlic, 1/4 of the bunch of cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Blend well and add to the dutch oven with about a cup and a half of water; turn the heat down and simmer the meat and sauce, uncovered for at least 2 hours. If you notice that the sauce is too thick add a little more water or place the lid over half of the pot so that less evaporation takes place.
Serve over your favorite rice, with homemade whole pinto beans or in a burrito. Mix it in with scrambled eggs or eat it off of a flip flop...either way I guarantee that you will like it. Remember...this is spicy! If the 4 jalapenos and the chili de arbol scare you a little, reduce both by half; you will still retain the flavor but significantly diminish the heat.
Ingredients:
Pork shoulder (roughly 4 pounds trimmed) and cut into 1/2" cubes
12 tomatillos
4 jalapenos
2 onions quartered
12-14 cloves of garlic (peeled)
2 pasillas
6 dried chili de arbol
1/2 bunch of cilantro separated
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons of ground cumin separated
4 tablespoons of granulated garlic separated
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon of chili powder
Directions:
Cut the pork into 1/2" cubes. Trim as much of the fat as possible to keep it low calorie:). Sprinkle the chili powder, half of the granulated garlic and half of the cumin onto the pork. Mix into the pork evenly and put into an oiled, preheated dutch oven to sear. After turning the pork once add the red wine vinegar and continue to cook while you are putting the sauce together. In a separate cast iron skillet, roast the tomatillos, the garlic, onions, jalapenos, pasillas and chili de arbol. You want a good char on the outside of all pieces and you might need to do this in a couple of batches depending on the size of your skillet. Once all vegetables are roasted, place in a blender with the remaining cumin, granulated garlic, 1/4 of the bunch of cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Blend well and add to the dutch oven with about a cup and a half of water; turn the heat down and simmer the meat and sauce, uncovered for at least 2 hours. If you notice that the sauce is too thick add a little more water or place the lid over half of the pot so that less evaporation takes place.
Serve over your favorite rice, with homemade whole pinto beans or in a burrito. Mix it in with scrambled eggs or eat it off of a flip flop...either way I guarantee that you will like it. Remember...this is spicy! If the 4 jalapenos and the chili de arbol scare you a little, reduce both by half; you will still retain the flavor but significantly diminish the heat.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Time Change for the State Fair
http://www.bigfun.org/
The cooking time for the Fire House Chef Competition is at 1:30 p.m., not 2p.m. I'll be cooking with a fellow firefighter from Lodi. Don't worry ladies, my twin brother Mike will be there with our awesome nieces and nephew to support our efforts.
Hope to see you there!!
The cooking time for the Fire House Chef Competition is at 1:30 p.m., not 2p.m. I'll be cooking with a fellow firefighter from Lodi. Don't worry ladies, my twin brother Mike will be there with our awesome nieces and nephew to support our efforts.
Hope to see you there!!
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Good Morning Sacramento Segment Video
In case you missed Mike coining the phrases "sexy food" and "food-gasm"!
Food-gasm
Thank you to the amazing morning crew at Good Day Sacramento for having us on this morning. With Mike's help we discovered we want our food to be sexy! We had a great time getting to cook for the cast and are thankful for the chance to plug The Mama Bear Foundation.
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Pancetta Wrapped Salmon Bites
1 1/4 lb of fresh, skinless salmon filets
2 packages of precut pancetta (about 20 slices)
Cut salmon fillets into 1 1/4 inch pieces.
Wrap a piece of thinly sliced pancetta around each salmon bite.
Dunk in chimichurri sauce and enjoy your "food-gasm".
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Salmon Bites with Chimichurri Sauce
1 1/4 lb of fresh, skinless salmon filets
2 packages of precut pancetta (about 20 slices)
Cut salmon fillets into 1 1/4 inch pieces.
Wrap a piece of thinly sliced pancetta around each salmon bite.
On a preheated, cast iron skillet place each pancetta wrapped bite, flap side down.
Sear on all sides until pancetta is cooked.
Dunk in chimichurri sauce and enjoy your "food-gasm".
Chimichurri Dipping Sauce
1/2 cup olive oil
l cup (packed) parsley
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup (packed) fresh cilantro
2 garlic cloves, peeled
3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Zest of 1/2 of a lemon
l cup (packed) parsley
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup (packed) fresh cilantro
2 garlic cloves, peeled
3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Zest of 1/2 of a lemon
Juice from 1 lemon
Put all the ingredients in the blender and blend until everything is mixed together. The sauce is best if it has a chance to sit in the refrigerator for several hours. Stir well before serving.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
The Missing Link
I would put a picture of our little brother on this page, but I don't actually have a current picture of him...go figure!!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
I'm not just passionate about cooking
Cooking isn't the only thing that my family does together. Together we have created a foundation to support families who are affected by cancer.We are always appreciate of any press that the foundation gets.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
The Healthy Aioli
Whenever possible, I like to make things a little healthier. We are bombarded daily with gut busting additives and sodium and fat laden foods. One way that I like to navigate through the cess pool is to make the things that I won't eat because they have mayo in them and add different things to make them not only edible to me, but much friendlier to the waistline. One I came up with the other day was my version of a chipotle aioli. I try to use spices whenever possible to avoid fat and salt...try it and get creative.
Ingredients:
2 whole chipotle peppers
3 to 4 teaspoons of adobo sauce from the chipotle peppers
8 oz. of low fat plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon each of: paprika, chili powder, granulated garlic, cumin, black pepper and sugar
Directions:
Dice the peppers as fine as possible (if the consistency is still too rough for you add to a blender or food processor). Add peppers, yogurt and spices to a bowl and mix until incorporated. Add the 3 teaspoons of the adobo sauce and mix. Add the fourth teaspoon if the color isn't to your liking or you would like it a touch hotter. Just add the fourth:) it won't kill you.
This sauce is a great substitute for anything you would put mayo on; burgers, sandwiches, wraps, eat it by the spoonful or whatever suits your fancy. Good luck and enjoy!!!!
Ingredients:
2 whole chipotle peppers
3 to 4 teaspoons of adobo sauce from the chipotle peppers
8 oz. of low fat plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon each of: paprika, chili powder, granulated garlic, cumin, black pepper and sugar
Directions:
Dice the peppers as fine as possible (if the consistency is still too rough for you add to a blender or food processor). Add peppers, yogurt and spices to a bowl and mix until incorporated. Add the 3 teaspoons of the adobo sauce and mix. Add the fourth teaspoon if the color isn't to your liking or you would like it a touch hotter. Just add the fourth:) it won't kill you.
This sauce is a great substitute for anything you would put mayo on; burgers, sandwiches, wraps, eat it by the spoonful or whatever suits your fancy. Good luck and enjoy!!!!
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