A Different Kind of Pumpkin Soup

I use a spreadsheet to keep track of dinners and have at least 4-5 meals in a row planned out. I account for new items, restaurant dinners, and the using up of leftovers. But some nights I throw caution to the wind and change things up. Inspiration does that to you. Of course, that means  the spreadsheet must be altered to reflect the change. Friday's dinner was to be frittata; we have lots of eggs, and various odds and ends to add to them. But it was cold outside, which made me think of soup. I remembered that I had a couple of cans of pumpkin in the cupboard, and some Mexican chorizo in the freezer. Why not combine them to make something totally different?

Mr Minx will eat pumpkin soup--as long as it's not sweet. I ordinarily make a curried version, but the Mexican-style seasonings I had received from Spicewalla were calling my name. Spicewalla spices are always very fresh, and their blends are interesting and tasty. They have somewhat esoteric stuff like furikake, mignonette blend (for raw oysters, or dips and salad dressings), and golden milk spice mix, but also "everything bagel," and taco seasoning. And they come in the cutest little tins. The taco seasoning and another one I like a lot, Chilli Lime, were employed to season this particular batch of pumpkin soup, as I knew they would work with the Mexican chorizo. Both the spices and the chorizo contain chiles, so if you're a wimp when it comes to hot foods, you might want to cut back on the amounts of both, maybe up the brown sugar a bit. Or find another recipe--my feelings won't be hurt. Personally, I think the proportion of spice to pumpkin I used is just perfect. Hot enough to know that it's spicy, but not hot enough to burn anything important. YMMV, of course.

Cilantro is one of my favorite herbs, but if you don't like it, leave it out. The soup will be missing something, but the cilantro averse won't even notice. 

Pumpkin Spicewalla Soup

About 1/4 of a standard supermarket bunch of cilantro 
1 medium onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 poblano pepper, seeds removed, diced 

2 cloves garlic, minced

4-6 ounces Mexican-style pork chorizo (I used Cacique brand)

2 teaspoons EACH Spicewalla** Chilli Lime and Mom's Taco seasonings*

2 15-ounce cans pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling!)

1 quart of chicken stock

1 empty pumpkin can-full of water

1 tablespoon brown sugar

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Toasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas) for garnish, optional

Cubed avocado for garnish, optional

Thoroughly wash the cilantro. Remove 3" - 4" of the stems and chop them coarsely. Set the leaves aside for garnish.

Add the vegetables, garlic, and chorizo (remove from casing, if any) to a 4- or 5-quart lidded pot. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring regularly, until vegetables are wilted and chorizo is broken down into small particles and distributed evenly through the vegetables, about 12 minutes. Stir in the cilantro stems and the Spicewalla seasonings and cook 2 minutes. Add the pumpkin, chicken stock, and the water. Turn up the heat to bring to a boil. Turn down the heat until the soup is just simmering, cover the pot, and cook 30 minutes. Add the brown sugar. 

Taste for seasoning and add salt, or more of the Spicewalla seasoning blends. Ladle into bowls and garnish with pumpkin seeds, reserved cilantro leaves, and avocado, if desired.

Makes about 2 1/2 quarts

*If you don't want to splash out for new seasonings, then you can use a couple teaspoons of regular taco seasoning, or a combination of ground coriander and cumin. Most supermarket taco seasonings are muy salty, while individual spices are not salty at all, so you'll have to watch the balance there. 

** Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats.

Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Street Cauliflower - Sponsored Post

Is there any such thing as "street cauliflower" for reals? I had it at Baltimore-area restaurant La Food Marketa and loved it. A riff on a Mexican street food dish commonly made with corn and known as elote (on the cob) or esquites (off the cob), LFM's version topped cauliflower with cotija cheese, taco spice, and chili lime mayo. A tortilla crumble was employed for a much-needed texture contrast. When I got home that evening, I realized that I was in possession of a cauliflower and could easily make a riff on this dish at home. 

My pantry is currently stocked with food samples after a trip to NYC for the Summer Fancy Food Show. Among them are products from Runamok Maple and Olivia's Croutons. Normally when I make esquites, I whip up a little sauce with mayo, sour cream or yogurt, chipotle, lots of lime, and a bit of maple or agave syrup to balance out the tangy flavors. It's reminiscent of the sauce the late, lamented Gypsy Queen food trucks used on their crab cake tacos, and I've made it numerous times. This time, I omitted both the sweet stuff and the chipotle and drizzled Runamok's Chipotle Morita honey directly onto the cauliflower. (And then I had a spoonful of it for a "cook's treat.") It has a nice balance of rich honeyed sweetness and smoky chipotle heat, and I can see myself using it in a lot of applications, both savory and sweet. 

I didn't have any tortilla chips on hand, If I had, I wasn't inclined to do anything other than bash them into bits--forget making a crumble. But I did have a box of Olivia's Cornbread Dressing! The cubes of crisp cornbread are seasoned lightly with somewhat Thanksgiving-y herbs, but after sampling a few several, I determined that they wouldn't detract from the overall Mexican-ish flavors of the dish at all. 

I hesitate to supply a recipe, since I just winged it (wung it?) as I usually do. I'll just offer guidelines, since I know many people prefer a recipe, or at least a list of ingredients.

Street Cauliflower

1 whole cauliflower (or hell, a bag of frozen cauliflower)

Salt

Full-fat plain yogurt or sour cream

Mayonnaise

Chili powder

Lime

Crumbly tangy cheese, like cotija or feta

Runamok Maple Chipotle Morita infused honey

Olivia's Cornbread Dressing

Cilantro

Chopped green onion or slivers of red onion

Trim the stem and any green leaves off the cauliflower. Cook in your favorite method. I put it, whole, in a big pot with enough salted water to come up about halfway, brought it to a boil, then turned down the heat and covered the pot. When the fork was tender most of the way through when I stuck a knife into it, I took it off the heat and drained off the water. You could also separate the florets, toss them with a little olive oil and salt, and roast them in a 400F oven until they're a texture you like. Or just pop a bag of frozen cauliflower in a microwave-safe bowl, cover it, and nuke it until hot and tender.

While the cauliflower is cooking, make the yogurt sauce. Put a half cup or so of sour cream or yogurt in a bowl. Add a heaping tablespoon of mayonnaise (or leave it out, if you prefer). Add chili powder to taste - start with a teaspoon, mix it in well, and add more if you want. Then squeeze in some lime juice. Taste, add more lime, add more chili powder, etc. until it tastes pretty good. Then add the magic flavor enhancer - salt. Not too much. Just enough to bring out the flavors of everything you just put in. If you happen to use a salted Mexican-type seasoning rather than chili powder, then ixnay on extra sodium. You could use Tajin and leave out the lime, too, unless you want more tang. It's up to you. 

Pile the cauliflower on a plate. You could put some salsa down on the plate first, like I did, but it's totally optional. (I had half a jar of tomatillo salsa that I didn't want to go to waste.) Dollop with the lime yogurt, drizzle on the honey, sprinkle on the cheese, crushed cornbread croutons, cilantro, and onions. 

Serves 2 as an entree, 4-6 as a side, dependent on one's appreciation for cauliflower.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Stonewall Kitchen Feta Spreads - Sponsored

My brother is somewhat difficult to buy for, so when the holidays roll around, I resort to edible gifts. (Honestly, they are the best.) For the past few years, I've been ordering miscellaneous items from Stonewall Kitchens. I have been buying their products for decades, and have always been really happy with them. They have a large variety of goods, and the prices are decent. Best of all, everything I've tried tastes really great. So when I received an email from them touting their brand new products, I just had to request samples. And they delivered: all three varieties of their new feta spreads showed up on my front porch about a week later.

Sadly, I was on Whole30 at the time, so had to practice some serious patience before I could crack open a jar. I am a bit of a feta fanatic, putting its briny goodness on everything from pasta to oatmeal (yes, I said oatmeal), and I gotta admit that the idea of jarred spreads that combine the cheese and other Mediterranean ingredients turned me on. 

Within a few days of saying buh-bye to the diet, I concocted a perfect way to use one of Stonewall Kitchens' feta spreads: as a flavoring agent for a big ol' head of roasted cauliflower. I roasted the veg first with a light coating of olive oil and a big pinch of salt. Once that baby was tender, I slathered it in the roasted red pepper feta spread and popped it under the broiler until it browned a bit. OMG - it was as delicious as I anticipated, and it really made a simple dish something special. 

Plus, it added some much-needed color. Isn't it gorgeous?

Of course you could use the spreads on crackers, as an accompaniment to an antipasto or charcuterie plate, or as a sandwich spread. This morning, I dolloped some in my oatmeal with a little additional feta and a sprinkle of hemp seeds. (If you haven't tried savory oatmeal before, you are missing out.) I'm betting they'd be a tasty addition to pasta, or potato salad, or pretty much anything that could use a little cheesy goodness. Definitely try it with roasted vegetables, as in the following recipe.

Mediterranean Cauliflower

There are several steps to this recipe, but they are all quite simple. The resulting dish is the Middle East on a platter, with elements from Morocco, Egypt, Greece, and Lebanon. None of the elements, mind you, are in the least bit authentic. I do a lot of substituting in my cooking. For instance, I was out of tahini, so used almond butter in the babaganoush instead. And I was too lazy to toast seeds and nuts for my dukkah and worried that I would probably burn the sesame seeds, so I used everything bagel seasoning. It already had the seeds, but also onion and garlic. Additionally, I used ground cumin and coriander, since they are already toasted, and pre-roasted nuts. 

For the babaganoush-style eggplant spread:

1 medium eggplant

1 small clove garlic, crushed

Extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons almond butter

Kosher salt

Lemon juice

Smoked paprika

Ground cumin

For the tomatoes:

1 medium tomato

Kosher salt

Pinch ras el hanout or powdered harissa 

For the dukkah-like topping:

1/4 cup toasted nuts of your choice (I used almonds and walnuts)

1 tablespoon everything bagel seasoning

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

For the cauliflower:

1 large cauliflower

Extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

Stonewall Kitchen Roasted Red Pepper Feta Spread

Feta cheese

Flat leaf parsley or cilantro

To make the eggplant:

Preheat the oven to 450F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.

Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. Rub the cut sides with a little oil and place cut-side-down on the parchment. Roast for 45 minutes, until the skins collapse and the interior is very soft. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. 

Once cool enough to handle, scrape the flesh out of the eggplant into a bowl. Using a fork, mash the eggplant into as close to a puree as possible, breaking up any fibers. Add the almond butter and garlic and stir well. Season to taste with the salt, lemon juice, paprika, and cumin. It should be creamy, bright, and slightly smoky. Scrape into a lidded container and refrigerate.

For the topping:

Crush the nuts and spices together in a mortar and pestle, or, if you don't have one large enough, just pop them in a sandwich-sized zip top bag and bash them into small pieces with something heavy (a meat tenderizer, a can of tomatoes, a brick, etc.). Set aside.

For the tomatoes:

Remove the core from the tomato and cut the flesh into small dice. If you're a neat-freak, remove the seeds. If you're me, leave them in. Scrape into a small bowl and season with salt and a pinch of seasoning. Set aside.

To make the cauliflower:

Turn the oven down to 350F. 

Remove the outer green leaves from the cauliflower and trim an inch or two off the stem. Not so much that the florets start to fall off, but that there's a divot at the bottom of the cauli. Place the cauliflower, stem side down, on a rimmed baking sheet (I like to line my sheet with parchment). Rub the head with olive oil, and pat on a few generous pinches of salt. Roast the cauliflower for 60 - 75 minutes, until nicely browned on the outside and a knife can be inserted easily. 

Preheat the broiler. Remove the parchment from the baking sheet, if using, and replace the cauliflower. (The parchment may burn under the broiler.) Pour a few tablespoons-ful of the Stonewall Kitchen Roasted Red Pepper Feta Spread on top of the cauliflower and rub it around to cover. Broil the cauliflower until the spread starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

To assemble the dish:

Spread about half of the eggplant spread onto a platter. Center the cauliflower on top. Sprinkle with the tomatoes, feta cheese, some of the nut topping, and parsley or cilantro. Serve with the remaining eggplant, red pepper feta spread, and topping. 

Serves 2-3 as a main dish, 4-6 as a side.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - Dinner: An Improvisation

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on July 1, 2011.

-----------------------------------------
It's fairly unusual that I don't cook something from scratch on the weekend, but every once in a rare while, I take a break. One recent Saturday, Mr Minx whipped up some spaghetti and meatballs, and on the following day I heated up some leftovers. And when I say "heated up some leftovers," I really mean "created a whole new dish with some pre-cooked items." I like to play with my food, and rather than eating leftover baby back ribs as is, I thought I'd gussy them up a bit.

What I really wanted to make was a banh mi sandwich, but I was too lazy and it was too hot to take a stroll to the grocery store for a baguette. Once I had that stuck in my head though, it was hard to shake. In addition to the pork, I had a bulb of fennel in the fridge, which I thought might make an adequate stand-in for the pickled daikon or radishes I would ordinarily put in a banh mi. Particularly if I used some of the plethora of licorice-y tasting Thai basil that was currently growing on our back porch as garnish. It was starting to sound like a plan.

There was just that bread issue to tackle.

In lieu of bread, I decided to make rice flour crepes. I should have just gone with the flour tortillas we had and called the dish "tacos," because the crepes were a disaster. It took about half the batter before a small crepe was successfully produced, and by that time, I was thoroughly discouraged.

Our dinner was supposed to look like this:

Instead, it looked like this:

I ended up slicing all of the crepes into ribbons and stir frying them with the pork, adding fish sauce, sugar, garlic, lemongrass, Sriracha, and ginger to the pan. The "noodles" were then topped with a handful of pickled fennel, some pickled carrots, plus cilantro, mint, and Thai basil. It was good, but not what I wanted.

If you want to try making rice crepes - or rice crepe noodles, here's a recipe:

1 cup rice flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon oil

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Scoop out 1/4 cup at a time onto a hot, greased non-stick skillet over high heat, swirling the pan so the batter forms about a 6" circle. Cook about 30 seconds, then loosen the crepe with the edge of a spatula, flip, and cook the other side for 30 seconds longer. That's easier than it sounds! Warning: make sure not to slip the spatula under the crepe more than half an inch or so, because when you remove the spatula, the crepe will tear. Just ease it around the outermost edge until the crepe is loosened, then work the spatula under the whole thing and flip it.

Stack crepes on a plate as you make them. Cursing optional. Roll around fillings, or if broken, use like noodles. Serves 4.

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - Viente de Mayo

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on May 20, 2013.

After seeing several Internet items extolling the virtue of making one's own corn tortillas, I thought I'd give it a go. Why not try it to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, a holiday that means nothing to most Americans but, like St. Patrick's Day, is a good excuse to drink?

But we had a pack of corn tortillas in the fridge already, and, truth be told, Mr Minx isn't all that fond of tacos made with soft corn tortillas. (I know!) So instead of tortillas, I figured I'd make some other sort of fried thingy with my newly-purchased bag of masa. 

I noodled around online and found recipes for things called sopes, which appeared to be thick fried tortillas with a rim around the edge. But some of those recipes were similar to the rimless gorditas, which may or may not be split open and filled, depending on the recipe consulted. This blog (and others) calls them Salvadoran enchiladas, but if there's no chiles on them, etymologically speaking, how is that even possible? 

If I did call them sopes or gorditas and, heaven forfend, topped or filled them with something non-traditional or not from the proper region, the spirits of Mexican grandmothers will haunt me forever. Or so my research led me to believe.

I decided that the best--and safest--technical term for fried corn thingies made by a gringo like me would be Fried Corn Thingies. Then I would be able to top them with whatever my little heart wanted to top them with, without fear of repercussions from the Great Beyond. For our Cinco de Mayo dinner, that was a combination of chicken and chorizo, plus refried black beans and various condiments. On the side I served my version of esquites, and we washed everything down with passionfruit margaritas. Well, the original intention was to have passionfruit margaritas, but the Ceres brand passionfruit juice I purchased didn't taste very much like the tangy fruit in question. They were ok, but not anything to write home about. Especially if home is Mexico. Everything else, however, was muy bueno.

Fried Corn Thingies with Assorted Toppings

Thingies (recipe below)
Refried Black Beans (recipe below)
Chorizo Chicken (recipe below)
Chipotle Sauce (recipe below)
Easy Salsa (or your favorite salsa) (recipe below)
crumbly cheese, like feta or cotija
sliced avocado
fresh cilantro

Layer beans, chicken, chipotle sauce, salsa, and cheese on a Thingy. Top with avocado and cilantro. Devour and repeat.

Fried Corn Thingies 

2 cups masa
1 1/4 cups water
1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus more for frying

Mix masa, water, and 1/4 cup oil into a smooth dough. Divide dough into 10 pieces. Form each one into a flattened disk about 1/4" thick.

Heat a griddle or large frying pan. Add disks a few at a time and cook for about 2 minutes on the first side, until it starts to brown lightly. Flip the disks, cook 2 minutes more on the other side, and remove from heat. Set aside until ready to eat.

When ready to serve, cook the thingies about 2 minutes per side in a bit of oil to crisp. Drain on paper towels.

Refried Black Beans

1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup water
salt and pepper to taste

Put beans and water in a saucepan and cook over medium high heat, stirring frequently and vigorously, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the beans are mostly mashed. Remove from heat and add salt and pepper to taste.

Chorizo Chicken

1/2 cup chopped onion
vegetable oil
pinch salt
2 links Mexican chorizo
3 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
splash balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

In a large saucepan over medium heat, cook onion in a bit of oil and a pinch of salt until softened. Remove chorizo from casings and add to onions, breaking up sausage with the back of a wooden spoon. Cook, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes, until sausage starts to darken. Add the chicken thighs, broth, and cilantro. Bring to a boil, then cover the pot and turn the heat down to medium-low. Simmer chicken about thirty minutes until tender.

Remove chicken from pot and allow to cool for a few minutes. With your fingers, two forks, or a knife and a fork, shred/chop the meat into small piece and add back to the pan. Turn up heat and cook, uncovered, until most of the liquid has evaporated, skimming off most of the red oil that rises to the top. Stir in the garlic, brown sugar, and vinegar. Cook an additional minute or two and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Chipotle Sauce

1 canned chipotle in adobo, seeded and minced
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
3 tablespoons sour cream
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
pinch sugar
pinch salt

Mix all ingredients thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Easy Salsa

2 large or 4 small tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1 tablespoon lime juice
pinch cumin
salt and pepper to taste.

Mix first four ingredients in a bowl. Season to taste.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - Dinner: An Improvisation

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on July 1, 2011.

It's fairly unusual that I don't cook something from scratch on the weekend, but every once in a rare while, I take a break. One recent Saturday, Mr Minx whipped up some spaghetti and meatballs, and on the following day I heated up some leftovers. And when I say "heated up some leftovers," I really mean "created a whole new dish with some pre-cooked items." I like to play with my food, and rather than eating leftover baby back ribs as is, I thought I'd gussy them up a bit.

What I really wanted to make was a banh mi sandwich, but I was too lazy and it was too hot to take a stroll to the grocery store for a baguette. Once I had that stuck in my head though, it was hard to shake. In addition to the pork, I had a bulb of fennel in the fridge, which I thought might make an adequate stand-in for the pickled daikon or radishes I would ordinarily put in a banh mi. Particularly if I used some of the plethora of licorice-y tasting Thai basil that was currently growing on our back porch as garnish. It was starting to sound like a plan.

There was just that bread issue to tackle.

In lieu of bread, I decided to make rice flour crepes. I should have just gone with the flour tortillas we had and called the dish "tacos," because the crepes were a disaster. It took about half the batter before a small crepe was successfully produced, and by that time, I was thoroughly discouraged.

Our dinner was supposed to look like this:

Instead, it looked like this:

I ended up slicing all of the crepes into ribbons and stir frying them with the pork, adding fish sauce, sugar, garlic, lemongrass, Sriracha, and ginger to the pan. The "noodles" were then topped with a handful of pickled fennel, some pickled carrots, plus cilantro, mint, and Thai basil. It was good, but not what I wanted.

If you want to try making rice crepes - or rice crepe noodles, here's a recipe:

1 cup rice flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon oil

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Scoop out 1/4 cup at a time onto a hot, greased non-stick skillet over high heat, swirling the pan so the batter forms about a 6" circle. Cook about 30 seconds, then loosen the crepe with the edge of a spatula, flip, and cook the other side for 30 seconds longer. That's easier than it sounds! Warning: make sure not to slip the spatula under the crepe more than half an inch or so, because when you remove the spatula, the crepe will tear. Just ease it around the outermost edge until the crepe is loosened, then work the spatula under the whole thing and flip it.

Stack crepes on a plate as you make them. Cursing optional. Roll around fillings, or if broken, use like noodles. Serves 4.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - Avocado Soup and Crab Salad

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on June 21, 2013.

I do most of the cooking on the weekends, except when we go out to eat (of course). If I'm thinking ahead, I plan my meals by Tuesday, our usual grocery shopping day. Most of the time though, I don't give it a thought until Thursday or Friday and then I have to decide whether I should just use what we have in the house, or schlep down to the grocery store to pick up special ingredients.

One recent weekend, we had steamed crabs on Saturday and ended up with a nice container of leftover meat. Rather than default to making crab cakes, I decided to make a crab salad and serve it with a soup made from the two ripe avocados we had picked up earlier in the week. The soup was thick and lusciously creamy, and the citrussy salad added the perfect touch of acid.

I used black garlic to season the soup because I had it. You can use one clove of regular garlic, but chop it and add it to the scallion while it's cooking to cut some of the strong garlic taste. Of course, if you like the flavor of raw garlic, don't let me get in your way!

Avocado Soup

4 scallions, white and green parts, chopped
olive oil
2 ripe Haas avocados
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
3 cloves black garlic
couple shakes of hot sauce (I used green Tabasco)
salt and pepper to taste

Cook scallions in a bit of olive oil and a pinch of salt until wilted. Add them, along with the rest of the ingredients, to the bowl of a food processor or blender and purée. If the mixture is too thick for your taste, add a bit more stock or yogurt. Season to taste, adding more lime juice, if desired. Serve chilled, topped with a handful of crab salad.

Makes 4 appetizer or 2 main dish servings.

Crab Salad

2 tablespoons orange or grapefruit juice or a combination of the two
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon honey or agave syrup
1 lb blue crab meat (body and claw), picked over for shell
1 tomato, seeded and finely chopped
fresh basil and mint leaves

Combine the first six ingredients in a small bowl, beating well with a fork until the dressing emulsifies. Season with salt and pepper.

Put the crab and tomato in a medium bowl. Pour over the dressing and toss lightly to coat. Taste for seasoning and add additional salt and pepper, if necessary. Cut basil and mint into a chiffonade and stir in before serving.

Makes more than you'll need for the soup, so grab a fork and dig in.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - Saffron Rice and Beans

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on December 4, 2012.

Here's another quick weekday recipe from Mr. Minx.

Probably half of the dinners I cook during the week are pieced together from leftovers. One of the things I always hated as a kid was when my mother would serve reheated leftovers in the same form as they were served originally. Nine times out of ten, the meal was a pale imitation of the original, so I always prefer to reinvent the leftovers into some other type of dish. Besides, there's almost never enough food left over to serve exactly the same way. Case in point, a meal I put together the other day.

When I opened the fridge, our leftover inventory consisted of a container of steamed rice, some tomato sauce, and four thin slices of pot roast that Minx had ordered at our favorite diner a few nights earlier. My usual plan when I'm confronted with rice is to do a Chinese-style fried rice dish, but we had eaten Chinese food the night before, so I thought about other cuisines that use rice. That's when paella popped into my head.

Of course, paella is way too complicated, and I didn't have all the ingredients for it anyway, but I thought by adding saffron to the rice, I could build on the paella inspiration. Digging through the pantry, I found a can of black beans and, in the freezer, our usual stash of frozen peas. Rice and beans are a classic, and saffron rice tastes great, so this could actually work. Cooked all together with onions and garlic, the dish was homey and comforting, while having a touch of the exotic thanks to the saffron. I sprinkled the chopped pot roast into the dish for meaty goodness, but the recipe below excludes the pot roast because a) not everyone will have leftover pot roast in the fridge; and b) the recipe works great as a vegetarian dish.

Saffron Rice and Beans

2 cups cooked rice
1 medium onion chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon of olive oil
1 teaspoon of butter
A few strands of saffron bloomed in 1/2 cup of warm water
1/2 teaspoon fresh oregano, chopped
15 oz. can black beans
4 oz. tomato puree or tomato sauce
1/2 cup frozen petite peas
salt and pepper to taste
Cilantro and scallion for garnish

Place a few strands of saffron in 1/2 cup of water to "bloom," or turn the water into a nice yellow color. While that's going on, open a can of black beans, dump them in a colander, and rinse the starch off under running water. With that prep work done, chop a medium onion and saute it in a pan with olive oil and melted butter. Once the onions are translucent, dump in the cooked rice and mix together. Add your garlic and the saffron water. Mix everything together well so that the rice takes on a yellow color. Add the tomato puree, and then add the black beans and the petite peas. Once everything is incorporated and heated through, season with salt, pepper, and the fresh oregano. Once on the plate, sprinkle some cilantro and chopped scallion on top for garnish.

Flashback Friday - Gazpeacho

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on August 25 2014.

We've been getting some fabulous peaches from the local farmers' markets this summer, big juicy beauties. Sadly, I'm allergic to peaches (plums, apricots, cherries....). It comes from an overdose when I was a kid. My Dad used to work in Philadelphia, and on his way home from the office, he'd stop at a PA roadside stand and bring home half bushels of luscious peaches. Mom wasn't a baker or canner, so we ate the peaches raw by the bowlful. After two or three summers of indulgence, I could no longer eat stone fruits without feeling weird. My eustachian tubes would feel swollen and my eyes would itch, and I figured it was best to just give up the fruits rather than risk potential anaphylaxis.

Thankfully, it turns out my allergy is to raw fruit. Once it's cooked, even a little bit, I'm good. Because of my allergy, I nuked the sliced peaches for 2 minutes and let them cool before putting them in the blender. You, of course, can use raw peaches. White or yellow will do. White peaches are a bit sweeter than yellow, which can be a little tangier. I used yellow because I thought white peaches (which become pink when cooked) + cilantro = the color of barf. Yellow peaches and yellow peppers work much better with the green of cilantro. Of course, you may choose the omit the cilantro, if you're one of the unfortunate who think that it tastes like soap.

By this point, after I've posted so many tomato-less variations on gazpacho, you probably think I'm allergic to tomatoes, too. I am happy to say that's not the case. I just like variety.

Gazpeacho

2 yellow or orange bell peppers
1 pound ripe peaches
2 medium cucumbers
1 handful cilantro
3 green onions, white and green parts, chopped
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
Pinch cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

Roast the bell peppers over an open gas flame, under the broiler, or on a grill, until skin is blackened all over. Place peppers in a paper or plastic bag, close bag, and allow to steam. When cool enough to handle, remove the blackened skin, stem, core, and seeds, and chop peppers into chunks.

Peel peaches and cut into chunks.

Peel cucumbers and chop.

This recipe makes about 2 quarts, so you'll probably want to make this in two batches. Put half of the ingredients into a blender and puree. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Do the same with the remaining ingredients.

Refrigerate for several hours or overnight to blend the flavors. Eat chilled or at room temperature.

Serves 4-8.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Indian Ceviche

It's Fancy Food Show season again and food samples have been showing up on our doorstep. A box of popcorn products was eagerly anticipated particularly because it contained three bags of Masala Pop. I had tasted Masala Pop's Rose Caramel flavor at the show last year and was excited that not only did it taste delightfully (yet subtly) of rose, but it was also a kettle corn-style product that wasn't overly sweet. The package we received from the company also included Chai Caramel, with true sweet-spice chai flavors in a light caramel glaze, and Savory Coconut, which has a lovely turmeric/coconut thing going on.

I decided that the Savory Coconut would be smashing on ceviche. What? You've never had popcorn on your ceviche? It's a popular accompaniment to the dish in Ecuador. It gives the ceviche a nice crunch.

If you can get impeccably fresh shrimp, then you can probably make this dish the traditional way, by "cooking" the protein with the citrus juice alone. However, as most shrimp available are IQF (individually quick frozen) and who knows how many times they may have thawed and refrozen by the time they get to your house, I recommend lightly cooking the shrimp first with heat. I poached mine in salted water just until they were pink, iced them down immediately, and popped them in the fridge until I was ready to assemble the dish.

Because the popcorn had Indian flavors, I decided to do the same with the ceviche by adding pinches of cumin, garam masala, and ginger. Not a lot, just enough to be noticed. Coconut milk might have been a nice addition, but I didn't want to detract from the coconut flavor in the popcorn. Feel free to add a few dribbles if you are so inclined.

This makes a lovely appetizer, lunch, or even a light summer supper with a green salad and some bread.

Shrimp Ceviche with Indian Flavors

3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
Juice of 2 limes (divided use)
Salt
1/2 lb 31-40 shrimp
3 tablespoons finely chopped bell pepper
3 tablespoons finely chopped tomato
1 tablespoon finely minced tender cilantro stems
Pinch ground cumin
Pinch garam masala
Pinch ground ginger
Tabasco or hot sauce to taste
Cilantro leaves
Masala Pop popcorn

Combine the red onion and the juice of half a lime in a small bowl with a pinch of salt. Cover and set aside for at least an hour.

Poach shrimp until just pink in simmering salted water. Chill shrimp in an ice bath and refrigerate until ready to use.

Remove shells and chop shrimp into dime-sized pieces. Combine with the peppers, tomatoes, cilantro stems, and spices. Drain the onion and add to the shrimp, along with the juice from the remaining 1 and 1/2 limes. Taste for seasoning and add salt, a few shakes of hot sauce, and additional pinches of the spices if you feel it needs them. Refrigerate until cold, about an hour.

Serve garnished with cilantro and Masala Pop popcorn.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!



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Green Falafel

I love falafel, I really do. But.... I hate to say that I am "allergic" to pulses like chickpeas/garbanzo beans and lentils, but they do make me very sick, so I guess that counts. And chickpeas are so in right now. Some bars serve them crisped and spiced in place of peanuts, and they are all over the place in Middle Eastern food. Thank goodness really yummy hummus can be made from pretty much any kind of bean (believe me, I've made most of them), because otherwise I'd be missing out on a really fab and simple dish. Falafel is another thing entirely. It's really difficult to make good, fluffy, falafel with beans. Traditional recipes call for soaked--but still raw--chickpeas. I'm not sure that beans like black beans or cannellini beans can be used raw like that. At least, I've never found a recipe that calls for soaked raw beans. Every non-garbanzo falafel recipe I've seen calls for cooked or canned, and I'm not about to torture my digestive system by experimenting with a recipe using raw beans. I may as well just eat garbanzos.

So what to do when I want to eat falafel? Use canned beans. (sigh)

Mr Minx bought some fresh green beans and I thought perhaps they could add the necessary texture and green flavor to non-garbanzo falafel. They're fine to eat raw, so I whizzed them up in the food pro, added a can of white beans, cumin, lots of herbs. They made a pretty green dough that tasted great, and pan frying little patties of the mixture made something that tasted fairly akin to falafel. They were a little softer, yes, but that was to be expected. In a pita with cucumber sauce, they were terrific. I am not a fan of pocket pitas - the ones in the grocery store always seem stale, and the pockets seldom cooperate and rip in inconvenient places. So I used puffy Greek-style pitas. You may use whatever you want. Slider buns would work fine, too. Or make them hamburger-sized and eat them like veggie burgers.

Green Falafel

For the falafel:
1/2 lb green beans, washed, trimmed, and roughly chopped
1 (15-oz) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch scallions, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon finely chopped mint
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon baking powder
6 tablespoons flour
Up to 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
Soybean or vegetable oil for frying

For the sauce:
1 medium cucumber
1 cup 2% or full fat Greek yogurt
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch cumin

To serve:
Pocket or Greek pitas
Chopped tomato
Hummus, if you like (I used edamame hummus)
Cilantro

To make falafel: Place the green beans in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped but with some texture remaining. Remove and set aside. Add the cannellinis, scallions, herbs, garlic, salt, and cumin to the food processor and pulse until well combined but not pureed. The mixture will be quite wet. Add the baking powder and the flour and pulse until combined. Add the panko a bit at a time and pulse, until the mixture seems dough-like. Fold in the green beans. Scrape into a bowl and refrigerate, covered, for several hours.

Form dough into small patties. (The dough will be somewhat sticky; don't worry if they're not perfect). Heat several tablespoons of oil in a large skillet. Add patties a few at a time and cook on both sides until golden brown. Drain on paper towel-lined plates. Add a bit of salt while they are still warm.

To make the sauce: Peel the cucumber. Shred it with a mandoline or box grater. Put the shredded cuke on a tea towel and squeeze the moisture out over the sink. Place cucumber in a medium bowl and add the yogurt and the red pepper and stir well to combine. Stir in the salt and cumin. Cover bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.

To serve: Pile a few falafel patties on a pita. Top with tomatoes, cucumber sauce, hummus, and cilantro. Serves 4-6.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Vietnamese Noodles and Pork

I mentioned the blog The Woks of Life a few weeks ago. I am so in love with their food photography - it makes everything look absolutely mouth-watering. So of course I want to try every recipe. The latest one I tried was for a Vietnamese noodle salad with pork, bún thịt nướng. I've eaten this dish in Vietnamese restaurants, and what was most striking to me about it was that the pork had a lovely caramelized sweetness to it. The Woks' recipe didn't include sugar in the pork marinade, so I added some. It really makes a difference.

Nuoc cham doesn't always involve garlic, and the three cloves indicated in the original recipe seemed excessive, so I put it in the meat marinade instead. Which actually makes more sense. And it gets cooked eventually, so that makes for less garlic-breath.

Vietnamese Noodle Salad with Pork (adapted from The Woks of Life)

For the nuoc cham:
1 lime, juiced
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
¼ cup fish sauce
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons Sriracha
½ cup cold water

For the pork chops:
3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
3 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tablespoons sugar
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
½ teaspoon sesame oil
½ tablespoon cornstarch
4 boneless pork chops
Vegetable oil

To serve:
6 oz. dried rice vermicelli noodles, prepared according to package directions
1 small cucumber, julienned
1 medium carrot, julienned
A large handful of snow peas, blanched and cut into lengthwise strips
½ cup cilantro, mint, and thai basil leaves, roughly torn

To make nuoc cham: Combine all the sauce ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.

To make pork chops: In a zip top bag, make the pork chop marinade by adding the soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar, garlic, sesame oil, cornstarch, and wine. Marinate the pork chops for at least 20 minutes.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet. Sear the pork chops on both sides until cooked through. Set the pork chops aside to rest.

To serve: Add the noodles, cucumber, carrot, and snow peas to a bowl. Top with the pork chops and herbs, and serve with the nuoc cham.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - Fried Rice a la Leftovers

Don't let a little bit of this and a little bit of that ever go to waste - give dregs purpose with a dish like fried rice.

--Kathy

This post was originally published on July 14, 2010.
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Fried Rice a la Leftovers

Looking in the fridge for dinner inspiration, I found a lone bulb of fennel and a ton of carrots and celery. In the freezer, we had about a third pound of shrimp and tiny amounts of peas and green beans. Additionally, there was a whole pack of Chinese sausages, which gave me the idea to make fried rice. There were also a couple of packets of soy sauce and duck sauce from the last time we ordered Chinese food. I combined them with the dregs of a jar of XO sauce and a lot of garlic to make a sauce for the rice. The only thing I needed was the rice itself, so I whipped up a batch in the rice cooker and set it in the fridge to cool for several hours.

Leftovers Fried Rice

Sauce
About 2 tablespoons soy sauce
About 1 tablespoon duck sauce
1 tablespoon XO sauce or Chinese hot bean paste, or to taste
2 cloves garlic, crushed

Rice
3 lap cheong (Chinese sausage), one chopped into small pieces, two halved lengthwise and then cut into 3/4" chunks
1 small onion, diced
salt
2 ribs of celery, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced on the bias
The celery-like parts from a bulb of fennel, peeled, sliced in half, and chopped
3 whole scallions, thinly sliced, both white and green
Approx 1 cup leftover vegetables (cooked or frozen peas, green beans, corn, broccoli, etc.)
Leftover meat (shrimp, cooked chicken, roast beef, etc.)
4 cups cold cooked rice, grains separated
salt and pepper

Mix the sauce ingredients together and set aside.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. When hot, add the sausage and onions and a nice pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions begin to brown and the smaller pieces of sausage start to crisp up. (The sausage should provide enough fat to cook the onions. If it seems dry, add a teaspoon or so of vegetable oil to the pan.) Add most of the scallions, the carrots, celery, and fennel, and stir-fry until the carrots start to lose some of their crispness.

Add the leftover vegetables and meats and stir to combine. Turn the heat up to high and add the rice to the pan, making sure to break up any clumps. Pour the sauce over and mix well until most of the rice is coated. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve in bowls, garnished with the remaining scallion and cilantro, if you have it. Serves 4 as a main dish and 6-8 as a side.

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Lamb, Sweet Potatoes, and Yogurt

This meal came on the same weekend as the avocado and shrimp thing I posted a couple weeks back. In addition to the avocados we had in the house, we had a couple of sweet potatoes. Mr Minx isn't particularly fond of sweet elements in an entree course (with exceptions) but I thought if I spiced up the potatoes with some harissa and added a little smoked paprika, he might not notice the sweetness so much.

I also wanted to use up the Greek yogurt I bought for the avocado dish. A fairly recent issue of Martha Stewart Living (whatever one was on our coffee table) just so happened to have a recipe for lamb meatballs with yogurt sauce. I was going to make lamb meatballs anyway, and didn't use her recipe, but I did adapt the yogurt sauce. It's rather plain, but is a nice tangy foil to the spicy meat and potatoes. Adding a bit of pomegranate molasses to sauteed onions (which I added to the dish because we had a ton of onions taking up precious room in our tiny kitchen) added still more tang, and another layer of somewhat exotic flavors.

A quarter cup of cilantro and 4 tablespoons of mint might seem excessive, but don't skimp! Lamb has a powerful flavor and fewer herbs means that you won't be able to taste them. Plus, they're green, and green is good for you. :)

Lamb Meatballs with Spiced Sweet Potato Puree and Yogurt Sauce

For the meatballs:
1 lb ground lamb
1/4 cup minced cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced
4 tablespoons minced mint
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon ground pepper
Pinch cinnamon

For potatoes:
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 - 1 teaspoon dry harissa spices
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt

For onions:
1 medium onion, sliced
3 teaspoons oil
Salt
2 teaspoons pomegranate molasses

For sauce:
1 cup plain whole milk Greek yogurt
1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup chicken stock
Salt and pepper

To serve:
Crushed pistachios
Cilantro
Chives and chive blossoms, if you can get them

To make meatballs: Mix ingredients well. Refrigerate meat for an hour or so to allow flavors to meld. Form golfball-sized meatballs. Heat a non-stick skillet and add the meatballs. Cook, turning regularly, until crusty and brown on all sides, about 12-15 minutes. Ground lamb gives off a lot of fat while cooking, so you might want to cover the pan to prevent splatters. Drain on paper towel-lined plates.

To make potatoes: Peel sweet potatoes and cut into rough 1" chunks. Place in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are very soft, about 12 minutes. Drain water from pan and mash potatoes, adding olive oil and spices. Add salt to taste and keep warm until ready to use.

To make onions: Cook the onions in the oil with a pinch of salt over medium heat until very soft, about 20 minutes. Stir in molasses and set aside.

To make sauce: Whisk together egg yolk and yogurt. In a microwave safe bowl (I used a 2 cup pyrex measuring cup), whisk cornstarch into chicken stock. Microwave on high for 1 minute, whisk again, then heat for an additional minute, or until thickened. Slowly dribble in the yogurt mixture while continuing to mix. Once fully combined, return to the microwave and cook for another 2 minutes, in 30 second bursts, whisking well between each. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm until ready to serve.

To serve: Mound some of the sweet potato mash on a plate. Top with a portion of the onions and a few of the meatballs. Sprinkle with pistachios, cilantro, and chives, and garnish with a chive blossom.

Serves 2-4.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Gluten-free, Sugar-free, and Dairy-free Mexican Pasta and Meatballs

One of the drawbacks to being food writers is that it is all too easy to overindulge and put on weight. It's especially bad when we are working on projects where we have to go to a lot of restaurants in a short period of time and sample all manner of food and drink which is so delicious but so detrimental to our physiques. The Minx decided that she was overdue for a curtailing of her naughty foods intake and put herself on a month-long boycott of wheat, sugar, and dairy. I was not willing to go quite that extreme, but I certainly wanted to help by creating dinners that would suit her dietary restrictions.

The biggest challenge for me was to find a way to work my favorite food, pasta, into a meal that we could both eat. We remembered that, several month ago, we tried gluten-free pasta made from corn. It was tasty enough, but for me it didn't quite work with an Italian red sauce, my mind being too conditioned to the taste of semolina in relation to Italian cooking. I tend to associate the flavor of corn with Mexican food. That's where the idea came to me to create a red sauce with Mexican flavors.

I was going to make a meat sauce, but Kathy really had a craving for meatballs, so I had to not only bring Mexican flavors to the meatballs, but also find a way to avoid bread crumbs. Kathy suggested oatmeal, which worked perfectly. The recipe that follows is a low-and-slow, all-afternoon, labor-of-love kind of affair, but everyone should make a meal like that now and again. There's a real sense of accomplishment when you take the time to create something really flavorful and satisfying.

Mexican Pasta and Meatballs

For the sauce:

28 oz. can tomato puree
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 medium onion chopped
2 cloves garlic crushed
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ancho chili powder
1/4 cup cilantro chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste

For the meatballs:

1.5 pounds of ground beef
1 chipotle chopped
2 cloves garlic smashed
1/4 cup cilantro chopped
1/2 cup oatmeal
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika

For the pasta:

1 pound corn pasta
4 teaspoons kosher salt

Start your sauce by sauteing the onions in a large sauce pan with a tablespoon of olive oil. Once the onions have sweated and are slightly caramelized, pour in your tomato puree and diced tomatoes, Add the garlic and tomato pasta and stir to combine. Then stir in the chili powder, cumin, salt, and ancho chili powder. Bring to a simmer, then turn down the heat and cover. Let it continue to simmer with the cover on for two hours, stirring occasionally. Add cilantro.

After two hours, you can create your meatballs. Combine all the ingredients for the meatballs in a large bowl and mush it all together with your hands until everything is thoroughly integrated. Form the mixture into golf-ball-sized meatballs. Heat a frying pan until a drop of water will sizzle in it and add the meatballs. Regularly turn the meatballs with tongs until all sides of the meatballs are nicely browned. Then add the meatballs to your sauce and allow them to simmer in the sauce for at least another half hour.

To cook your pasta, bring five quarts of water to a boil and add four teaspoons of kosher salt. Pour in your pasta and stir. Use the instructions on the package as a guide, but use your own judgement. I find that the instructions for cooking corn pasta tend to overstate the cooking time. After about ten minutes, check a piece for doneness.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain it, put some in a bowl, set two or three meatballs on top, and then ladle sauce over the whole dish. The flavors will remind you of a Mexican restaurant while the textures and the visual with make you think of an Italian red sauce joint. There's also the added comfort of knowing that you're not eating wheat, dairy, or added sugar.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Chicken Tikka Burgers

So maybe "tikka" is a misnomer. Ordinarily, the word refers to chunks of meat cooked on skewers, but I'm using it to evoke a flavor profile. Chicken tikka is like tandoori chicken, only boneless, marinated in yogurt and spices. While these chicken burgers don't contain any yogurt, they still taste wonderful, redolent of spices like cumin and garam masala.

Without the seasoning, chicken burgers are pretty boring. They are usually somewhat dry, too. I mix in a few spoonsful of hydrated chia seeds, which magically transform a dry burger into a juicy one. I'm not sure how it works, but it does. And as most of the ground chicken sold these days is breast meat (even though thighs are tastier), moisture is a necessity.

Serve these moist burgers on English muffins, to add a bit of crunchy textural interest, or substitute any bread you prefer. Cheese is optional, but do make the chutney mayo, as the sweet creaminess is a nice foil to the spices. You can also use the same spice combo with turkey or pork; beef might need a little more punch.

Chicken Tikka Burgers

2 teaspoons chia seeds
1 lb ground chicken
1 teaspoon curry powder (I used Penzey's Sweet Curry)
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
Salt
Plain dry bread crumbs
AP flour
Oil for frying
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Major Grey chutney
4 English muffins
Cilantro
Avocado, thinly sliced (optional, but we had it)

Put the chia seeds in a ramekin with a tablespoon of water. Allow to rest for 15 minutes in order for the chia to absorb all the water. Add the chia to the chicken along with the spices, jalapeno, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Mix well. If the chicken seems too wet, add a couple tablespoons of the bread crumbs and combine well. Cover bowl and place in the fridge for at least one hour.

Place a cup or so of the flour on a plate and season it with salt. Make four patties with the chicken mixture and dredge each in the seasoned flour.

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken patties. Cook, over medium heat, for 6-8 minutes per side, until well-browned and cooked through.

While the burgers are cooking, combine the mayo and chutney. Toast the muffins and spread with the chutney mayo. Place a burger on each muffin, top with cilantro and avocado. Eat.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Green Chicken Chili

Football season has once again reared its ugly head. Yeah, I'm a Ravens fan, and while I do enjoy a rousing match of good (Ravens) vs evil (everyone else), I usually find myself getting stressed out on game days. There's always a lot to do on Sunday--and I don't mean resting--and I need to get everything accomplished before the game eats up a good three-hour chunk of the afternoon. Dinner is the big bugbear. We like to eat early, especially on weekends when we don't ordinarily have lunch. If the game starts at 1, it's usually not over until 4, and then I have to throw something together fast--after I walk the dog (that part is not optional, so don't even suggest changing it). For this reason, I prefer to make something I can throw in a pot either before the game, or that will come together fairly quickly if I have to cook after the game is over.

This green chicken chili fits the bill in both cases. Because it uses pre-cooked chicken (I use the leftovers from a rotisserie chicken purchased earlier in the week) and canned beans, the only real cooking involves softening the veg and cooking it long enough to get the flavors to develop. I can also cook it during the game, letting it simmer over very low heat so it can develop even more flavor. Heck, I guess you can even make it in a crock pot, although I've never used one so wouldn't know for sure.

This is good with cornbread, of course, but we like to crumble in handsful of tortilla chips, too.

Green Chicken Chili

1/2 large onion, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
Oil
Salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and diced
2 4-ounce cans chopped green chiles
Cilantro
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons lime juice
3 cups diced cooked chicken
2 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
Agave syrup or honey
Sour cream and cilantro for garnish

In a large pot, sweat the onion and peppers in a tablespoon or so of oil and a pinch of salt. Once the veg are softened, add the garlic and cook for a minute or so, stirring regularly. Add the tomatillos, green chiles, and a good handful of chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems. Cover the pot and let the tomatillos break down a bit, 10-15 minutes, stirring once in a while. Add the seasonings, stock, and lime juice. Cook, uncovered, 15 minutes. Stir in the chicken and beans. Cook another 15 minutes, then taste for seasoning. Add salt and pepper, and enough of the agave or honey to balance the tartness of the tomatillos and lime. If you want more cumin and coriander in there, then add it now. (As a rule, it's not a bad idea to add spices multiple times during cooking.)

Ladle into bowls. Garnish with dollops of sour cream and a bit of cilantro. Serve with cornbread or tortilla chips.



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Roasted Shrimp

I order head-on shrimp at a Chinese restaurant (especially at dim sum), but I really don't like to eat the heads. To me, they taste funky in a bad way. However, I do like the way they look. So when I saw head-on shrimp for sale at the local Asian grocery store, I bought some. You have to admit, the sinuous curve of their pink bodies paired with the frilly heads and black eyes is quite ornamental. Sadly, they can't be put into a vase or left on the table in a bowl. (The smell would get unbearable pretty quickly.)

Even without any real idea of what to do with the shrimp, I decided they needed to be oven-roasted, whole, rather than pan-fried. Since we were also going to finish up some leftover Chinese-ish soup with the meal, I incorporated Chinese flavors into the shrimp by tossing them in a sauce of black vinegar and chile bean paste, using more of that sauce as a dip.

Eat the heads and shells, or peel them off before dipping. Either way, they're pretty tasty.

Roasted Shrimp

1 lb head-on shrimp
Vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons soy
2 tablespoons black vinegar
3 tablespoons doubanjian
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Sesame seeds
Handful of torn cilantro leaves

Preheat broiler.

Toss shrimp with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper. Place in one layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. Broil shrimp for 8-10 minutes, turning once, until pink and cooked through.

While shrimp are roasting, combine soy, vinegar, doubanjian, garlic, sugar, and ginger in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Turn down heat and cook for a minute or so, making sure sugar is dissolved.

When shrimp are cooked, put them into a large bowl. Pour over half of the soy mixture and toss well. Pour remaining soy mixture into a ramekin, to use as a dipping sauce.

Arrange sauced shrimp on a plate. Garnish with sesame and cilantro, and serve dipping sauce on the side.

Serves 4.



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Roasted Poblano Soup

I'm a big fan of poblano peppers, so when I see them at the farmers' market, I buy 'em. In the past, I've stuffed them, used them in pimento cheese, chili, and in black bean soup. This time, they star in a soup of their own. It's a bit spicy, only somewhat creamy, and overall fairly light. We ate it hot, but it would be lovely served chilled as well.

Roasted Poblano Soup

1 pound poblano peppers
1 cup diced onion
Olive oil
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
Handful of cilantro, both leaves and stems, roughly chopped
4 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup half and half
Pinch smoked paprika
Pinch ground cumin
Pinch ground coriander
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup cooked corn kernels

Roast the peppers over a gas flame or on a grill until blackened all over. Put them in a plastic or paper bag to sweat. When cool enough to handle, rub off the blackened skin then deseed the peppers and cut them into strips.

Sweat the onion in a bit of olive oil for a minute or two before adding the pepper and garlic. Cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and add the half and half and seasonings (you can add more to taste, but don't add so much as to overpower the flavor of the peppers). Add salt and pepper to taste and cook for 2-3 minutes more.

Remove soup from heat and allow to cool. Place cooled soup in a blender and whiz to puree.

Garnish soup with corn kernels and some cilantro.

Serves 2-4



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