We decided to get out of town for a little bit last weekend and drove out to the Oregon coast. By absolute luck of the draw, it was sunny out there! And gorgeous. Just what we needed to re-energize and feed the soul.
We started in a town called Florence, where there are sand dunes a mile wide and 40 miles long. It was pretty spectacular. Staying over night there, we had a chance to hang out in the little downtown–basically eating our way through it. We stopped at the Waterfront Depot, once an old train station depot converted into a cozy little bar and ristaurante that sits right on the water. We had two different types of cheese plates and some drinks. We then sauntered down to Alley’s Cafe, had some tapas that were excellent, and then finished the night off with dessert at a very cute spot called Feast.
When it comes to night time food photography, I find myself in quite the conundrum. Seriously. It can look really bad! Natural lighting is so key for good photos! This is why I don’t have pictures of my eating excursions through Florence. I also rarely take photos of food that I have not made–not because it isn’t good, but because making the food is part of the whole process of blogging for me. Actually, it’s not only the making, but the doing that is important because doing something good for me is just as energizing and wonderful as making or eating something I love. That’s why I’m showing you a feast for your eyes by way of coastal treasures. Sometimes we just have to eat for our souls, and getting to visit gorgeous spots like this is an excellent way to do it.
(Over 400 sea lions in the Sea Lion Cave!)
(Real starfish in a tidal pool)
I did, however, take a photo of a ginger cookie I got at a Cheese Shop and Bakery in Yachats (pronounced YA-HAW-TS). What a perfect combination, at least in my book! Specialty cheese and baked things? In one place? Yes, please! I held that cookie in my hand for a good 30 minutes before we found a nice beach spot to eat our snacks. Why did I do this? To take a photo of it. And it was torture! I had a nibble of one at the shop. The cookie I bought was beckoning me with it’s gingery goodness, to bite into it’s soft little body the whole way. Not to mention the ginger taste still lingering in my mouth, calling out for more. Sometimes photoing your food can just not be worth the trouble. Like when it’s getting cold, stale, or hard (but alas, even under those circumstances it still happens quite a bit. It just comes with the territory of food blogging!) But sometimes, it can be worth it. Like when you know the sugar crystals from a cookie will shimmer like the sand and it’s spicy orangeness will be a perfect compliment to the azure sky background. It tasted like a ginger cookie I make. The ginger heat was heightened the salty air that clings to and covers your hair, skin, and lips. It was like a mirror to the suns energy, sending it directly into my body via this little sweet morsel. It was a great beach snack for a blustery, sunny day.
Cheers!
How often do you make a pot of brown rice and have a lot left over? This happens all the time for me and while I usually put it to good use later on, it never hurts to have a few more ideas for it. This brown rice pudding is something I do all the time–breakfast, snacks, I’ve even eaten it for dinner when nothing else would hit the spot. It’s a versatile recipe where you can substitute, add, and subtract all sorts of goodies to it. Instead of raisins, try another dried fruit like chopped dried apricots, apples, or peaches. Use coconut milk (decadence!) instead of coconut water when simmering it down. Try throwing some granola, yogurt, or nuts on top. Sweeten it with real maple syrup, agave, or brown sugar. Look to see what you have in your cupboards, sometimes a dried cereal or a sliced banana is great on it too. The options are endless!
I’ve had an abundance of nuts hanging around for too long–they needed tending to. So I made this spicy nut mix. You can make this in bulk and store it for a while in your cabinets (in a mason jar or something that is air-tight). It’s great to take to work or have in your bag for a quick pick me up in the afternoon. The garam masala gives it an exotic flavor that is warm, not spicy as in hot, but literally bursting with taste. All of the ingredients satisfy our six tastes: salty, sweet, pungent, sour, bitter, astringent–which means that you and whomever you share these with will feel really satisfied. The tongue is always looking for all the flavors in a dish (or in an entire meal); now you can give them what they’re looking for!
I find it challenging at times to keep things simple. My mind wants to find ways to add more or do something differently–which can be great for many other reasons. However, I like to remind myself from time to time of the basics, especially when it comes to the food I eat. When I come back to those foundations, I find that I actually have a lot more to work with than I thought. It’s also easier to build (and let the mind start experimenting!) off of basic recipes and food ideas. Simple snacks make me feel good all around—tasty food that doesn’t waste or take time!
Brown Rice Pudding
2 cups left over brown rice, cooked
1-2 cups coconut water—or coconut milk, or rice milk
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup raisins—I prefer it with golden raisins
1 cinnamon stick or 1 teaspoon cinnamon
10 cardamon pods or 1/2 teaspoon cardamon
In a pot, stir together all the ingredients over medium high heat, until the liquid has been dissolved into the rice and the raisins are plump. Serve warm.
Spicy Mixed Nuts
2 cups of a mix of almonds, pecans, and cashews
1 teaspoon coconut oil, melted
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1-3 teaspoons garam masala
sea salt (to taste)
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix together nuts, coconut oil, and maple syrup in a bowl. Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. When finished baking, sprinkle the nuts with the garam masala and sea salt, toss, and let cool. Store in an air tight container. Enjoy!
I’ve been using what is in my refrigerator and cupboards to find inspiration to think of some new (or old, but haven’t eaten in a long time) snack ideas. Forcing myself to turn on a different part of my brain, to actually try to see what I have differently, has been a challenge! But a good one–I do love a challenge. Thankfully, I’ve been good about buying “whole foods” for the most part–nuts, seeds, dried fruits, vegetables, grains. But sometimes seeing foods like this in their raw, or native forms, can be overwhelming. What the heck can I make with all of this? Once I get over that initial shock of seeing, my brain goes into create-mode.
Yesterday, I found some celery that needed to be eaten, seed butter, and raisins—the perfect combination for the classic Ants on a Log. I don’t even remember the last time I ate this snack, but it was all around satisfying. It tasted of playgrounds, elementary school lunch-time, and I thought I may have even heard the shrill laughter of young kids playing as I crunched into this memory-laden snack. Try making it with a variety of nut or seed butters–almond, cashew, and sunflower seed butter are all great. Instead of just using raisins, experiment with dried blueberries, cherries, or cranberries. You can even sprinkle some sliced almonds on top as well, for a little added crunch!
In the fridge, there was also an abundance of heirloom carrots and a big ginger root. (I always keep a ton of ginger around, especially during the winter months.) So I juiced them and drank the sweet, spicy juice with my logs! This juice is a great pick me up in the afternoon–especially if you are craving something sweet.
During my hunt, I also came across several cans of beans, some frozen chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and cilantro. Recently, I had read about tortas, a Mexican style sandwich that is as versatile as it is delicious. And since hadn’t had one since I’d last been in Mexico City four or five years ago, I suddenly had a craving! I used to get them from a small sandwich shop in La Condesa; they were slightly crunchy on the outside and absolutely filled a with combination of refried beans, pork, sausage, salsas, tomatillos, avocado (either as guac or straight up), mayo, vegetables (fresh or stir-fried), cheese (either crumbled on or melted over)–basically you name it, you got it. My favorite was pretty simple—beans, avocado, salsa (red with chunks of tomato and onion), and crumbled cheese. So I used some left over ciabatta and toasted it for the bread; Andrew and I made the most amazing refried bean recipe ever; we sliced up some avocado, drizzled on the salsa, and crumbled some good feta on top (yes, feta, and it is fantastic on this sandwich!) and wa la! A torta that took me right back to La Ciudad de Mexico.
Chipotle Refried Beans, via FOODday
Makes more than enough for 4-6 sandwiches
This recipe makes more beans than you likely will need. Save the rest for quesadillas, burritos, huevos rancheros or future tortas.
2 15oz cans black beans, well drained and rinsed
2 cloves garlic
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons minced cilantro leaves – I used some flat leaf parsley here and it still tasted great
1 to 3 canned chipotle peppers–you can use chipotles in adobo sauce, also excellent!
1/2 cup water
1 to 2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
pinch of salt
1 lime, squeezed
In a food processor combine the beans, garlic, cumin, cilantro, chiles, water, brown sugar, and lime juice; process until smooth, scraping down sides as necessary with a rubber spatula. Pulse in 3 tablespoons of olive oil and adjust seasoning accordingly.
Heat remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in large nonstick skillet set over medium-high heat. Once shimmering, add the bean mixture and cook, stirring frequently, until texture has thickened and flavor has mellowed, 8 to 10 minutes on medium high heat. Prepare sandwhiches immediately or transfer to bowl and keep warm.
Salud!
Hello dear readers! You may have noticed that my blog is going through a bit of a transition. I’m migrating from a blogger to a wordpress site so I can do more with the design, integrate pages, and give you all even more here at Eating Is Art! I am really excited about it. So if you notice a few wonky things here for the next day or two, I apologize for the inconvenience. Just know it is on it’s way to becoming a better site for us all!
For whatever reason, the past few months I’ve felt like a deer in the headlights when it comes to eating. I have a few favorite snacks, dinners, and even lunches–and I’ve been sticking to them. But to tell you the truth, I’m really tired of them! So I have been looking for ways to incorporate more good foods into my day as I tend to err on the bread and cheese side of things. I began sleuthing in my kitchen, looking around, trying to figure out ways to spice up my eating, per say. I flipped through a few cookbooks–it’s amazing what an hour a month of doing this can do for recharging the ol’ ideas bank–ransacked my cupboards, the back of my fridge, and pantry and I found a few things to try.
This week, I’ll be sharing with you some of these snacks. I want, no, I need more variety in my diet (the winter can get very bland if you let it!) and I want to start incorporating some more veggies, nuts, seeds, and other goodies into my daily foods. I thought there was not a better place than to share this with you! After all, you have the ability to hold me to this—so I better not let you (or me) down 
.
Today, I made two things–kale chips and whole wheat pear muffins. Okay, I know what you might be thinking right now—those sound SUPER healthy and probably not that tasty. Au contraire mon amie, they are both super delicious and, well, good for you! The kale chips were a surprise actually. Andrew even liked them! If you are looking for another way to get a few more greens into your diet, give this a try—you will be surprised! They are satisfyingly crunchy, salty, light, and enticing.
I also made some whole wheat muffins, a recipe from Mark Bittman. Usually, the first thing I think of when I hear of whole wheat being used in anything pastry-like is a brick—heavy, hard, and really sad. But when I found this recipe I thought I’d give it a try—after all, Bittman states right in the title how light they were in texture. And he was right. There are two tricks involved with this recipe: use whole wheat pastry flour AND a cup of pureed or mashed fruit or vegetable–like banana, pumpkin, sweet potato, zucchini, apple. This ensures the muffin is moist and really brings an incredible element of flavor to your muffin. I made mine with apple sauce and cut up two super-ripe pears (those pears were either were going in these muffins or directly to the compost–the best for baking:), lowered the amount of sugar and used brown sugar instead of white. They are amazing when they first come out of the oven and will still be amazing for breakfast (and snacks) for the rest of the week. If you wanted, you could even make a nice crumble for the top with oatmeal, cinnamon, brown sugar, and butter 
. Try these (more recipes to come) and get snacking!
Kale Chips
1-2 bunches kale
olive oil
salt
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Pull the leaves off the stem, place them on a baking sheet and drizzle with a little olive oil and some salt. Toss with your hands to make sure all the leaves are coated. Bake for 10 minutes, maybe a little less if your oven gets really hot–they can singe pretty easily–but I like them that way!
Whole Wheat Muffins, via Mark Bittman
1/2 cup melted unsalted butter—I used canola oil for this (because I didn’t have butter on hand) and they were still great
2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
3/4-1 cup white sugar—I used about a 1/4 cup brown sugar and they were plenty sweet!
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup mashed fruit or veggie—this is where I used a cup of natural apple sauce + two cubed pears that were pretty mushy, using more fruit than the allotted one cup is ok.
1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract—I added this ingredient in because it goes well with the pear. Feel free to add in any of your own favorite spices too!
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup buttermilk
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and grease 12 muffin tins. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, then add the mashed fruit/veggies, the buttermilk, egg, vanilla, and butter or oil. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry, until just combined. Fill muffin tins until full, bake 25-30 minutes or until muffins are puffed up and golden brown on top. Serve warm if possible.
Enjoy!
All the recent talk of (and work about) pie made me hungry for one. So the other night, I dug through the freezer finding the last of last summers berry bounty–and made the quintessential mid-winter pie. It’s the pie that gets us through the cold, the chill, reminds us that there really are warmer days ahead and this is what to expect. I sliced open a fresh vanilla bean and put the seeds plus the whole pod in there, really infusing the raspberries and a few blueberries with it’s warmth. I sprinkled a little brown sugar over the whole thing, covered it with the top dough, and waited while the smells of summer and vanilla wafted through the house.
It came out fragrant and golden–with three large humps (I didn’t thaw the berries before I put them in there and the raspberries were in huge clumps pre-baking). The juice was ruby red, alluring and lemony-tart. The subtle sweetness of the brown sugar seemed to be an after taste, bringing out the full flavor of the berries–my favorite. If you have berries left over from last summer, or if you find yourself in the frozen isle at the grocery and pick some up, I would recommend making a pie. It is such a treat during the winter! I can’t help myself but to dig my fork into the entire thing during the afternoon or late at night–nibble nibble .
ps-Recently, I’ve been working on an updated version of Eating Is Art . I hope to have it up and running in a few days!
Berry Pie
Filling:
3 cups berries
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 whole vanilla bean, sliced down the center with seeds scraped out into the pie and then whole bean placed in pie for baking
Dough:
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup earth balance
1 tablespoon apple cidar vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon ice cold water
Combine flour, butter, earth balance, salt, and vinegar. Mash together with your hands until butter is incorporated in chunks with the flour. Add the water and continue mixing with your hands until a big clump forms. Split into fourths and roll each out (2 for pie bottoms and 2 for pie tops). Line the bottom of the pan, fill with berries, sugar, and vanilla bean/seeds and then place the top dough on. Cut around the edges for any extra hanging off, and then pinch around the sides with your thumbs to seal it. Make some little slits in the top for air vents. Place in a preheated oven of 400 degrees F and bake for 45 mins-1 hour.
Enjoy!
Hello! It’s been a while and I’ve missed you. The past few weeks have been pretty busy. Add getting sick to the mix and an undue absence can occur. C’est la vie, no? And now, I’m back!
Other than lots of resting, I did design a really fun website for a woman who loves pie just as much as I do, Beth Howard. The site is called The World Needs More Pie, check it out! She shot a TV trailer for a show all about pie in America and is now looking for a network home. I hope we see her series on television in the next year–who wouldn’t want to watch a show about pie? Yes, please! Pietopia, the contest I do each year, is also in its working stages for this summer. I am looking for sponsors to help out with the sheer size it has become. I want to be able to compensate the artists involved for their time, have a writer in residence, and donation pies from other bakeries so the “tasting” isn’t as short lived. More pie for us all!
A bit of shameless promotion here but, I do design websites on the side. My rates are extremely reasonable so if you or anyone else you may know are looking for a new website, feel free to give me a shout! (tricia@eatingisart.com)
In between webbing, resting, and the classes I am taking for my health coach certification, I did manage to make some fantastic blueberry muffins this weekend. We had a bunch of blueberries left over from the summer picking season in our freezer–it was like tasting a little bit of summer! I’ve made them before–this recipe is a keeper. That and the sun shone for five days straight or something last week? It was a miracle.
Between the sun, the rest, and a renewed energy for the future—I am so ready for action and some change .
see Blueberry Muffin recipe here. Enjoy!
This weekend, I came face to face with the imminent spring. Still feeling very far away, I was hesitant to even believe my eyes. A friend and I went to Bishop’s Close for a morning walk and to catch up with each other. This is one of her new favorite spots (she’s an avid gardener) and she was so excited to show me the first buddings of spring. The garden was originally family owned, but in the 1950’s it was donated to the Episcopalian Archdiocese. In turn, the archdiocese has opened the gardens for the public to be able to wander through–that is, if you can find it. It’s a little off the beaten track, hidden within an old SW Portland neighborhood, making it seem elusive, dreamlike, even special–like the Secret Garden! (I loved that book as a girl…) I wanted to show you what I saw–yes, spring is on it’s way!
Snacks have been a very important part of my day lately. I mean, they’ve always held a special place, but for some reason I’ve become a little more discerning about what I want to eat as a mid-afternoon snack. Today, I had some amazing maple-sweetened pecans and dried cherries. I have also gotten in the habit of brewing my own tisane in the afternoon using various spices, herbs, or roots I have around. My favorite is a ginger-maple tisane– simply boil some water, peel and slice several pieces of fresh ginger root, and add about a tablespoon of real maple syrup to your pot, let steep for a few minutes and serve. The longer you let it steep, the spicier your tea will be–which I love. I also do this in the morning, but also add black tea–it’s a wonderful way to wake up to these gray days!
Here’s to spring!
Simple Maple Pecans, via Chelsea
A few handfuls of pecans
Several tablespoons of real maple syrup
In a medium cast iron pan (or any heavy frying pan), place the maple syrup and pecans on medium-high heat. Using a wooden spoon, constantly stir until the maple crystallizes on the pecans, leaving a whitish cast on them. They will look sugar coated . Enjoy slightly warm!
February is a dreary month, where the idea of spring seems to be nothing but a distant memory that is vague, maybe even slightly illicit. This month, more than most other months I believe, needs a holiday like Valentine’s day–light, cheerful, and full of warm colors. I’ve never bought into the whole “needing a sweetie” hallmark version of this holiday. Rather, I’ve always though of it as a day to reflect on those who you love in your life, including yourself. You may wish to show how much you love those special people with a phone call, email, a little hand made valentine card, or even a nice lunch–or just simply taking a moment to remember them all. Valentines Day is a time that has been carved out for us to be able to revel in the many sources of love we actually do have in our lives! And take a little time to cherish each and every one!
I have a stack of M.F.K Fisher books and short stories that live next to my bed. In between books or even taking a break from what I’m currently reading, I will pick her up and dive in. Reading her is like being with an old friend–no matter how long you’ve been apart, you seem to pick right back up where you left off and part again feeling fulfilled and joyous. I read a short essay of hers the other night called “Hearts and Flowers”–and it happened (so nicely) to be about Valentines Day. In it, she gives the perfect prescription for a Valentine’s Luncheon, including Little Sandwiches in a Boat, Eggs Valentine with Mushrooms, Endives with Violet, Cream Heart, Bacchus Cocktails, and Vin Rose. “The Bacchus cocktail, which properly sets the theme with its evocative name,” she describes, “is delicate, appetizing, and of a rosy color that sings out loud.” Yes, please! I was thinking to myself as I was reading. But when I got to the part about the Cream Heart, I was immediately intrigued. She says, “the dessert, another shock to guests expecting at the least some elaborate mousse, is a flat pat, half “cottage” cheese and half cream cheese put through a sieve with enough cream to moisten, and then molded in a wicker heart or cut into shape when it is well drained on a napkin, with rich gleaming strawberry preserves in a hole in the center. It is served, not with the little cakes so correctly expected, but with crisp, lightly toasted slices of sourdough bread. And coffee.” I love her mischievous way of merry making and menu planning. She thought things through to the very end, including the anticipation of the guests surprise, then delight.
How does one make this Cream Heart or Coeur à la Crème? I found out about the French saying because this exact recipe was posted on Saveur’s website as the Valentines dessert. What luck! They used a nifty coeur a la creme mold which seems like it would come in handy for this particular dessert–however, I just used my hands dipped in a little warm water every few pats I gave the cream to shape it into a heart.
The cream itself is excellent–I love the warm honey undertones with the slightly salty cream cheese and goat cheese flavors. However, the strawberry sauce was OUT OF THIS WORLD. As I was making it, I was transfixed by the seductive aroma as I stirred it in the pot. I literally woke up, as if I was hypnotized, to find myself a few inches from the pot still stirring it, just smelling it in. That’s never happened to me before… And it was love at first smell!
Coeur à la Crème, via Saveur
6 oz. fresh goat cheese
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup honey
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. confectioners’ sugar
For the strawberries:
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1/2 cup red wine, preferably pinot noir or zinfandel
3 whole cloves
2 whole black peppercorns
1 2″ cinnamon stick
1/2 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise
and scraped, seeds reserved
3 cups strawberries (about 1 1/2
pints), hulled and halved
lengthwise
1. Make the coeur à la crème: Soak two 12″ x 12″ pieces of cheesecloth in cold water and squeeze dry. Put a 7″ heart-shaped coeur à la crème mold into a baking dish or set a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl; line mold or sieve with the cheesecloth, allowing the corners to drape over the side. Set aside.
2. With a whisk or hand-held mixer, whisk together the goat cheese, cream cheese, and honey until very smooth. In another bowl, whisk together the cream and confectioners’ sugar until soft peaks form. Gently fold the cream into the cheese mixture until evenly combined. Spoon the mixture into the prepared mold or sieve and fold the corners of cheesecloth over the top. Allow the mixture to drain for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator.
3. Make the strawberries: In a 12″ skillet, stir together the sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water over medium-high heat. Cook, swirling pan occasionally, until syrup is light golden, about 4 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and add wine, cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, and vanilla bean with seeds. Return pan to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until sugar is completely dissolved, about 3 minutes. Add strawberries, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, occasionally stirring gently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
4. To serve, fold back the cheesecloth corners and invert the coeur à la crème onto a serving platter; remove mold and cheesecloth. Arrange the strawberries and sauce around the rim of the plate.
SERVES 4–6
Bon Apetit!
Yesterday was Superbowl Sunday. Following football has never been a ritual of my own, but it is a deeply ingrained part of Andrew’s life. Because of this, I’ve learned more about football this past year–the rules, the players, the teams–than I ever dreamed of knowing! When I do find myself watching with him, it is usually a mix of laughter and horror. I tend to watch football with a different lens, shall we say, finding the humor in the facial expressions of the coaches (intense!), the hilarious dances a player makes (or chest bumping with his other teammates) when he gets a touchdown, the constant butt slaps (?), and of course, the tight pants .
I’m going to take a little bit of a leap here, but I found the relationship between the theory of yin & yang and football food to be quite uncanny. Football is fantastically yang. Attributes of yang include: bright, fierce, outward, fast, and masculine. The attributes of yin are: quiet, inward, dark, solitary, and feminine. There is a whole theory about yin and yang pertaining to food where having too much of one or the other tends to offset our bodies and our minds–basically making us feel out of balance, off kilter, blaaah–you get the point. Some examples of yin foods are: alcohol and chemicals, dairy, oil, sugar and coffee, spices, leafy green vegetables, roots and winter squash. Foods that are classified as yang are: salt, eggs, red meat, cheese, poultry, fish, and grains. One example of how the yin & yang theory works is people tend to naturally want to nibble on something salty when they are, say, having a drink. Have you noticed that bars usually have bowls of salted peanuts or salty hot wings to have with the pints of beer or alcohol they serve? The salt (or yang) offsets the alcohol (or yin) balancing the two out so you (theoretically) don’t overdo it–that is entirely up to the consumer, however, as to how much of either is actually consumed . So if you eat something hearty with your glass of wine or beer, say, a Superbowl Chili + homemade guacamole, you’ll feel pretty good–because you’ve balanced the beer (yin) with some meaty chili (yang). It’s interesting to think of foods having these properties–and another way to think about eating .
In tribute to this masculine (yang) day, we made some super-meaty chili and homemade guacamole–part of a food group I’ve lovingly dubbed Dude Food. Those of you with boyfriends, husbands, sons, and/or all male households (including the dog) know exactly what I’m talking about. Personally, red meat doesn’t do much for me, even high quality meat fresh from the butcher–it makes me feel sluggish and dulled out. There are some nice cuts of Italian cured meats that I enjoy in small quantities (and usually with a glass of wine with a side of some salty olives! yin and yang…) like prosciutto or a nice salami. But I digress, because I’m not talking about hoity-toity food, I’m talking about dude food here–straightforward, simple, and can be quite delicious.
The guacamole is so simple, I learned how to make it from a Mexican woman in my early twenties. You take 2-3 fresh, ripe avocados, 2-5 limes, some sea salt, and 1 garlic clove (chopped finely). You scrape the avocado into the bowl, removing the skins and pits, you squeeze the hell out of the limes, one at a time into the bowl, sprinkle with about a teaspoon of salt (or to taste), and add the finely chopped garlic. Then with a big fork (or if you have a big mortar and pestel, that would work too), smash it all together leaving big hunks. Dip your chips and enjoy! In the summer, I finely chop a ripe tomato too, taking out all the seeds, and add it in–delish.
The chili seemed to be a big hit with Andrew and his friend Scott–it was a bit meaty for my taste, but I still ate a small bowl of it gladly. Make sure you have fun toppings for it like sour cream, monterey jack cheese, chopped green onion, cilantro, and you can even squeeze a little fresh lime juice on the top. This recipe is generally a crowd pleaser .
Super Bowl Chili via FOODday
Chipotle peppers give a kick to this main dish, which you can make ahead so you don’t miss the game. Makes 8 servings.
3 pounds lean ground beef
1 1/2 pounds sirloin steak, cut into small chunks
1/4 cup olive oil
2 medium carrots
2 medium yellow onions
2 tablespoons finely minced garlic
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon chili powder
4 teaspoons cumin
4 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons chopped chipotle chile pepper in adobo sauce
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
6 to 7 cups reduced-sodium beef or chicken stock
2 15 oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed
Garnishes:
chopped fresh cilantro
sour cream
monterey jack cheese
chopped green onions
freshly squeezed lime
In a large heavy pot set over high heat, saute ground beef and steak chunks, stirring frequently, until browned, about 8 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove beef to a plate and pour off the remaining liquid in the pan. (I used a strainer over a large bowl, and put all the meat in it to drain the excess fat off).
Add olive oil to the same pot that you cooked your meat in and set over medium heat. When hot, add carrots, onions, and garlic and saute, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Return beef to pot, and add chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, and chopped chipotle chile; stir and cook 1 minute. Add tomatoes and broth. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to a gentle simmer, and cook for 30 minutes more, stirring occasionally. Much of the liquid will cook down during this time.
Stir in all but 1/3 cup of black beans and cook 5 minutes more. Mash reserved beans with a fork, and stir into the chili to give it extra body. If chili is too thick, stir in as much as 1 cup additional broth and heat several minutes to warm. Chili can be prepared two days ahead. Cool, cover and refrigerate. Reheat over medium heat, stirring often.
Ladle into bowls and garnish with toppings. Enjoy!
