January 6, 2012: Hot and Spicy Pumpkin Dip Recipe

The Wednesday edition of the Arizona Republic newspaper contains the weekly food section and I always eagerly await it to see what kind of new recipes it might contain. Usually I’m not impressed but this week I took notice of a recipe for a sweet potato dip I wanted to try. I only had pumpkin so I did a bit of my own makeover magic in the way of substitutions and less fat to come up with this very tasty recipe.

Hot and Spicy Pumpkin Dip

1 cup cooked pumpkin (or canned pureed)

1 T. roasted pumpkin seeds

½ chipotle pepper in adobo sauce + about ½ teaspoon sauce

2 cloves garlic

½ t. paprika

½ t. cumin

½ t. sesame oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a small food processor and process until smooth. (I just got a stick blender with attachments, which worked wonderfully for this application!)

Serves 2 with calories of approximately112 (1/2 cup serving size)

Serve this Hot and Spicy Pumpkin Dip with a 10” flour tortilla torn into strips and sprayed on both sides with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle them with kosher salt. Bake the strips in a 450 degree oven for about 10 minutes, turning them over once, for guilt-less chips (total calories about 220).

July 14, 2011: Veggie Wrap Recipe

I’ve shared with you that I’m trying my best to get healthy this month with daily exercise and a delicious fruit smoothie for breakfast. Another way I cut down on calories but load up on vitamins is by enjoying a raw veggie wrap for lunch.

I’m not including any measurements with this recipe because the amounts really depend on your particular tastes and the size of your tortilla or wrap (you can use a fancy one like spinach or sun-dried tomato flavor, but a plain old flour tortilla will work just fine). You could also put these ingredients in a pita bread for a change of pace.

This particular combination of ingredients is one of my favorites, but do feel free to substitute whatever you’ve got on hand and whatever sounds really good to you.

Veggie Wrap

1 tortilla, burrito size
Feta cheese, plain or flavored (you can substitute low fat cream cheese if you like)
Hummus, commercially prepared (any variety; my favorite is roasted pine nut) or homemade
Broccoli sprouts
Radishes, thinly sliced
Green onions, diced
Carrots, shaved into thin strips
Tomato, diced
Sunflower seeds
Mixed baby greens

Sprinkle feta cheese evenly over tortilla; microwave on high for about 30 seconds, just until cheese starts to melt and tortilla is softened.

Spread hummus over tortilla, sprinkle with remaining ingredients. Roll up like a burrito.

Serves one.

Tip: For some extra flavor, try splashing on a bit of balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing or a squirt of fresh lemon juice plus soy sauce.

July 5, 2011: Veggie Soft Tacos Recipe

Summertime is made for eating more fruits and veggies. To that end, I wanted to come up with a way to use some bits and pieces of vegetables while making a healthful, but filing lunch. Here’s what I came up with.

Veggie Soft Tacos

Veggie Patty:
¼ cup cooked carrots (to cook quickly, chop finely and out in a small bowl; add a couple tablespoons of water and microwave on high for 2 – 3 minutes)
¼ cup chopped bean sprouts
2 T. brocco sprouts (or other sprouts such as alfalfa)
1 T. minced onion
1 t. minced garlic
2 T. prepared hummus
1 T. sunflower seeds
1 t. soy sauce
1 egg
½ cup coarse bread crumbs, such as Panko
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients. Shape into one large patty and fry in a teaspoon of olive oil over medium heat, a couple minutes per side, until cooked through and crispy on the outside.

For Soft Tacos:
2 taco size flour tortillas
3 T. feta cheese (I used sundried tomato and basil flavored crumbles)
2 T. plain Greek yogurt
1 t. dried dill weed
1 t. lemon juice
1/2 t. garlic salt
Mixed baby greens

Combine yogurt, dill, lemon juice, and garlic salt.

To assemble soft tacos, divide cheese between the two tortillas; sprinkle on half of each tortilla. Microwave on high for half a minute to melt slightly. Place half the fried veggie patty on each tortilla. Top each with half the yogurt mixture and handful of greens. Fold in half and serve.

Tip: Use any veggies in your fridge as substitutes for the sprouts – cucumbers, radishes, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, etc. would all be good. Feel free to experiment with flavor/crunch combinations.

June 23, 2011: White Enchilada Lasagna Recipe

This is a recipe I made up on the fly, wanting to do something with ground beef other than make hamburgers, and keeping in mind that both my husband and my niece don’t particularly care for hot chile sauces. The result is this combination of enchiladas and lasagna (hey - don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!).

White Enchilada Lasagna

1 pound ground beef
1 small Yukon gold potato, cooked, peeled, and finely diced
1 T. minced garlic (try dehydrated garlic for extra garlic flavor)
1 T. taco seasoning mix
1 t. flour
½ medium-sized onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic
1 T. dried cilantro
1 t. ground cumin
1 large or 2 small green chiles, roasted, peeled and de-seeded
6 ounces cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste
6 soft taco size flour tortillas
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13 x 9” pan.

Cook the ground beef in a skillet over medium heat until no longer pink; drain most of the fat. Add the potato and cook for another minute. Reduce heat to low and add garlic, taco seasoning, and flour. Cook just until heated through; remove from heat.

Combine onion, garlic, cilantro, cumin and green chile in bowl of food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Add cream cheese and chicken stock; process until smooth. Stir in salt and pepper and taste; adjust seasoning if necessary.

Warm the flour tortillas in damp paper towels in the microwave for one minute, or until warm and softened. Spread about ¼ cup of the cream cheese sauce in the bottom of the greased baking pan. Take each tortilla and add 1/6th of the meat mixture. Roll up and place, seam side down in the prepared pan. Continue with all tortillas and meat mixture. Pour remaining sauce over the top and sprinkle with cheese. Cover the pan with foil and bake for about 30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted.

Top with diced tomatoes, fresh cilantro sprigs, and sour cream, if desired.

Serves 6.

May 25, 2011: Beef Fajitas Recipe

When it comes to grilling meat for fajitas you have a couple options. Number one is to use a large hunk of meat, such as a skirt steak, and place the whole thing on a grill to cook. The other option is to use meat that is already cut up, such as the butcher’s package of “stir fry meat”, which is usually quite reasonably priced.

When I made this recipe I used the latter, and cooked them quickly on the cast iron griddle on the side burner of my propane grill. It doesn’t really matter which method you use (although it’s easier to get rare meat when you use the whole piece), in either instance the idea is to cook the meat very quickly, just searing the outside surfaces. If you do opt for pre-sliced beef, be sure to use a cast iron griddle or skillet over high heat.

Beef Fajitas

Marinade:
1 cup tequila
Juice of one lime
1 T. kosher salt
1 t. dried or 1 T. fresh cilantro
2 cloves garlic, crushed or 1 T. freeze dried garlic
2 T. vegetable oil
1 pound beef (cheap, tough cuts such as sirloin, skirt steak, etc. are perfect)

Combine all ingredients through the oil; add the beef (either as a whole slab or cut into strips as discussed above). Marinate in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight, turning the meat occasionally.

4 soft taco sized flour tortillas, warmed in the microwave for half a minute
1 white or yellow onion
1 bell pepper, optional
1 cup shredded Colby Jack cheese
Nacho jalapeno slices
Sliced black olives
Salsa
Sour cream
Avocadoes, thinly sliced (or prepared guacamole)

Thinly slice the onion and bell pepper and sauté in olive oil just until soft. Set aside. Assemble remaining ingredients in bowls for diners to make their own burritos.

Cook the meat on a hot grill or griddle for 1 to 2 minutes per side for medium rare. Remove from heat and tent with a sheet of aluminum foil to keep warm until ready to eat; it will continue to cook. If you cooked a large piece of meat, slice it thinly after letting it rest under the foil for about 5 minutes.

Beef fajitas served with a simple salad with Chipotle Garlic Ranch dressing and Spanish rice

To assemble, take a flour tortilla and spread with shredded cheese, top with fajita meat, sautéed onions and peppers and additional ingredients as desired. Roll up and enjoy!

May 4, 2011: Pork Chimichanga Recipe

The last time I made pork spareribs, they didn’t come out very tender. I was disappointed, but I didn’t want all that meat to go to waste. My solution? Cook it again, this time with moisture and additional spices, and turn it into chimichanga meat. This second-time-around meal was very delicious and even my husband, who doesn’t always like very spicy foods, enjoyed this meal.

Chimichangas are a wonderful dish to serve at a Cinco de Mayo celebration. Try them with this creamy guacamole recipe, Spanish rice, and a green salad. Oh – and margaritas, of course!

Feel free to use any leftover meat you have to make this dish. Pork or beef roast works particularly well.

Pork Chimichangas

Leftover, shredded pork or beef, about 3 cups
1 small Russet potato
1 T. olive oil
½ small white onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 t. dried oregano
1 t. ground cumin
1 chile in adobo sauce, finely minced + 1 T. adobo sauce
1 t. apple cider vinegar
½ cup water
Four burrito size flour tortillas
Oil for frying
Velveeta cheese and milk (for sauce)

Clean the potato and prick it with a fork. Microwave until done. When cool enough to handle, peel the potato and finely chop it.

In a large saucepan heated to medium heat, add the olive oil. Toss in the onion and garlic. Cook for about one minute, until the vegetables start to soften. Add remaining ingredients and turn heat to low. Simmer for up to an hour, stirring occasionally and adding water, if necessary.

Place the tortillas in the microwave and heat on high for 1 minute. Divide the meat mixture among the four tortillas; roll up tightly into burritos.

Heat enough vegetable oil in a heavy saucepan to cover the bottom and come up the sides of the pan about one-half to one inch. Heat to medium high then carefully add the burritos. Cook, turning, just until the burritos brown nicely on each side.

Prepare cheese sauce as directed on the Velveeta box.

To serve, place the chimichangas on a bed of shredded lettuce and top with cheese sauce. Serves four.

April 19, 2011: Southwestern Breakfast Casserole Recipe

Here’s another way to add a bit of spice to your morning. I developed this recipe because I wanted to make a breakfast casserole that was easy to prepare ahead of time and eat on Sunday morning. My husband and I have a Sunday morning tradition of doing the crossword puzzle in the newspaper and then we try to grab a bite to eat before heading off to Sunday school with the service following. It doesn’t give me much time to do the crossword, cook, and get ready all by 9 AM. Since we usually don’t get home until about 12:30 PM, it’s a long time to go without eating.

I based this on my recipe for a traditional breakfast casserole but added a southwestern kick. My husband was leery of this dish while I was making it, but he went back for seconds and even cleaned up the leftover slice the next morning. His only negative comment was about the addition of bell peppers, which he doesn't really like. I hope you enjoy it!

Southwestern Breakfast Casserole

½ pound chorizo sausage, cooked and fat drained (blot with paper towels if there isn’t enough grease to pour off)
3 medium-sized flour tortillas
2 green onions, diced
¼ cup diced bell pepper
1 T. finely chopped fresh cilantro (or 1 t. dried cilantro), optional
4 eggs, beaten
Salt and pepper to taste
7 ounces Colby jack cheese, cut into slices (or one package of presliced cheese; use 9 slices)

Add the diced vegetables and seasonings to the beaten egg.

Spray a round pan (a cake pan or deep dish pie plate works well) with cooking spray. Place one tortilla in the bottom of the pan. Top with one third of the cooked chorizo and slices of cheese. Repeat layers with remaining two tortillas, chorizo, and cheese. Pour egg mixture over the top. Let sit for a half hour minimum, or overnight in the refrigerator.

To bake: preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 50 minutes, or until eggs are set. Serve with sour cream and salsa, if desired.

March 25, 2011: Tortilla Rollups

Today is my grandson’s very first birthday! My precious little boy is having a birthday party tomorrow. I asked his mom what I could bring for munchies to serve before pizza and birthday cake and she said, without any hesitation whatsoever, “Tortilla roll-ups!”

I made them for her baby shower over a year ago (that’s when this photo was taken – wasn’t it cute the way everything was served in boy toys?) and she absolutely loved them. Of course if my dear daughter-in-law wants anything, she gets it! I think these tortilla roll-ups are second only to Grammy’s homemade dinner rolls when it comes to her favorites.

The recipe below is enough to make a big platter-full, like the one you see in the photo. Serve them with salsa (homemade is preferable but good old Pace picante sauce will work in a pinch).

Tortilla Rollups

2 packages flour tortillas, burrito size
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese
1 can large black olives, diced
2 cans chopped mild green chiles (or about 3 fresh roasted green chiles, peeled, seeded, and chopped)
5 green onions, finely sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 bunch cilantro, minced (optional)
2 t. cumin powder

1 t. salt (or to taste)
2 t. chili powder
1 t. black pepper

Mix the softened cream cheese with the rest of the ingredients. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.

To assemble, take one flour tortilla and spread it with about one-quarter cup of the cream cheese mixture; don’t make it too thin (they won’t be very tasty) or too thick (the filling will ooze out when you cut the tortilla). Shape into a log by tightly rolling the tortilla from one edge to the other. When you’ve used up all the cream cheese, cover the logs with plastic wrap and place them, seam side down, in the refrigerator for about an hour so that the filling hardens up slightly.

To serve: place each tortilla log on a cutting board and slice into one-inch thick slices. Arrange the horizontal slices (they should look like pinwheels) on a platter, around a bowl of salsa.