Sunday, August 28, 2011

Chicken Cheese Enchilada Casserole






Chicken filling: chicken tenders, cooked in a microwave with a variety of spices, chili, cumin, pepper, smoked paprika, etc... Shred. Added some minced cilantro, diced chili pepper, and green enchilada sauce.
Put some enchilada sauce (I used green), in the bottom of a souffle dish (the tortillas fit perfectly), then layer toasted corn tortillas, shredded cheese, chicken filling. I used about 6 tortillas. Cover with more green sauce, top with cheese. Bake 350 for about 40 minutes.
I served it with refried beans, brown rice, baby romaine and red lettuce, and home made hot sauce.
Sauce: can of diced tomatoes in juice, minced cilantro, diced red onion, bit of green sauce, diced jalapeno, some lime juice. Instead of keeping it chunky, I used my immersion blender (could use a regular blender) and pureed it.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Fried Green Tomatoes w/Balsamic Glaze






Got some green tomatoes at the farmer's market... I used a 3-step breading process, flour, egg wash, crumbs. For an extra thick coating, put back into flour after the egg wash, then back into the egg, and then to the crumbs. I season the food and not the breading when I do this type of coating.
To serve, I topped it with a bit of salad dressing (whip), some crumbles of bleu cheese, then drizzled with some balsamic vinegar that I reduced to a syrup consistency.
This is good with some crab, and salad greens. But, alas, I didn't have that on hand!

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Put the Lime in the Coconut Pie


Crust is pre-made, comes rolled up, you know the one. I asked my husband what type of pie he wanted the other day, coconut cream or lime. He said, why not put coconut in the lime pie? So although not quite like the song, I did.
I baked the crust for about 10 minutes. For the filling: 6 egg yolks, almost a cup of fresh lime juice, lime zest, almost 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk, about a cup of coconut. Baked for about 15 minutes in a 350 oven.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Yes, another pizza....





This pizza isn't so much about ingredients as it is method. The crust was made with flour, truffle infused olive oil, reg. olive oil, yeast, salt, sugar. After letting the dough rise, I punched it down, then made crusts. Before baking, I brushed the crusts with olive oil and butter, gently heated with garlic.
After baking crusts, I used a light spread of Ragu pizza sauce, and then shredded "pizza" cheese blend. Then, I topped them with a mixture of browned Italian sausage, mini-pepperoni, minced red onion, and minced green pepper. I tossed all the toppings together, then spread over the top instead of layering them. I put dollops of sauce over the toppings, then more cheese.
Baked the pizza directly on the rack of a hot (425 convection) oven. If the bottom of the crust is browning, turn on the broiler.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Apple Bite O'Pie


We are going to a potluck house concert tonight, so thought I'd bring mini apple pies. I had about 10 Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled, cut into chunks and put into a food processor. Add cold butter, juice and zest of a lemon and pulse until finely chopped. Put the chopped apple mixture into a bowl and add brown sugar, white sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves; mix together.
I cheated and used pre-made pie crusts, using my large biscuit cutter, cut into rounds. Put into mini-muffin tin, with dough barely overlapping the rims. Spoon in apple filling. Add another round (next size down), for the top, egg wash edges, put on top crust, crimp (I used a small child's fork). Egg wash top, cut a slit for the steam to escape, bake. I baked at 400, convection for about 13 minutes.
I will be taking these to the party with a triangle of sharp cheddar cheese on top w/toothpick.