Chicken Tinga Tostadas

Chicken Tinga Tostadas
adapted slightly from Kiwi and Carrot
Serves 6-8

1 T extra virgin olive oil
1 small white or yellow onion
2, 15 oz cans fire-roasted tomatoes or Mexican-style tomatoes
1/2 c chicken stock
1 chipotle pepper in adobo
1 t garlic powder
1 t oregano
1 t cumin
1/2 t. kosher salt
4-6 c shredded chicken (store bought rotisserie chicken works great here)
Corn tortillas
Avocado slices, tomatoes, grated cheese (or feta), black beans, corn, cilantro, limes, as desired

Heat oil in pan, add onion and saute until soft.  Add tomatoes, stock, chipotles and spices.  Simmer 15 minutes.  Let cool 5 minutes, pour into a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour all but about 1/2 c sauce over chicken and stir to combine.  Heat tortillas over medium heat until crispy, using a little bit of oil if desired.  Place chicken on tortillas and serve with other desired toppings.  Pass extra sauce to be drizzled over tostadas. 

Blueberry Pie

Blueberry Pie 

from Jama England

serves 8-10

Filling:

3 cups blueberries

1 c sugar

1/3  c flour

1/8 t salt

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 c sour cream

Topping:

1/4 c butter

1/2 c flour

1/2 c sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line pie plate with a single pie crust.  Pour blueberries evenly over the bottom.  Mix together sugar, flour and salt.  Whisk in eggs and sour cream and pour over the blueberries.  Mix together topping ingredients until crumbly and sprinkle over the filling.  Bake for 50-55 minutes.  

Cucumber Salad

This simple side salad makes a fast, delicious addition to any asian style meal.  We love it with Korean beef bowls, Shoyu chicken, chicken lettuce wraps or fried rice.

Cucumber Salad
6-8 servings

2 cucumbers, peeled and sliced
1/4 c. thinly sliced red onion
Marinade:
1/2 c. rice vinegar
1/4 c. canola oil
1/2 t. salt
2 T. sugar
1/2 t. ginger powder

Whisk together all the marinade ingredients.  Add the cucumbers and red onion and allow to marinate for at least an hour before serving.  Keeps well in the refrigerator for a couple of days.

Classic Pasta al Pomodoro

Classic Pasta al Pomodoro
from Female Foodie
Serves 8

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion (or 1/2 large onion), chopped white, yellow, or sweet onion (do not use red)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 28 ounce can san marzano tomatoes (whole, peeled)
• sea salt or kosher salt to taste
• 1 pound pasta**
• 1/2-1 cup heavy cream (optional)*

INSTRUCTIONS

• In a large dutch oven or skillet, heat the extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Add chopped onions and cook for 10 minutes, until soft and translucent, stirring occasionally to avoid browned onions. Add garlic and cook for one minute. Do not let garlic burn. Open canned tomatoes, and as you pour tomatoes into the dutch oven, crush each one with your hand, releasing juices and breaking up the flesh of tomatoes one by one. Add several cranks of salt to tomatoes. Simmer for 30-40 minutes, stirring every few minutes to avoid burning of tomatoes.
• About 20 minutes before pomodoro sauce is done cooking, bring a large pot of water to boil. Just before it begins to boil, generously salt the water. If using spaghetti or other classic dried pasta, cook 1 minute less than package directions or until just barely "al dente". Remove 1 cup of starchy pasta water from pot just before pasta is finished cooking. If cooking gnocchi, pasta is cooked when the gnocchi float to the top of the boiling water. Strain from pasta water immediately as to not overcook.
• Using an immersion blender, blend the contents of the pomodoro sauce in dutch oven together until smooth. Taste sauce and add additional salt if needed. Add the reserved cup of pasta water to pomodoro sauce, and bring to a soft boil over medium-high heat. Add pasta and stir constantly for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and serve immediately. Top with fresh basil and parm as desired.

NOTES

*You may add 1/2 to 1 cup of heavy cream to the pasta just before serving if you'd like a creamier, richer sauce instead of the pasta water. Just make sure to taste the sauce after you've added the cream to ensure it has enough salt.

*This pasta al pomodoro recipe can be made with any pasta, but we prefer to enjoy it with gnocchi or spaghetti. If you prepare gnocchi with this dish, you may need double the amount of gnocchi (2 lbs. or 2 packages) to get the correct pasta to sauce ratio. If using spaghetti, 1 lb of pasta is perfect.

Cafe Rio Style Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

Cafe Rio Style Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

• INGREDIENTS

  •  1/2 cup buttermilk
  •  1/2 cup mayonnaise
  •  1/2 cup sour cream
  •  1/4 cup salsa verde or green enchilada sauce 
  •  1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (about 1 lime)
•  1 teaspoon garlic powder
•  1 teaspoon dried parsley
•  1/2 teaspoon onion powder
•  Pinch of dried dill (about 1/8 teaspoon)
•  Pinch of salt 
•  Pinch of black pepper 
•  1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
•  1 green onion, white and green parts coarsely chopped, or small bunch of chives

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Thin with additional buttermilk, milk, or lime juice, if you want to adjust the consistency.
2. Refrigerate until ready to serve (the taste gets better with time - it can be made several days in advance).

Cafe Rio Style Black Beans

Cafe Rio Style Black Beans
adapted slightly from A Bountiful Kitchen, 6-8 servings

Ingredients:

• 2-15 oz cans black beans (drain one can, don't drain the other)
• 2 cloves garlicminced
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1-11.5 oz can tomato juice
• salt kosher or sea salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

  Instructions:

  1. In a non stick pan, cook garlic, cumin and olive oil over medium heat until fragrance is released, about one minute. Be careful not to burn garlic.
  2. Add beans, cook down for about 5 minutes until some of the liquid from the beans is absorbed and evaporated.
  3. Add can of tomato juice and seasoning to taste.  Simmer for 15-20 minutes until thickened and some of the liquid has evaporated.
  4. Stir in chopped cilantro when ready to serve.

Cafe Rio Style Cilantro Lime Rice

Cafe Rio Style Cilantro Lime Rice 
adapted slightly from A Bountiful Kitchen
8-10 servings

Ingredients:

Rice:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 large white or yellow onion, chopped

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1/2 small can chopped green chilies 

• 2 cups long grain white rice

• 3 1/2 cups chicken broth without MSG

• salt to taste (about 3/4 t.)
• Dressing:

• heaping 1/2 cup packed, chopped cilantro 

• 6 T. olive oil

• 1 1/2 T. cider vinegar or fresh lime juice

• 1 T. red wine vinegar

• 1 clove garlic, minced 

• 1/2 t. cumin

• 1/2-1 t. minced, seeded jalapeno chile

Instructions:

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat.  Add onion, garlic, and green chilies. Cook until onion is soft, about 5-10 minutes over medium heat.  Mix in rice, stir about 2 minutes.  Add broth and bring to boil.  Reduce heat to low; cover and cook until rice is tender and broth absorbed, about 15 minutes.
Turn off heat and let rice sit, covered for 5 minutes.  Transfer rice to serving platter or bowl. Let rice sit for about 5 more minutes to cool slightly.  Pour dressing over rice, tossing gently together.  Season with salt and pepper.