This meal of shrimp and island rice is so easy to put together. The shrimp cooks in minutes and the rice is so flavorful with mango, clementine oranges, cilantro and a little fresno red pepper. I always make a lot and hope for leftovers because the shrimp is great the next day. Don’t even need to heat them up, just pop em in your mouth cold. Cameron was thinking shrimp tacos, so he folded rice and shrimp into a flour tortilla and added some mango sauce.
Nothing beats a good burger don’t you think. I like to layer a burger so that when you take that first bite you can taste all the different flavors that are going on. This pesto burger has balsamic roasted tomatoes that will burst in your mouth both literally and figuratively. You will need plenty of napkins because it will drip down your chin good . . . with arugula pesto and roasted tomato juiciness. The mess will be worth it, I promise.
There was a time not too long ago when I put arugula seeds into a little ceramic pot in my sun lit kitchen window. I could grow a small amount of arugula, just enough to add a hint of taste here and there to a sandwich or salad. But recently arugula has become available in all the grocery stores and I can enjoy it whenever I like. It’s got a unique spicy taste that I love and has become one of my favorite pesto’s to make. This arugula pesto sets the stage for upcoming recipes. Hope you enjoy!
I had two lonely zucchini from my garden this year. We have squirrels and bunnies that feasted on my garden all summer long and stripped my zucchini as soon as they grew a few inches long. So I was surprised when I went to clear out the garden and found one that the squirrels and I had missed. It grew a bit larger than I would have liked, had I only known it was there. . . So what to do with this lonely zucchini. I searched the internet for ideas and came across this moist, decadent cake from Simply Recipes that I couldn’t resist trying. Who knew that chocolate and zucchini would pair up so well. I didn’t, but this cake has certainly changed my mind. The recipe was so good I wouldn’t change a thing.
I discovered corn salsa at Chipotle Mexican Grill. For those who have a Chipotle’s in your neighborhood, you know how good their burritos and tacos are. You build your own burritos or tacos with your choice of meat, beans, rice, and salsa. The corn salsa adds something that I have tried to recreate many times and have finally found the ingredients that I think come as close to Chipotle’s as possible. The secret is in the corn. There’s a hint of sweetness that I’ve found comes from roasted corn. Grilling brings out the sugars in the corn that gives it that special taste. Try this corn salsa on any burrito, taco or enchilada and it will soon become a favorite topper.
We made a trip home to New Mexico this past week. It was a beautiful time to be out at the farm, after a long hot summer, it has finally cooled off a bit and time to enjoy the outdoors. My Mom has hummingbird feeders set up on the porch and we were mesmerized at how many little hummers were buzzing the feeders. Usually we don’t get there until later in the fall and by then the little hummingbirds have left for warmer parts of the country. Anyway, back to the chicken . . . my brother Carl spoiled us with his Ranch Chicken with all the trimmings of mashed potatoes and gravy, coleslaw, corn on the cob with iced tea. Doesn’t that sound like the best comfort food anywhere!
Here’s a spicy Sichuan dish, Gong Bao Ji Ding otherwise known as Kung Pao Chicken. The flavors of soy sauce, ginger and garlic are most prevalent, but topped with thin slices of fresno pepper, fresh cilantro and thin slices of lime zest really adds another layer of tastiness to this stir fry.
Flamethrowers are fried green chile. Years ago I found a recipe in an issue of Chile Pepper Magazine (August 2001) named Texas Flamethrowers with Dipping Sauce. It has become one of the first things I make when we get our roasted chile in August, and best when the chile is big and meaty and fresh. I changed the dipping sauce up a bit to fit our taste buds but otherwise it tastes the same as the original. This recipe is so simple and easy, yet they disappear as fast as you can make them. I had to threaten some people in order to take pictures first.
The best dessert is Pie, at least according to me. Peach pie is my favorite and I make it as soon as the peaches are good and ripe. I used the Combination Butter and Shortening Crust posted by Simply Recipes, which gives really good instructions. I will tell you that it takes some practice, or maybe I should say I need practice. This deep dish pie takes a lot of peaches to fill it. I piled 4 pounds of peaches into this pie. I don’t know if you would say it looks pretty, but it tasted pretty darn good!
Remember the Salsa Verde, it makes a lot doesn’t it? The benefits are that I have enough for dipping and also to make burritos. Cameron, my youngest son loves burritos and since he was nice and asked me sweetly, I said okay. I made the Salsa Verde ahead because it takes some prep time and it’s easier to have it on hand and ready to go. You can make burritos with chicken or ground beef but today I’m making pork. Usually I put a pork roast in the crock pot and leave it all day, but I just got a new dutch oven that I’m dying to try out.
An Inspired Cook 