These yummy green chile quesadillas come straight from Kat’s kitchen. I was enlightened when one day she pulled out her comal and layered green chile and cheese between tortillas and grilled them. I kept thinking why hadn’t I thought of that! It was so simple but one of the tastiest things on earth. I topped them with some chunky guacamole with sweet corn and flamethrower sauce. You may want to serve these on the side but we had them as our entire meal. Once you start you just can’t stop!
One of my husbands favorite salads is this creamy pasta salad. I found this recipe on Food.com a couple years ago and it’s been one of those recipes I find myself making again and again. We like this alongside grilled chicken with a garden salad but it will accompany most any meal. It’s tastier than anything you can make from a box and you can add different veggies to change it up and make it a bit healthier.
One of my favorite fellow bloggers Justa recently made a Ham Fried Rice with Pineapple (which looked terrific by the way) and it got me to thinking how good that would be. Everyone in my family loves fried rice and although I didn’t have any ham or pineapple on hand I was able to make do with a few other veggies to make a wonderful side dish. We’ve been under stormy clouds the last couple days so I knew I wouldn’t be able to cook out on the grill anytime soon. So on this rainy day I’m escaping to the kitchen to put together a meal of fried rice along with a sausage stir fry that I’ll be sharing later in the week.
I’ve discovered a potato salad that I absolutely love. It comes from Rick Bayless and combines new red potatoes with roasted poblano’s and a homemade mayonnaise that is out of this world. The flavors of the southwest really stand out in this potato salad. This would be a perfect side dish for your Memorial Day weekend and pair up perfectly with any grilled burger or brat. I can tell you it was fantastic alongside our Raspberry Chipotle Steak Salad.
The Tomato Mozzarella Salad is sometimes known as a Caprese Salad or Margherita Salad. Doesn’t matter what you call it, it’s one of the freshest and appetizing salads around. I’m tempted to pick up a fresh mozzarella ball every time I see cherry or grape tomatoes on sale. I could eat it with a slice of toasted french bread and be happy. But my guys love it too so I usually make it a side salad with our meal.
Like many families we love making deviled eggs for Easter. Long gone are the days when my boys were little and they would dip their eggs into the cups of pastel colored water. They would decorate the eggs while I took pictures and after awhile we would peel those beautiful eggs and devil them. So every year at this time I boil the eggs and remember. Our favorite is a simple classic recipe that you find in a lot of recipe books. I wouldn’t dare mess with the recipe because it’s become tradition with our Easter holiday. You might want to double the recipe though, they don’t last very long.
I hinted that I had another idea for the ravioli and what do you know, it was “oh my gosh” good! Joe said I’ve made these before with frozen ravioli, but I don’t remember. I think I would remember if they tasted this good. Anyway, getting back on track . . . I googled ravioli recipes to see what everyone else was doing with them and came across several toasted ravioli that looked so tempting. I already had the ravioli and sauce made so it made sense to try and see if I could make these like those pretty photos I had been looking at. Since my ravioli was made with won ton wrappers they fried up light and crisp. So tell me, which way you prefer ravioli? Toasted or steamed . . .
Mac and Cheese will always be the ultimate comfort food. My Mom had a simple recipe using Velveeta cheese because it melts so creamy and tastes so good. I recently found the new Queso Blanco Velveeta and wondered how it would taste if I made it into a cheese sauce for Mac and Cheese. Since it was a Queso cheese I added some green chile. It’s the perfect side dish to a to a big juicy burger or barbecue sandwich. Continue reading
We always save some of the biggest and best Hatch Chiles just for chile rellenos. I like the traditional rellenos stuffed with cheese. They can be stuffed with almost anything but there’s something about cutting into that batter fried chile and seeing all that cheese ooze out. You know it’s gonna be good! And they must have toppings. We had pico de gallo and chile pequin salsa but you can top yours with whatever you want. This recipe comes from “The Food of Santa Fe”.
For those who know me well know that I am a die hard Red Wings fan. In 1990 Joe and I moved to the Detroit area, ironically just an hour or so from where he grew up. We were fortunate enough to be able to go see the Red Wings play hockey at Joe Louis arena and from that first game I was hooked. Growing up in NM, hockey wasn’t something I was used too, but I grew to love the game and the players and now after 20 years you can’t pry me away from the TV when my beloved Wings are playing. They are the most entertaining group of guys on and off the ice. I love my Swede, Russian, Canadian and American born hockey players. They play a truly amazing game that is intense and exciting. I am a superstitious fan who feels the need to give good luck in the form of wearing red and white on game day as well as having something red and white to eat. Whether it be strawberries and whip cream or a caprese salad with tomatoes and fresh mozzarella there will be something red and white. But on special occasions, such as opening day we have Wings and Oven Fries. Joe created a monster when he introduced me to hockey, but he gained some fun things to eat as well. So indulge me in my obsession and LETS GO RED WINGS!!! Continue reading
An Inspired Cook 