An Inspired Cook

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    • Peach Blackberry Cobbler

      Posted at 8:52 am by NativeNM, on April 3, 2012

      I just spent a week in my Native New Mexico.  It was a memorable week spent with family on the farm with a side trip to visit my sister Kat.  Being surrounded by guys every day, it was so much fun spending time with the girls.  We had two days of shopping, talking and eating great food.  Leading up to the trip, I was reminiscing about my Mom’s cobbler.  She doesn’t make it as often these days but in my memories her fruit cobblers were the absolute best.  My favorite recipe is from an old cookbook by the Progressive Farmer.  It’s so versatile in that you can use almost any fruit, fresh or frozen, and it turns out great.  I had peaches and blackberries in the freezer which turned out to be a perfect combination.  The topping is unusual in the making but I know you’ll love the results.  Just don’t count any calories, that would spoil all the fun!

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      Posted in Pies and Cobblers, Recipes | 2 Comments | Tagged Peach Blackberry Cobbler
    • Grilled Pork Chops with Avocado Corn Pico

      Posted at 9:41 am by NativeNM, on March 22, 2012

      Want to dress up an ordinary pork chop . . . add some cheese and pico de gallo with avocado and corn.  It will definitely make your taste buds happy.  Add a baked potato or a side green salad and you’ve got a complete meal.  My family used to cringe when I made pork, they complained it was dry and didn’t have any flavor.  Since then I’ve found ways to make pork more tender and juicy.  For myself, I’ve found that if I soak the pork in a brine of water, salt and sugar for at least an hour it makes a much more tender pork chop.  I seasoned them with a tasty salt blend and added a topping of pico de gallo with avocado and corn.  There were no complaints or any leftovers either for that matter.

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      Posted in Entree, Recipes, Salsa, Guacamole and Dips | 0 Comments | Tagged Avocado Corn Pico, Brined Pork Chops, Grilled Pork Chops, Pico De Gallo
    • Baja Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa

      Posted at 8:39 am by NativeNM, on March 20, 2012

      These fish tacos are filled with a beer battered fish and topped with a mango salsa and baja sauce.  Cameron loves these tacos and frequently asks for them.  The fish recipe is borrowed from Cooking Light and seemed perfect for a fish taco.  I tend to pick up whatever fish looks good and at a reasonable price.  This time it was cod, but I have used tilapia and swai fillets and they worked well in the beer batter as well.

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      Posted in Condiments and Sauces, Recipes, Salsa, Guacamole and Dips, Tacos, Taquitos and Flautas | 4 Comments | Tagged Baja Fish Tacos, Baja Sauce, Fish Tacos, Mango Salsa
    • Cilantro Pesto Linguine with Grilled Chicken

      Posted at 9:12 am by NativeNM, on March 16, 2012

      While on Kauai, Joe and I went out for pasta one night and shared a tasty pesto pasta.  It was described as cilantro pesto with macadamia nuts and we thought it was terrific.  Being a pesto fanatic I had to come home and make my own version of this delicious dish. I added some fresh tomato and grilled chicken to make it a complete meal. 

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      Posted in Condiments and Sauces, Entree, Recipes | 7 Comments | Tagged Cilantro Pesto, Cilantro Pesto Linguine, Grilled Chicken with Hawaiian Sea Salt
    • Pineapple Upside Down Cake

      Posted at 9:15 am by NativeNM, on March 13, 2012

      I haven’t had a slice of pineapple upside down cake in years but recently in Hawaii I had the chance to have a taste again with sweet Hawaiian pineapple, rum and macadamia nuts.  It was fantastic and I wanted to find a recipe that combine all those wonderful ingredients.  This cake was so easy to make and baked in a cast iron skillet which worked out perfectly.  When the cake had cooled and it was time to flip the cake onto the plate I was a bit nervous.  Would the pineapple stick to the bottom of the skillet?  Would the cake fall apart?  How would it taste?  I was ecstatic when I turned it over and it looked this good.  And it tasted just as good!

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      Posted in Cakes, Cupcakes and Muffins, Recipes | 0 Comments | Tagged Pineapple Upside Down Cake
    • Kauai

      Posted at 8:13 am by NativeNM, on March 9, 2012

      Kauai was beautiful despite how much it rained and stormed throughout our stay.  There were maybe 3 good days where we had sunshine and our last day was the absolute best.  Here’s my favorite picture from Kauai, its at Kauapea Beach aka Secret Beach.  It’s on the north shore and off the beaten path.  About a 10 minute hike down a dirt trail lies this beautiful stretch of sand where the surfers, beach walkers and anyone who wants to get away from the crowds hang out.  It was paradise, the sun was shining.  I sat on the sand and watched the waves while taking pictures.  The waves captured my imagination and all I kept hearing in my head was the song “Catch a Wave” by the beach boys. 

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      Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged Kauai
    • Hawaii

      Posted at 8:44 am by NativeNM, on March 7, 2012

      Joe and I have just returned from Hawaii where we had the most amazing two weeks.  We have dreamed of the day when we could visit these beautiful islands.  We spent one week on Hawaii and one week on Kauai.  Both islands were unique in their own way but equally gorgeous.  The people there are so friendly and upbeat, who wouldn’t be living in such a beautiful place.  They are proud people and enjoy sharing their culture much like my fellow New Mexicans do.  Hawaii had all the things Joe and I love. . .  sand, water, tropical flowers and trees, amazing fruit and vegetables, color, color and more color.  What more can I say, it was one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever encountered.  This picture was from Waipi’o Valley.  It is my favorite picture and favorite place.  After a steep hike down there is an amazing black sand beach that we both fell in love with. Here are some pictures from week one in Hawaii.  Enjoy!

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      Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged Hawaii, The Big Island
    • Toasted Ravioli

      Posted at 9:33 am by NativeNM, on February 10, 2012

      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 . . .

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      Posted in Entree, Recipes, Side Dishes | 0 Comments | Tagged Four Cheese Ravioli, Spicy Italian Sauce, Toasted Ravioli
    • Four Cheese Ravioli with Spicy Italian Sauce

      Posted at 9:12 am by NativeNM, on February 7, 2012

      One of my favorite things to make is ravioli.  And you would be surprised at how easy they are to make if you have a little time.  I had a day when everyone was gone, the sun was shining, and I had hours to kill.  So I made  a quick trip to the store, picked up won ton wrappers, 4 different cheeses, some spinach and I was ready to go.  I knew these would go fast so I doubled the recipe so that I could put some aside for another meal.  I thought a spicy sauce would go great with the ravioli and decided on Italian sausage and crushed red pepper to spice it up.  The guys were so hungry when they got home and the ravioli disappeared quickly, but I had the best day. It was so much fun putting these together, sort of like a craft project.  It tasted so good and was pretty on the plate.  I love it when that happens!

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      Posted in Condiments and Sauces, Entree, Recipes | 0 Comments | Tagged Four Cheese Ravioli, Home Made Ravioli, Spicy Italian Sauce
    • Verde Wings with Cilantro Dipping Sauce

      Posted at 8:38 am by NativeNM, on February 3, 2012

      There are numerous recipes for wings that include different spices and flavor blends.  In the back of my mind I’ve always wanted to try a seasoning using green chile.  Could I come up with a recipe that would taste as good as it sounded in my head?    I’ve never seen Green Chile Wings on any restaurant menu but the thought has always crossed my mind, why not?   Red Hot Sauce is the base for Buffalo Wings so why not use Tabasco Green Pepper Sauce as a base for Verde Wings.  I’ve searched the web looking for a recipe but frankly there’s not much out there and what I did find wasn’t what I had in mind.   So once again, I turned to my spice blend guru, Chef Paul Prudhomme, for inspiration.  His Buffalo Wing seasoning is to die for so I used that as my guide and traded out the red spices for green chile powder.  This seasoning mix was instrumental in the dry rub for my wings, the verde wing sauce and also making a cilantro dipping sauce.  I made a small batch just to see how they would turn out just in case they were a bust.  I don’t always get the response I’m hoping for but these Verde Wings turned out way better than I could have hoped for.  I got some “Wow’s” but mostly the response was “Oh My Gosh”.  I shouldn’t have worried so much because the guys couldn’t stop raving about them until they were completely gone.  These would be the perfect finger food for your Super Bowl party! 

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      Posted in Entree, Recipes, Red or Green | 3 Comments | Tagged Cilantro Dipping Sauce, Green Chile Wings, Verde Seasoning, Verde Wing Sauce, Verde Wings
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