Beans, Beans, the Musical Fruit

May 24, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Mexican Recipes, Recipe at 2:03 am | Comments »

beans
Whatever you think of the childhood saying, beans are technically fruit: just like tomatoes, they form from the fertilized flower of their plants and contain their seeds.

Since I’m obviously on a Mexican-food kick, I thought I’d post about one of the most necessary Mexican food ingredients: beans.

Pinto Beans, which have a mottled look to them (much like a pinto horse), are the most common variety in Mexico. For that reason, there’s a good chance that the refried beans you had in your last burrito were made with pintos. They’re also the most commonly used beans in chili.

Black Beans, or frijol negro and Kidney Beans are other varieties I’ve used as substitutes many times in my Mexican cooking. The black beans are particularly good for vegetarian dishes, as they have a nice meaty flavor and texture to them.

Which brings me to today’s recipe: homemade refried beans. Once you’ve made these, you’ll never want to go back to canned refried beans again, I promise.

Homemade Refried Beans

500 grams (about a pound) dried pinto beans
3 quarts water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup water
salt to taste

First you want to rinse the beans very well, making sure to get rid of any “bad” ones. Fill a deep saucepan with water, add the beans in, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer, and cook- covered- for about three hours, or until the beans are soft. Strain.

In a large frying pan (this is why they’re called “refried”!), add olive oil over medium heat. Once the pan in warm, add the strained beans, with 1/4 cup of water. Mash the beans in the pan using a potato masher. Taste the beans, and season with salt if necessary.

Serve with your favorite Mexican dish, and resolve never to buy canned again.

You say tomato, I say tomatillo

May 23, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Recipe, Vegetable Recipes at 1:19 pm | (1) Comment »

The first time I ever heard of a tomatillo was from Bobby Flay on his Hot Off the Grill show (remember that one?) He made fish with tomatillo sauce, and at first I thought I could simply interchange it with good old regular tomatoes- then I decided to do some research.

Tomatillos are related to tomatoes. They’re called tomate verde in Mexico (literally, green tomato) and- here’s where they differ enormously from tomatoes- they have husks. You know, like corn husks. Only not. For this reason, they’re also called husk tomatoes.

These babies have a sweet slash tart flavor, and are a bit fruity. They’re particularly awesome in sauces and salsas- you’ll be surprised at what a difference they make from using regular tomatoes- but are also wonderful just grilled or roasted, sprinkled with a few drops of extra virgin olive oil and some sea salt.

Finally, let me leave you with a quick recipe for delicious Tomatillo Salsa:

Crush two cloves of garlic with a teaspoon of kosher salt. To this, add a coarsely chopped yellow onion, some chopped serrano chiles to taste (if you want it mild, remove the seeds before chopping), and around four to six large tomatillos which have been roughly chopped. Mix in some chopped cilantro to taste, and cubes of avocado if you wish.

Hot Bowls of Love

May 19, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Beef- It's What's For Dinner, Quick Meal Ideas, Recipe at 10:33 am | (2) Comments »

There are days you just don’t feel like cooking. Days when all you want to do is curl up on the couch and watch old episodes of Star Trek on DVD. On days like these, one is grateful to have a husband who not only can cook, but can cook really, really well. And when one of the things he cooks is deliciously spicy chili con carne… well, life is not just good, it’s awesome.

chili-bowl

The Husband’s Spicy Chili Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 large white or yellow onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 (16 oz) can red kidney beans, undrained
1 (16 oz) can white beans, undrained
1 (16 oz) can tomato puree
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons spanish paprika
2 large fresh tomatoes, chopped

First, brown the beef lightly in some olive oil, making sure to stir so it crumbles. Drain about half the fat of this away, but not all of it. Yummy, yummy fat.

Add bell pepper, onion, celery, kidney beans, white beans, tomato puree, black pepper, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, mustard, oregano, paprika and tomatoes.

Simmer for 25 minutes. Do not overcook… you want the celery to stay a bit crisp.

Sometimes, when he’s feeling particularly spicy, he throws in some dried red chilis (those small, hot ones). It’s all a question of whether you like it hot- or whether you can handle it.

I like to sprinkle mine with a healthy serving of grated Monterey Jack cheese…. mmm.

Classic Blueberry Muffins

May 12, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Baking, Recipe at 8:03 am | Comments »

Blueberry Muffins

One of our favorite things to do at home is curl up in bed every night with a DVD of a good television show. We’ve been through Rome and Pushing Daisies (so obviously my number one show!), The Celebrity Apprentice and LOST- and now we’re in the middle of the fourth season of Desperate Housewives. Care to guess which of the gals I most enjoy watching?

Of course: it’s Bree. And after watching her visit neighbor after neighbor with basket-fulls of freshly baked muffins, I just had to whip up a batch of that most classic of muffins: Blueberry.

Bree-inspired Blueberry Muffins
1 stick unsalted butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
2 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup sugar (I use superfine- makes for a softer muffin)
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup whole milk

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Spray muffin pan with baking spray (or you can butter and flour it if you haven’t got any spray). Set this aside.

In a large bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk together gently. Use some (just about 2 teaspoons) of this flour mixture to coat the blueberries. Set aside.

In the bowl of your mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, around three minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well. Mix in the vanilla.

On stir speed of your mixer- or by hand- add the flour mixture very gently, just until combined. Add milk, just until combined. Do not overmix. Fold in the blueberries just until combined. Spoon into muffin tin.

Bake about 30 minutes. Do not overbake!

I like to go all-out Bree and wrap up the still-warm muffins in a large napkin or kitchen towel, and serve in a pretty basket.

Mother’s Day Ambrosia

May 10, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Breakfast Foods, Holiday Fun, Recipe at 5:44 am | Comments »

Ambrosia

One of the nicest Mother’s Day traditions is making your mom breakfast in bed. Now, while you can certainly go the whole nine yards and whip up any number of breakfast dishes, sometimes you want something simple. Healthy. And absolutely delicious.

Enter this Ambrosia, which I promise you is as lovely as its name. Here’s how to make it:

Mom’s Ambrosia
Ingredients:
5 ripe oranges, peeled and sliced
1 medium-sized banana, peeled and sliced, and sprinkled with about 1/8 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup flaked coconut (optional. Omit if Mom’s just not a “coconut person”).

Method:
In a medium bowl, combine orange and banana slices. In a separate bowl, mix together orange juice, lemon juice, and honey. Pour over the fruit slices, and top with coconut. Serve chilled, with a silver spoon.

The secret here is using the very best ingredients you can buy: organic oranges and bananas, freshly squeezed orange juice (although Tropicana will certainly do in a pinch), raw organic honey… well, you get the idea. After all, your mother deserves nothing less.

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