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Thai Tea Apricot Smoothie

by mj on April 16, 2013

Now that it’s spring I’m really focused on getting last year’s produce out of the freezer to make room for this year’s. A couple of weeks ago I used some of the corn and a roasted bell pepper in my Braised Red Chile Chicken and Vegetables, and then finished off the roasted bell peppers in the Roasted Bell Pepper Cheese Spread. For several weeks I’ve been working on the abundance of frozen apricots from last year’s prolific crop. One of the things I’ve been making is the smoothie: apricot smoothies, apricot banana smoothies, apricot peach smoothies and my favorite – Thai Tea Apricot Mango Smoothie.

Several weeks ago I came across a simply delicious Thai Iced Tea recipe over at my friend’s blog – Wok with Ray. I immediately ran out and bought a one pound bag of Thai tea, the smallest size bag the Asian market sold. With all that tea Bobby and I have been able to mix up our afternoon tea time with Chai tea and Thai tea as well as play around with other uses for Thai tea. When developing this smoothie, I went with the orange color of Thai tea and selected apricots and mango as the fruits. What a delicious way to get your vitamins and morning caffeine all in one drink.

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Steel Cut Oats – A Quick and Healthy Breakfast

by mj on February 17, 2013

When I made steel cut oats for the first time, I knew that eventually, they would totally replace those instant oatmeal packets that I had been using for years, and now they have. Steel cut oats with fruit and nuts have become one of our favorite “quick” breakfasts. They are right up there with grits and green chile – well, almost.

So what are steel cut oats? Steel cut oats are the a hulled grain or the inner portion of the oat kernel. Rather than being rolled flat like rolled oats, they are hulled and cut into smaller pieces. Because they aren’t rolled, they undergo less processing. Some sources say, that because of less processing, they maintain more of their nutrients than rolled oats. However, I did find some sources that said that rolled oats and steel cuts have the same amount of nutrients. Regardless, both make a highly nutritious breakfast; therefore, it comes down to which one you like best. In this house, it’s no contest – steel cuts win out every time! (Image source: Wikipedia, public domain)

Steel cut oats normally take 30 to 40 minutes to cook; however there are a few methods that allow you to reduce the cooking time considerably. If you have a slow cooker, you can cook them overnight and they’ll be ready when you get up in the morning. However, since I don’t have a slow cooker, here are two methods that I use.

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Stewed Cushaw and Yummy Deliciousness Cushaw Coffee Cake

by mj on January 7, 2013

Two delicious recipes from my sister Nadalyn – Stewed Cushaw and Cushaw Cake
Thanks Nadalyn for putting this delicious post together!!!!

“Coo-what?” It always amazes me how many people have never heard of cushaw, much less tasted its rich deliciousness. The cushaw is one of the oldest varieties of pumpkin-like squash in the western hemisphere and was an important staple among ancient people. Today it is still important in traditional cooking in southern Louisiana and among Native Americans. It is technically a squash but has many of the characteristics of pumpkin. The most common is the green-striped cushaw which average 10 to 20 pounds, grow to be 12 to 18 inches long and roughly 10 inches in diameter at the bowl. They are mostly grown in the southern and southwestern United States. Cushaw is more resistant to many insect and weather conditions than most other squash or pumpkins and after harvesting, it can be stored for up to 4 months.

The flesh of the cushaw is yellow and buttery looking when cooked. In fact, in some areas it is called cushaw butter. There are infinite ways to cook it or cook with it. The most popular is to use it in pie just as you would pumpkin or sweet potato. Some like it best bake in the oven, still in the rind, with butter, sugar, and cinnamon sprinkled on top. To eat it this way, remove the seeds, quarter or cut into large chunks. Score the large pieces with a fork, sprinkle with a little sugar and cinnamon, top with a pat of butter, and bake in the oven until a fork pierces it easily.

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Brandied Orange Marmalade Quick Bread

by mj on December 6, 2012

A few months ago I saw a muffin recipe over at Baker Street for brandied orange marmalade muffins (shown on the computer screen). The recipe sounded absolutely delicious, except – it was for muffins, something I rarely eat, have never made, and really have no interest in making. However, I do love a good quick bread. So I decided to try making a quick bread using the same recipe. I followed the recipe pretty much to a tee, including preheating the oven to 400° F. That was the only thing I ended up changing. Fifteen minutes into the bake, I noticed that the bread was already starting to brown on top. So I turned the temperature down to 350° F and cooked for another 35 minutes. The bread turned out GREAT! I will definitely be making this again once I have another jar of orange marmalade!

Rather than putting the recipe into this post, I’m sending you over to Baker Street. Click on the link for the Brandied Orange Marmalade Muffin recipe. Below are a couple of alterations and other kitchen notes.

For the brandy, I used 1 Tbsp. cognac and 2 Tbsp. Cointreau
The orange marmalade was a failed jar I had in the refrigerator that I had overcooked and it had started to crystallized. Because you process the wet ingredients “until smooth”, the sugared marmalade worked great and kept me from having to toss it.
The recipe calls for a food processor, but since I don’t have one, I used the processor attachment for my immersion blender, then switched to the blender attachment to finish processing.
Used a bread pan instead of a muffin pan, obviously. Prepared the pan by coating with butter, then lightly dusting all surfaces with flour.
Next time, I will preheat to 350° F and cook for about 50 – 60 minutes. I always use the toothpick test on quick breads: stick a toothpick into the center of the bread. If it comes out clean, it is done. If it doesn’t, cook for another 5 minutes and test again.

Thanks to Anuradha at Baker Street for such a great recipe and ALL of her wonderful recipes!

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Grits and Green Chile

by mj on November 30, 2012

Grits and green chile is the ultimate fusion of southern and New Mexico cuisine. It’s creamy, spicy, and cheesy, and definite comfort food. It takes about 15 minutes to make and has only 5 ingredients, two of which are water and salt. You can’t make an easier or more comforting breakfast, lunch or dinner. With this dish, I have turned many people who disliked grits into grits lovers!

Ever since I discovered green chile back in the 70′s, this has been our favorite cool/cold weather breakfast. Bobby wasn’t that big on grits, but once he tried them with green chile, he became hooked and this is now one of his most requested breakfasts (right alongside Huevos Rancheros). I make grits and green chile at least once a week from fall to spring. It was a standard breakfast on camping and backpacking trips, and is a regular request from our houseguests. And, like my Mushroom Garlic Soup, it’s a great dish to ease the common cold.

Even if you think you don’t like grits, please give this dish a try. You will be converted – I guarantee it! And for those of you who don’t know what grits are, fear not – check out the Kitchen Notes.
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Mayan Chocolate Iced Coffee

by mj on July 31, 2012

In all of the years that we’ve lived in New Mexico, we’ve never been to Denver, Colorado. We’ve been all over the western half of Colorado, but Denver and the surrounding area has alluded us for some reason. That all changed last week. I had a conference in Denver so Bobby arranged his schedule so he could go with me and we do some sightseeing on a couple of afternoons I had off.

One afternoon we drove to Littleton, a small town (suburb) a little southwest of Denver. It was a quaint little place and the old town area had a few shops that were right up my alley. There were two small antique shops housed in century old homes and around the corner on Main Street were two fabulous spice shops. In one of the antique shops I found this 1930′s recipe book that was written as a promotional for Worcester Salt. I thought it to be a perfect match for the 1930′s book that my mother-in-law gave me – The Art of Cooking and Serving, a promotional for Crisco. Both books are a hoot! I’ll be sharing some of the comments and recipes with you in the fall. Just as a teaser, the Worcester Salt book recommends boiling summer squash in salt water for 45 minutes! Would there be anything one could call squash after 45 minutes?

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Breakfast Tostada

by mj on June 1, 2012

When I was a kid my family went to El Chico’s on Wednesday night for the 99 cents special – a plate with an enchilada, tamale, beans and rice, and then all of the chips and salsa and warm corn tortillas one could eat. A family of 7 ate for less than $10!!!! Can you imagine? Through this experience I grew up thinking that this Wednesday night special was real Mexican cuisine.

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Banana Buttermilk Waffles with Strawberries and Pecans

by mj on April 15, 2012

Given the choice between pancakes, waffles or crepes, I’ll take waffles any day! I love a waffle that’s crispy on the outside and moist on the inside, then topped with fresh fruit, nuts and warm maple syrup. This banana buttermilk waffle recipe has been my “go to” recipe for years, but recently I have made a change in the flours that has taken something quite good and made it even better. The recipe uses an overripe banana in place of any oil or butter. I also use buttermilk to add more flavor and texture. A variety of toppings can be used so be sure to read the Kitchen Notes for suggestions.

My first waffle iron was one I inherited from my great aunt back in ’76. It was one of those heavy electric cast-iron waffle irons that produced a PERFECT waffle every single time. Unfortunately, I only had it for 15 years before it bit the dust. Not bad for a kitchen appliance that was probably purchased in the 50′s! It took me about 5 years and 3 different waffle irons to find another one that came close to the waffles that my aunt’s made, but I finally found one that works. I use a Krups, 4-square Belgian waffle maker and love it! (No, I was not paid to say that. )

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