Mexican Risotto!!!

Oh yes.  Perhaps the best fusion of cuisines I've ever had.  I often wonder why I don't see this dish EVERYWHERE.  It is the perfect creamy risotto texture with the flavors of your favorite mexican dish.  We chose to stick with our favorite chili ingredients for this first trial run, but you could do a simple cheese and shrimp or do a take on huevos rancheros with eggs and tomatillos.  You could deconstruct any of your favorite Mexican dishes and add it into the risotto and I guarantee it will taste amazing.  We served this with a tequila lime marinated tilapia, but the risotto overshot the fish so far that the fish would have been better off mixed into the risotto.

Ingredients
2 cups creamy tomato soup
2 cups vegetable broth
3 tbsps taco seasoning (we use the Trader Joe's brand)
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 cup arborio or carnaroli rice
1 tbsp olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
1/3 cup tequila, ale or white wine
1 15 oz can of black beans
1 3-4 oz can of green chiles
1 cup corn kernels
6-8 oz aged, sharped cheddar, shredded or crumbled
3 tbsp chopped cilantro
chopped scallions for garnish
Salt and Pepper to taste
Cayenne Pepper and/or Hot Sauce to taste

Directions
Put the stock and tomato soup in a saucepan.  Bring to a low boil and then reduce the heat to keep it warm.  Heat the butter and oil in a pot and saute the onions for 1-2 minutes.  Add garlic and mix well.  Add the rice and stir with wooden spoon to coat all of the rice with fat.

Add taco seasoning and stir in. Saute the rice in the butter and seasoning for a few minutes and then add the tequila, ale or wine.  Stir until it is completely absorbed.  Add 1 ladle of liquid and stir until absorbed.  Continue to add the liquid in this manor until the liquied has been absorbed and the rice is al dente (~18-20 minutes).  Reserve the last ladle of stock.  Add the beans, chile, corn, cilantro, most of the cheese (save some for garnish) and the last ladle of stock.  Stir until all incorporated and cheese has melted.  Salt, Pepper and add hot sauce an/or cayenne to taste.  Remove from heat, serve with scallion garnish.

Sweet Potato Black Bean Enchiladas with Creamed Spinach and Cheddar

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Mmmmmmm......

Ingredients

1 Sweet Potato

1/2 Onion, chopped

2 cups Spinach, cooked or frozen

1 tbsp Lime Juice

1 8 oz can Black Beans

1 12 oz jar of Enchilada Sauce (we used Trader Joe's)

1 Tbsp Taco Seasoning

1 tbsp Cream Cheese or Plain Yogurt (for creaming the spinach)

1 tsp garlic, minced or powdered

5-6 small Tortillas

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

6-8 oz Cheddar Cheese

Salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Cube sweet potatoes and boil until you can pierce easily with a fork then drain.   Saute onions with olive oil until translucent, then take them off the heat.  Mash the sweet potatoes and and mix in the onions, lime juice, black beans and taco seasoning.


The creamed spinach- if you have an amazing creamed spinach recipe, or just happen to have some laying around in your fridge, use that.  I made a quick concoction out of cooked frozen spinach that I heated up and mixed with cream cheese, garlic and a pinch of salt.  

In a baking dish, pour half of the bottle of enchilada sauce.

Place a tortilla in the dish and coat both sides with enchilada sauce.  Fill with the sweet potato mixture, top with the creamed spinach, and roll it up!  Repeat until all of the filling is used (makes 5-6 enchiladas depending on how big you decide to make them).  Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce on top and spread out evenly.  Top with cheddar cheese.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until sauce is bubbling.  
Dig in! 

Fried Basil Egg with Mac & Cheese

This is a similar idea to the Exploded Macaroni Omelet dish that I made several months ago.  It is a simple, straight forward cheese, egg and pasta seasoned with some fresh torn basil, garlic, salt and cracked pepper.  It made for a tasty wake and bake munchie-hangover cure.  

Ingredients
(serves 2)

1 box Annie's Macaroni and Cheese
2 1/2 tbsp butter
2 eggs
a small handful of chopped or torn fresh basil leaves
salt and garlic-pepper


Directions

Cover pasta in a a pot or saucepan with water (about 6 cups).  Bring to a boil and cook at Medium heat. 

Cook for another 5 minutes or until done. 

Drain pasta.  

Heat 2 tbsp of butter in the pasta pot on low heat. 

Place 1/2 tbsp of butter in a small skillet or frying pan set to Medium-High heat. Crack an egg in the frying pan when the butter melts.  I like to bust open the yolk with a spatula. 

Tear or cut up the basil leaves and sprinkle on top of the eggs.

Add 1/4 cup milk and powdered cheese to pasta pot. 

Mix cheese, butter and milk together until smooth and creamy. 

Add pasta back in and mix well. 

After about 2 minutes, pile as much pasta as you want in a a bowl.

Salt eggs in the frying pan.  Flip eggs for 30 seconds and then  remove and place yolk side up on top of the Mac n' Cheese. 

Crack some Garlic-Pepper to taste. 

If you don't have garlic pepper, you can add ~ 1 tbsp minced garlic to the butter to fry the eggs.

You can also garnish with a little shredded cheese if you have some on hand.  

EAT WITH A KNIFE AND SPOON!

Exploded Macaroni Omelet

I told you there would be more Mac n' Cheese recipes.  If you haven't noticed, I tend to sneak veggies like broccoli into my Mac n' Cheeses.  I usually keep frozen spinach, broccoli and a bag of mixed  veggies in the freezer as backup/emergency recipe additives.  Broccoli tastes yummy with cheese and pasta, so it's a natural to throw in with any mac n' cheese.  My favorite is Annie's White Cheddar & Elbows.  The white cheddar is sharp and actually tastes like real cheese.  Plus it actually is real cheese.  If you don't have boxy white cheddar mac lying around, I recommend adding some shredded/pulverized parmesan to any other boxy cheesy mac you have to give it an extra strong cheesy flavor.

Oh, and the egg.  What you see pictured above is actually my breakfast from yesterday morning. I wanted an omelet, but didn't have any cheese.  

White Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese with Fried Egg + Broccoli

Ingredients

1 box of Annie's White Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese

1 egg

1 tsp minced garlic

2 1/2  tbsp butter

1/4 cup milk or milk alternative

1/2 cup broccoli florets (fresh or frozen)

salt and pepper

Directions

Cover pasta in a a pot or saucepan with water (about 6 cups).  Bring to a boil and cook at Medium heat.

After about 4 minutes add in broccoli (fresh or frozen).

Cook for another 5 minutes or until done.

Drain pasta.  

Heat 2 tbsp of butter in the pasta pot on low heat.

Place 1/2 tbsp of butter and garlic in a small skillet or frying pan set to Medium-High heat. Crack an egg in the frying pan when the butter melts.  Bust the yolk open if you want to.  I do.

Add 1/4 cup milk and powdered cheese to pasta pot.

Mix cheese, butter and milk together until smooth and creamy.

Add pasta and broccoli back in and mix well.

After about 2 minutes, pile as much pasta as you want in a a bowl.

Salt egg in the frying pan.  Remove egg from frying pan with spatula and place on top of Mac n' Cheese.

Pepper to taste.  Eat with fork and knife. Or just fork.  That's what I did, but it was hard.

Skillet Baked Macaroni & Cheese w/ Broccoli & Red Pepper

Macaroni and Cheese is my ultimate favorite food and has been as long as I can remember.  It's rich, warm, cheesy and satisfying.  This will be the first of many Mac & Cheese recipes to be posted on this blog.  I'm starting with the best, in my opinion, and also the more labor intensive. This is recipe that has evolved from a traditional, homemade baked Mac & Cheese recipe that my Aunt made one summer that blew my mind.  I was 13 and already a huge fan of the boxed varieties.  I got the recipe from my Aunt  so I could recreate it at home.  Over the years I experimented with extra ingredients  and cooking methods and this is what I've created today...

Skillet Baked Macaroni & Cheese with Broccoli and Red Peppers

Ingredients

1   8 oz block of Cheddar Cheese

1/2 lb  Macaroni (uncooked)

1   16 oz  tub of Cottage Cheese (low-fat or regular)

4 oz  thinly sliced Alta Badea Cheese (can sub Swiss or Emmentaler)

1 medium Egg

1 1/2 tbsp Butter

1 medium Onion, chopped

1 tbsp chopped Garlic

1/2 cup chopped Broccoli

1 medium Red Pepper, chopped

3/4 cup Panko Bread Crumbs

Salt and Pepper 

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F 

Chop Cheddar Cheese into 1/2 - 1 inch cubes.

Boil Macaroni in a large pot until al-dente.  

Melt butter in large cast iron skillet.

Sauté Onions, Garlic and Red Peppers in skillet, approximately 15 minutes, then take skillet off heat.  

Drain and rinse Macaroni with cold water.  

Mix Cottage Cheese, Cheddar Cheese and Egg in a large bowl.  Add Macaroni.  Add slightly cooled Onion/Garlic/Red Pepper mixture.  Mix well.

Pour mixture back into skillet, shake over with Salt & Pepper and cover with aluminum foil.

Bake for 30 minutes and then remove from oven.  Remove foil and add thinly sliced Alta Badea evenly on top of Macaroni, then evenly distribute Panko Bread Crumbs over dish.  

Place back into the oven uncovered.  Cook for another 30 minutes, or until the top browns. 

This dish is probably best pre-planned for a group of pot-heads.  I recommend waiting to light the pipe until about 15-20 minutes before it comes out of the oven.  Don't worry, the aroma of the dish will prevent you from forgetting to pull it out in time.