Mexican Pickled Onions-Cebollas Curtidas, Perfect Side for Tacos

Simple Onion becomes Brilliant in Cebollas Curtidas

The ways in which simple foods take on a magic every day in Mexico are truly endless. I first tried Cebollas Curtidas at a street taco stand in Torreon Coahuila & was so overwhelmed by the street tacos that I just knew every single part of that experience was grand.  It was later when I saw the colorful onions again & knew I had never tasted onions quite like the Mexican Pickled Onions. They were sweet, spicy & altogether unexpected. In the Yucatan they use oregano &  chilis habanero in these onions. I suspect that the jalapeno addition may be more of a Northern Mexico style but the citrus juice makes these onions a side dish to be remembered. I have also heard these are a menu item all through Latin America from Guatemala to Ecuador. 

Cebollas Curtidas, Mexican Pickled Onions
2 medium red onions, thinly sliced (approx. 4-5 cups)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (4 med. limes)
2/3 cup freshly squeezed orange or grapefruit juice (5 med. oranges or 2 med. grapefruit)

Don't forget to use non metal containers

1/3 cup of white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
2-3 cloves of garlic, peeled & halved
1 jalapeño pepper, seeds removed & very thinly sliced into rings

Directions:
1. Bring a small pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add onions and blanch for about 15 seconds. Drain well and set aside.
2. Combine lime juice, orange juice, sugar, and salt in a large nonreactive bowl, and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add blanched onion slices and jalapeño, and stir to coat thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving. **the brine can also be seasoned with peppercorns & bay leaves.

Cebollas Curtidas are perfect for Shrimp or Veggie Tacos

 We enjoyed the Mexican Pickled Onions with Shrimp Tacos this weekend but the onions are delicious over any taco which has fresh roasted meats or veggies.  I first tried them on Potato Tacos.

Shrimp Tacos

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon minced green onion
1 liberal dash of cholula hot sauce or favorite sauce
1 each red bell pepper, green bell pepper chopped
8 corn tortillas, warmed

Saute garlic, bell pepper 2 min over medium heat, add shrimp, season with salt, pepper & hot sauce. Serve immediately with Pineapple, Cebollas, Curtidas, Avocado, shredded Radish & Cilantro (also

cheese if you please). Enjoy & Buen Provecho!

*Blanch the Onions for 15 seconds to keep the color & crisp quality.

Gumbo Shooters, powerful sip of Soup.

Did the last time you had something in a shot glass make you feel less than virtuous? 

Try serving up your favorite soup in a shot glass. No virtue promised here but no roaring headache the next day either! I hosted Bunco night here recently & served Gumbo one last time. I wanted to serve Gumbo since our cool nights are long gone here in Texas & won't return for several  months.  I had a New Orleans theme going for my friends & fellow Bunco players.  Normally I serve rice with Gumbo however with tiny servings I didn't think rice was necessary & not one person noticed the absence of said starch.  I prepared the Gumbo ahead of time & kept it warmed in a crock pot during the festivities.  I recommend the 2 oz wide mouth Duralex shot glasses.  They are reasonably priced & have enough space for a good sipping Gumbo!  Les c'est le bon temp rouler!

Duralex 2 oz shot (wide mouth) glasses hold a nice sip of gumbo 

Chicken & Sausage Gumbo Shooters

1/2 c. butter

1/2 c. veg. oil

1 c. flour

Make a roux from the butter, veg. oil & flour in deep dutch oven or gumbo pot. Once your roux is deep brown or copper penny color then add & saute:

1 sm. onion, diced

1 med. bell pepper, diced

2 lg. stalks celery, chopped

Once the vegs are cooked add 1 quart chicken stock or warm H2O. 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp. black pepper, 1/2 tsp. salt, *Tony Chachere's Cajun Seasoning to taste. Add 4 lg. skinless chicken breasts. 1 pkg. (1 link) smoked beef or pork sausage. Simmer till the meat is cooked well. Remove this from, the gumbo & chop up chicken and dice up sausage. Add this back into the gumbo, keep simmering. Add 1 frozen pkg. okra. Add one small bunch of green onion tops, chopped. Once this comes to a low simmer turn it off & serve in small shot glasses.  Use  a small size ladle to make the Gumbo transfer neat & tidy. 
*Tony Chachere's is a popular season salt from Louisiana, even when living in Mexico I could find this spicy seasoning. 

It's Officially National Pi Day!

Four & Twenty Blackbirds

3/14, 3.14: The Celebration of ratio of the circumference of a circle or Hold that Pie Chart....what better reason to celebrate the Glorious Pie? Really, do we need a reason?? Apparently the House of Representatives made it officially Pi Day & they never make mistakes do they? Check out the Wikipedia Pi Day link! Why did the photo of the Pi guy make me smile?


What about that blackbird pie poem from childhood?  Pie has been national past time for literally centuries, there are volumes written, childhood poems glorifying them but the end result is still the same. One of my daughters likes to call the fruit pies: "hot mushy fruit". Whether you enjoy a creamy custard or hearty apple pie it can be a satisfying experience paired with a cup of coffee & lingering conversation.  It may not sound exciting but no dessert brings back memories for me like a family pie recipe. Having said that I thought I'd share a quick Fresh Blueberry Pie which had even the least likely of pie fans at our home eating this pie & wanting seconds.Our blueberries have been so delicious here. I've been buying those pints of berries & eating them over yogurt & cereal more often than not however they are perfect for sauces & desserts. Hope you enjoyed your Pi Day!

Fresh Texas Blueberries

Fresh Blueberry Pie
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2/3 cup water
4 cups fresh blueberries
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon Con Olio Lemon Balsamic Vinegar
1 teaspoon melted butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons equal parts sugar & cinnamon
17.3 oz box of Puff Pastry, thawed, 2 sheets
In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch, stir in water. Bring to a boil; stirring constantly, boil for 1 minute. Add blueberries, lemon juice & vinegar. Line a lightly buttered deep dish (9 inch) pie pan with 1 puff pastry sheet. Pour blueberry mixture into the crust then layer the top of the fruit with the second layer of puff pastry, loosely fold both crust at the edge to loosely seal the edges. Lightly crimp drizzle melted butter & sprinkle with sugar & cinnamon. Bake at 425° for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly browned. Enjoy!

Need more diversity in your pie?

Sing a song of sixpence a pocket full of rye,
Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie.
When the pie was opened the birds began to sing,
Oh wasn't that a dainty dish to set before the king?
The king was in his counting house counting out his money,
The queen was in the parlor eating bread and honey
The maid was in the garden hanging out the clothes,
When down came a blackbird and pecked off her nose!

(**eeks! Not certain why this poem make it into the bedtime repertoire of so many children.)

Buzzing about Kale

 









I'm not exactly sure why it took so long for this veggie to regain popularity.  Kind of like the tall girl in the back of the dance class, kale hardly had a second glance for a very long time.  In the past 18 months I've heard a great deal of buzz about kale. Not to detract but this modest member of the vegetable kingdom needs more than a second glance almost as much as .....Bacon! (don't hate about the bacon note but seriously can we shift gears for a moment here? Enough foodie talk about bacon...besides what hasn't been written about bacon recently? ) 

I've always been a proponent of greens in all textures & varieties. At times I am certain my family has been rather skeptical at one more dish of anything of the "green" variety.  In the past 2 years it seems like foodies everywhere are singing the praises of kale & chard. In the United Kingdom kale was widely popular during World War II because of the ease which it was grown in Victory gardens & the nutritious benefits the greens added to the wartime rationed diets.  kale has 192 percent of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin c as well as minerals like iron, niacin, potassium and phosphorus. Not loaded with nitrates & fat, kale is low in calories & good for us too.  Many folks out there are touting the anti-cancer agents found in Kale. When I first heard about Kale Chips I couldn't imagine baking kale & having it keep any flavor.  I was impressed by the time I saw Giada de Laurentiis turn kale into a crispy side dish although it might be considered an appetizer.  Served with a side of the lemony mayonnaise & I could be in heaven in less time than it takes to toss on the olive oil & throw a serving of kale in the oven. Giada has a genius for knowing her audience & somehow tossing sea salt over the EVOO enhances kale making it perfection.  The big taste test came when the kale chips were brought to the table & my husband started raving about them.  A real hit for certain.  Recently, I've also been rather enamored with Whole Foods selection of Kale Salads.  Check here for a modest recreation or twist on my own Kale Salad which is also posted on the lunch box blog here:


Potato & Kale Chips
Chips:
3 large Kale leaves
Extra Virgin Olive oil, for drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1 (8-ounce) medium white potatoes, unpeeled
* 1 (8-ounce) medium sweet potatoes, unpeeled

Mayonnaise:

* 1 cup mayonnaise
* 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1/2 a large lemon)
* 1 teaspoon lemon zest (from 1/2 a large lemon)
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Chips: Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove the thick stem from the kale and discard. Cut the leaves into 2 to 3-inch pieces. Put them in a bowl and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Toss well. Arrange the kale in a single layer on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until crispy and slightly dark on the edges. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Using a mandoline slicer or a sharp knife, slice the white potatoes and the sweet potatoes into 1/8-inch thick slices. Put them in a bowl and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Toss well. Arrange in a single layer (without overlapping) on parchment-lined baking sheets and bake for 12 minutes. Turn the slices over and continue to bake, checking every 2 minutes until brown and crispy, about 6 to 8 minutes longer. Season the chips with salt and pepper, to taste.

Mayonnaise: In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, lemon juice and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Transfer all the chips to a large bowl and serve with the mayonnaise.

Cook's Note 1: Some potato chips will cook faster than others. Remove the chips from the baking sheets as soon as they become brown and crispy.

Savory Kale Salad

Cook's Note 2: The recipe can be doubled or tripled.

Soup weather takes me to North Africa

In a very literal way I've been away for far too long.  I've taken many weeks away from blogging to take care of family business, say some tearful goodbyes. Through all of that I continued cooking those comfort foods which make those near and dear feel warm, loved and special.  Okay..... not all of those meals were for others but you get the idea!  Some of those meals were at the end of very long days when we were lucky to be eating a meal at all. We've all had those days.  I was so happy on those days to come home to a meal in my Crock Pot.  A  new favorite soup for me is Hlelem, it's a Tunisian bean & vegetable soup.  The word Hlelem actually comes from the hand rolled pasta which is found in this soup in from North Africa in Tunisia. I used Spanish Fideo which is easily found in the states the Latin section of most grocery stores. I did make a few changes to this recipe but found it to be a healthy & comforting soup. We've all had long stretches of cold days this winter & warm soup is a good go-to for me. I've dreamed of hoping a plane for a warmer destination more than once.  I might be dreaming of Africa or the South Pacific on those days but I will still put a south of the border spin on a soup like this by kicking the spices up a notch.  I have utilized this cookbook many times in the last few months.  "Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker" cookbook.  by Beth Hensperger. I can recommend many of the recipes & always am looking for ways to shorten time in the kitchen on a long work day. 
Hlelem
1-15.5 oz can garbanzo beans, undrained
1-15.5 oz can butter beans, undrained
1/2 cup chopped celery leaves + 1 rib chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
1/3 cup tomato paste
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup fideo or crushed angel hair pasta
1 bunch green swiss chard leaves & stems, leaves shredded & stems chopped
1 to 2 tbsp Harissa
2 tbsp hot sauce (optional)
salt & pepper to taste
lime wedges for serving.


Place garbanzos & butter beans with their liquid, celery leaves, parsley, tomato paste & broth in slow cooker, stir to combine. Cover & turn the setting to low. 


In a small skillet heat the olive oil over med heat.  Add the onion, celery & cook, stirring a few times until softened about 5 min. Add to the cooker, cover & cook on low for 4-5 hours. 


Stir in pasta, then pack in swiss chard; it will cook down. Cover & cook until the pasta 7 chard stems are tender to the bite, 30 minutes to 1 hour longer on low or 10 to 15 min. on high. Stir in Harissa & season with salt & pepper.  Serve hot with lime wedges.  I enjoy the flavor of lime over the traditional lemon for the flavor. 


Beth Hensperger has a recipe for Harissa however I found it in a can recently after a friend of mine showed me where to find this traditional North African ingredient in a local Halal meat shop.  She actually took some to my daughter for a house warming gift.  It is a very spicy version of a tomato paste. 



**While I loved this my husband did feel his was in dire need of "meat". Obviously this defeats the purpose of a "Meatless Monday" meal but to each his own.  It was actually quite tasty with some shredded roast & in my opinion would be good with lamb in it as well.

A Berry Good Sauce for the Holidays

Cranberries on a slow simmer.

Cranberries as most folks know them.

This sauce makes a nice holiday gift too

 As Thanksgiving approaches I am trying to take the proactive approach & make as many things ahead as I can so I am not in a rush on the day of our big feast. No holiday meal would be complete without homemade Cranberry Sauce. I've had an infatuation with cranberries since I was a kid.  We lived in Alaska for several years & we used to enjoy picking wild berries as a family. Alaska has endless varieties of berries & actually more than one variety of cranberry.  My mother used to make jams, jellies, syrups & baked goods with the fruit.  The wild cranberry is much smaller than the variety we often see in the store which are commercially grown for sauces & juice. Whichever you are most familiar with this sauce is both simple & perfect for holiday entertainment. 





Lemony Cranberry Sauce
1 (12- ounce) bag cranberries, fresh
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 Lemon juiced & seeds removed then dice pulp
1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
1/4 cup of Paula's Texas Lemon Liqueur*
1/8 teaspoon, fresh grated nutmeg
1 whole cinnamon stick**

Rinse cranberries, place in large saucepan along with water, sugar, lemon juice, lemon pulp, lemon zest. Bring berry mixture to a low boil, once the berries start to burst then reduce heat to slow simmer.  Add Lemon Liqueur, nutmeg & whole cinnamon stick.  Simmer about 20 minutes, stirring frequently.  Once the mixture has a syrup like texture & all the berries are soft then remove from heat & cool to room temperature.  I like to make this 1 week before holiday meal.  It keeps for 2 to 3 weeks & tastes better a few days after it sits chilled.  Leftover sauce freezes well. *Paula's Texas Lemon Liqueur also has an orange liqueur which is good for this recipe.  **The cinnamon stick can be left in till served as it imparts a slight spicy flavor.

Tuesday Tacos, true Gulf Coast Flavor!

I see fish tacos as a very Baja Mexico creation, in recent years I have noticed them appearing many menus across Texas as well.  The fish can be grilled, fried or seared but however it is prepared they are almost always enjoyable.  I used to rate a good Tex-Mex restaurant on the enchiladas & salsa alone, now I guess the establishment had better be on the game with the Fish Tacos too! The fish must be super fresh.  We are fortunate to have fresh Gulf seafood nearly at our fingertips here in Texas.  (You can substitute any fresh fish of choice.) I added one of my favorite fruits to these tacos.  We are just now finding fabulous pomegranates here in the markets.  I even have some small pom varieties in my garden however they are not ready yet to eat. This week on Tuesday we had Fish Tacos with a twist of course. The combination of Pomegranate & Jalapeno give these Fish Tacos a real star rating in the Texas to Mexico household.  Like most tacos they are pretty fuss free & easy to prepare. They make a perfect dinner for a night of things that go bump in the night & trick or treating!  Enjoy my friends & buen provecho!

Gulf Coast Fish Tacos
1 1/2 lb *Gulf Sea Bass, *any fish of your choice is great
1 Pkg Louisiana Fish Fry
2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup Guacamole
1 cup chopped cabbage, either red or green
1 Jalapeno pepper, seeded & diced
1 Pomegranate, Seeded
Fish Taco Sour Cream dressing
1 cup sour cream
1/ 4cup milk
2 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp oregano or cilantro, chopped fine either dry or fresh
Pepper & Salt to taste

Fry Fish dipped in to the Louisiana Fish Fry,  in 1 1/2 inches of oil, I used favorite cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Cook time for fish while frying: 4-5 minutes, turning once during the frying process. The fish should have a crisp texture on the outside & have a nice golden color.  The fish should easily flake once it is cooked. (do not over cook) Drain the fish on paper towels, keep warm in oven preheated at 225*.  Heat corn tortillas thoroughly, on comal or griddle.

Assemble the Fish tacos placing a layer of guacamole on the bottom of the tortilla, add few tablespoons of cabbage, piece of fish, top with Sour Cream Sauce (recipe above) then sprinkle liberally with the pomegranate seeds.  I served this with Spanish Rice & also garnished that with the red pomegranate seeds.

 Louisiana Fish Fry is our favorite fish fry.  When I attended college in Louisiana these products earned my eternal favor!  What goes better with Gulf Seafood?  If there is a product out there I haven't found it yet but still open to try new things! Let me know what your favorite Fish Fry is?