Tacos “Americano”

I spend my workdays helping children communicate. That looks different depending on each kid’s needs: I may teach them how make an “s” sound (we call that the snake sound); I may teach them how to communicate nonverbally, through sign language, pictures, or speech generating devices; we focus on grammar, on the fact that “who” refers to a person, and “where” to a place.”  Basically, I teach kids things that most people don’t have to be taught; communication is basic human right, but some people have to fight for it.  To me, it is a serious job, and I have to find the bright spots, and the fun wherever I can. 

Naturally, with a focus on communication, I want to communicate with all my tikes about food.  In all seriousness, I ask at least half of my kids about food every day.  “What did you have for lunch?”  “What’s your favorite food?”  “I love mac and cheese, too.”  These things come out of my mouth on a daily basis, often directed towards 3 year olds.  To my delight, some of my kids get into it; others look at me like I’m crazy.  I tend to spend a good portion of time at the Boulder Public Library, searching for picture books to use in therapy.  The truth is: I’m not a very creative therapist, and I rely heavily on books as a crutch.  So, when I stumbled upon a book called “Dragons Love Tacos,” which happens to be a New York Times Best Seller, my heart skipped a beat.  Finally, a quasi-appropriate way to discuss food with my kids!  What kid doesn’t love tacos, and what kid doesn’t love dragons?  The book has been a huge success with every kid I have introduced it to, and I have been the most fun, engaging speech therapist I could possibly be when reading and discussing it with my clients because I am having just as much fun as they are. 

The first day I had it, I read it to four different kids; and all I have been able to think since is… I want tacos.  So I made tacos.  It was the only logical conclusion.   I wanted them to be traditional, American, Tex-Mex tacos.  The ones my mom would never make for us (largely because my oldest brother and my dad wouldn’t touch a taco with a 10 foot pole).  They needed to be completely inauthentic of true taco identity because those were the tacos the dragons ate in the book.  While I wanted the flavor to be traditional in an über-American way, I wanted the ingredients to be high quality.  So, I made my very own kitchen sink spice mixture, that was vaguely familiar of Old El Pasa Taco Seasoning, but with less preservatives and more flavor.  I stuffed it into hard taco shells, with shredded Colby-jack, salsa, shredded lettuce, and sour cream.  I fought all my will power in an attempt to photograph them, and then quickly devoured them, as taco juice dripped down my forearms. 

Tacos “Americano”

Taco Filling:

1 pound 90% lean ground beef

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1-2 teaspoons chile powder

1-2 teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon hot chile flakes

Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon Lawry’s seasoned salt, or to taste

1/2 cup chicken stock

2 teaspoons Tabasco Chipotle Hot Sauce

2 teaspoons honey

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

Taco Toppings (take your pick):

-       Shredded mild cheese, such as Colby Jack

-       Salsa

-       Chopped tomato

-       Shredded Lettuce

-       Sour cream

-       Taco shells

-       In a medium skillet, preheat oil over medium heat.  When hot, add ground beef, breaking it up with a spatula.

-       When broken up, add tomato paste, and all other ingredients (except broth, hot sauce, vinegar, and honey).  Sauté, stirring to evenly distribute spices.

-       Add broth and hot sauce.  Cook through, stirring frequently.  Taste for seasoning, and add more salt, if needed.

-       When meat is cooked through, turn off heat and add vinegar and honey.

-       Assemble tacos and enjoy.

Stuffed Peppers

Unlike the typical 9 to 5 job, I work 4-10 hour days.  The days are undeniably long, but a weekly 3-day weekend more than makes up for my intense workweek.  It’s like a weekly mini-vacation.  My favorite part of my three-day weekend is Sunday.  Not working on Mondays, Sunday has been transformed from a somber, stressful affair, focused on preparing for the workweek, into a relaxing and delightful day.  I spend most of my Sunday evenings hunkered down at a good friend’s house in Denver, sipping vodka, eating antipasto, and verbally dissecting the world at large.  Our Sunday meal is typically low maintenance; however, this Sunday, my friend expressed a hankering for stuffed peppers, which I have never made before, and I quickly accepted the challenge, and the change of pace.

When I went to the store, red bell peppers just happened to be on sale, and the whole scenario seemed meant to be.  I went with an Italian theme for the peppers.  I didn’t grow up eating them, so I wasn’t exactly sure what the traditional flavor profile would be, so I chose the direction I know and love best: Italian.  I used ground beef, sausage, rice, tomatoes, basil, onions, garlic, pesto, and, of course, cheese.  I chose a combination of ground beef and sausage because I felt that sausage exclusively would be too fatty and rich; a lot of pasta sauces have both in them, so why not my stuffed peppers?  It turned out lovely, but I will warn you to make sure your stuffing is well seasoned.  The stuffing seasons the actual pepper, in addition to the filling, so over-seasoning a tad is wise.   I used diced tomatoes and a can of sauce for tomato products, but a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste added to the beef and onions would work well; despite the double hit of tomato, a little more would have brought warmly welcomed depth of flavor.  Cheese, glorious cheese, was naturally a pivotal ingredient, and it renders the pepper filling a complete dish in and of itself (we gleefully ate spoonfuls from the pan).  The peppers are stuffed, put in a baking dish with a touch of chicken broth (white wine would also be nice), and sealed with foil before baking.  When they are just about done, they are blanketed in cheese, and broiled.  I chose a combination of mozzarella and asiago, but a sticking solely with a young asiago would be lip-smacking good.  Pick your poison.   

Stuffed Peppers

1/2 lb. ground sirloin

1/2 lb. mild Italian sausage

1 cup rice

2 1/2 cups chicken stock, divided

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups shredded cheese (such as mozzarella, asiago, parmesan, or a combination)

1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes

6-ounce can of tomato sauce

1/2 cup good quality pesto

1/4 cup basil chiffonade

4-6 bell peppers

Salt, pepper, red chile flakes, oregano

-       Preheat oven to 375 degrees

-       Prepare rice by adding it to 2 cups of simmering chicken stock.  Cover and simmer for 15-20, lifting lid as little as possible.  Set aside when finished.

-       Prepare peppers by cutting of the top, and removing seeds and large ribs.  Set aside in a 9x13 inch baking dish.

-       Preheat a large skillet over medium heat with oil.  Add ground beef and sausage, breaking up chunks with a wooden spoon or spatula.

-       When meat is broken up and beginning to brown, drain excess fat.  Then add onion and minced garlic.  Season with salt, pepper, oregano, and red chile flakes (about 1/2 teaspoon of each, maybe more salt, and little less hot pepper flakes).  Cook until onion and meat is cooked through, stirring occasionally.

-       Add rice, diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce (if you want it more tomato-y in flavor, add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste with the onions).  Stir to combine, taste, and re-season. 

-       Turn off heat and add basil, pesto, and 1/2 the cheese.

-       Fill each of the peppers until heaping with rice and tomato mixture.  This recipe makes enough for about 6 medium-sized peppers, and the rice mixture also is very tasty on its own.

-       Place filled peppers, standing up, in the baking dish, and add remaining chicken broth (or better yet, white wine).  Cover the dish with aluminum foil.

-       Bake for 30-35 minutes.  Remove peppers from the oven, and turn on the broiler.  Put remaining cheese on each pepper, then place under the broiler until browned and bubbling.

Kale, White Bean, and Kielbasa Soup

A magical time of year is descending upon us.  From the depths of December, we have emerged, earning about a scant minute of additional light each day.  Now that we have reached March, those tiny moments have accumulated into a meaningful amount, and regardless of the temperature, we can literally see and feel the light at the end of winter’s tunnel.  As if that weren’t enough, the added bonus of Day Light Saving’s Time is around the corner.  No one is happier about these lighter days than me, but it also makes me grateful for the last few cold days that allow me to relish soups, stews, roasted chicken, and other hearty dishes that become insufferable during the hot, bright summer months.  I can handle bring; hot is a different story.  I will cling to every last minute that affords me hearty winter cooking, knowing that the dog days of summer will allow for more than enough grilling, salads, and chilled pasta salads.

And thus, kale/white bean/kielbasa soup is my latest brainchild, born of my ironic depression over losing the indulgent, lazy coziness of winter.  I will indulge until it’s too hot to simmer soup on the stove, and too hot to turn on the oven.  I’m not sure how this idea in particular got planted in my brain, but I had something very specific in mind, regarding this soup concept.  I make a lot of kale soups, but they are usually tomatoey, and I knew this one should not be.  I ideally wanted it to be pure as the driven-white-bean-snow, then studded with kale and kielbasa.  I did not want it broth-y, but rather a creamy-beany texture.  This blending was an automatic requirement, which means I get to use my immersion blender, and my immersion blender makes me grin from ear to ear.  I also knew I did not want the kale or the sausage blended. 

Kielbasa was another absolute certainty in my one track mind: smoky, garlicky half moons percolating my soup.  Sadly, I love Johnsonville kielbasa (it is like a slightly more complex hot dog. YUM.), yet I knew that I would be disappointed if I didn’t go for something less processed.  I am becoming increasingly paranoid about the quality of ingredients that I use, and a growing percentage of my pantry and refrigerator are organic, and purchased at Whole Foods.  Alas, there was only one thing to do… purchase the kielbasa at Whole Foods.  The brand is called Wellshire; it is (allegedly) humanely raised; I recognized all 6 ingredients listed on the package as actual, recognized foods.  Good enough for me.

I digress.  The soup consists of celery, carrots, onion, and potatoes simmered in a rosemary-scented broth, with a chunk of parmesan cheese rind bobbing about, giving it a lovely, umami flavor.  (The base flavor is the smoky pork fat rendered from the kielbasa, which was set aside after it was browned).  When the aforementioned vegetables were simmered into tender submission, I then added 2 cans of great northern beans, and blended it up to a quasi-chunky consistency.  The potato added body in conjunction with the beans, but the soup probably would have been much prettier without the carrot.  Oh, well.  I then returned the kielbasa to its natural environment (the soup pot where it initially became browned and carmalized), and added ribbons of curly, green kale, and continued to simmer it until all was tender and lovely.  A delicious soup, but admittedly better the next day with a shower of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, as is the nature of all good soups.  Enjoy.

Kale, White Bean, and Kielbasa Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil

3/4 pound kielbasa, sliced in half moons

2 cans great northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 bunch kale, stems removed, leaves sliced into half inch ribbons

1 onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 carrot, diced

1 medium potato, peeled and diced

2 teaspoons minced rosemary

1/2 cup white wine

7-8 cups chicken stock

1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese rind

-       Over medium heat, preheat oil in a heavy-bottomed soup pot.

-       Add the kielbasa, and sauté until browned

-       Remove kielbasa, drain, and set aside.  Drain fat from the soup pot, leaving 2 tablespoons in the pan

-       Add onions, carrots, and celery.  Sauté for 10 minutes, seasoning with salt, pepper, and hot pepper flakes.

-       Add garlic, rosemary, and potato.  Sauté for 1-2 minutes.

-       Add white wine, and let reduce by half.

-       Add chicken stock and Parmesan cheese rind, and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 15-20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

-       Add white beans, and simmer for 5 minutes to heat through.

-       Set aside cheese rind, and using an immersion blender, blend the soup, leaving some chunks, but breaking up some of the beans.  Add cheese rind back into soup.

-       And the kale and kielbasa, and cook until kale is tender, about 5 minutes.

-       Serve and garnish with Parmesan, if desired.

Chopped Salad

Sometimes, I steal recipes.  This can happen in a completely innocent way.  For example, I may be perusing a cookbook or cooking magazine in a bookstore, and I stumble upon an enticing photograph or recipe.  The idea may simply stick with me, and lead to my own version of the aforementioned image, visual or verbal.  My previous post is prime example of this borrowed creativity.  I saw an idea that I liked, and put my own spin on it.  Other times, it is a little more malicious.  I might, say, take a picture of a photograph, or quickly type up a note on my phone, documenting a simplified version of a printed recipe.  Admittedly, this is sort of awful of me. 

This past weekend, I engaged in the latter type of activity.  I saw a recipe for the loveliest chopped salad, with two types of cabbage, fennel, olives, chicken, and an oregano vinaigrette.  Hunkered down on the floor of Barnes and Noble, tucked in an unassuming aisle, I jotted down a list of ingredients on my phone, and a few notes on the vinaigrette, while occasionally taking a nervous glance over my shoulder.  “I will make it my own,” I told myself, trying to rationalize my inappropriate behavior.  I had spent over an hour looking at the cookbook from which I stole the recipe.  There were quite a few additional recipes that caught my eye, but I only stole one.  Later that evening, I found myself wishing my notes on the vinaigrette were more thorough, but I figured that served me right, and I was not even feeling the proper kind of remorse, given the crime. 

The next day, I went back to Barnes and Noble on an unrelated errand.  As I was getting ready to leave my apartment, I suddenly realized I would get another opportunity to take a look at the now fuzzy vinaigrette assembly; I found myself involuntarily picking up the pace in excitement over spending a little more time with the cookbook.  I took care of my first task; I immediately sidled up to the cookbook section, and then blew another hour sitting cross-legged on the floor, with the cookbook nestled in my lap.  I suddenly heard a voice in my head, saying “BUY THE COOKBOOK.”  It was as if I became Pluto in an old Disney cartoon, and a mini-me angel tapped me on the shoulder, guiding me towards the right thing.  And I am now engaging in a bold-faced confession, hoping that it will entitle me to blog about the recipe with a (sort of) clean conscience.

Seriously though, in spite of my questionable moral compass, this chopped salad is very tasty.  I am not a big salad eater; they tend to be too crunchy and not rich or savory enough.  With that being said, I’ve got to hand it to Jeanne Kelley, author of SaladFor Dinner because her book truly lives up to its title.  She takes a genre of food known for leaving diners wanting more, and renders it worthy of calling it a satisfying dinner.  Her recipes, categorized by their protein, are all well-rounded, full flavored, and filling meals.  Granted I have only made this Chopped Salad, but I can tell that there are quite a few other recipes that will live up to its prowess.

Now about this Chopped Salad… it’s utterly divine.  Crunchy green and red cabbage, sweet fennel, and red onion are offset by the heartiness of plenty of shredded chicken breast, all kissed with a bright Oregano Vinaigrette.  This strong foundation is then highlighted by a wide array of salty, savory morsels, that elevate it from a glorified slaw into a balanced and thoughtful main dish.  Briny green olives and peppery parley leaves run throughout the salad.  And as if that weren’t enough, the salad is then garnished with feta and prosciutto (I know, it makes me swoon, too). 

When I initially read the recipe, I thought, “Why green olives?  Why not Kalamata?”  Shopping for the meal, I even paused at the olive bar, eyes darting between the bins of green Mt. Athos olives and Kalamata, questioning what I felt to be an otherwise brilliant recipe.  I made a last minute swerve to the left, and counted out my 10 green olives, upped from Kelley’s six.  I’m willing to defend my choice on this particular judgment call, but I have to say that the Kalamatas would have been a grave mistake.  The color and the firm texture alone make green olives worth their salt in this context, and I think the brinier, milder flavor is the perfect compliment.  As for the prosciutto and feta, I’m pretty sure those two ingredients speak for themselves, and  they truly yield a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. 

Another strong selling point for the delectable Chopped Salad is that is one of the few in the history of salads that actually holds up as a decent leftover, and that is because it made with cabbage instead of lettuce or baby greens.  Tossed in dressing, it retained its immaculate crunch over a couple of days, only deepening in flavor.  I kept the prosciutto and feta separate (they were a garnish, after all).  Please note, I did not add any salt to this recipe, besides in the preparation of the dressing and the chicken.  The smorgasbord of salty flavors is adequate without actually salting the dish.  My favorite salty element?  The prosciutto, no question.  The sweet, meaty flavor and toothsome texture definitely add a certain “je ne sais quoi,” and the color is the icing on the cake.  The recipe written below is true to how I made it, including a few minor tweaks that veered slightly from the original text; however, I stuck to Kelley’s overall vision because she gave me no reason not to. 

Chopped Salad (slightly adapted from Jean Kelley’s Salad forDinner):

Serves 4

3-4 cups very thinly sliced green cabbage

2-3 cups very thinly sliced red cabbage

12 ounces shredded cooked chicken breast (cooked in the same way at the previous post)

1 fennel bulb, trimmed and very thinly sliced (about 1 cup)

1/4 cup red onion, very thinly sliced, tossed with a few tablespoons of fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves

10 good quality green olives, pitted and chopped

3 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, torn into pieces

4 ounces feta, crumbled

Oregano Vinaigrette

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 garlic clove, lightly smashed

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Whisk all ingredients for vinaigrette together except oil and garlic.  Gradually whisk in oil.  Add garlic clove, and allow dressing to sit for 30 minutes.  Allow garlic clove to continue sitting in dressing, but don't eat it.

In a large bowl, combine both cabbages, fennel, onion, parsley, olives, and chicken.  Add enough Oregano Vinaigrette to lightly coat, and toss well.  

Divide salad on dinner plates and garnish with prosciutto and feta, and an additional drizzle of vinaigrette and freshly ground black pepper.

Kale and Chicken Enchilada Lasagna

Hey, everyone, I wrote a blog post!  I cannot explain my absence any better than my sudden return, nor can I promise that I will start posting again regularly.  I will, however, say that I am interested again.  I was tired of it for a long time.  Perhaps, that was due to a stale creative process, or my own fabricated pressures to post regularly.  Lately, I am enjoying cooking, making some tasty food, and I would like document it more often, even if it is solely for my own reference when I cannot come up with something enticing to cook.  We all have to eat, right?  It’s true, and for some of us, it’s more than others (namely, my glutinous self). 

I was talking to my cousin on the phone last Monday afternoon, while perusing cookbooks in local cooking store, and I found a ridiculously trendy kale cookbook.  Kale is so outrageously trendy; being the contrarian that I am, I would love to declare that I despise it, but I can make no so such statement.  It is such a fantastic vegetable.  It can pleasantly beef up the vegetable quotient of nearly any dish.  Unlike spinach, for example, it is difficult to overcook, and it doesn’t have that vicious, gum-gripping, tannic quality.  It can be braised, roasted, sautéed, or it can stud your favorite soup, and it simply tastes delicious.  My taste buds tend to veer more towards heavy cream rather than vegetables, so you know if I’m singing the praises of its favor profile, it must be good. 

Anyway, while idly thumbing cookbook pages, I found a recipe for kale and chicken enchiladas.  To be clear, I am using the term “enchiladas” loosely; these are by no means authentic.  In fact, they are not even authentic to the original recipe; not only did I veer wildly off course when I made them initially, but I have now reworked several renditions of my initial swerve from the published recipe.  It now resembles a sort of pseudo-Mexican lasagna, with corn tortillas acting as pasta, and store-bought green chile instead of red sauce.  It is delicious and satisfying, and possibly even healthy.  

There is, of course, cheese within the depths of this dish.  (Sidenote: I recently went on a random and ill-advised bout of cheeseless-ness. In other words, I was completely dairy-free for about 3 weeks.  I am relieved to say that I felt terrible, and I was able to bring cheese back into my diet, with a feeling of belonging and destiny. Needless to say, my love affair with cheese is back on track, if in a slightly more moderate format.)  The cheese in this meal is pivotal, but overall I think it is fairly healthy.  I used a combination of smoked Gouda, and a cheddar-gruyere conglomerate I found at Trader Joe’s.  Smoked Gouda doesn’t melt well, but I think the flavor is worth it.  High-quality white cheddar would be more than adequate as a substitute for both cheeses (this is what I used in my first version). 

In its evolved stated (compared to the original recipe), this layered enchilada masterpiece revolves around a mixture of kale, onion, tomatoes, and chicken breast.  This is layered with tortillas and cheese.  Instead of enchilada sauce, I decided to make it a little more interesting (but just as easy) by employing some medium heat 505 Green Chile in its place.  In case you aren’t familiar with this product, it is fabulous.  It is spicy, hearty, vegetarian, and nowhere near the calorie-laden, artery-clogging mess that you might think.  In fact, the entire 16 oz. jar has less than 100 calories.  Initially, I made this as rolled enchiladas, but corn tortillas crack so easily that I reformatted it to something layered.  Why do my corn tortillas crack?  Are they simply not fresh? Am I doing something wrong?  Is it karmic retribution?  I’m not sure, but I do know they are so flavorful that changing the presentation of the dish seemed the best solution, as opposed to subbing them out for their mild-mannered cousin, the flour tortilla.  Every time I open a bag of corn tortillas, the aroma overwhelms me.  When I think of super flavorful foods, fresh corn does not immediately spring to mind; however, this bland starch transforms into a different species when plied into a tortilla.  This dinner was delightful, and as all dishes must be in the psycho kitchen, it yielded abundant and delicious leftovers. 

Kale and Chicken Enchilada Bake

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Olive oil

Garlic salt

Seasoning salt

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon oregano

1 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 serrano pepper, ribs and seeds removed, minced

1-14 oz. can diced tomatoes

1 bunch of kale, ribs removed and chopped

1/2 cup chicken stock

1 jar medium heat 505 Green Chile

3/4 cup smoked Gouda

3/4 cup white cheddar or cheddar-gruyere mix

9 small corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Lightly coat chicken breasts in olive oil and season with seasoning salt, garlic salt, and pepper.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, then set aside.  Thinly slice when cooled.  Reduce heat to 350.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Saute onion, chile pepper, and garlic, seasoned with salt and pepper, for 10-15 minutes until translucent and soft.

Add chopped kale, 1/2 cup chicken stock, and tomatoes with juice.  Season with salt, pepper, and oregano.  Stir until kale is wilted slightly, then add chicken.  Turn off heat and stir to combine.

In a greased 9x13 pan, spread out 1/2-3/4 cup green chile.  Then top with 3 small corn tortillas, tearing into smaller pieces to create one layer.  Then top with half of the kale mixture, and half of the cheese.  Top with 3 more tortillas, and more green chile.  Add remaining kale mixture, and 3 more tortillas.  Top with additional green chile and cheese. 

Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350, or until hot and bubbly.  Let rest for 15 minutes before serving.