tacos al past or tacos al present

Tacos al pastor are my number one favorite thing to order in Mexican restaurants. I've been meaning to learn how to make them at home for a while now, but when I originally looked up the recipe there was all this talk about shawarma and cooking the meat on a spit with intermittent layers of pineapple.  I'm not ready to invest in my own spit quite yet.  I was able to find a couple of other recipes that did not require such a purchase, and I blended the two recipes to make this creation.  It consists of marinating a fatty piece of pork (shoulder or butt, loin would probably work too) and then slow cooking it at low heat on the stove top or  in a crock pot.

The meat was a little spicy, but not too spicy, and had lots of different delicious flavors that combined to make one delicious flavor spread amongst many different tacos.  top each little taco with your fixings of choice: cilantro, lime, onions and even jalapenos if you have them.

and happy cinco de mayo everybody!

TACOS AL PASTOR
Marinade:
1 large white onion, chopped coarsely
1/2 can pineapple chunks and all juice from the can
1/2 cup orange juice
1 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup guajillo chile powder
8 garlic cloves, halved
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 small chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
2 teaspoons adobo sauce from the chiles

Meat:
1 2-3 pound pork shoulder, cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks.

For serving:
Fresh cilantro
lime wedges
chopped white onion
chopped fresh jalapenos

Blend all marinade ingredients in a food processor or blender.  Pour into a bowl with the meat, stir to cover the meat and marinate for two hours or overnight.  After the meat has marinated, place meat and marinade into a large pot on medium-low heat, add remaining pineapple chunks and cover.  Cook for about 2.5 hours or until meat is tender.

Serve on warmed corn tortillas with a sprinkling of cilantro, lime, onion and jalapenos.

doughnuts are really more like dough nuggets

I tried to surprise Dan with these on Saturday morning, when he was coming over to help me with some car troubles. I think I was more surprised than him, surprised foremost at how delicious the donut batter tasted before it was fried and surprised secondly at how I could not, for the life of me, get these to work.  But hey, you live and you learn. I have since learned that the "deep" in "deep fry" is not to be taken lightly. The oil has to be deep enough to cover the dough, so that the dough floats rather than rests on the bottom of the pan. If it rests on the bottom of the pan, as it did when I made this batch, the bottom of the donut will burn before the inside batter is able to cook. Causing many rounds of burned dough filled with liquid batter, which you can look at in confusion before you throw them away, because they do not taste good. promise. I'm going to try to make these again, and hopefully they'll work better next time. I reread through Joe Pastry's notes (which is where Dan found the recipe), and he really emphasizes the temperature of both the oil and the batter. Temperature is essential to your success. I did not pick up on that during the first attempt, but have since realized it's a pretty big deal.

butter, sour cream and eggs, warming up to room temperature.

the final masterpieces.  

Vanilla Cake "Drop" Doughnuts
8 ounces all-purpose flour sifted
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3.5 ounces (1/2 cup) sugar
1 once ( 2 tablespoons) soft butter
2 ounces (1) egg
1 ounce sour cream
1 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3.5 ounces (1/4 cup) milk


Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature to begin (this is VERY important). Have a fry pan or Dutch ready with about two inches of oil in it(canola oil works the best).


Combine all the dry ingredients (including the sugar) in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Stir the eggs, milk, sour cream and vanilla together in a separate bowl. Turn mixer on low to blend all the dry ingredients together. Add the butter and turn the mixer up to medium-low. When the butter has been fully incorporated add the wet ingredients in a steady stream with the mixer running. Let the mixer run for 30 seconds and scrape the bowl down. Let the mixer run for another 30 seconds. The batter should be smooth, thick and spoonable. Let it rest for ten minutes, while you bring your oil up to temperature: 380 degrees Fahrenheit. Fry tablespoon-sized dollops in oil for 45 seconds per side. Drain on paper towels. Dust with sugar or dip in icing and serve warm.


Doughnut Glaze 
Mix these ingredients together:
8 ounces powdered sugar
2 tablespoon plus two teaspoons water or milk
a few drop of vanilla extract


Dip each doughnut in the glaze and then sprinkle with fun sprinkles.

taste the rainbow

this rainbow layer cake is the coolest thing ever. whoever has a birthday next, you're getting this. you can find the recipe and assembly instructions here.

cheery cherry almond scones

For last month's book club we went the path of a more serious read, Set This House in Order, about two people with multiple personalities who become friends.  The rather grim nature of the book was offset by lively company and a delicious breakfast at 34th St. Bistro in Fremont.  At breakfast they served the table a basket of cherry almond scones, that we ate while we waited for the main dishes to arrive.  They were so good, that we were still thinking of them a few weeks later and decided to make a batch.

CHERRY & ALMOND SCONES

2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen
• 1/2 cup dried cherries
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tsp. almond extract
• 
  
• Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix flour, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Grate butter into flour mixture on the large holes of a box grater; use your fingers to work in butter (mixture should resemble coarse meal), then stir in cherries.
• 
  
• In a small bowl, whisk sour cream and egg until smooth. Add in almond extract and stir until incorporated. Using a fork, stir sour cream mixture into flour mixture until large dough clumps form. Use your hands to press the dough against the bowl into a ball. (The dough will be sticky in places, and there may not seem to be enough liquid at first, but as you press, the dough will come together.)
• 
  
• Place on a lightly floured surface and pat into a 7- to 8-inch circle about 3/4-inch thick. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tsp. of sugar. Use a sharp knife to cut into 8 triangles; place on a cookie sheet (preferably lined with parchment paper), about 1 inch apart. Bake until golden, about 15 to 17 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and serve warm or at room temperature.

it's a street, it's a way to open stuff...

Sesame. It's also a nutty-flavored seed, an oil and apparently a plant with yellow blossoms and seed pods.  Dan and I made this sesame chicken for dinner earlier in the week, to go with the snappy fried rice.  It was pretty quick and introduced me to a new way of battering chicken. Since the batter contained cornstarch, baking powder and baking soda, it puffed up during frying and became light and airy.

Here's the recipe:

SWEET & SAVORY SESAME CHICKEN
For the chicken marinade/batter:
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. dry sherry
2 tbsp.  water
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast meat, cubed

For the sauce:
1 cup chicken broth
2 tbsp. rice vinegar
3 tbsp. dark soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. chile paste
5 cloves of garlic, minced
3-6 hot pepper pods
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup water

3 green onions, sliced for garnish
2 tsp. sesame seeds

In a medium bowl combine sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, chile paste and chicken broth.  Set aside.  In another bowl combine the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and baking powder and stir.  Pour in soy sauce, sherry, 2 tbsp. water and vegetable oil and stir until smooth.  Stir in chicken pieces until coated and marinate in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes.

Meanwhile, with a splash of oil saute the pepper pods and garlic in a separate pan.  Add in combined sauce ingredients (sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, chile paste and chicken broth), and bring to a boil.  Dissolve the 1/4 cup of cornstarch into 1/2 cup of water and add to the mixture.  Simmer and stir until sauce thickens and becomes clear.  Reduce heat to low.

Heat oil in a large saucepan until it reaches 375 degrees.  Drop in battered chicken pieces, a few at a time, and fry until they cook to a nice golden brown and float to the top of the oil.  About 3-4 minutes.  Drain on a paper towel lined plate.  Add chicken to the sauce mixture and stir to coat the individual pieces.  Sprinkle with
sesame seeds and green onions to serve.  Serve with fried or steamed rice.

rice 'n roll

This is a jazzy side dish to go with any Chinese meal. This rice is quick, tasty and requires pretty minimal ingredients. I made it to go along with sesame chicken, but it would nicely accompany many different dishes. 

PORK FRIED RICE

3 tablespoons canola oil

2 eggs, beaten

1 bunch scallions, roughly chopped

1/2 cup leftover pork (I used Chinese BBQ pork)

1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed (plus any leftover vegetables you have on hand)

4 cups cooked white or brown rice

4 tablespoons soy sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet or wok, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the eggs and scallions. Cook, breaking up the eggs with a spoon until they are lightly browned. Stir in the meat, vegetables, rice, and the remaining oil. Increase heat slightly and cook until the rice is crispy, about 5 minutes. In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce with 4 tablespoons of water. Pour the mixture over the rice.Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the rice has absorbed all the liquid, 3 to 5 minutes.Season with the salt and pepper and serve, with extra soy sauce on the side.

quin whaaaa??

I'm always on the look out for a tasty new salad.  It's nice to have a big batch on hand for lunches and dinners throughout the week. this particular quinoa salad is filled with herbs, veggies, lemon juice and vinegar. plus it's pretty versatile in terms of herbs and veggies that can be included, and the freshness of the lemon vinaigrette makes it perfect for spring and summer. i just learned that quinoa is a close relative of beets and spinach, part of the reason why it's so healthy.  it's also extra good for you because of its high levels of protein, amino acids, fiber, magnesium, phosphorus and iron. to top it all off, it's gluten-free. go quinoa.  

Refreshing Quinoa Salad

1 cup quinoa

2 cups water

1/2 cucumber, cubed

3 roma or on the vine tomatoes, cubed

4 green onions, chopped

2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped

1/3 cup italian parsely or cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup basil, chopped

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

4 cloves of garlic, chopped

Rinse quinoa in cold water in a fine mesh colander and let drain well. Bring water to a boil. Add quinoa and bring to a full rolling boil. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer; simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off heat and let the quinoa slowly finish for another 10 minutes. Cool in the refrigerator.

Peel and dice cucumber. Dice the tomatoes. Thinly slice green onions. Chop fresh mint,  chop cilantro or parsley and basil. In a bowl mix together lemon juice, vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic and olive oil.

When the quinoa has cooled, toss with cucumber, tomatoes, green onions, herbs and dressing.