Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Avocado Recipes



These Look Like Best Bets:

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/avocado-cream
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/avocado-tomatillo-salsa-verde
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/chile-and-olive-oil-fried-egg-with-avocado-and-sprouts
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/thai-steak-and-noodle-salad
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/fully-loaded-black-bean-nachos-red-green-salsas
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/chicken-under-a-brick-recipe-bon-appetit
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/poached-salmon-with-avocado-sauce
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/avocado-and-crab-soup
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/taqueria-guacamole

Guac!

Super Simple Recipe:

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/taqueria-guacamole

Ingredients

SERVINGS: MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS
  • 2 large ripe avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • Kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Mash avocado, lime juice, and a pinch of salt in a mortar and pestle or a medium bowl with a fork until thick and smooth. Mix in 1/4 cup water 1 tablespoonful at a time until mixture is creamy and smooth. Stir in cilantro. Season with salt.

A Bit More Complex, but pretty simple:

http://www.bonappetit.com/columns/cooking-without-recipes/article/authentic-guacamole

tl;dr;
Smash three ripe Hass avocados with a fork until very coarsely mashed. 
Stir in: 
  • 1 finely grated garlic clove
  • At least 1 finely chopped serrano pepper (with seeds if you want some extra heat)
  • A quarter of a white onion, finely chopped
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime juice

Season very liberally with about a teaspoon of kosher salt.

The nitty-gritty:

A good guac has A LOT of aggressively-flavored ingredients, and tons of salt. You need both to cut through the fatty avocado flavor, which coats your tongue and can mute any other flavors.
The other thing many people don’t realize is guac’s flavor changes as it sits. Let’s say you stir a whole serrano pepper into your mixture. You taste it and it doesn’t seem that spicy, so you add another chile; it seems fine. Then 15 minutes later, it’s blazing hot. That’s because it takes a while for the flavors to leech into the avocado. So if you ever find yourself wondering if your guac is spicy (or salty, or lime-y) enough, wait a few minutes before you add more so that you don’t accidentally serve your guests a red-hot guac. Here’s what I do:
Smash three ripe Hass avocados with a potato masher, fork, or molcajéte(a Mexican mortar and pestle) until very coarsely mashed. It’s okay if there are still some hunks of avocado—it will continue to break down as you mix in the other the ingredients. Stir in 1 finely grated garlic clove, at least 1 finely chopped serrano pepper (with seeds if you want some extra heat), a quarter of a white onion, finely chopped, and 1 to 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime juice. Season very liberally with about a teaspoon of kosher salt.
A word on cilantro: While it’s traditional to add it to guac, there are times I won’t use it. If I’m serving it as an appetizer with corn chips or fried corn tortillas, I’ll definitely throw some cilantro in there. If I’m putting out guac as a condiment for a taco, I’ll generally put out some cilantro on the side, so guests can build their tacos to their own tastes.

Sunday, February 7, 2016

Crock Pot Bean Soup

This recipe is based on the Hurst 15 Bean Soup Crock Pot or Slow Cooker Recipe

Soak 5 cups of mixed dried beans overnight
Rinse them several times

Add to crock pot in this order:

Rinsed beans
6 carrots diced
6 celery stalks diced
1 onion diced
2 Tbs Garlic from jar
2 Tbs Chili Powder
2 Knorr Vegetable Bouillon Cubes mixed in 1 or 2 cups of water
Enough water to cover the beans and vegetables and leave about 1 inch of headroom

Set crockpot to High and wait 5+ hours or Auto-shift (6+) or Slow (8+).  All times are estimated, of course.

When the largest beans are done, add half the ingredients to a very large pot.

Split the following evenly between each half of the soup:

2 cans Diced Tomatoes
1 can Tomato Sauce
Juice of 2-3 Lemons

Freeze and enjoy for many days.

Friday, February 5, 2016