Mexican Side Dishes: Red Rice and Guacamole

Mexican is one of my all time favorite meals and I love yummy sides to go along with them. I found this red rice recipes in a Mexican cookbook that has become a staple and the guacamole recipe was a Tyler Florence recipe that I tweaked some. Printable recipes are at the very bottom if needed.

I made some Salsa Chicken to go along with these sides in the crockpot and it's super easy.

Step 1-Put frozen chicken in your crockpot
Step 2-Dump salsa to amply cover your chicken
Step 3-Turn on low and walk away for 8-10 hours. Return to crockpot after said 8-10 hours, take chicken out, shred, add back in as much juice as needed. Done!

So easy! Great for chicken tacos, filling for burritos, quesadillas. I cooked too much salsa chicken so I just froze the leftovers (foodsaver=awesome!) and we like to use when we run out of time and need a quick dinner or when I just don't feel like cooking.

My red rice is much, much better than the crappy kind you get served at most Mexican restaurants. This guacamole recipe we've been using for almost 3 years. Once again, good homemade guacamole can't be beat and this is a good one! If you haven't ever made it except with a powdered mix you'll be hooked. We use the powdered mix (produce partners IS THE BEST powdered mix) sometimes as well, but it can't beat homemade. Please, please, please do not buy already made guacamole from the store. It really is super gross - in my humble opinion! I can't even stomach the stuff.


What sets my red rice apart from other recipes is using Ancho Chile pepper. It really isn't too spicy and adds a nice smokiness. A fresh ancho is referred to as a poblano pepper.


The Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil - can use peanut oil or lard as well
1 medium onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup uncooked rice
2 small tomatoes, preferably roma or Italian plum, chopped or 1/3 cup drained, chopped canned tomatoes
2 cups beef, chicken or vegetable stock - I always make mine with chicken stock
1 tablespoon ground ancho or New Mexican chile pepper (mild chile)*
¾ teaspoon salt

*Please find a mild chile pepper if you don't have ancho. I really think it's a good investment especially if you eat a lot of Mexican like I do. When I started looking for it a few years ago, I couldn't find it in the regular grocery store, but did find one eventually in a fancy store. Since then I found Penzey's and use theirs all the time and it is F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S. You can order it online at http://www.penzeys.com/.

Do not think you can substitute straight across chile pepper. It will be way too hot, if that's all you have, I would cut it way back.


Heat the oil over medium heat and saute the onion and garlic until softened.

*Side note. I used to think that if I didn't soften my onion enough at the beginning that it would be ok because the rest of the cooking process would soften the onion. I have found out through lots of trial and error that it usually isn't the case. The onion needs to be softened at the beginning for this rice or all you'll taste is onion and it will be overpowering. My point is, take the time to always soften your onion and you won't regret it.


Add the rice and tomatoes and sauté for another couple of minutes, stirring to coat all the grains of rice with oil.


Pour in the stock, sprinkle in the chile and salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pan, and cook the rice for 15-18 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed.


Remove the pan from the heat and let the rice steam, for 5-10 minutes.

This picture is right after taking off the lid after it was done steaming. Most if not all the liquid should be gone. If you are not serving right away then transfer to another bowl and cover with foil to keep warm.


Fluff and serve. So good!

Homemade Guacamole
6 ripe avocados
3 limes, juiced - use real limes, lime juice from a bottle doesn't cut it
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, smashed then minced
2 serrano chiles, finely chopped - optional to leave the seeds or not
1 big handful fresh cilantro, about 1/2 cup finely chopped
EVOO
S&P

This recipe yields about 4 cups. Unless we have a big crowd over we usually halve this.


Halve and pit the avocados. Scoop out the flesh into a mixing bowl. Mash the avocados, leaving them still a bit chunky.


Cut off the tips of your serranos and then halve them. The more seeds you leave in the hotter the guacamole will be. We usually leave in seeds of 1 chile, but if you don't know your heat take them all out and you can adjust next time.

Make sure you wash your hands thoroughly after handling any chiles. They have oils on them that burn your eyes or nostrils and we've had mishaps on more than 1 occasion. If you are nervous about handling them, buy some non powdered plastic gloves and throw them away after handling.


Finely dice your chiles - see how little they are? The original recipe says to cut them in rounds, but I like my ingredients to be nicely chopped so they meld together well.


Same with the red onion. See how nice and small that dice is? Then you are biting into huge chunks of onion and having nasty onion breath - just nice guacamole breath instead.


Isn't fresh cilantro the best smelling stuff ever?


Add the remaining ingredients and fold everything together. Drizzle with a little olive oil, adjust seasoning with S&P and give it 1 final mix with a fork.


Lay a piece of plastic wrap tight on the surface of the guacamole so it doesn’t brown and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

We have found that if we have any leftover and want to use the next day either sprinkle with a little lime juice and immediately cover with plastic wrap on the surface or we use our foodsaver and suck the air out. We've even used that guacamole 4 days later after cutting open our food saver pouch and it tastes and looks like we just made it. Contact with the air is what makes guacamole look and taste gross.

Another trick - just scrape off the top layer of brown if you get it and it will be nice and green underneath. I did that on Monday (we made it Saturday) with leftovers and it was still delicious!

Red Rice Printable Recipe
Guacamole Printable Recipe

Meatless Mondays: Portabello Pesto Panini and Homemade Pesto

We made up this Panini recipe probably 4 years ago? I love that it's super flexible depending on your tastes. I don't like cheese on mine, but Jordan does. I probably like more pesto than he does on his. It all comes together in this panini. If you want to try your hand at pesto I have included that in this post as well.


Ingredients:
Portabello Mushrooms
Red Pepper(s)
Pesto
Monterey Jack Cheese (if using)
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Ciabatta Rolls or Loaf

-We use 1 Portabello mushroom per panini and 1 red pepper per 2 paninis.


Get your grill heating on low. Clean your mushrooms - just brush them off with a mushroom brush or pastry brush and carefully remove the stem. DO NOT RINSE THEM! Portabello Mushrooms are super absorbent and water will ruin their texture and taste. Brush olive oil and salt & pepper on both sides of each portabello mushroom.

My husband always starts grilling the pepper first. Char on all sides on a low temperature. We have grilled at a higher temperature and ended up charring through the pepper so there was nothing really left edible to use.

Once the pepper is almost done then throw the mushrooms on the grill on medium heat. Place top side down (not the gill side). Maybe 2-3 min. per side. You don't want them charred, just cooked nicely.


Once the pepper is done throw into a sealed plastic bag for about 5 minutes. The steam will loosen the skin so it's super easy to peel off.

I cut through 1 side of my pepper and clean out the seeds. Lay it flat and peel off the skin. Here it's already skinned and see some nice char marks showing through-yum! I cut in half lengthwise and use 1 half per panini.


Ok the shrooms and pepper are off the grill and you are ready to assemble your panini. We usually use the Ciabatta rolls from Costco and just keep them in our freezer, but we were out so I picked up a Ciabatta loaf from Trader Joe's. It has lots of nice holes - which is great for a panini.

Slather pesto (jarred or homemade) on the top and bottom. I have definitely used jarred before and some are better than others so find what works for you!


Now assemble your sandwich. I assembled out of order for some reason here, but I usually put the mushroom on the bottom and then the red pepper. Either way works!

Now the shroom! Doesn't it look so good? If you haven't ever tried portabello mushrooms, cook them this way and they are divine. Jordan adds cheese on top of his mushroom/pepper stack but I skip that!

Add the top and put into your panini press. If you don't have a press you can improvise with a grill pan or even regular pan and weigh down with a foil covered brick or a super heavy pan. I've even seen it on shows where they put beans in a pan on top to weigh it down. In a panini press it doesn't take long - just a few minutes. If you are using a regular pan, just flip over and weigh down again after 2-3 minutes, once it is nicely browned.

Can you believe it gets this squished? So delicious and totally meat free AND filling!

Read below if you want to make your own pesto. It's super easy and for sure try it in the summer when Basil is abundant!

Portabello Pesto Panini and Homemade Pesto Printable Recipes

Homemade Pesto:
2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese*
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts, lightly toasted
3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

*I read a lot of pesto recipes and there are so many ways to make pesto just like there are so many different ways to make salsa. I ended up using half parmesan and half romano. I like that combo myself, but you can use all parmesan or all romano. Besides those 2 cheeses I wouldn't substitute. They have good strong flavor and texture that makes for a good pesto. Nothing else really compares or should be substituted.

First take your basil and put it into your food processor.


Next add your pinenuts or walnuts that have been toasted.

*Pineuts are super expensive and walnuts are a great substitute. Toast over medium heat in a pan stirring so they get nice and brown, but not burned. It just adds a nice taste to the pesto.

If you are using walnuts instead of pine nuts and they are not already chopped, pulse them a few times first, before adding the basil.


Pulse a few times just to get combined.


Add your minced garlic. I had used 3 large garlic bulbs. Big mistake. It was too much garlic and I had to mellow the pesto out with more olive oil at the end. Make sure you use 2 if they are large or 3 medium (like the recipe says!).


Pulse some more.


Slowly add the olive oil in a constant stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula.


Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Makes about 1 cup. I used on our sandwiches and then in a pesto salad the next day. I can't wait until summer when Basil is out and about at the farmer's market.

Beef, Cheddar and Potato Pie

Ok, so this is seriously decadent, but I'll give you ideas below on how to lighten it up!


It was so fabulous and we had company over that loved it too!


Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef*
2 carrots, cut into ¼-inch cubes
1 large onion, cut into ¼-inch cubes
2 stalks celery, cut into ¼-inch cubes
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1 large baking potato, peeled and cut into ¼-inch cubes
½ cup dark beer or beef broth
8 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
Salt & Pepper
2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed but cold
1 large egg yolk, beaten with 1 tablespoon water

*I only used 1 pound of ground beef and it was plenty. I think this recipe would work just as well with ground turkey too.


First up. Get your oven heating to 375. Dice your onions, carrots, potatoes, celery and mince your garlic.


In a skillet, combine the beef, carrots, onion, celery, garlic and potato and cook breaking up the meat, over medium-high heat until the beef is cooked through and some liquid has evaporated, about 15 minutes.


Lower the heat to medium, add the beer/beef broth and cook for 10 min.


Add the cheese, 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Let cool. I thought I had more cheddar than I did so I combined cheddar (mild) and monterey jack. Worked great! You could probably do less than 8 oz. of cheese as well. You could always make the filling the night before, let cool and then put it in the fridge until the next night.

Roll out 1 pastry puff and layer in a deep pie dish or skillet. I did not get my pastry puff out quick enough to thaw and so had to thaw it out in the microwave a little bit to get it pliable. It didn't look pretty and I had to patch some holes, but I finally got it to work. Using a slotted spoon transfer the meat mixture to the pie dish.

Take a bit of the egg mixture and coat the top of the bottom crust before adding the top crust. Press slightly and cut off the extra parts. Brush more egg on top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Make sure to cut an "x" in the top to let the air escape.

You could definitely lighten this up by leaving the bottom crust off. I really felt it didn't need it. It won't stay together as well when you get it out of the pan, but really the filling and the golden crust are the best parts.

Bake for 45 min. Tent the top with foil if it starts getting too brown. Mine came out perfectly.

So delish!

Beef, Cheddar and Potato Pie Printable Recipe

Crockpot: Mexican Meatball Stew

Sorry for the absence, it's been a crazy week and my husband has been out of town.

Crockpot! Who doesn't love it? I love when I find yummy meals to make in it.


This stew is even better with homemade meatballs (recipe below).


Ingredients: (I love the simpleness of these ingredients)
2 14.5-oz. cans Mexican-style stewed tomatoes, undrained
2 12-oz. packages frozen cooked Italian-style turkey meatballs (24 total), thawed*
1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 14-oz. can seasoned chicken broth with roasted garlic*
1 10-oz. package frozen corn, thawed*

*One package of meatballs (beef) was a little more than $3 and I needed to buy 2. I decided to cook my own and freeze them for this stew and they are to die for. Could be used in spaghetti or anywhere else you need meatballs. I did not buy the chicken broth with roasted garlic since I already have tons of chicken stock. I just added a teaspoon of garlic powder and called it good. I had a mishap with my corn so I just added a can of corn. All of these changes worked out great - that's what I love about the crockpot, it makes anything work.


Dump in all the ingredients. Cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours. I cooked mine on low for about 8 hours and added my meatballs frozen. They would have fallen apart if I had added them thawed so I think the original recipe is wrong in that regard. If using frozen corn I would also put it in frozen. Why thaw really?

It was definitely too spicy for my kids and I had set aside a few meatballs anyways for them before freezing. You could do 1 can regular tomatoes and 1 can mexican or just 2 cans regular diced tomatoes if you want.


Seriously so delicious and the meatballs made all the difference. I could eat a bowlful of these diddies all on their own!

Mexican Meatballs Stew and Meatballs printable recipes

Italian-style Turkey Meatballs - makes about 36 medium meatballs
1 small onion, grated
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 large egg
1/4 - 1/3 cup dried bread crumbs*
3 tablespoons ketchup
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound ground turkey
3 tablespoons olive oil

Directions
Add the onion, garlic, egg, bread crumbs, ketchup, parsley, Parmesan, Pecorino, salt and pepper to a large bowl and blend. Mix in the turkey. Shape the turkey mixture into 1 1/4-inch-diameter meatballs. Place on a large plate or baking sheet.

Heat the oil in a heavy large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and saute until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Turn off heat.

Alternatively you can cook them in the oven on 400 for 10-15 min.

After cooking, let them cool completely and place on a cookie sheet and stick in the freezer. Once they are completely frozen transfer to a freezer ziplock and use in your Mexican Meatball Stew or other crockpot meals. Even better - make a double batch!

*I did find that 1/4 cup breadcrumbs is not enough. Some of them were falling apart as I cooked them. I'm going to up the breadcrumbs to 1/3 cup next time as it was a pretty loose mixture. I'm also going to try cooking them in the oven next time and see if that will help keep them together better. A few fell apart in the crockpot, but freezing them first worked great in the recipe.

Skirt Steak Sandwiches on Bacon Waffle Bread

This is another Rachael Ray recipe that I tried. I think next time I make it I'm going to make some tweaks, but overall it was good!


Who doesn't love bacon? Matthew could eat a whole package by himself just like his mom. He really is my kid through and through.


Today's Ingredients:
6 tablespoons Mayo
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 1/2 pounds skirt steak, cut into 6 pieces
EVOO for brushing on the steak
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
3 cups pancake batter
Lettuce
Tomatoes

Pancake recipe if you don't have a good one:
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons oil
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Mix together wet ingredients. Sift together dry ingredients. Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients.

This made probably about 4.5 cups of batter. I used 3 cups and put the rest in the fridge and made pancakes easy peasy for the kids the next morning. I was a little skeptical that it would work because it wasn't fresh batter, but it worked great and the kids loved it!


I would get your grill pan or grill heating up. S&P your steak and rub just a little with olive oil. Cook about 8 min. total for medium rare - turning once.


Get your bacon cooking. Once it's done crumble.


Juice your lemon. Quick tip - microwave your lemon for 30 seconds if it's coming right out of the fridge and then roll it a few times before juicing. This will help release more juice. I learned this tip from some show and I tell you it works like a charm!


Combine your mayo, lemon juice and 1 1/2 tablespoons mustard together for a spread. Set it in the fridge to use later.


Mix together your wet ingredients for your pancake batter.


Sift together your dry ingredients and then add to the wet ingredients. Take 3 cups of batter out.


Add your crumbled bacon to your pancake batter and 1 1/2 tablespoons of dijon mustard.


Mix together nicely and cook in your waffle maker.


Spread both sides with the mayo and then layer the meat, lettuce, and tomatoes.

To be honest, I didn't really taste the bacon in the waffles, but Matthew ate it up since we told him bacon was in the waffles. I thought the spread was ok, but I really don't love, love, love dijon mustard. Here are some alternatives I'm going to try for next time.

-Find a marinade for the meat
-Make a bacon mayo or buy baconnaise - here
-Leave bacon out of waffle batter
-Add bacon strips to sandwich
-Add sliced avocado to the sandwich

You could always treat it like a traditional BLT, but replace bread with waffles to mix it up. It was fun to make and it did taste good, but I'm going to try some changes next time to elevate it to the next level.

Skirt Steak Sandwiches on Bacon Waffle Bread Printable Recipe