Stuffed Poblanos and Cilantro Lime Ice Cream

     Matt just finished a 4-day-long bike ride.  So naturally he wants Mexican food.  And I am rededicated to eating healthy, more veggies and less gluten.  What are we to do?  I found a recipe on Against All Grain's blog for roasted poblano peppers, stuffed with ground beef and sweet potatoes.  http://www.againstallgrain.com/2013/05/23/stuffed-peppers-with-chile-verde-sauce/.  It sounded like it had potential.  With a little help, it became phenomenal.

     Step 1 was nixing the ground beef and instead cooking up some lengua.  If you don't like the idea of beef tongue, just use whatever meat you desire.  The fun part is roasting and stuffing the peppers and adding delectable sauces to your heart's content.

     I also modified the veggies a bit.  Just sweet potatoes and yu choy (a cousin of bok choy which can be found at Asian grocery stores). Against All Grain uses spinach, so feel free to substitute any green you like.  Greens are good.

     We made 3 sauces for our peppers and for dipping chips.  We did make some salsa verde, as the base recipe suggests, with some modifications.  Matt loves mole sauce (a chocolate chili sauce found in some regional Mexican foods), so he was in charge of making that.  He says the recipe is a secret (you can look it up on the internet).  I also decided to take this opportunity to make an avocado cilantro lime cream sauce.  Yum.  Just yum.  Cilantro and lime is probably my favorite flavor combination (I'm planning to make some cookies with those flavors soon).  Add avocados, and it's heaven.

     As a continuation of the cilantro-lime theme, we just had to do some coconut milk ice cream that incorporates the two flavors.  I was very excited, and the results were not too shabby.

     I think I can safely say that this meal is the most delicious Mexican food I've ever put together, and it's relatively "clean" and healthy :)

Ingredients

Salsa Verde:

-1 lb. tomatillos

-2 jalapenos, seeded (Cut the sides lengthwise, leaving the stem and seeds separate.  This helps you to avoid touching the inside of the pepper and is quick and easy.

-2 cloves of garlic

-zest and juice from 2 limes

-1/2 tsp salt

Avocado Cilantro Lime Cream Sauce:

-2 avocados

-1 bunch cilantro (just stems or just leaves would be sufficient; I used just stems, then saved the leaves for the salsa)

-zest and juice of 2 limes

-1/2 tsp salt

-1/4 tsp black pepper

-dash of olive oil

(I needed a little more liquid, so I added a dash of bottled lemon juice.  Use fresh-squeezed whenever possible, though.)

Stuffed Peppers

-Beef tongue (or any other meat or meat substitute)

-6 Poblano peppers, seeds removed

-goat cheese (chevre)

-2 tbsp vegetable oil

-1 onion, sliced

-1 bunch cilantro, chopped

-2 sweet potatoes, diced

-chopped green (yu choy or spinach or anything else you want)

-3 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped

Cilantro Lime Ice Cream

-2 cans coconut milk

-1 bunch cilantro (leaves only)

-juice of 2 limes

-1 cup sugar

Directions

For the Main Dish:

*Preheat oven to 350º

1. Prepare the meat as desired.  I was making a beef tongue, and to do that you can boil it for 4 hours or so, or cook it on low in a crock pot for 8-10 hours (or on high for 6 hours).  In the Against All Grain Recipe, she browns ground beef then sautees the meat with the veggies.  

2. Combine all ingredients for the salsa verde in a food processor, process together until salsa-consistency.  Transfer to another container and store in the refrigerator until serving.

3. Combine all ingredients for the avocado cilantro lime cream sauce and process in the food processor as well.  Transfer to another container and store in the refrigerator until serving.

4. Cut the poblanos lengthwise along one side.  Remove the seeds (Try not to touch them, and be careful not to touch your eyes right after.  Wash your hands with soap).  

5. Evenly sprinkle pieces of the goat cheese on the bottom of the pepper and roast in the oven for 20 minutes, until the peppers are soft and the cheese is nice and melted.

6. Sautee the sweet potato in 1 tbsp vegetable oil until almost soft.  Then add the greens and continue sauteeing for 5 minutes. Lastly, add the tomatoes and stir over heat until warm.

7. Sautee separately the onion in 1 tbsp of vegetable oil.  When it is almost translucent, add the chopped cilantro and continue sauteeing over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.  This needs to be done last so that the cilantro will keep its strong flavor.  I've never been happy with this combination when it is permitted to cook too long or is not eaten immediately when it is hot.

Stuff the peppers with the meat, sauteed veggies, and onion.  Add the desired sauces and eat up!

If you would like all of the components to "homogenize" better, stuff everything (except for the salsa or avocado sauce) in the pepper and cook it another 10-15 minutes.  Then add the condiments and eat up.

For the Ice Cream:

1. Blend the coconut milk, cilantro, lime, and sugar until smooth and green :)

2. Process in an ice cream maker.  Allow to chill in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before serving (unless you prefer soft serve).  I like to divide the ice cream into servings, then putting the individual serving containers in the freezer for their chilling time.

Ice Cream with a BANG!

Sorry to have ignored you for so long, readers.  My cooking experiences during finals were basically either 1) asking Matt to cook dinner for the week, 2) baking potatoes, and 3) Getting together leftovers from when Matt cooked and making a soup out of the random ingredients.

But Sunday was Cinco de Mayo, and something better was called for :)

Like Chocolate Habanero Frozen Yogurt.  Yum.

I first made homemade yogurt a couple days before, see the recipe here.  I only let it sit for a day and a half, so it was not as firm as it usually is.  It was still quite tart, though.  Everyone liked it all the same!

Ingredients:
2 quarts yogurt (whatever kind you want.  If you buy it at the store, you might need to use less, and add some liquid - water or milk so that it won't be too thick.  On the other hand, I'm sure that would be delicious too)
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 habaneros (NO seeds - they're hot enough as they are) (And of course you can reduce this to 1 if you want less spice.
2 cups sugar

Directions:
Blend all ingredients in a blender.  Then freeze in an ice cream maker!  Bada-bing.  That's it :)
You may wish to reduce or increase the sugar.

It's certainly tangy and sweet and chocolat-y, then gives you a kick in the back of your throat when you swallow.

I'll be experimenting with frozen yogurt recipes a lot this summer - some savory ones too that can be a healthy frozen snack or meal.

Pasta-less Spaghetti Squash

I love Italian food.  Like majorly.  I could eat it for every meal.  But a ridiculous amount of pasta is not good for the waistline or the digestive system (for me).  I'm not going totally gluten-free, because I'm too much of a foodie for that.  But here is one excellent substitute for pasta -- spaghetti squash.  Matt and I love to put it with spaghetti sauces.  Light and tasty.  

This evening, though, I just have a small onion, some old parsley stems, a wrinkling orange bell pepper, and the basic garlic and lemon to accompany tonight's spaghetti squash.  This will be an excellent meal for two (maybe with leftovers, but we have a hard time monitoring our serving sizes with food like this, especially when it's mostly veggies and perhaps should not be monitored too closely in any case).

Ingredients:

-1 spaghetti squash

-1 bell pepper (I recommend orange or red, as they are the tastiest)

-1 small onion

-1/2 bunch of parsley, or just the stems if you have them leftover from another dish, like I did.

-3 small cloves of garlic (or two large ones)

-1 tbsp vegetable oil

-1 tbsp lemon juice

-1/2 tsp thyme (optional)

-1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)

-olive oil to drizzle

-salt to taste

Directions:

-Preheat the oven to 375º

-Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise (This is not easy.  It will take perseverance and cautiousness so that you don't cut yourself.  Or you can get a husband/boyfriend to do it.  I prefer to do it myself.  It's character-building.)

-Scoop out all the seeds and string from the inside of the two halves.

-Lay the two halves, face down (with the shell side up) on a baking pan or sheet.  I have found it easier to line my glass pan with foil, for easier cleanup.

-Bake for about an hour.

-While that's cooking, chop up the onion, pepper, parsley, and garlic (mince as fine as you like).  

-Heat the vegetable oil in a pan and sautee the onion and pepper on medium heat with some parsley stems (parts that will need more time to soften) for about 3-5 minutes.

-Add the parsley and the minced garlic and continue to sautee on low for a few minutes.

-Add the salt, and thyme and red pepper (if you are using them) and continue to stir for about a minute

(I added about 1/4 tsp of salt)

-You can turn off the heat and let this sit until the squash is ready.

-When the squash is finished, take it out of the oven and carefully scrape out the squash (I use two forks -- one for holding the squash, one for scraping.  Cuz that thing is hot).  Add the squash to the pan with the vegetables and turn the heat back on low to warm everything while mixing the veggies with the squash.

-Add the lemon juice and a drizzle (about 1 tsp) of olive oil to the pan until combined

-Add more salt if needed, and a bit of black pepper if you like.

-Serve immediately and enjoy!

Beef Sandwich with Horseradish

Brace yourselves.  This is no ordinary cut of beef.  I just made it sound that way to get you to read this post.  But you CAN do this.  Do not doubt yourselves.

Anyone every had langua at a Mexican restaurant?  It is the most delicious cut of beef I have ever had - so tender and juicy.  It's beef tongue.

And I'm not gonna lie.  When you buy it, it does look like a huge tongue.  Grossed me out at first.  I still refuse to touch it with my bare hands (I bought disposable gloves just for the few seconds when I have to touch it raw to rinse it.)  But trust me, you won't have to touch it for long.  And it is very much worth the disgust.  Also, if you are able to handle it, it will be very impressive to others who might think you have lost your mind but will still secretly admire you (albeit, from afar).

This weekend was the second time I made it.  Before, I had served it shredded over sweet potatoes, with sauteed vegetables and a mole sauce.  Yum.  This time, I decided to do a simple deli sandwich with horseradish sauce.

Ingredients:

-One 3-5 pound beef tongue (I get it as big as is available)
-2 tsp salt
-One roma tomato
-fresh parsley
-lettuce or pita bread (I made lettuce wraps and Matt had pita sandwiches)

For the sauce:
-3 tbsp horseradish sauce (or just the horseradish, then add some mayo)
-1 tbsp lemon juice
-1 tbsp mayonnaise
-1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

Game Plan:

-Get out your crock pot
-Rinse the beef tongue thoroughly (I suggest only touching it with one gloved hand, or two gloved hands)
-Place the beef tongue in the crock pot
-Cover with water
-Add spices as you desire.  I used garam masala, because I had it on hand and it smelled pretty good.  Cinnamon, ginger, all kinds of stuff in it.  If I had it to do over, I would have just used salt.  Or simpler spices.  Use any spices you desire.
-Put the lid on the crock pot and let it cook on low for at least 8-10 hours.  I usually let it cook during the day, but this weekend I let it cook overnight, for about 11 hours.
-Pour out some of the water, and fork the tongue onto a cutting board.
-Now comes the hard part...  Hold one side of the tongue with a fork, and use another fork in your other hand to take off the layer of skin that covers the meat.  I also take off any layers of fat on the back end of the tongue, whatever is covering the meat.  It should come off VERY easily at this point.

-Throw away the skin.
-Cut against the grain of the meat, or just pull it for shredded beef.
-Mix horseradish sauce, lemon juice, mayonnaise, and black pepper thoroughly until there are no lumps.
-Make sandwiches or wraps using the meat slices, diced tomato, parsley, and the sauce.

Enjoy!

Cleansing Vegetable Soup

Christmas is through, and Matt and I are several pounds heavier.  We have been gorging ourselves since pretty much Thanksgiving.  Not good.

So today I am making a cleansing soup full of fiber, and devoid of meat and wheat.  A perfect way to spend our first day back home.  I'm sure we can all use some cleansing.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups dried lentils
3 parsnips (When the soup was complete, this was not my favorite part.  I would probably put carrots next time.  But Matt liked them in the soup.  I much prefer the taste of roasted parsnips to those in the soup.)
1 bunch green onions
3 celery stalks
1 bunch cilantro (for garnish)
2 eggplants
1 bunch of kale
4 cloves of garlic, minced
Water
Chicken bouillon (or chicken stock, or vegetable stock if you prefer)
Splash of wine (I had some old wine in the fridge and thought, hey let's dump that in too)
1/4 cup lemon or lime juice (I prefer lime)
1/2 tsp black pepper, cracked
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp basil (fresh or dried)
1 tsp oregano (fresh or dried)
Vegetable oil (3 tbsp)
Drizzle of olive oil

Directions:

Rinse the lentils with warm water several times.
Soak the lentils for at least 2 hours (up to overnight).  They can be soaking while you're chopping vegetables and preparing the first part of the soup
Heat the vegetable oil in a large stock pot on medium heat
Chop the green onions into small pieces (diced), stir
Peel and chop the parsnips into small, bite-size pieces (or smaller if you like), and add to the pot, stir
Chop the celery (including the leaves) and add to the pot.
       Note: Play it by ear.  I had to turn the stove to low heat because it was taking me a while to chop everything in each step.  Try your best to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
Chop the eggplant, leaving the skin on, into bite-size pieces as well.  Stir into the mixture.
Optional: Chop the stems of the cilantro and add to the pot.
Drizzle with olive oil and stir for 5 minutes.  The parsnips should smell nice and sweet by now.

Drain the lentils that have been soaking, rinse them thoroughly again, and drain again.  Add them to the pot and stir a bit.
Add hot water from the sink until it covers the eggplant mixture.
Chop the kale and add it to the pot.  Add more hot water until the pot is almost full (see picture)

Add 2 tbsp of the bouillon and put the lid on the pot.  Bring the pot to a boil.

Taste the broth and add more bouillon if it is not flavorful enough.
Add the minced garlic and other herbs and seasonings at this time.

Turn the heat down and let the pot simmer with the lid on for an hour.
Taste the broth and add any desired seasoning (I just added a bit of salt)
Drizzle olive oil before serving.
Serve with chopped cilantro on top.  Enjoy!

Caribbean Meatloaf

Finals are over.  Way over.  Finally.  After Christmas with families, and time with friends, I'm ready to write another post.  I miss talking about food here.  I've been getting my kicks by discussing it in conversations, but I have been eagerly awaiting my return to this medium of communication.

So let's talk about meatloaf.  I only really had it once, when I was young.  There was lots of ketchup involved, and I really liked it.  But my mom never made it.  I decided to try making some recently, but of course I couldn't make any regular meatloaf.  Caribbean Meatloaf sounds way more exciting.  Can I get an amen?  Cilantro makes everything better, first of all, and we wanted it spicy and as delicious as possible.  Caribbean cooking usually provides all of those things.

Please share if you have other ways to jazz up meatloaf!

This particular recipe is gluten free (if you get gluten free oats), and does not contain milk (It's almost paleo-friendly, but I bet these bottled sauces and chutneys have some processed stuff in them.)

I started with this recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/caribbean-meatloaf-340351.  Then I modified it a bit.  Meaning quite a bit.  Matt and I ate it all week for dinner, and it was filling and delightful.  This is one recipe that even after eating for a week, neither of us was tired of it.

Changes to the online recipe included adding MUCH more cilantro, and nixing the onions.  I'm not into that.  I nixed the pineapple too, because we didn't want it sweet.

Ingredients:

-5 lbs ground beef

-1 cup old fashioned oats (Make sure it's gluten free if you're avoiding gluten.  Trader Joe's oatmeal is gluten free, fyi.  I just love Aldi's price for oatmeal, so I buy it there even if it's not gluten free)
-1 egg
-1/2 cup mayonnaise
-2 tbsp soy sauce (original recipe called for worcestershire, but we didn't have any)
-3 jalapenos, seeds removed, minced
-1 bunch cilantro, chopped
-4 tbsp coriander chutney (less if you want less heat - this has serranos in it.  You can find this at international foods stores in the Indian section.)
-1 tsp cayenne pepper
-5 garlic cloves, minced
-1 1/2 tsp salt
-1 tsp powdered mint (or fresh if you like)
-2 tbsp caribbean jerk seasoning
-1 cup coconut milk (full fat)
-pickapeppa sauce (for serving.  Seriously this stuff is the best.  I also recommend pouring it over cream cheese and eating it with crackers until it's all gone.)

Directions:

-Heat oven to 350 degrees.
-Combine the oats, coconut milk, egg, soy sauce, jerk seasoning, cayenne pepper, salt, mint, coriander chutney, and mayonnaise in a bowl until  well combined.  Let this mixture sit a few minutes so that the moisture soaks into the oats.
-Combine the meat with the jalapenos, garlic, and cilantro.
-Add the wet mixture to the meat mixture and mix lightly, but thoroughly.
-Shape the meatloaf into a large casserole dish (glass worked well for us).
-Bake 1 and 1/2 hours, checking on it after the first hour.  Continue cooking until the center of the loaf reaches 160 degrees (I recommend a meat thermometer.  Alternatively, you can keep cutting sections to see if it's pink.  We don't want pink meat - unless you got good quality stuff).
-Let it stand 5 minutes before slicing (for some reason)
-Slice and serve with pickapeppa sauce (this stuff is like a caribbean worcestershire.  Yum.)

I hope you all enjoy this.  As always, feel free to tweak it to your own tastes!  I'd love to hear how you all get creative in the kitchen!  And I also recommend using what you have!  Don't worry about having every single ingredient. :)

Monster Oatmeal

It's been a while.  Nice to be back!  School and work have been crazy, but we won't get into that.

This past Sunday I came up with a new yummy breakfast (an easy and cheap one too!).

Have you all ever had monster cookies?  Oatmeal, M&Ms, Peanut butter....yum.
Well I took that idea and transferred it to a gooey bowl of oatmeal.
Matt loved it and specifically requested it this morning.

This recipe also includes a super quick way to make oatmeal in the morning.  Just add boiled water (via a tea kettle) to a bowl of uncooked oats, with, sugar, butter, whatever you are using.  Cover with a lid or plate and let it soak in for a couple of minutes.

This method also makes the oats more chewy and less mushy - so good!

Ingredients:

1/2 - 3/4 cup Old Fashioned Oats
1 tbsp Hot Cocoa Powdered Mix
1 tbsp Peanut Butter
1 tsp Sugar (optional)
1/8 tsp Salt - a pinch
Boiling water

Directions:

Heat water in a stovetop kettle (or in a pot is fine too).
While the water is heating, combine the other ingredients in a bowl (one that can withstand heat).
When the kettle whistles, pour hot water into the bowl to the level where it just covers the oats.
Stir well (especially the peanut butter).
Cover with a plate or a lid and let it sit for 2-3 minutes.
Eat up!

This recipe is gluten free (if you use gluten free oats).
You can make it dairy free if you use cocoa powder instead of a hot cocoa mix (the mixes usually have powdered milk in them).