Carnitas Plate

MMM... Carnitas. I've been eating leftovers of this for 2 days now and it still makes me drool! I really didn't think it would be so easy, but alas, it is!
Ingredients:
2 lbs pork shoulder or butt
juice from 1 Orange (1/2 cup)
juice from 1 juicy lime (1/4 cup)
1/2 cup beef broth
7-10 peeled but intact cloves garlic
1 1/2 Tbsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp onion powder
salt/fresh pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Mix all the dry ingredients and rub all over the meat.
2. Dump everything in the crock pot and cook on low for a looong time... or high for about 4 hours.

I would have served this with corn tortillas, but I didn't find any that were reasonably priced or appetizing around here... they definately need more Mexicans in France. I served over shredded cabbage with sour cream, swiss cheese, chopped tomatoes (lazy pico de gallo), avocado slices, and of course, loaded my plate with red pepper flakes.. because I'm the only one that can handle it =)
Needless to say, it might not be the real mexican way of making carnitas, but it definately is delicious and the taste was exactly what I was craving. It is also the healthier alternative to frying the meat!

I have to find some corn tortillas so I can make tacos out of this... I seriously feel like I found a hidden treasure with this recipe!! It's cheap and delicious, and feeds like 10 people!

Fresh Mozzarella Tomatoes

I love fresh mozzarella! Little did I know I could buy it and didn't have to make it, and also, that it was quite inexpensive!
So this little salad was really easy, but it was so refreshing that I wanted to post a pretty picture of it. One thing I didn't have, but hope to have soon was fresh basil leaves. I think it would have been PERFECTISSIMO with fresh basil.
Ingredients:
2-3 vine tomatoes
1 ball fresh mozzarella (200g)
1 tbsp EVOO
1 tbsp basalmic vinegar
fresh herbs.. I used mini scallions, but use basil!!!
salt/pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Slice and position your tomatoes and mozzarella
2. Add the EVOO, vinegar, and herbs on top
3. Sprinkle some salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Eat as a side or appetizer... mmm!!!

I have also tried fresh mozza in a hot dish, melted... it is so sublime, I scarfed it down before photographing it... again!

Carrot and Cheese Flan

Sounds kind of crazy, but it's not bad...not bad at all
Ingredients:
5-6 large peeled carrots
3 eggs
1 pinch nutmeg
3/4 cup shredded cheddar
1 handful chopped cilantro
salt/pepper
Directions:
1. Cut carrots into chunks and boil in salted water for around 30 minutes. Drain and mash them.
2. Preheat your oven to around 300°F
3. In a separate salad bowl, beat the eggs with the nutmet, cilantro, and cheese, then add your mashed carrots, mix well and season to taste.
4. Pour the mix into a buttered oven safe dish and cook for around 30 minutes, checking in at 20 to make sure it doesn't burn.
I didn't have a cupcake shaped tin, but it would have been cooler like that...

Serve as an appetizer or however you want. I had some fresh green beans from my MIL's garden, and Eric had fries... because he always is in the mood for fries!

Italian Sausage and Artichoke Penne

Ahh that looks so crazy with black Penne!!! I've been craving Italian sausage and OG's Zuppa Toscana lately, and then I realized... THERE IS NO ITALIAN SAUSAGE HERE =(
I decided to make my own.. It's too hot to eat soup these days, and then since I had an artichoke waiting to be consumed in my fridge...I decided to use it! I know an artichoke isn't something one would usually have on hand, but I found some beautiful ones on sale for 2/1€50 and I jumped on it... how much are they in the US? I steamed one the other day and ate it with lemon butter... it went down so fast and I forgot to photograph it, so maybe next time.
So I found black penne and thought it would be cool to freak out my FIL who's not used to "out of the ordinary" food... he liked it though.. 1 point for me!!
Italian Sausage:
1 lb ground pork
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cracked fennel seeds
1 Tbsp paprika
3 cloves minced/mashed garlic
1 tsp sugar
1tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp red wine vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)

Mix it all together with your hands... then fill casings if you want to. Let rest a few hours in the fridge.. I left mine overnight. I didn't use casings.. I kind of rolled them into little meatballs and used a little less than half for my pasta, and froze the rest. How easy and spot on. I didn't put in red pepper flakes for heat because most of the people I feed can't handle it.. but I always add them into my plate =)

Italian Sausage and Artichoke Penne: Serves 6
2-3 Italian sausages or 1/2 lb mixture rolled into balls
1 fresh (or frozen) artichoke heart, chopped
2 cloves minced garlic
1 chopped bell pepper
1 chopped tomato (or sub in handful of sundried)
1/2 cup vegetable stock (I used chicken)
1/4 cup heavy cream (optional)
1 bag (500g) penne or other pasta
1 handful fresh chopped parsley
Parmesan and/or swiss cheese

Directions:
First of all, start your pasta water...
1. Sautee garlic and sausage until browned.. drain the grease, please.
2. Add the artichoke heart and stir around for 5 minutes, then add the bell pepper and tomato and let cook 3-5 more minutes.
3. Add the vegetable stock and cook for 20 minutes or until most of the liquid evaporates.
4. When your pasta is done, add the heavy cream and parlsey to your sauce, and toss your pasta in it.

Serve with parmesan on top and enjoy!

Yum!
Btw.. too hot to eat soup usually doesn't figure in my vocab, but alas I am We, and I will make my Zuppa Toscana as soon as the weather cools. I have to remember that if I made it, I would be the only one to eat it, sadly.

Lasagna Remix!

I made my lasagna again... always so good. I added a little nutmeg in the bechamel and it did have a little plus...
Served with a basalmic vinegarette salad.. delicious!

Tilapia Asparagus Quiche

More Quiche! Since I bought my hand blender, I've been experimenting all over the place. Jess got me drooling for asparagus, so I decided to put some into a quiche!
Ingredients:

1/4 lb cooked asparagus
1 handful spinach or 1 knob frozen spinach
1 filet tilapia, chopped
2 eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
fresh chopped parsley
shredded swiss cheese
1 raw pie crust
salt/pepper

Directions:
1. Lay your pie crust in a tin and poke it with a fork, then stick it in the oven at 400°F for 5-7 minutes.
2. In a blender, blend the spinach, asparagus, and a drizzle of heavy cream.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, cream, salt/pepper, and parsley.
4. In the half cooked pie crust, spread out the pieces of tilapia, then the asparagus mix, then the egg and cream mix. Sprinkle the shredded swiss on top.
5. Cook in the oven for 30-40 minutes... depending on the oven... until the top is golden.

Serve warm with a basalmic vinegaratte salad...mmmm!

Wild Strawberry Tart

My very first dessert! Woohoo! I usually like salty over sweets, but I found these lovely wild strawberries in my yard and I kind of wanted to try my luck with a strawberry tart! It turned out delicious. I used a kitchen scale (that I initially bought to weigh my baby dinosaurs) to measure my ingredients exactly. I didn't work my pastry cream long enough, though.. it should have been thicker and I should have put in a little more elbow grease.
BUT
The taste was spot on.
Ingredients:

• 750 g (1.5 lbs) strawberries
  
• 1 pie crust in dough form
  
• 30 g (1 oz) powdered sugar or regular sugar
  
• 30 g (1 oz) flour
  
• 20 cL (7 fl ounces) whole milk
• 2 egg yolks

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 250°F. Spread your pie crust in a buttered tin over baking paper. Poke holes in the crust with a fork, and put another layer of baking paper and some raw rice or beans on top for weight. Cook for 20 minutes, then let cool.
2. For the pastry cream, heat some milk on low heat in a pan and add half the sugar, then all the flour and mix well.
3. In a separate salad bowl, beat the egg yolks and the rest of the sugar. Pour a little of the hot milk and mix well. Then dump this mixture into the pan you are heating the milk in.
4. While on low heat, beat and beat and beat until the mixture kind of solidifies. Your arm will hurt. This may be a good use for an electric beater? Once it solidifies, take off the heat and let cool.
5. Fill your pie crust with the pastry cream, and lay your cut and washed strawberries on top. Refridgerate for a few hours before serving. If you have a very sweet tooth, you can add powdered sugar on top.

This was a hit! My first dessert! A little runny, but that won't happen next time. The cool thing is that you don't have to put strawberries. You can do this with raspberries, kiwis, peaches... or a mix! Also, I used eggs from my mother in law's hens, so the pastry cream is a lot more yellow than it would be with grocery store eggs. They are so much better though!

Asparagus Risotto & Chicken Pita Salad

I found these recipes on Sunset.com, one of my faves for dinner recipe sites. ;) I think you will like these ones. They both were yummie!

Asparagus Risotto
In a large pot in olive oil, cook 4 chopped green onions and 1 cup Arborio rice until fragrant. In 4 batches, stir in 1 qt. hot vegetable broth and cook, stirring, until each is absorbed and rice is al dente, 20 minutes, adding hot water if you need more liquid.

About 5 minutes before rice is done, add 2 lbs. asparagus, ends trimmed and cut into 2-in. pieces; 2 tbsp. unsalted butter; and ½ cup grated parmesan cheese; cook until asparagus is tender-crisp.


Grilled Chicken Pita Salad
Prepare grill for high heat (450° to 550°). Rub 2 boned, skinned chicken breast halves with olive oil and cook, turning once, until no longer pink. Slice.

Meanwhile, whisk 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice, 1/3 cup olive oil, 1 tbsp. fresh oregano, and 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper; set aside. Boil 1 lb. asparagus (ends trimmed), cut in spears and halved lengthwise, just until bright green; rinse with cold water.

In a bowl, combine reserved chicken; 4 oz. feta cheese, broken into chunks; asparagus; 2 cups halved grape tomatoes; ½ cup pitted kalamata olives; and 2 cups pita chips. Toss gently with reserved dressing. Add 2 cups baby arugula and toss once just to combine.

Creamy Duck Legs

Duck is delicious! It really doesn't taste anything like chicken or turkey. When it's raw, it looks like a red meat. We've been trying to eat different things every once in a while, and these really inspired me.. especially because I'd never made duck before! There is a lot of meat on duck legs.. we didn't finish them, so you can cut the meat off when they're cooked and easily serve 3 or 4 people instead of just 2 gluttons like us.
Ingredients:
2 duck legs, skinned
2 tbsp grapeseed oil or EVOO
1 small onion, chopped
2 chopped cloves garlic
1 tsp fresh rosemary
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken broth
1 handful mushrooms
2 tbsp heavy cream
fresh ground pepper
Directions:
1. Brown the legs in the oil on both sides a few minutes. Remove the legs and then do the same with the rosemary, onions and garlic.
2. Add the mushrooms and brown a little, then put the legs back in.
3. Add the wine and broth. I used a pressure cooker, so I cooked it for 20 minutes. If you don't have one, cover and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour. The meat should easily come off the bone. I guess you could transfer to a crockpot as well.
4. Reduce de sauce a little (uncover) and add your cream and fresh ground pepper to taste. I think I sprinkled some fresh parsley in there, too.

Serve with a nice salad and some home fries.. or white rice.. or pasta...or mashed potatoes... mmmm!

This completely blew my mind. I will now regularly buy duck.

Orange Avo Smoothie

A friend posted this on thier facebook page- and i Love it. I make it all the time!! I have a Magic Bullet- so, i just throw all the ingredients in and whip it up for b-fast.

ORANGE AVO SMOOTHIE
1/2 avocado
half frozen banana
2 dates (sometimes i omit the dates bc i don't have any)
1/2 c fresh squeezed oj
1 orange
2 T lemon juice

blend. yum.