Wednesday Fun 112- Boca Chica review

Well kiddies, Shonuff just recently turned 35 and when Pusher asked where I wanted to have the birthday dinner I picked Boca Chica. This is Mexican food without messing around. Family recipes carefully made and full of flavor. Presented in a more of a fine dining style than most Mexican food you can get. They give you soup or a salad with most meals and the decor while still being Mexican themed is like you might find at a nice resort.

What about the food makes me love Boca Chica? Well, let me explain how I normally get a sense of a Mexican restaurant. I've got it down to sort of a science (I've gone to a lot of Mexican places). There are three things I check for... Tamales, Chile Rellenos, and Mole sauce. Now if a place has all three of these dishes it's a good sign... but there are times when some or all are bad. If two out of three are good to great then the place is good just a bit limited. So I'm betting you know how Boca Chica did.

Tamales... these appear to be a simple thing but aren't. If you don't like corn meal then of course you aren't going to like them but the proper balance between the corn meal and pork is very tricky. Boca Chica nails the balance and actually presents the tamale in the husk of corn... a presentation I've noticed is done most places you get a great tamale. Boca Chica Tamales = excellent.

Chile Rellenos also sound kind of simple, stuff pepper batter and fry. Well this is a dish I love but is often done poorly. Not a problem at Boca Chica, you taste the pepper, you taste the filling and they all meld together to make the wonderful flavors this dish can create. Another win for Boca Chica.

Then there is Mole sauce. This like the previous two dishes is fairly labor intensive. The sauce at it's best is cooked for hours so the flavors can meld. Boca Chica's is done right and it shows, it's easily in the top 5 I've ever had. Their sauce is strong on the cocoa flavor with that bitterness showing through even while it is balanced nicely by the rich roasted pepper flavors.

I think I might have to go back soon...

Cream Cheese Chutney Dip

I am ashamed to even try to call this a recipe, but it's good and fits the theme.

4-8 oz of cream cheese on a plate (spread it around if you want it to look pretty)
spoon Major Grey Mango Chutney on top (use less if you don't want it too sweet)

Spread this on crackers. I find water crackers and Wheat Thins work well. Delicious!

December's Theme - Party Food

Our normally scheduled Wednesday Fun will be usurped today by the monthly theme update. Hope y'all don't mind, but I've still got unpacking & laundry to do from our Thanksgiving trip!

(I will put up a poll, too, but actually, I'll be scheduling to leave it up for two weeks so I hopefully get a large number (well, relatively speaking, that is!) of you to weigh in on it.) (ShoNuff, feel free to do a poll with your review anyway next week, if you'd like!)

Anyway, December's theme is Party Food! Hooray! Since there are so many get-togethers, parties, and, of course, New Year's Eve coming up, let's hear your recipes for dips, appetizers, finger food, cute little desserts, etc.

Here's a few we've got so far:**

• Diplowhat shared some Taco Salad Dip that is making me hungry.
• Or you could go with her Dead Sister Dip. (But maybe call it something festive!*grin*)
  
• Also in a TexMex-y vein, we've got Nectarine's Chicken Enchilada Ring.
• I really love Tomato Bruschetta, even if it's way better in summer.
• Syl's Cucumber Sandwiches make me think of summer, too, but that never stops me from eating them!
  
• The Sexy Blonde posted a Roasted Bell Pepper Antipasto that I think sounds more "pro-" than "anti-!" (Sorry, I couldn't help myself.)
  
• Nectarine shared some Caramel Dips for Apples. Nice if you want something in addition to or instead of a cheese/creamy sort of dip.
• Apple Berry Salsa is also from Nectarine - again, also a nice fruity option.
• A more exotic option than (or addition to) a veggie tray could be Diplowhat's Miso & Cucumber.
• Pusher's Peppered Tuna Skewers might go great next it, too!
• And if you're looking for another seafood option, The Sexy Blonde shared a recipe out of the South Beach Diet cookbook for a Salmon Ball.
• Also along healthier lines, this time from Cooking Light, she also posted Proscuitto-Wrapped Figs Stuffed with Bleu Cheese.
  
• Pusher's Soft Pretzels. You might think "Oktoberfest" thinking about pretzels, but color your salt green & red with food coloring & you've got an officially holiday-looking snack!
• No one can guess what's in the sauce for Nectarine's Crazy Meatballs, but it doesn't stop them from coming back for more!
  
• If you want to be fancy, and are willing to stand in front of a pan of oil for a while during your party, you could make these Crisp-Fried Vegetables that are really good, if not at all make-ahead-able.
• And how can you not end with some classic (and colorable) Cream Cheese Mints from Pusher?

** As always, if I've missed a recipe you think should be on this list, let me know & I'll add it. I only looked through the Appetizers/Cocktail food label, so there could very well be other good recipes under Snacks or Desserts or whatever. Thanks!

Wednesday Fun #111 - Happy Turkey Day!

Happy pre-Thanksgiving to all of my fellow Americans!

Firstly, if you're in charge of making the turkey, make sure it's thawing! :)

Secondly, if you're an NPR listener, you might want to check to see if you can catch Lynne Rossetto Kaspar and her producer, Sally Swift, doing their "The Splendid Table: Turkey Confidential" broadcast where they do a live chat/help on Thanksgiving from 10-12. I've listened before, especially when traveling, and it's fun, funny, and helpful. I remember one year when two callers back to back really demonstrated the range of help Lynne gives & the varying experience levels of her listening audience - one had a question about a double-reduction sauce, the other was cooking a whole chicken for the first time and wanted to know how to get the packet of giblets out. Or, if you've got the technology, you could, you know, download some previous years' episodes and listen on your drive to Grandma's house.

Thirdly, what is your favorite part of the traditional Thanksgiving feast. I know everybody has different traditions, and I'm sure family-specific dishes that show up at your feasts, but let's hear about your fav of some of the (stereotypical, I'm sure) traditional Thanksgiving dishes. Leave a comment here or just click on the poll off to the right.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fettuccine with Garlic Scallops

Mr. Kluges made us this for supper the day we had the giant radiator puddle, and it was really good. I'm just typing it the way the recipe is written, since I didn't make it myself, but I liked it and I'm not, in general, a fan of seafood. It comes from a Better Homes and Gardens cookbook called Low Fat Bold Flavors.

1 lb. fresh or frozen scallops (We used frozen.)
6 dried tomato halves (not oil-packed) (We used oven-dried cherry tomatoes from our garden that were frozen with some oil. I think they say not oil-packed since it's a "low-fat" cookbook.)
1/3 c. boiling water
2 tsp. cooking oil
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 c. sliced fresh mushrooms
2 Tbl. lemon juice
2 tsp. cornstarch
4 green onions, sliced
2 Tbl. snipped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel
3 c. hot cooked spinach and/or plain fettucine
lemon wedges (optional)

1. Thaw scallops, if frozen. Rinse and pat dry with paper towels. In a small bowl combine dried tomatoes and boiling water. Let stand 10 minutes. Drain tomatoes, reserving liquid. Cut tomatoes into thin bite-size strips. Set aside.

2. Pour oil into a large nonstick skillet. Heat over medium-high heat. Add garlic and stir-fry for 15 seconds. Add mushrooms; stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add scallops and tomatoes; stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until scallops are opaque.

3. Combine lemon juice and cornstarch. Add to skillet along with reserved tomato liquid, green onions, parsley, and lemon peel. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more.

4. Serve the scallop mixture over hot pasta. If desired, garnish with lemon wedges. Makes 4 servings.


Total Fat: 4 g. Daily Value Fat: 6% Saturated Fat: 0g; Daily Value Saturated Fat: 0%
Per Serving: Calories: 263; Total Fat 4g; Saturated Fat 0g; Cholesterol 34 mg; Sodium 281 mg; Carbohydrate 36 g; Fiber 2g; Protein 21g
Exchanges: 2 Starch, 2 Lean Meat, 1 Vegetable

Wednesday Fun #110 - Bird, bird, bird. Bird is the word.

As we approach the Festival of Turkey Eating, otherwise known as Thanksgiving, it got me thinking about the eating of bird. Poultry. Hmmm... what sorts of birds do we ate/have people eaten. I mean, you've got your very prevalent chicken and turkey, a little more exotic duck and goose, wild birds like pheasant, birds seen as edible in other cultures... and the list goes on.

So, go to the poll off to the right and let's see what sorts of poultry the Recipeeples have eaten, okay? And if you've got a great bird-eating story or a different bird you've eaten that I didn't include, please leave a comment here.


(And, um, sorry to any strict vegetarians/vegans out there... guess WF's not really for you this week!)

Wednesday Fun 109- Kings review

Need Bibimbap, Sushi, and to sing some Karaoke? Well then you need King's. When Pusher and I got back from visiting Diplowhat and Wog in Korea we set out to find a good place in the cities to get Dolsot Bibimbap (Pusher was hooked). Well after some passable places we found King's... in a stripmall just off Central Avenue.

Now if you aren't familiar with Korean food it's largely grilled meats and stews... in Korea there are actually either gas ranges or a hole for a charcoal grill in the tables where you cook your own meat. They are rich and complex full dishes and on the side there is always a number of Kimchi. Traditional/basic Kimchi is cabbage based and fermented (like sourkraut) with red pepper, but there are all different kinds made with seaweed, sprouts, daikan, or even fish. King's doesn't let you cook your own meat at the table (I suspect the insurance here would be insane) but otherwise you get the experience quite well.

The servers were also quite impressed with Diplowhat and Wog speaking Korean.

King's also has Sushi, which I don't think is traditional but may be related to the long occupation of Korea by the Japanese (I understand this isn't a good light topic of conversation with Koreans as they, quite rightly, have some resentment about being occupied). We have other places that we go for Sushi so have only had it once or twice but it was very good.

Of course after 9pm it turns into a nightclub. From what I've heard it is one of the hip places to go for Karaoke. That's not really my scene but the set up looked impressive.

Then of course there is Dolsot Bibimbap, I'll let Pusher explain Bibimbap since she loves it so...

Pork Tenderloin with Apricots and Brie

Ok I know it's not Turkey- but we had this tonight and it was yummy and SO easy I had to tell you about it. 

Pork Tenderloin stuffed with Apricots and Brie 

1 lb Pork Tenderloin

4 oz of dried apricots, chopped

5 oz of Brie, diced

1 tsp. Olive oil 

Directions: 

Butterfly the tenderloin by cutting it down the center (without cutting all the way through). Place wax paper on top and pound to 1/2 inch thickness.  Spread the apricots and brie on the pork, leaving yourself about 1/2 inch of an edge all the way around. Roll the tenderloin back up (starting on the long side) tucking in the filling as needed. Tie up with butcher string, use toothpicks to seal the ends if necessary.  Place pork on baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and bake at 425 degrees for 30-40 minutes (or until cooked through).  Slice to serve. 

I just eyeballed the apricot and brie amounts, but I plan to use more of both next time. 

Wednesday Fun #108 - Gimme some gravy!

I know I mentioned before (recently) about the lovely gravy that this recipe makes. But, oh, I think it's my favorite! Do you have a favorite gravy? Your mom's? Grandma's? Your mother-in-law's... but she won't share the recipe? How about gravy style? You've got beef gravy, chicken gravy, turkey gravy, pork gravy, sausage gravy, red-eye gravy... Maybe you love yourself some biscuits and gravy done right.

Tell us your gravy love!

November's Theme - Turkey

Happy November, everyone. Or, as we call it around here, try-not-to-eat-all-the-leftover-Halloween-candy month.

November's theme is, probably not surprisingly, turkey! We're talking anything turkey around here - from raw, using leftovers, or heck, even turkey-shaped things! Who knows, somebody around here (not me, thankfully) might even be hosting a Thanksgiving get-together, or just taking home a few pounds of leftover turkey from the in-laws.


So far we've got my (ok, Cooking Light's) Mahogany Turkey Breast with Vegetable Gravy. I love this recipe. In fact, I just made it again earlier this week, but subbed in baby leeks (from the CSA) instead of the onions and celery, and used maple syrup & honey instead of the molasses. I ADORE the gravy (but serve the gravy veg on the side, not in it).

This La Bamba Casserole calls for ground turkey, but you could totally sub in chopped-up leftover turkey. That also reminds me you can often substitute ground turkey in for some or all of the ground beef in many recipes. (We like to do halfsies ground turkey and ground buffalo sometimes because it still tastes red-meat-y.)

And these Chicken Chimichangas could totally be made with leftover turkey instead, and probably provide a nice change of pace for the day after Thanksgiving. Plus, if you've got people around, you could put all the toppings on the side and let people doctor up their own (maybe have some plain tacos/fixings available, too, for fussies).

For a delightful dessert or fun kid-cooking-project, you've also got Nectarine's Turkey Cookies. They are cute!

How about you? Got any turkey recipes to share? Or great ways to use the leftover turkey after the big day? (I did make a Friends-style sandwich with mine! The moist-maker made it yummy!)