Unless I’m busy gorging on pasta, dinner at home doesn’t seem complete to me unless there are some veggies. This is probably because my dad always seems to need at least three types of vegetables on his plate and he’s been like that for as long as I can remember. Roasted vegetables are usually the default in our house, but these orange and apple cider vinegar sautéed brussels sprouts from Pati’s Mexican Table were speaking to me. Well, actually her recipe calls for green beans, but we are big fans of brussels over here so I’ll use any excuse to sub them in.

It’s hard to make brussels sprouts look attractive, especially after removing the outer dark green leaves, so you will just have to trust me that these brussels are super tasty. They are light and citrusy, with just the right amount of acidity from the apple cider vinegar. They were also the perfect finishing touch to our dinner of Sweet and Salty Salmon and Arroz Verde.

Whether I’m roasting or sautéing them, I typically halve brussels sprouts so they cook quicker and have more layers to soak up the seasonings or sauce. I was watching Anne Burrell on the Food Network a few months ago and she gave me another reason to always halve them – it releases some of the gases in the vegetable that can cause it to taste bitter. So always halve your sprouts!

Orange Glazed Brussels Sprouts

 

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Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound brussels sprouts, stems and dark outer leaves removed, cut in half
• ¼ cup chopped white onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ cup orange juice
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add the halved brussels sprouts, chopped white onion and minced garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the brussels sprouts are almost tender, about 15 minutes. I usually test to see if I can pierce a sprout with a fork with a little resistance.
2. Add the orange juice and apple cider vinegar. Cook until the sauce has slightly thickened, about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and serve.

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Lauren Uncategorized 2 Comments

We’re back at it today with another tasty dish from Pati’s Mexican Table. Pati gave this arroz verde the title of My Favorite Green Rice, but I’m renaming it simply My Favorite Rice because it is the best rice I’ve ever made. The rice is so simple, but it has great flavor to it that really complements dishes like the Sweet and Salty Salmon well. A vibrant green puree is made from poblano chiles, parsley, cilantro and garlic. The puree gets soaked into the uncooked rice before finishing cooking in the water, broth and lime juice. It amazes me that such a small step added to cooking regular rice could make such a huge impact in the flavor. Similar to a few other dishes I’ve had on here where I’ve used chili peppers (Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad and Monday’s Sweet and Salty Salmon), the poblano peppers have the seeds and pith removed so they do not make the rice spicy.

I love using my Breville Risotto Plus for this rice dish because it lets me sauté and then switch it to the rice cooker setting all in the same pot. I know I’ve talked about this appliance before, but I love it! In our house it is used as our slow cooker, rice cooker and steamer. We also use the risotto setting when we’re feeling fancy and indulgent. The sauté feature is especially helpful for slow cooker recipes that require you to sauté onions or sear meat before turning on the slow cooker setting.

Anyway, back to My Favorite Rice! If you don’t have a rice cooker with a sauté setting just follow the directions below for stove-top cooking. In addition to pairing with my favorite Mexican dishes from Pati’s Mexican Table I also love serving this rice to spice up an otherwise “boring” dinner, such as grilled chicken and veggies. Once you try it you won’t want plain rice again!

Arroz Verde

 

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Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

• 2 poblano chiles, seeds and pith removed, roughly cut into chunks
• ½ cup water
• ⅓ cup parsley leaves
• ⅓ cup cilantro leaves
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1½ teaspoons coarse salt
• 2½ - 3 cups vegetable broth
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cups jasmine or long-grain white rice
• ½ white onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• Crumbled Cotija cheese, for topping if desired

Directions

1. Puree the poblanos, water, parsley, cilantro, garlic and salt in a blender or food processor until smooth. Pour into a measuring cup and note the amount (or note the amount if your blender has measurements on the side). In a separate liquid measuring cup, measure out enough vegetable broth so that when added to the amount of poblano puree you make the two liquids together equal 4 cups. Keep the poblano puree and the vegetable broth separate.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the oil then add the rice. Cook, stirring often, until the rice changes to a milky white color, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped white onion and continue to sauté until softened, about 3 minutes.
3. Pour the poblano puree into the pan with the rice and continue to stir while it cooks. Cook until the puree thickens and then is mostly absorbed by the rice, about 3 minutes. Stir in the vegetable broth and lime juice then bring to a boil. Cover and reduce the heat to low. Let cook for 15 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed. The rice should be cooked and tender, but there should still be some moisture in the pan. Fluff with a fork or rice paddle then serve with the crumbled cheese on top, if desired.

Notes

If you are using a rice cooker with a sauté setting, switch to the rice cooker setting immediately after stirring in the vegetable broth and lime juice and cover with the lid.

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I don’t cook salmon often so when I finally do I want it to taste unbelievably good. The main reason we don’t have salmon in our regular rotation is because Matt is not a fan. So anything that can mask the “salmony-ness” as Matt puts it is an instant winner in our house.

Both Matt and I devoured this Sweet and Salty Salmon. The salmon is marinated and then baked in the marinade, which keeps the fish super moist and tender. The sweet and salty marinade also imparts a ton of flavor on the salmon. The marinade is mostly brown sugar, soy sauce and lime juice. Add in the ginger, jalapeño and cilantro (or parsley if you’re like us and don’t like cilantro), and you have a total Asian-Mexican fusion happening in your kitchen.

I found this recipe in one of my absolute favorite cookbooks – Pati’s Mexican Table. I bought it on a whim and made seven recipes out of it for Matt’s Mexican food themed birthday weekend last year. You would think with seven recipes there would be at least a couple that were just okay, but every single one was so amazingly delicious. After that, I am fully confident to cook anything from the book and know the dish will be a winner, and this salmon proved that even more for me the other week. I was nervous about buying a Mexican cookbook since I am so intolerant to spicy food, but I have not had any issues. If you are looking for some delicious meals that have a totally different flavor profile than what you are used to cooking I very highly recommend this cookbook. Just like the Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad, if you remove the seeds and pith from the jalapeño it will not make the marinade spicy. However, still be careful with how you cut the jalapeño or any chili pepper!

I had an unfortunate incident while making this dish. On photo shoot days I’m so busy cooking and photographing that I don’t have time to sit down and eat so I was multitasking by eating a piece of toast while preparing this marinade. I thought I was being careful about not using my hand that had touched the jalapeño seeds, but I must have switched hands and used my jalapeño hand for the toast. Instant searing pain on the outside of my lip ensued, forcing me to guzzle milk and frantically Google hot pepper burn remedies. This resulted in one so-so solution, which was very carefully washing the outside of my lip with dish soap, and one fantastic solution – peanut butter! I smeared it on my lip and felt instant relief. I also ate some for good measure. I let it sit on my lip for about an hour just to make sure I was in the clear and I was completely pain-free! So, the point of all the dramatics is to be careful when you are using hot peppers, even a mild one like jalapeño. And if you do get a burn, grab that jar of Jif!

Also, in case you were wondering, these are the seven recipes I made from the cookbook for Matt’s birthday last year! I will be posting the green rice recipe on Wednesday, but let me know in the comments below if there’s another recipe you would like me to make again and post!
– Charred Tomato Salsa (salsa roja)
– Cooked Green Salsa (salsa verde)
– Creamless Cream of Zucchini Soup (crema de calabacita)
– Oaxaca-Style Mushrooms and Cheese Quesadillas
– Blissful Corn Torte
– Creamy Poblano Rajas (rajas con crema)
– My Favorite Green Rice (arroz verde)

Sweet & Salty Salmon

 

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Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• ½ cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup lime juice
• 1 jalapeño, seeds and pith removed, minced
• 1½ tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 6 salmon filets, 4-6 ounces each, skin-on
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley or cilantro leaves
• 2 scallions, stems removed and sliced
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the brown sugar, soy sauce, lime juice, jalapeño, ginger, garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for a few minutes while stirring until the brown sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and let cool.
2. In a baking dish large enough for the salmon to be in a single layer, place the salmon then pour the marinade on top. Carefully flip the salmon to completely coat in the marinade before leaving the salmon skin-side down. Cover and refrigerate the salmon for at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours. Several times while it’s marinating spoon the marinade over the salmon.
3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Remove the salmon from the fridge 10 minutes before cooking. Bake the fish for 15-18 minutes or until it flakes easily with a fork. Carefully remove the skin before serving and garnish with the parsley and scallions.

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How fun are these Funfetti Mini M&M Piñata Cupcakes (see what I did there)?! I’ve been seeing this style cupcake on Pinterest for a while now where you bite into it and everything falls out like a piñata, but I thought it would be even more fitting if the piñata style cupcakes actually mimicked the look of a piñata.

I dyed my vanilla buttercream with food coloring and then layered the frosting in stripes with a thin pastry tip to look like the crepe fringe on a piñata. I used a round tip 5 from this set.

The best part of these cupcakes is that they are filled with mini M&M’s! Mini M&M’s are one of my favorite types of M&M’s because you get to eat a whole bunch of them. Their rainbow coloring also adds to the fun factor.

I use Funfetti box cake mix for this recipe because I have yet to try a homemade version that compares. If you know of one, comment below! Another reason for the box mix is when you have a lot of decorating involved sometimes it is just easier to have the cake ready to go in a few minutes.

The inspiration for these Funfetti Mini M&M’s Piñata Cupcakes was my friend’s 30th birthday! My friend Lauren loves Funfetti, is obsessed with M&M’s and we also have this thing with piñatas. On my 21st birthday my friends gave me a piñata named Paco. Paco became our mascot and lived with us for all of junior year and then moved with us to our apartment senior year. Below, Paco is seen celebrating Cinco de Mayo with Lauren, my friend Katelyn and myself. In a goofy way he holds a special place in some of our best college memories and I can’t help but smile every time I see a piñata.

So make someone smile this weekend and celebrate with these Funfetti Mini M&M Piñata Cupcakes!

Funfetti Mini M&M Piñata Cupcakes

 

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Yield: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 1 box Funfetti cake mix, batter made according to package
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 4-5 cups confectioners’ sugar
• ¼ cup whole milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• Food coloring
• 1 cup mini m&ms

Directions

1. Bake the Funfetti cake mix into 24 cupcakes following the instructions on the package. Let cool completely.
2. Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Add the confectioners’ sugar, milk, vanilla and salt. Beat for 3 minutes, scrapping down the sides as needed. If the frosting is too thick, add more milk. If it’s too thin, add more sugar. Divide into 4 small bowls. Dye with the food coloring. I used regular blue, regular red, neon orange and neon green. Place into piping bags fitting with a thin tip. Set aside.
3. Use a cupcake corer or a knife to remove the middle of the cupcake. Cut the top of the cupcake “core” you just removed and set aside the rest. Fill the cupcake with about 2 teaspoons on mini m&ms - enough so it is almost to the top of the cavity with enough room for the cake “core” top. Place the cake “core” top on the m&ms. It should look like you never even cut it open other than the circular cut line. Repeat with the remaining cupcakes.
4. Frost the crepe paper frosting on the piñata cupcakes. Starting with the color you want on the bottom (for reference, this was my red), pipe a straight line starting at the bottom quarter of the cupcake down to the bottom of the cupcake. I found it easiest to start in the middle and then work my way out to either side. Repeat with the rest of the cupcakes. Taking the second color (this was my blue), pipe a straight line starting at the halfway mark of the cupcake down to just over the first color. Start in the middle then work your lines out to either side. Repeat with the rest of the cupcakes. Take the third color (this was my orange), and pipe a straight line, this time starting at the top quarter mark of the cupcake down to just over the second color. Work your way out to both sides and repeat for the remaining cupcakes. Using your final color, which will be the color you want on the top (this was my green), pipe a straight line starting at the top of the cupcake down to just over the third color. Continue your straight lines out to both sides and repeat for the remaining cupcakes.

Notes

The moisture from the cupcake softened the m&ms and the coloring on the m&ms rubbed off. For the best impact, make and serve these cupcakes on the same day.

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Churro waffles! Yes! If you thought waffles couldn’t get any tastier just look at these photos. Crispy outside; soft inside; these waffles have been coated in cinnamon-sugar to channel some serious churro vibes. I stumbled across these insanely delicious waffles because last year for Matt’s birthday my brother-in-law, Nick, was coming to visit and I wanted to come up with a special menu. Matt’s birthday falls on the 5th of the month so I decided to deem the day Cinco de Matto and serve my spin on Mexican food all weekend.

When deciding what to make for brunch, I immediately thought of churros since Matt loves them. I do too, I mean, who doesn’t like fried dough covered in cinnamon-sugar?! When I saw the churro waffle recipe from one of my favorite food bloggers, Half Baked Harvest, I knew I had to make them.

I wanted something to brighten up the waffles and Matt loves raspberries so I went with a raspberry puree. The acidity of the raspberry sauce cuts through the sweetness of the churro waffles and is a great accompaniment. Other than churro waffles, this raspberry puree would work with a lot of other recipes, from drizzling over cheesecake to mixing into plain Greek yogurt. But today, we are using it to amplify these already awesome churro waffles. I used my Perfect Buttermilk Waffle batter for these before coating them in the cinnamon sugar.

Another fun idea for kids, or adults who like to eat like kids sometimes, would be to cut the waffles into strips before coating in the cinnamon-sugar – perfect for dunking into little bowls of the raspberry puree! You could lightly toast the waffle strips after cutting them to make sure they hold up to the dunking. Now all I can think about are waffle strips and how I want to go make some, but I digress. I hope you try these Churro Waffles with Raspberry Sauce soon! Or today since it is Waffle Wednesday, folks!

Churro Waffles with Raspberry Sauce

 

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Yield: 8-10 waffles & ¾ cup raspberry sauce

Ingredients

for the waffles

• ½ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1¾ cups all-purpose flour plus 1 tablespoon
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1½ cups buttermilk, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• Pinch of salt
• Whipped cream and fresh raspberries, for topping

for the raspberry sauce

• 12 ounces frozen unsweetened raspberries
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon lemon juice

Directions

for the waffles

1. Turn on the waffle iron to get it hot and spray with nonstick cooking spray, depending on manufacturer’s instructions.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl. Stir to combine then create a well in the center for the liquid ingredients.
3. Add the eggs to the cooled butter mixing bowl and beat until frothy. Add the buttermilk and vanilla extract. Beat again until well-combined. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the well in the dry ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. The buttermilk and leavening will create a batter full of air bubbles. Pour the batter onto your waffle iron in batches and cook according to manufacturer’s instructions. If working in batches, place the cooked waffles directly on the rack of your oven or toaster oven on a low heat to stay warm.
4. Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a wide shallow bowl. Brush the warm waffles with the melted butter then dip in the cinnamon sugar to coat. I used my hands to sprinkle more on to make sure there was cinnamon-sugar in every nook and cranny. Repeat for all the waffles. Serve with the raspberry sauce, whipped cream and fresh raspberries.

for the raspberry sauce

1. Thaw the raspberries in the microwave or on the stovetop. Once thawed, place a fine mesh strainer over a small saucepan. Press the raspberries through the strainer by pressing with the back of a spoon. Scoop the seeds off the strainer as needed. When all the raspberries have been pushed through and left only the seeds, all the sugar and lemon juice to the sauce pan. Heat over medium-low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved and the raspberry sauce is heated through. Serve warm.

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Lauren Uncategorized 0 Comments