Archive for the Category » mexican style «

fiesta bean dip and chips ~menu idea

Here is another of our great menu ideas. It is frugal, and yummy at the same time, you will get my my Fiesta Basics ebook for the recipes.

You will need

  • refried beans
  • grated cheese we like the Mexican blend
  • sour cream
  • guacamole
  • diced onions
  • diced tomatoes or salsa
  • chopped fresh cilantro
  • optional is cooked ground beef
  • optional is cooked rice
  • corn tortillas

Prepare your refried bean however you like, adding optional items if desired. For each serving, add beans then cheese then each topping as desired, usually after the cheese we add onions, sour cream, salsa then a spoon of guacamole and some cilantro. Remember anything fresh and green makes it look gourmet. We serve this with corn tortillas that have been cut in 1/4 ‘s and fried in hot oil and are served still warm.

This dish is a meal in itself.

This is just a menu idea would you like to see it made into an ebook with step by step instructions and pictures?

Creatively Simple – How to Make Homemade Chimichangas

We moved from Southern California to Tennessee in the late fall of 1993. It was a wonderful new place except for one thing. We had grown up on Mexican food. Not American style fast food Mexican but authentic, miles from the border California style Mexican food. There was no good Mexican food in Tennessee. So I made it myself. Then I taught my daughters. Then we had more daughters and they learned to cook better than me. And they got better and better. And now that there are plenty of Mexican restaurants in Tennessee, we still can’t find one that tastes as good as our daughters cook. So I followed Georgia around the kitchen with my camera just to get this incredible information for you! 

Chimichangas are similar to fried burritos served on a bed of lettuce and smothered in sauce.

If you like this book you will probably also like my Creatively Simple – How to make Fiesta Basics – Salsa, Guacamole, Beans and Rice.

This is just one of a series of Creatively Simple “How to” ebooks approx 23 pages with lots of pictures  ebook download

not just a recipe, but a very detailed How To ebook with step by step instructions and lots of pictures  $4.95 regular price

NEW Release special for a limited time only $2.95

Creatively Simple – How to Make Homemade Taquitos

Creatively Simple – How to Make Homemade Taquitos

We moved from Southern California to Tennessee in the late fall of 1993. It was a wonderful new place except for one thing. We had grown up on Mexican food. Not American style fast food Mexican but authentic, miles from the border California style Mexican food. There was no good Mexican food in Tennessee. So I made it myself. Then I taught my daughters. Then we had more daughters and they learned to cook better than me. And they got better and better. And now that there are plenty of Mexican restaurants in Tennessee, we still can’t find one that tastes as good as our daughters cook. So I followed Georgia around the kitchen with my camera just to get this incredible information for you! There will be lots of upcoming books on her incredible Mexican recipes.

This is just one of a series of Creatively Simple “How to” ebooks approx 20 pages with lots of pictures  ebook download

not just a recipe, but a very detailed How To ebook with step by step instructions and lots of pictures  $4.95 regular price

AND MY First Things First ebook I send to you with every purchase!

NEW Release special for a limited time only $2.95

super simple salsa

We always make homemade salsa and in fact that is half the reason we grow a garden. Here is my super simple technique. It will take a bit longer if you don;t have a food processor, but just get a friend to help you chop. This will be enough to feed a small army.

  • 12 med size fresh tomatoes
  • 3 large peeled cloves of garlic
  • 1 large onion
  • 1 bunch of fresh cliantro
  • large handful of peppers, 6-10 your choice, we use jalapenos, cayenne, gypsy, poblano, and Anaheim, sometimes habanera
  • salt to taste

you will want chips to eat it with, we cook our own, see note below

Start by washing all of your ingredients. We will be using a food processor with the bottom mixing blade. Not the slicer or shredding disc. We will be using the pulse button.

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Step #1 – Start with 6 of the tomatoes cut in half, cover and puree by pulsing several times, then put in mixing bowl.

 

 

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Step #2 – Place garlic and cilantro in processor, cover and pulse until coarsely chopped.

 

 

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Add to mixing bowl.

 

 

 

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Step #3- Add all peppers, if big then cut in half or quarters, also add onion, peeled and quartered. Cover and pulse until chopped.

 

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Add to mixing bowl.

 

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Step #4 – Add remaining 6 tomatoes quartered, cover and pulse slightly only until diced in large chunks.

 

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Add to mixing bowl.

 

 

 

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Final step – Mix well and add salt to taste. Then refrigerate for 30 minutes to let flavors blend.

 

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Homemade salsa is great on many things but best with home cooked tortillas. Take a stack of corn tortillas and cut the whole stack in 4ths using a butcher knife. Then separate and cook each in hot oil. We use a deep fryer and tongs. Be careful and only cook for a few seconds each. Drain on paper towels. You will think you are eating in a Mexican restaurant! Ole!

vegetable fajitas

use the same recipe as the vegetable burritos, but substitute fajita seasoning and use small tortillas :) and add a bit of cheese and sour cream on top

cooking tip – spices

Using spices in your cooking gives dishes authentic flavors,

for Mexican dishes use cilantro, and peppers

for Italian dishes use oregano and olive oil

chili relleno improv

At our house we love Mexican food. I should say LOVE. We are sort of part Mexican, not by heredity but geographically, we are from California. Add to that I have this cooking thing in my blood, if I can imagine the taste I can make it. Well, last time I said something about all the wonderful peppers in my garden someone suggested we make chili rellenos. That was a thought I could not escape. But none of our peppers were the kind big enough to stuff. So what is my big  tip? Improvise!

What we came up with is a chili relleno casserole of sorts. First we start the sauce, in your blender add 5 squeezed fresh tomatoes, 3 cloves of garlic, 1/2 onion diced, and 1 red bell pepper diced,  puree. Pour into sauce pan and turn on med. Then into a bowl add the other half diced onion, and 12 to 15 chopped peppers. We used some sort of chili pepper (I forget all that we planted) bell peppers and several jalapenos, yes we like to live on the edge.

Then go back to your blender and add 3 fresh eggs, whip till frothy, then add one and a half cups flour, a T of baking powder and 1 cup milk, blend a little more until well mixed.

Then take a large skillet an add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan, heat to frying temp. Pour in the batter, and add peppers on one side (think stuffed omelet). Then add 2 cups shredded fiesta blend cheese.

Turn your pan down and cover. Meanwhile your sauce should be bubbling and thickening.

When you have determined your batter is done, use a large spatula and flip empty side up on top of stuffed side. Again think omelet. Cover pan back up and leave on low until inside is thoroughly cooked, or take out of pan and microwave a bit more if the outside is cooking before the inside.

Then serve on plate with sauce spooned over it. This has the same flavor as a chili relleno and is absolutely addictive! Even when Hannah adds too many jalapenos and you are breathing fire. They like it that way around here. You could roast the peppers first but we like the not-all-the-way-cooked fresh taste.

chimichangas

chimichangas are just basically fried burritos with toppings

  • flour tortillas
  • filling, our favorite is shredded beef and rice but we have also used cooked ground beef and refried beans
  • cooking oil
  • shredded mexican blend cheese
  • mexican red sauce
  • shredded lettuce
  • sour cream
  • diced cilantro
  • diced tomatoes

Your amounts will depend on the size of your crowd and the size of your tortillas.

Put enough cooking oil in a skillet to well cover the bottom and heat. Warm your filling to serving temp. Take a tortilla and add enough filling to cover a strip down the middle. Not as full as you would a taco. Fold the bottom and top in toward the middle but not as far as to touch. Then roll the sides in. It should look long and like a roll. Then place in the pan with the fold side down. Fry until golden brown then turn and cook on other side. You want your oil hot enough to fry but not so hot that it burns right away. The point is to make your tortillas crunchy. When done remove and place on paper towel.

To serve we make a big presentation with these. On each plate make a bed of lettuce then add chimichanga, then red sauce then shredded cheese, then dollop of sour cream, then diced tomatoes and then diced cilantro. The toppings make this a gourmet dish.

basic shredded beef

we use shredded beef in all kinds of dishes, tacos, enchiladas, sandwiches, burritos, chimichangas, tamales, and taquitos :) it can be made ahead and frozen

  • beef roast, we use shoulder roast since our local market often has it on sale
  • peppers (your choice)
  • onions
  • crockpot or slow cooker

This is really really easy. Take your roast and put it in the cooker, add quartered onions and sliced peppers. You can add as much or as little as you like. We usually use about 2-3 onions and 5-6 peppers with a 2-3 pound roast. Add enough water to cover, turn it to medium and let it cook until tender. When you can pull it apart with two forks it is done. If you have too much liquid put it in a pan on the stove and cook it down until all the broth evaporates.

Wasn’t that simple? Depending on what we are using it for we will sometimes mix with cooked rice.

chimichangas

check back later today I will be posting his recipe :)