Corn Tortillas

Corn tortillas, made fresh, are tender and flavorful. They also couldn’t be easier: masa harina and water. I often add a pinch of salt, but you can easily spice them up if you’d like. Masa harina is a very finely ground corn flour, finer than ordinary cornmeal. Masa harina is inexpensive and widely available in California, but you may need to visit a specialty store to find some in your area. Corn is dried, cooked, ground up and dried again. It is cooked in water with slaked lime, the only culinary application of this rock that I am aware of, which gives the masa its unique flavor.

Corn tortillas are usually made smaller than flour tortillas. Once you have your dough, roll it into 1 1/2-2 inch balls, roughly the size of a golf ball, and roll them out. You can use a tortilla press, but if you have a tortilla press, you probably already know how to make corn tortillas. Some very skilled tortilla-makers can press the dough out thin enough with their hands, but I use a rolling pin and place the dough between sheets of wax paper. The tortillas are dry cooked in a hot skillet. Once they come off the heat, store them between two dishtowels. The trapped moisture and warmth will keep the tortillas soft and tender until you are ready to eat them. Corn tortillas are best if eaten shortly after they are made.

Corn Tortillas
2 cups masa harina
1 cup + 2 tbsp water
pinch salt (optional)

Combine masa and water in a large bowl. Mix until a smooth, but not dry or sticky, dough forms. You may need to add a bit more water or a bit more masa. Break dough into golf ball-sized pieces (1 1/2-2 inch balls) and cover it with plastic wrap. Placing dough between two pieces of wax paper, on a flat surface, roll each one until it is a rough circle, 6 inches in diameter. It should be fairly thin, but the thickness is a matter of taste. If the dough tears, simply roll it back up and try again. After a few, you’ll get a feel for how thick to roll them. Stack them up between pieces of wax paper.
Heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Place tortilla on the skillet and cook for 30-60 seconds on each side. The surface of the tortilla will look slightly dry. Taste the first tortilla to see if you would prefer it cooked slightly more or less. The timing is not critical.
Place cooked tortillas between two clean dish towels to keep them moist until ready to eat.
Makes about 12 tortillas.

Read more...

Sage Focaccia

I'm a totally Carb freak! I enjoy eating bread 24/7 I normally fill up on bread when we go out to restaurants. Focaccia is so delicious and can be used in many applications other than just dipping it in oil and vinegar

This is a soft, light bread that I turned into some great grilled sandwiches for dinner. It can also be used to make pizzas as well! You can get creative with the spices if you don't like sage use another herb that you like rosemary, thyme, basal, oregano, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes. Combine flavors together to create something magically rosemary and thyme is a good combo same with sage and rosemary.


Focaccia is a yeasted, flat italian bread that is brushed (or doused) with oil before it is baked until golden. Unlike many breads, this bread is intended to develop a soft, thin crust. The best way to do this is to bake it on a sheet pan and allow it to cool on the pan before removing it to a rack. When you lift the bread, you will notice that the bottom of the pan is wet from condensation; the bread will dry on the rack, preventing sogginess, but this condensation keeps the crust from becoming hard, crispy or dry. I wish I had thought to take a photo of the lovely, dimpled bottom of the bread. But make it yourself and see what I mean.
This recipe makes a big batch - one 11x15 inch rectangle or 3 9-inch circles. You might want to halve it. You could also use rosemary instead of the sage if sage is unavailable to you. Wrap it in plastic wrap when completely cooled to keep it soft.

Sage Focaccia
4 tsp active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm (110F) water

2 1/2 cups room temperature water
2 tbsp olive oil
6-7 cups ap flour
1 tbsp salt
24-30 chopped fresh sage leaves, plus extra whole leaves for garnish

1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil
salt (coarse or flake is preferable)
24-30 chopped fresh sage leaves

Combine yeast and warm water in a large bowl and leave until yeast is foamy, about 10 minutes.
Stir 2 1/2 cups water, 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 cups flour and 1 tbsp salt into the yeast mixture. Add in the remaining flour, one cup at a time, until dough comes away from the sides of the bowl into a ball. Add the sage halfway through the flour additions. Move dough to flat surface and knead dough for 5-8 minutes, until the ball is smooth and elastic. Place in an oiled bowl, covered with plastic wrap, until doubled - about 1 1/2 hours.
For a rectangular focaccia: Gently lift the dough onto an oiled 11x16 jelly-roll pan(or cut in half and use two smaller baking sheets with sides), stretching it out slightly as you transfer it.
For a round focaccia: Cut the dough in three pieces and gently lift the dough into three oiled pie pans.
Splay your fingers and press into dough, indenting it and pushing it out towards the sides of the pan, much like a cat kneading a blanket, until the pan is full. This keeps the air bubbles in the dough. Cover with a damp towel and let rise for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400F.
Dimple dough again with your fingertips, brush with 1/4-1/2 cup olive oil, sprinkle liberally with salt and garnish with sage leaves. Let dough rest until the oven is fully preheated.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until bread is golden brown. Let cool in pan for 20-25 minutes before removing it to a wire rack to cool completely.

Read more...

Massaman Curry

I am a big fan of Thai food. We are always going out to eat at Thai places whenever we can, so if your looking for a good Thai Restaurant to eat at let me know and I will tell you all the best places to hit up in Utah.

Growing up I never was a fan of the exotic foods just because I was never introduce to them or around them plus my family wasn't adventurous when it came to food and trying new things. Once I met my husband that all changed he introduced me to the world of food and I haven't looked back since. I do however still order the same things at certain restaurants when we go out to eat just because that is what I love eating I'm not as adventurous as he is, least I'm opened my horizons from what it was.

Here is a curry recipe that we came up with you can make it as spicy as your heart desires. That's whats nice about making these recipes at home you can alter it to suit your needs.


2 cans coconut milk
1-2 cans of chicken stock you can also use water if you don't have stock
peanut butter
chicken
carrots
potatoes
onions
you can also you frozen mixed veggies if you want as well, that you would put in stir fry we do that sometimes.
Massaman curry paste found at the Asian specialty market
peanuts optional for crunch
salt and garlic powder to taste.
honey or sugar for sweetness add to taste

Start by opening up one can of coconut milk, curry paste, peanut butter to taste usually 1-2 big scoops just depends on how much of a peanut taste you want. Then add your raw diced chicken and cook on high after the chicken is cooked add the other coconut milk, chicken stock, taste to see if you need more curry paste, peanut butter, you'll add either honey or sugar at this point, same with salt and garlic powder. If your curry gets thick at the end you'll add the other can of chicken stock. Add your veggies and continue to cook for 10 mins or longer taste to see if you need more sugar, salt, garlic at this point just before you serve add the peanuts for crunch. (if the curry is still a bit thick add 1/4-1/3 cup of water)

We use Jasmine Rice for all our Asian food usually 2 cups of rice to 3 cups of water rinse the rice in a strainer until all the starch is washed away 5-10 mins we have a rice cooker. You can cook it in a pot you just can't open the lid :)

Read more...

Pizza

I have several recipes that I have gotten and found online for pizza dough I will post all of these recipes then you can be the judge on which dough you like using for your pizza night. I think making your own pizza is a joy, its cheap, easy, and fun. This is the perfect date night activity as well that you can make with your spouse or family it gets everyone involved in the process plus you know where you pizza came from, who made it, and you can be as creative as you want. You won't get charged extra for additional toppings or extra because your the chef of your pizza pie. Plus if you have little kids you can help them make mini pies that will be the perfect size for them.

We have a pizza stone we use which helps your crust get the crisp that your looking for. They are around $20 at Bed Bath & Beyond its really worth the investment it can be used for other things than just making pizza. Pizza stones absorb the heat of the oven and cook the dough from the bottom as well as from the top, producing a crisper, lighter crust. It is imperative that you use a pizza stone to get the best results.

I’ve made good pizzas at home, but never a great pizza until now. The crust was incredibly easy to put together and baked up light, crispy and full of air pockets, which I love to see in my crusts. The dough was actually made in the food processor, so it took very little effort in terms of mixing and kneading, and it was also very easy to handle.

The secret to the crust is the use of cake flour. In a commercial pizza oven, the dough cooks so quickly that a high protein flour (like bread flour) is needed to maintain the chewiness of the crust and keep the pizza from drying out. In a home oven, the pizza spends more time cooking because it is done at a lower temperature; the high-protein flour doughs take too long to cook, resulting in a tough pizza, while the dough made with the low-protein cake flour cooked faster and delivered a crust with a tender interior and crisp crust

Perfect Pizza Crust
(from Cooks Illustrated)
1 1/4 tsp instant or active dry yeast
1 cup water, slightly warm or room temperature
1 3/4 cups (8 3/4 oz) all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1 cup (4 oz) cake flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar

Preheat the oven to 500F with your baking stone on the oven rack.
Combine yeast and water and stir to dissolve.
Combine flours, salt and sugar in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to blend. With the motor running, stream in water/yeast mixture. Continue to process for 1-2 minutes, until dough becomes smooth and satiny. Add an extra tablespoon of flour if the dough becomes too sticky

Divide dough into two and shape each piece into a tight ball. Place on a lightly floured surface and cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap or a clean dish towel. Let rise for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
Working with one ball of dough at a time, place on a lightly floured surface. Flatten the dough into an 8-inch disk, then stretch the edges gently until the dough is about 12-inches in diameter, rotating the dough by quarter turns as you work. You can also gently stretch the dough by placing it on the backs of your hands, letting the weight of the dough stretch it out.
Transfer the stretched dough onto a baking sheet that has been covered with cornmeal (you can use a pizza peel, if you have one). Spread it with a small amount of the sauce (see recipe below), toppings of your choice and slide it quickly into the oven.
Bake pizza at 500F for 5-10 minutes, until well browned.
Retrieve pizza with baking sheet or pizza peel.
Serve immediately and repeat process with second piece of dough.Makes 2, 12-inch pizzas

Note: You can also use the “convection bake” setting, if your oven has one, and reduce the cooking time by 1-2 minutes. This allows for extra air circulation and could result in a slightly crisper crust, as well as a quicker cooking time.

Pizza Margarita Sauce

Cooks Illustrated offered a really simple sauce with the crust recipe. It’s made from canned tomatoes, so take care to use good ones. I’ve had better sauces, but I’ve also had worse. For a simple recipe, this one isn’t bad.

2 15-oz cans whole plum tomatoes (or diced tomatoes)

1/2 tsp sugar

1 clove garlic (optional - I left it out), minced

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

salt, to taste

Whizz tomatoes and the rest of the ingredients in a food processor until tomatoes are broken up. Drain with a fine mesh strainer for at least 30 minutes to get rid of excess moisture that could make the dough soggy.

Toppings

Cooks Illustrated recommends using fresh mozzarella, cut into 1/4-1/2 inch pieces or a simple sprinkle of Parmesan if you’re not a big cheese eater. The crust is also excellent with just the toppings and sauce, if you don’t want any cheese. Other options include:

Diced artichoke hearts (pictured above) are delicious, as are other veggies

Thinly sliced red onion goes with just about everything

Pepperoni or thinly sliced ham/sausage is always an option for meat eaters

The crust is light, so very “wet” ingredients, like fresh tomatoes, may not be a good choice.

Read more...

Flour Tortillas

Who doesn't love tortillas they are pretty much amazing and very versatile you can use them in some many different ways you just have to set out of the box from your bean and cheese burritos.

Here is a great homemade authentic tortilla recipe you will enjoy. I use the word authentic because we made them with lard. Before you gasp in shock and, possibly, disgust, let me say a few things about lard.

First of all, it has roughly the same fat and calorie count as butter and oil - slightly less than oil, actually - and falls in between the two with the amount of saturated fat it contains. It produces flavorful baked goods due to its every so slight salty/meaty taste and contributes to a very tender product, as well. Tortillas are not exactly tender, but their fillings are well complimented by using lard. The lard is a soft solid at room temperature and makes the dough incredibly easy to work with and roll out. I didn’t need to add any extra flour because the rolled dough didn’t stick to my work surface at all.

Use shortening if you can’t find lard.

Flour Tortillas

3 1/3 cups flour (bread flour is slightly preferable to all purpose)

1/2 cup lard

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup warm water

Dissolve salt in warm water.

Pile flour onto a flat work surface. Rub in lard with your fingers until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, like pie dough. Make a well in the flour and add 1/2 cup of the water. Knead dough together. Add remaining water 1 tablespoon at a time until dough comes together into a smooth, clay-like ball. It should not be wet.

Divide dough into 10 balls. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let rest for 20 minutes.

Roll out each ball into a circle. Get them as thin as you can - about 1mm thick.

In a nonstick frying pan over medium heat, dry fry each tortilla. It should take about 2 minutes on the first side, until the surface has many bubbles. Flip it over and cook an additional minute. Cooking may take slightly longer depending on the temperature of your stove, but do not increase the heat or you may burn the tortillas.

Tortillas can be frozen for up to 1 month, layered with sheets of wax paper.

Our instructor likes to fill the fresh tortillas with cheese and fry them in peanut oil.

Read more...

No Knead Dinner Rolls

No-knead bread is simple, but when I heard the promise of No-knead Dinner Rolls in an issue of Everyday Food, I was hooked. Dinner rolls always sound simpler and less complicated than baking a full loaf of yeast bread, much like baking a batch of cupcakes just sounds less labor-intensive than baking a multi-layer cake. But like the cupcakes, it turns out that making dinner rolls can take just as much time as the full-sized variation because you have to do all the same work leading up to putting the bread in the oven. A no-knead variation would let you skip messy steps, like kneading dough and getting flour all over the counter. So, I got out my mixer and set to work.

It turns out that the recipe is really only no-knead if you have a stand mixer. If you do, slap that dough hook on and you will only have to shape the bread before baking. If you don’t, I really recommend kneading the dough a little bit because it is very difficult to simply mix it by hand, and kneading it a bit gives it a better texture. Don’t get me wrong here: this recipe really isn’t very much work at all and it makes good rolls - it’s just not entirely no-knead for everyone!

Still, they’re easy to make. These are not as light as some dinner rolls I’ve had, but because they’re more substantial I think they go great with heavy sauces and chilis. You can even use leftovers for some really nice sandwiches! They have a nice buttery, slightly yeasty flavor to them. Since they’re baked in a 9x-13-inch pan, you pull them apart when serving, which means that every roll has nice, soft sides ready to be buttered and enjoyed.

No-Knead Pull-Apart Dinner Rolls
2 cups warm water (100-110F)
5 tsp active dry yeast (1/2-oz.)
1/4 cup sugar
5 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp salt
6 cups all purpose flour
additional 1 tbsp melted butter, for topping

Pour warm water into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add in yeast and sugar and stir. Let stand for 5 minutes until slightly foamy. Add in melted butter, eggs and salt and whisk to combine. Put the dough hook on the stand mixer and add in 3 cups of all purpose flour. With the dough hook on medium speed, gradually add in the remaining flour. Continue to knead until dough comes together smoothly, then knead with the dough hook for 3-5 minutes.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let stand for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
Turn dough out onto a very lightly floured surface and, using a pizza cutter or bench scraper, divide the dough into 15 equal pieces (thirds, then fifths). With lightly floured hands, shape each piece into a ball and place into prepared pan (3 rows of 5).
Cover with a piece of plastic wrap and let stand for 40 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400F.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, until rolls are golden and sound hollow when tapped.
Take additional 1 tbsp butter and brush on top of hot rolls using pastry brush. Allow rolls to cool in pan for at least 20 minutes before serving.

Makes 15 rolls.

Read more...

Tom Kha Gai Soup

2 cans coconut milk
2 cans chicken stock
2 limes zested and juiced
carrots, chicken, onions whatever suits your style to use how much or little of those
optional bamboo shoots, mushrooms.
1/2 bundle of cilantro
red curry paste which you'll find at the Asian specialty markets I believe they have one in Provo/Orem area if not we go to one in Sandy.
sugar or honey for sweetness add to taste
salt add to taste
garlic powder add to taste

I start by putting the cans of coconut milk and chicken stock in a big pot then add the curry paste and mix in with wisk add lime juice as well at this point. Then add your cooked chicken I did mine in a crock-pot all day with chicken stock, water, and some curry paste. After that add zest, carrots, onions stir. If you need too add your sweetener, salt, garlic powder. At the last moment you add your chopped cilantro and enjoy!

Read more...

Eggplant Parmesan

3 medium sized eggplants
1 cup flour
6 eggs, beaten
4 cups fine Italian bread crumbs, seasoned
Olive oil for sauteing
8 cups of marinara sauce (recipe below)
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 pounds of mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 cups of ricotta cheese
Directions

1. After you wash the eggplant, slice them into 1/4-inch thick slices. You may choose to peel the eggplant before you slice it. However, you may want to leave the skin on since it contains a lot of vitamins.

2. Place the eggplant slices on a layer of paper towels and sprinkle with a little salt, then cover with another layer of paper towels and hold it down with something heavy to drain the excess moisture. Let them sit for about an hour.

3. Working with one slice of eggplant at a time, dust with flour, dip in beaten eggs, then coat well with breadcrumbs.

4. Saute in preheated olive oil on both sides until golden brown.

5. In baking dish, alternate layers of marinara sauce, eggplant slices, ricotta, parmesan and Romano cheeses, until you fill the baking dish, about 1/8 inch from the top. Cover with shredded mozzarella cheese, and bake for 25 minutes in a 375 degree oven. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.


Scalini's Marinara Sauce

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons of chopped garlic
3 Tablespoons of olive oil
8 cups chopped tomatoes (fresh or canned)
1 cup onions, chopped
1/2 cup of fresh chopped parsley
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
1/8 cup of fresh chopped sweet basil
Pinch of thyme
Pinch of rosemary
One teaspoon salt
One teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Lightly saute the onions in olive oil in large pot for a few minutes.

2. Add garlic and saute another minute.

3. Add tomatoes and bring sauce to a boil, then turn heat low.

4. Add remaining ingredients, stir, cover and let simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally.

Read more...

Black Bean & Corn Salsa Dip

Ingredients:


1 can black beans
1 can corn
1 can rotel
2 avocados
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 can or less of el pado {more if you like it spicy}
1-2 limes
Bundle of cilantro

Open everything and drain the diced tomatoes, corn, black beans.
Leave the juice from the rotel in there. Dice up avocados, slice up the limes and juice them into the mixture, cut up the cilantro mix together add salt, pepper, and garlic to taste and enjoy!

Read more...

Sugar Cookies

Blend together until smooth:

1 1/2 Cup Sugar
1 Cup melted Butter
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
2 eggs
1 Cup Sour Cream

Combined in separate bowl:

5 Cups Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder


* Add dry ingredients to wet and mix until combined.

* Make a ball out of the dough and wrap in plastic wrap. Store in the fridge 2-3 hours or until firm. Over night works well too.
* Once dough is firm roll out a portion of the dough onto a floured surface. You want the dough thick. I roll mine out to be about 1/3" thick!
* Cut with cookie cutters and place on greases cookie sheet.
* Back at 375 for 10-12 min. You don't want them golden brown. They will be the same shade as the uncooked dough.

Read more...

Strawberry Salad

Salad:
Ingredients:

Strawberries
Mandarin Oranges
Candied nuts I used almonds but you can use any you want! {see bottom for candied nut recipe}
Mixed salad greens
Parmesan cheese {not the powder kind} Bacon
Raspberry Poppyseed Dressing {See bottom for recipe}

Mix everything together and serve!

Candied Almonds:

1 egg white 1 Tb water 2 C nuts Beat together until frothy and mix with nuts. 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 2 Tb cinnamon Mix together and pour over nuts Put nuts on baking sheet with parchment paper I used waxed and the nuts stuck to it. Bake at 250 for 2 hours stirring the nuts every 20mins after their done cooking let rest until cooled.

Raspberry Poppyseed Dressing:

1/2 c rice vinegar 1/2 c oil {vegetable or canola} 1/2 c white sugar 1 giant Tb of seedless raspberry jam however much poppyseeds you want in it I just eyeball until I think it looks good Mix everything together until smooth and blended.

Read more...