the best mexican dinner ever

This is one of my favorite dinners to make EVER. Everything is so tasty and fresh. This dinner includes guacamole and chips, steak tacos, and Mexican corn. It can't get better than that.

Like most people I'm a huge fan of tacos- soft tacos, hard tacos, steak tacos, fish tacos, any tacos on your mind! When I discovered this version on the Food Network, it showed signs of greatness. It has chili-rubbed steak, crunchy shredded cabbage, and an amazing salsa with cucumbers and avocados. Am I making your mouth salivate?

Tonight, seemed like the perfect night to make them. I just happen to have fajita meat and flour tortillas.

To make the steak (and feed four), you will 1 1/4 pound fajita meat, 1 tablespoon chili powder, 4-5 garlic minced, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1/4 ground cinnamon, and oil.



Combine the chili powder, cayenne pepper, garlic, and salt in a bowl.



Spread the spice mixture on both sides of the meat. Baste with oil to help spread the spice mixture evenly.



Grill the meat about 8 minutes on each side. Then take it off the heat and let it rest for about 15 minutes.



Slice the meat thinly.



Now comes the avocado lime salsa. Once you've made this, you want it all the time. Not only is it great on the steak tacos, it's also perfect dip for tortilla chips.

To make the avocado lime salsa, you will need an avocado cubed, half of a cucumber peeled and diced, 1/4 red onion diced, 1 lime, salt, a small bunch of cilantro chopped, and 1 jalapeno chopped.

In a bowl, mix the cucumber, avocado, and onion. Then mix in the lime juice, salt, cilantro, and jalapeno. (As you can see, I forgot the jalapeno.)



Okay... almost done. You also need to shred a quarter of red cabbage.



This is a great meal to allow everyone to self-serve. I line up the meat, flour tortillas, salsa, and red cabbage. Just add as much as you want on top of your tortilla.



When you're done, you'll have this delicious and tasty taco. Be warned- this is pretty much a guaranteed hit for all.





Now, I bet you want to learn how to make the Mexican corn and quite possibly, my guacamole. Well... let the first picture be a teaser. Recipes are to be continued...

meatloaf with mashed potatoes and broccoli PART 1

Tonight, I decided to make meatloaf with mashed potatoes and roasted broccoli. The recipes are going to come to you in three parts. Let's start with the main course- meatloaf.

This is the BEST meatloaf in the entire world. It's a strong statement but I'm ready to back it up. The flavors are so unique and untraditional. The cloves and allspice are the perfect companions for the tomato sauce. The lemon gives the meat a nice kick. I've made it a ton of times and it's divine every time.

You will need 1 1/2 pound ground beef, 4 slices of dried bread cubed, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 1/4 cup onion finely chopped, 1 egg beaten, 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 cup ketchup, 1/3 cup packed brown sugar, 1 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice, and 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves.

Today, I used Italian white bread because I got it free from Central Market. Any bread will do though. I also used more onion than directed. There are a few things I believe never hurts to have a little more. That includes onions, garlic, and cheese.



Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the ground beef, bread cubes, lemon juice, onion, egg and salt in a large bowl.



Mix well.



Put the meat mixture in a loaf pan. I'm using a meatloaf pan but any loaf pan will work. The meatloaf pan gives you the convenience of allowing the fat to drip. Bake for 15 minutes.



While the meatloaf is in the oven, prepare the tomato sauce. Combine the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, allspice, and cloves.



Mix well making sure to break up the brown sugar as best you can. Don't worry if you still have lumps. It will melt perfectly once in the oven.



Here is the meatloaf after it's been in the oven for 15 minutes.



Cover the loaf with the sauce.





Bake it for 30 minutes longer.



Here it is done and out of the oven. Give the loaf a few minutes to cool so it can hold its shape.




Try it and tell me what you think. Would you agree that it's the best meatloaf?

adapted from The Junior League Centennial Cookbook

bo luc lac

This is one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes growing up- bo luc lac. It's literal translation is shaking beef. You can say it's a kind of comfort food for me. Luckily, it's also very easy to make.

I've looked online and found many recipes for it. Each one has been very different from the next. This one comes from my mom. I consider her a reliable resource.

The recipe comes in two parts: a marinade and a dressing. To feed about four, you will need a pound of beef cubed (the cut is your choice; I used top sirloin) and one bunch of watercress. For the marinade, you will need Maggi, 4-6 garlic crushed, and cracked pepper. Maggi is a type of seasoning. It's very similar to soy sauce but, in my opinion, much better. This bottle is imported from Europe.



Since this recipe comes from my mom, I don't have exact measurements for the ingredients. I just shake enough Maggi on the beef so that it's covered. Then, I mix in the garlic and lots of cracked pepper. I prepared it early so that the marinade has time to be soaked in by the beef.



With about two tablespoons of olive oil, I saute the beef for about 5-8 minutes over medium heat.



For the dressing, you will need about 1 part olive oil and 1 part vinegar to about 1/2 to 1/3 part Maggi. The Maggi pictured below is what is readily available in the States. You will also need crushed garlic, sugar, cracked pepper, and yellow onion sliced thin.



You'll add the sugar and garlic as needed to balance the dressing. You can also add water to make it suit your taste. At the last minute, add the slices of onion. It will look something like this.



When it's ready to serve, place the beef on top of the watercress and pour some of the dressing on top. It's also great with sliced tomatoes. Like every other Asian dish, I like to compliment it with some steamed rice, too. Enjoy!

stir fried scallops

I feel like this is 30 Minute Meals by Rachael Ray, the Asian Edition. This meal is so simple and easy yet very tasty. It's reminiscent of meals my mom would make as a child. She would often stir fry with shrimp, baby bok choy, and garlic. I'm stepping it up with scallops.

You will need about 10 oz scallops (or shrimp), 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3-5 cloves garlic, about 10 oz. baby bok choy, and 1 tablespoon oyster sauce.



In a wok, heat up the oil in medium heat. Add the garlic and allow to slightly brown. Notice I like a lot of garlic.



Add the scallops and stir fry for two minutes.



Add the baby bok choy and oyster sauce and stir fry for another three minutes.



I accompanied it with a Vietnamese style omelette (eggs, fish sauce, sliced onions (I used a yellow onion but it also works with green onion), and pepper) and rice. I think the stir fry and the omelette would also be great would some heat.

fancy mac and cheese

If you like pasta, cheese, garlic, and basil as much as I do, you need to try this mac and cheese. Your mouth will be so delighted but don't make any plans to get up close and personal with anyone.

I call this fancy mac and cheese because you need two different cheeses that cost at least $12 and $16 a pound. I went for the middle of the road variety so you're welcome to spend more if you wish.

To serve 2 (pictures show servings for 4), you will need 2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped; a sprig of basil, thinly sliced; 3 tablespoons of oil; 6 ounces of green and yellow tagliatelle; 1-2 ounces of freshly grated of dry Jack cheese, and 4 ounces of Manchego cheese, shaved.



Before cooking the pasta, prep all the ingredients. Once everything is chopped, grated, and sliced, start to cook the pasta in boiling salted water until al dente. While the pasta cooks, combine the garlic, basil and olive oil in a large bowl.



When the pasta is ready, drain and reserve some of the water. (You can toss in some of the water later if the pasta seems dry.) Then toss the hot pasta with the garlic, basil, olive oil, and dry Jack (save some to top off before serving). Finally, toss in the Manchego.



Enjoy!



adapted from Macaroni & Cheese by Marlena Spieler

baked shrimp scampi

Being a fan of Barefoot Contessa, I was happy to receive latest book Back to Basics as a gift. When I got it yesterday, I immediately started to look through it for tonight's dinner. I like how each chapter starts with 10 Things- 10 no-cook things to serve for dessert, set a table like a pro, etc. The pictures are beautiful and every recipe looks DELICIOUS.

For my first 'back to basics' attempt, I made baked shrimp scampi. Looks pretty good, eh! I don't think I've had shrimp scampi before. At least, I wasn't aware of it.

Luckily, I already had all the ingredients (even 2 pounds of shrimp) so no trips to the grocery store were necessary. I was missing the fresh herbs (NOTE TO SELF: start an herb garden) but for some odd reason, I had their dry counterparts. For every tablespoon of fresh herbs, you can substitute with 1 teaspoon of dried herbs. Don't attempt this if you are worried about fat intake either... it's loaded with butter.



You'll need 2 pounds shrimp (peeled, deveined, and butterflied with tails left on), 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons dry white wine, salt and pepper, 1 1/2 sticks softened butter, 4 teaspoons/ cloves minced garlic (if you're like me, you add a little extra), 1/4 cup/ 4 minced shallots, 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves, 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 XL egg yolk, and 2/3 cup panko.



Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, combine the shrimp, olive oil, wine, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of butter.



In another mixing bowl, combine the butter, garlic, shallots, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolk, panko, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.



In a baking dish, arrange the shrimp in a single layer cut side down with the tails curling up and toward the center of the dish. Pour any remaining marinade over the shrimp.



Spread the butter mixture evenly over the shrimp. Then bake for 10-13 minutes. I like the top browned so I placed it under the broiler for a couple minutes, too.



Here's the finished product. Doesn't look quite like Ina's but I'm sure it's because I didn't have the 14 inch dish the recipe called for. All in the same, it was amazing and I'll definitely have to do it again. With my Asian nature, I ate it with steamed white rice. I do that with almost everything.

battle of the bolognese, part 2

I made not just one, but two bolognese sauces yesterday. I found two recipes from two different books that were very different from each other. Call me crazy but I just couldn't choose. What if I picked the one that wasn't quite as good? That would be a catastrophe. So... I made both.

This one comes from The Best Recipe by Cooks Illustrated. I had a feeling that this would be the best recipe (funny ha ha... choice of words was not intentional). They spent almost two pages just explaining the process of how they even devised the bolognese.



You need 3 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons minced onion, 2 tablespoons minced carrot, 2 tablespoons minced celery, 3/4 pound of ground beef (or mixture of beef, veal, and pork), salt, 1 cup whole milk, 1 cup dry white wine, and 1 28oz can of whole tomatoes packed in juice (chopped fine). (Ignore the olive oil in the picture; my oversight that was too late to correct)



Heat 3 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, and celery.



Sauteé for about 6 minutes.



Add ground meat and 1/2 teaspoon salt. As you crumble the meat, cook for about 3 minutes.



Add milk and bring to simmer for about 10-15 minutes.



Add wine and bring to simmer for 10-15 minutes (as the wine evaporates).



The next two shots are rather random. I posted once about this great can opener and I promised pictures of the next time I would use it so here they are. The can opener is amazing. The edges of the can are smooth and danger free.





Add tomatoes with their juice and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 3 hours (until the liquid has evaporated).





Here is the final product. The noodles are tossed with the remainder of the butter and topped with the sauce. We had it for an early dinner today.



VERDICT: My husband and I both enjoyed the bolognese from yesterday SO MUCH MORE. He felt the flavors were more cohesive and this one was too acidic. I have to agree. Try either and let me know what you think.