Month: January 2017

Dinner · Main Course · Party Food

Pork Adobada Tacos

camimayLeave a comment

we just got back from visiting family in california. we went from a wet 2 degrees up to a solid 70 with sunshine. it was glorious. for maybe the first time my loyalty to the PNW wavered just a bit. especially once i bit into the juiciest, sweetest grapefruit fresh from a tree. yuuuummmm. i could live life down there.

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a group of us ventured out to universal studios and fulfilled our lifelong dream of visiting hogwarts! just for a well balanced day, i faced my *worst* nightmares going through the walking dead attraction. they actually make you walk through and it is terrifying, but not as terrifying as when you get fake attacked by someone in your own group once you think you’re safe. i scream loud.

all in all it was good fun and then we went out for tacos.

there is a little taco place near the fam’s place that everyone is obsessed with. that taco place, they PILE on the guacamole and they are just overflowing with all the meat and salsa. in a totally uncharacteristic move, i didn’t take any pictures!

when we got back home i couldn’t get tacos out of my head! i found the recipe for pork adovada from The Food Lab. i used two versions of dried new mexico chilies (normal? and spicy) because that’s what i could find at the store. this makes a super saucy pot of spicy, fall apart pork. perfect in a corn tortilla, or on a pile of greens.

minimal taco.

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overstuffed taco.

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Party Food

Resolutions and Cheese Dip

camimayLeave a comment

my mom always told me to ring in the new year the way that you want the whole year to go. given that last year was a combo of waaaaay too much champagne + bathroom floor, i decided to listen to my mom’s advice and rang in the new year with the people i love best and staying hydrated. i rolled out of bed feeling great and like i’ve  gotten a great head start on the obligatory new year’s resolutions list.

  1. cook more meals!! i’m very lucky to live in a great city with a million great places to eat/drink. at the end of the day it is hard to get my shit together and not order pizza every night. sub-resolution: use my slow cooker and stop thinking that the only meals worth cooking have to be feast worthy.
  2. stay positive-i am a stress puppy and i have a high stress job. there are not enough bath bombs in the world sometimes.  i want to work on purposefully managing stress with exercise and reflection to keep myself in check. i have so much to be happy about.
  3. marie kondo it up-i’ve only made it through the first chapter, but i need this in my closet, my spare bedroom, my kitchen…bonus points, will probably help with resolution #2

basically, be an adult and feed myself. don’t be such a downer because it’s all first world problems, and clean up my space.

as an anti-nye diet statement, here is the cheesiest baked spinach dip that i made last night for all my friends.

Baked Spinach Dip

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Ingredients

2 pkgs cream cheese, at room temperature

8 oz grated parmesan, divided

8 oz ricotta cheese

1 cup grated mozerella

1 cup mayonnaise

1 bunch (about 5-6) green onions, chopped

2 lbs frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry

1/2 cup canned diced jalapeños

2 TBSP garlic powder

1 TBSP salt, to taste

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the cheeses, about 3/4 of the parmesan, and mayo together until fully incorporated. Add the chopped onions, chiles, spinach, mix. Add garlic powder and salt, to taste. You can eat as is, but melty, cheesy dip is 1000x better.

Move the dip to a heatproof dish (pie pan or cast iron pan works great) and sprinkle the remaining shredded parm on top. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until golden bubbly.

Note: If you like your dips extra spicy or love garlic, feel free to dump in more peppers or garlic.

Dinner · Soup

Duck Quinoa Soup

camimayLeave a comment

One of the *hardest* things about living in an apartment with a little pup is having to bundle up a half dozen times a day for bathroom trips.  I crave hot tea and soup in my life so much more now that I can’t hide under blankets for days at a time. This cutie’s face is absolutely worth it:

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I just happened to have a couple of ducks worth of bones from duck confit, and I LOVE how this turned out.

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Ingredients

2 duck’s worth of bones

2 sweet onions, quartered

2 heads of garlic, cut in half

4 carrots, rough chopped

1 bunch of celery, rough chopped

2 cups of Quinoa/Wild rice (note that this makes a very thick soup, add less if desired)

3 dried bay leafs

1 tsp dried rosemary

drizzle of olive oil

1/2 sweet onion, diced

1 carrot, diced

1/3 cup whiskey

salt

pepper

Directions: Add the duck bones, onions, garlic, carrots, and celery to a large stockpot. Add just enough water to cover the contents of the pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and skim foam and excess fat that floats to the top. Simmer for 2 hours. Add the bay leaf, rosemary, simmer for 20 more minutes. Strain the solids from the broth.

Add olive oil to the stock pot and sauté  the onions until translucent. Add the diced carrots. Deglaze the pot with whiskey and scrape up any tasty bits with a wooden spoon. Pour the broth back into the stockpot, add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and add the Quinoa and/or wild rice. Boil until grains are tender. Adjust seasoning, if necessary.