Carne Adovada courtesy of CooknKate

This stuff rocks! You really should check out Kate's blog, because she is an awesome blogger, whereas I am getting sleepy and trying to do my best. The Pork is so tender and perfectly seasoned, you can eat it as tacos, burritos, in a bowl, or however you wish! We just scooped it up with tortillas and went to town. The chunks with fat on them are the best!

Ingredients

Red Chile Sauce
¾ lb dried chile peppers; ancho, New Mexico, guajillo…..you pick your heat level.
1 lrg onion, chopped
8 cloves fresh garlic, smashed with skins removed
2 teasp dried oregano
2 teasp ground cumin
2 teasp kosher salt

Carne Adovada
3 - 4 lb pork shoulder or butt, cut into 1/2″ cubes and trimmed of most fat.
4 cups Red Chile Sauce (just use the amount a batch would make)
2 New Mexico dried chile peppers, destemmed, deseeded and crumbled
4 teasp red pepper flakes
2 sticks cinnamon

Method

Red Chile Sauce

De-stem and de-seed chile peppers; place in large stock pot and cover with hot water. Soak for 30 minutes. Add remaining ingredients to pot, bring to a boil then simmer over low heat for half an hour. Drain off solids, reserve liquid. Allow to cool slightly, then process solids in batches in a food processor using reserve liquid for proper consistency. Strain through a wire sieve, pressing on the solids to extract the liquids. This should make about a quart.

Carne Adovada

Combine all ingredients in glass bowl and stir to mix. Cover and chill for 24-48 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove cinnamon before cooking. Cooking method: This can be done in a crockpot on medium for about 4 hours or low for longer; it also can be brought to a boil on the stove then transferred to a 350 degree oven and baked, covered, for 2 hours.
NOTE: When the meat is done, plenty of liquid will be in the pot with any fat that cooked off. Allow the meat to sit and cool, then pour off the thin liquid that has accumulated, leaving the solids in with the meat. If you chill it thoroughly, the fat will be easier to remove. This step is entirely optional if the fat content does not bother you.
Serve with tortillas, avocado, shredded lettuce, cheese etc…… or simply grab a spoon and shovel it in.

The 3:00 Recipe

Years ago I was treated to the best Prime Rib Recipe ever. As time went on it became known as the 3:00 recipe, because the gentleman who transcribed the recipe scratched out "at 3:00 preheat the oven to 450 degrees". The recipe is one from a local steakhouse who is well known for their Prime Rib.

Such was our Christmas dinner, along with green beans almandine, scratch stuffing from Ciabatta, yummy mashed potatoes to die for, seven layer salad and oh yes! the infrared roasted turkey which we used the leftovers today to make Grandma Gomez' taquitos! I am waiting patiently for the Wii Fit to arrive tomorrow to whittle my waistline back down into manageable proportions.

"The 3:00 Recipe"

1 prime rib roast, room temperature
garlic pepper, to taste
kosher salt, to taste
garlic slices, optional

Method

Mix spices and salt, rub on outside of meat. Make a thick crust. Place garlic slices in slits in meat if desired.

(Here is where the 3:00 part came in) Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour, turn off oven.

One hour prior to serving, turn on oven to 325 degrees, bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit to redistribute the juices. This produces the most succulent rare roast you can imagine!

Slice and enjoy!

Seasonal JOY!

I was going through my recipes of traditional treats that I remember from my past, thinking how great it would be to bring them to my present and share them with my kids. One of them is Cheddar Cheese Spritz Crackers. Similar to Cheezits, but way better. So, my son JJ and I are making and baking fervently, when my other sons Aidan and Frank return from grub and a movie guys-day-out kinda thing. Frank has been MIA since his stint in Barcelona, Spain over a year ago. He then travelled throughout Europe until this past August, when he returned to college in Boulder. I was beginning to worry, but I know how twenty-something world travelers can be, and waited patiently to hear from him.

Well, as I said JJ and I were cookie pressing multiple batches of Cheese Spritz when Aidan and Frank return. Hot from the stone, I hand Frank a Spritz and he pops it into his mouth. He immediately asks for a drink of "anything". I'm thinking it's because it's so heat hot right? I offer him water and he graciously accepts, gulping it down. Not until a good ten minutes pass, do I recall that my number one son has a HUGE aversion to Cheese! He wouldn't even eat "the blue" as a child. I always thought the boy behaved that way because class mates made a spectacle of the whole lunchtime ordeal. Not so. He really, really, hates the taste of cheese. Could I be a worse mother ever? I apologize for having forgotten (afterall, it's been a couple years since he's been home) and I feel positively horrible. Being the good son that he is, he assures me he will survive. Shortly thereafter, he promises to come for another visit tomorrow ( I really hope he does). I told him I would make whatever his heart desires, but it seems he just wanted free of the Cheddar zone for now.


Cheddar Cheese Spritz Crackers
from Wilton Cookie Master Plus Recipes

1 lb natural cheddar, finely shredded (I used my KitchenAid for this)
1/2 c butter, softened
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
Dash of hot red pepper sauce (I used several dashes of Tapatio)
1 1/2 cups AP flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika

Preheat 375. In a medium bowl, cream cheese, butter Worchestershire sauce and hot red pepper sauce until smooth. In separate bowl, mix flour and seasonings together. Gradually add to cheese mixture. Mix until dough forms smooth balls. Shape dough into small logs and place in cookie press. (I've been known to roll them into caterpiller shapes and cook as such.) Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheet on cooling rack. Remove from sheet and continue to cool on rack. Makes about 8 dozen crackers.

I love this song - Vice Versa Love by Barrington Levy

Vice Versa Love

Whoa... hello,hello,hello,helloooooooo.
Please give a helping hand oh jah
to guide all of us together
people are straying and straying
dividing themself's from each other
there's to many hopeless souls and ragamuffin souljahs
what we need is love and what we need

[Chorus:]
Everybody wants vice versa love
to all the hungry,vice versa love
come on and get some,vice versa love
come on and gett it vice versa love

[Verse:]
To all the rude boys put down all your guns,
The only amunition we need is love
love for everyone, mothers tell your daughters,
fathers please tell your sons, just warn them,
teach them,tell them, show them, that what we need,
that what we need is everybody wants vice versa love,
to all the hungry, vice versa love to all the rejects vice versa love,
come on and get it.warn them.

[Chorus:]
Please give a helping hand oh jah to guide all of us together,
people are straying and straying dividing them self from each other,
what we need is love that's what we need,
everybody wants vice versa love,to all the hungry,vice versa love,
to all the rejects,vice versa love come on and get it vice versa love.
Warn them,teach them, tell them, warn them,warn them,
tell them,warn them,warn them,warn them,teach them,warn them,teach them
warn them, tell them.
[speach]
WARN THEM.

Absolutely THE BEST Brisket Marinade Ever!

So I had this huge 15 pound beef brisket, and I wasn't sure what to do with it. The trouble with brisket is that it's a tough cut and takes marinating or long slow cooking to make it chewable. I'm not overly fond of BBQ, and all of the internet searches seemed to be pointing that direction. Then - yeah for me! I found this marinade recipe that includes red wine and horseradish. Sounds like Prime Rib to me, so I tried it. Let me tell you, I rarely make a dinner that doesn't end up with leftovers. Which is fine by me, because I have no bones about eating leftovers. My kids on the other hand, refuse to eat anything more than one meal. They didn't even eat Thanksgiving leftovers. Anyway... There were two measly slices of brisket left for my lunch today. They ate the entire thing and didn't say a word while doing so. I once read on a blog where a woman knew when dinner was a success because the family would applaud when they were finished. I say if you hear nothing but chewing and flatware scrapes, you've achieved success! In fact it was gone so quickly, I didn't have time to take a photograph, so just trust me on this one. You're gonna love it!

Brisket Marinade
adapted from About.com

1 1/2 cups red wine (be sure to use something you would drink yourself - the flavor is so much better)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons mustard (I used French's, but next time I'm trying a good stone ground)
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon wine vinegar (I substituted sherry, it was what was on hand)
1 tablespoon horseradish (I doubled this, John said it needed more kick!)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together. Pour over brisket and let marinate overnight in the refrigerator, turning occasionally. Remove brisket from marinade and boil remaining marinade for 5 minutes to use as a mop.

I put the whole shebang in the slow cooker and let it simmer on low for 10 hours. It was done before that, but I insisted on making Scalloped Potatoes as a side. The brisket was so tender you could cut it with a fork. The marinade thickened up as it simmered, and we used it as a gravy over the meat.

Here is the recipe for the scalloped potatoes I served, Au Gratin would do just as nicely.


Scalloped Potatoes
adapted from The Pillsbury Cookbook

4 medium raw potatoes, peeled, thinly sliced
1 small onion, sliced, optional
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cups milk

**I doubled the sauce ingredients, I really like my potatoes soupy!

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place potatoes and onion in greased 1 1/2 to 2 quart casserole. (I use a mandolin to ensure even slicing of onions and potatoes). In medium saucepan, melt margarine. Make a roux by blending in flour, salt and pepper; cook until smooth and bubbly. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until it boils and thickens. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until the potatoes are tender.

I have added diced ham to this dish with great results too. But that's another post.

Enjoy!