Tamales- the Aztec Snack

It  has  been  a  tradition  in my family every year that around Christmas we all gather around the table and form the tamale assembly line,  The tamale is built with 3 key Components, the wrapping , corn husk, the masa, cornmeal, and the filling  fit into hand size packages. Then they are slowly steamed and  permeate the whole house with an amazing aroma.  The process is time consuming so tamales are made in bulk and can either be served at a large gathering or easily stored for a quick meal or snack on the go. Just like Chocolate, tamales go back to the Aztec empire and have been made since 8000 BC.  For the most part tamales are wrapped in corn husks although towards Central America the banana leaf is used, creating a larger tamale and can be filled with savory meats,  vegetables, cheeses, fruits, nuts and spices.  Although the masa itself is flavored, the filling of the choice additionally infuses flavor making it oh so tasty.  The one obstacle to this dish is finding the correct ingredients in a regular supermarket.  A Mexican specialty store is your best bet for getting everything.  For this recipe you can  add  what ever filling you like but I am going  to  do a  chicken and chili one as it is easy, inexpensive and delicious.

Soak 30 Corn husks in water fully  covered for 1-2 hours till pliable

Masa

6 Cups Masa Harina

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup Vegetable or chicken stock

2 cups water

1/4 vegetable oil

Mix thoroughly until a dough is formed set aside for 1 hour

Filling

2 lbs chicken breast

1 large onion chopped

3 jalapeno peppers chopped

2 cloves garlic

1/2 cup cilantro

1 larger tomato

1 tbsp cumin

2 tbsp chili powder

Salt 

Pepper

1 cup water

Simmer all ingredients till chicken is thoroughly cooked then shred and keep at low heat.

Place corn husk flat, line with masa then add filling, fold sides over then bring down top flap.  take a small strip of corn husk and tie closed and place in large steaming pot

Continue until  you are all out of ingredients ans place pot over low heat.  cover and steam 1- 1 1/2 hours until masa is firm

  

Hot Apple Cranberry Butter Nutmeg Crisp

 Winter days are getting  colder and getting to the market becomes more trying yet we all want to celebrate with festive foods, so its time to make due with what you have.  I have found  over the years that even when resources are scarce you can always come up with something that tickles the palate and warms the belly.  Some of the  most  elaborate meals I have made are with limited resources.  It makes  it  more  of  a challenge.  Today Isabella  and  I  were looking  for  indoor  snowstorm activities. After we finished  playing in the clothes hamper we went to the kitchen.   I opened the fridge,  gave it a quick scan, and saw oats, apples,  a lemon and cranberry butter.  Cranberry butter, is more like cranberry jam than butter.   Although dairy butter is added  in the crumble, the cranberry butter doesn't have the fats, like dairy or nut butters, and is used for the bottom portion of the dish.   I chose to leave the skin on the apples because lots of the vitamins are stored in it, plus it adds texture to the already crunchy gooey treat. Oats thave tons of vitamins and minerals and are a great souce of fiber.  A treat like this is best served hot with eggnog ice cream that doubles the nutmeg pleasure.

Bottom

4 Apples ( whatever is in the fridge) cored and chopped

4 tbls sugar

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tsp nutmeg

4 tbls cranberry butter or jam

2 tbls maple syrup

Mix all the  ingredients and put in 9 inch pie tin

Top

1 Cup Oats ( whatever is in the pantry)

2/3 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 pinch salt

half stick melted butter

Mix all together and  cover pie filling

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes, cool for a few minutes and serve with eggnog ice cream.

My First Pickle

This  is something  I have  always wanted to make,  I guess I've  been procrastinating  it  for  a while but when I was in the  market the other day they had Kirby cucumbers on sale and they were just  screaming  " Pickle Me" .  The  concept is  very  basic,  the  acidity of vinegar preserves the food you are trying to keep.  For the most part we think  Cucumbers when we think  pickles, but Cauliflower, Beets, Eggs, Pigs Feet, Mango's, Jalapeños,  Herring, Watermelon and  Beef are all pickled.  Corned  beef  is  actually  pickled beef.  The  word  in  English  for corn refers to the similarities of the  kernels and corning salts used to pickle beef.  Outside of the English language, people refer to Corn as Maize.  To  make pickles  you need  the basics,  everything  else is  your  blank canvas.  This afternoon  I  made  dill  pickles.  The most  basic recipe,  impossible to mess up.   After that,  I will experiment away.  Salt, vinegar and water are cheap, or  free  at the  salad bar, its  just  having  the  patience to let them  brine, or  in  my  case, overcoming procrastination.  

In a Clean Jar 

8 Kirby Cucumbers washed  thoroughly

2 cloves garlic

Sprig of dill

2 tbls whole peppercorns

(any other spices you want add now)

Brine

Boil

1 cup vinegar

1/2 Cup water

3 tbls coarse Salt

2 tbls Sugar

Fill Jar  almost to top with fluid,  allowing  1/2 inch space.  Make  sure  cucumbers are fully covered.  Let  sit at  room temp  for about 4-5 Hours,   refrigerate for 2 days -4 weeks.

Portabella Mushroom, Shallot and Farmers Cheese Tort with Parmesan Crust

There is defiantly  something wonderful about the smell  of  onions cooking.  It is a deep hearty aroma that fills the air and can drive anyone to hunger.  Shallots are particularly aromatic so when they are being slowly caramelized in olive oil with mushrooms, garlic, rosemary and thyme,  it is truly god sent.  I try to make everything from scratch as much as possible so I even made my own cheese for this , but store bought works.  I just really liked using a creation within a creation .  If you have a particular favorite, use that. Farmers , goat or any crumbly creamy cheese works.  For the pie crust I just used a basic pie crust recipe.  I doubled the recipe for a thicker crust.  Any kind  of  mushroom  can  be  used  or  even a  mix of  mushrooms but the portabella is meaty, has a great consistency and really came through.  It is an earthy dish so  I recommend making a crispy mixed green salad with fruits and nuts to accompany it.  To drink a  nice cranberry  or cider spritzer.  

Pie  Crust

1 1/2 Cup flour

1/2 butter  or lard

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

4 tbsp water

Mix  all  ingredients together  form  ball  and  roll  out to 1/8th of an inch thick.  

Line  9 inch  pie  tin and  bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes  remove and  let sit and  cool

Filing

1 cups poratabella  mushroom coarsely chopped

1/2 cup shallots thinly  sliced

1 clove garlic

1 cup vegetable stock

3 tbls red wine vinegar

1 tsp salt 

1tsp black pepper

1tsp thyme

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp flour dissolved in 2 tbls water

Combine all ingredients in sauce pan and slowly  simmer till over low heat  till liquid is reduced

Line  bottom of pie crust  with 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese  

crumble 4 Oz farmers and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese mix  in to filling before putting in pie

Bake at 350 degrees for  45 minutes

Remove from oven let  cool  and  serve warm

Feijuada Saturdys, Brazilian Black Bean Stew

 Being  born in Brazil I have  this  dish  running  through the blood in my  veins.  It  is  one  of  the most  satisfying  dishes to your belly and soul.  Even though I was born in the Amazon, not in the Angola region, where  it has its origins,  It was one of the first things I ever ate.  The "National Dish" extends to every region of Brazil, and to Brazilians all over the globe.  The most commonly widespread story of the origins on the dish was that it is slave food, made from discarded pieces of meat from wealthy land owners to the slaves, the smoked  tails, snouts, hocks and feet of a pig bobbling around in a cauldron of black beans.  These days to get a Feijuada Completa it still  has these components but people tend to use more accepted meats and tend to go with the less grotty bits or omit them completely.  It is  an  incredibly heavy meal that takes a long time to make so it is  traditionally eaten on Saturdays and Wednesdays.  The meal is served  with white rice(Arroz Blanco),  toasted powdered yucca (farofa),  garlicky collard greens( covie) and orange slices.  I always make a heart of palm and avocado salad, yucca fries, tomato vinaigrette and of course tons of Guarana,  a Brazilian soda that has more caffeine than coffee.  If there is room for desert,  coconut flan and /or Acai compote over tapioca ice cream.  This dish  is  great for a late Saturday lunch party, there  are many versions of it but for simplification reasons I will give you the standard version,  for  the vegetarian, version simply omit the meat,  it  still  tastes  great.

Feijuada

1 lb  black turtle beans soaked overnight, water discarded

2 large onions chopped

4 cloves garlic

salt

black pepper

2 bay leaves

1 bunch cilantro

1 lb Linguica

1/2 lb salt pork cut into cubes

1 lb beef chuck cut into cubes

Add all ingredients into a large pot and slowly simmer over low heat 6 hours constantly  adding  water  to  maintain as a stew,  stir but make sure beans don't turn to mush

Sides

Steamed white rice

Covie

Thinly sliced collard  greens  flash fried with garlic oil and salt

Farofa

Pan toasted yucca flour with scallions

Salsa

Tomatoes, red onions , green peepers and cilantro in light garlic vinegrette

Sliced oranges

Fried yucca

Hearts of palm

Chilaquiles

They  say breakfast is the most important meal of the day,   I believe every meal is important because it  what keeps you going but eating breakfast is very important because it sets the pace for your metabolism, so it should never be skipped.    This  dish is so

 easy to make, tasty and incredibly inexpensive and takes seconds. Chilaquilles have  many  different  forms,  but the  main  component  is shredded tortillas,  fried  till  they  are  crispy with whatever  your  in the mood  to add.   I love black  beans, full  of iron, fiber and protein. Coupled  with eggs for protein and garlic and onions for vitamin C this is  a  great way to start the day.  Beans are  inexpensive and  can  be used  as  a  main  course  a  side  dish or in this  case  a  component of  the  complete meal.  I  like  to make  the from  scratch although canned beans  are  the  exact  same  thing,  I  just think that  you  get  more  bang for your buck.  Speaking  of  bang,  beans make  you  fart.  There  is  no  way  of saying  it  nicely.  Some  people  add orange  juice,  some  soak  the  beans  extra  long but this does not actually work.  One farts due to the  sugars in beans harder to break down than most other foods, thus not absorbed into the intestinal tract as fast so it comes out as an air biscut.

I make a large quantity of beans in advance and keep a pot in the fridge to add  to dishs or as  a snack.  Same thing  with  salsa,  I have tons of  different salsa recipes but most of the time have a few varieties on hand ready to add to  whatever I am whipping up.  

To make Chilaquilles just follow several easy steps.  Heat  up  a frying pan,  add oil,  shred up 4 or 5 tortillas and fry till  crispy.  Scramble  in 1 or 2 eggs,  add a ladle full  of beans and  heat through.  Sprinkle with cheese (I like Monterrey jack, but Cohuila is good to if you can get it) and salsa. Add dollop of Crema sour cream and serve hot.   If  done correctly  this dish should  take you  about 5 minutes to make.

Fast Black Beans

1 can black beans

salt

black pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 clove garlic

cilantro

1/2 small onion chopped

Simmer  over  low heat

Salsa

2  tomatoes

1 small onion

1 clove garlic

salt

black pepper

4 tsp white vinegar

4 tsp vegetable oil

1 tsp cumin

cilantro

Jalapeno or Serrano peppers minced, added to desired spice.

Fart Note:

Eat slowly,  not only will  you enjoy your  food more , but chewing helps break down the food  before you digest it and you swallow less air, which is also is a huge compontent of butt burping.  This is the reason why men tend to Donald Trump more than women Daisy Duke. 

Sweet and Savory Potato Latkes with Honey Poached Apple and Sour Cream

Hanuka,  the  Jewish  celebration  on  light, uses candles to  commemorate "running  on empty",  where the 2nd temple of Israel only had enough oil to burn lamps for 1 day and it lasted 8  is  celebrated, like all good holidays, with the food.  The  latke  is  a  simple,  easily  made  tasty  food that we  all  grew  up  enjoying  making.  Its  key ingredient  is  the  potato.  Native  to  the Americas,  the  potato  was  introduced to the  Irish in the 1500 by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh ,  where  it spread  through  out  Europe and  is  now  consumed  all  over the world in all cultures  from Korea to Cuba.    For  this  recipe  I chose  to  mix  Sweet and Regular potatoes,  and  a  poached  apple instead of  sauce and goat cheese  instead of sour cream.  Something  about  the  crispy warm potatoes gets enhanced  with  the cool  sweetness  of  honey and  the tangy  bite of  goat cheese.  Although  they  stay,  I  recommend eating  them  as  soon  as  you  can,  and  since  they  take  such  little  time  to  make,  you  should  continue  making  them  till  your  filled  to  your  hearts  content.  

For  Latkes

1  cup sweet potatoes  grated

1 cup  russet  potatoes grated

1/2 onion chopped

2 scallions chopped

Salt 

Pepper

2  tbls flour

2 eggs

Mix  together potatoes  and  make  sure  all  water  has   been  squeezed out.   Add  flour, eggs, onions and scallions and  form into  pancakes. 

Deep  fry  and place on  paper towels  to absorb excess oil

Poached  Apples

2 apples  peeled  halved and  cored

1 cup water

1/2 cups sugar

1 cinnamon stick

honey

walnuts

4 tbls goat cheese

Dissolve sugar in water over slow heat. Add  apples and  cinnamon stick and poach over low heat till soft, about 20 Minutes.  Remove  from poaching syrup, put one tablespoon  of  goat cheese  in each half, drizzle with honey and  chopped  walnuts.

Baby Shrimp, Scallop and Chicken Paella with Artichokes

Paella is  a Spanish rice dish originating from Valencia in Spain.  The  dish is actually named after the dish it is  cooked  in,  a flat pan,  that the original preparation was  done in fields cooked  over  an open fire with a mixture of rice, saffron, vegetables and snails.  Originally considered field worker food it combined elements of  food  such as  the snails and saffron which are incredibly  expensive now.  Saffron  is  worth more in weight than gold,  if you don't have  access  to saffron or want to drop a pretty penny on  it,  don't  worry, It's  primary  function  is  that  of  a  dye. The flavor is very subtle and is defiantly overpowered by all the  other  lovely things that you will  be adding. Turmeric is a  great alternative, as  we  eat  with our  eyes , Paella  is  defiantly a feast exploding with red, green, yellow, black and always esthetically pleasing. Every one has  different versions of it, preferences of ingredients but in essence it basically tasty rice. I  have  chosen to make a basic one that can be made on the cheap and on one burner in one pan. 

For Paella

2 cloves garlic minced

1 large yellow onion chopped

3 scallions, cut diagonally

1/4 cup green beans

1/4 cup green pepper cut long

1/4 cup red pepper cut long

1/4 chopped plum tomato

black pepper

salt

turmeric

2 cups rice

2 cups water

1 can chicken stock

1 whole chicken breast

1/2 cup baby shrimp peeled

1/2 cup baby scallops cleaned

1/4 cup Spanish olives with pimentos

1 jar marinated artichoke hearts

paprika

parsley

Boil water and chicken broth and then add chicken breast.  Cook  thoroughly then pour liquid into a bowl and set aside.  Shred chicken and set aside.  In that same pan coat with olive oil and bring to medium high heat. Add garlic, onion, scallions, green beans, green pepper, red pepper, plum tomato, black pepper, salt and turmeric.  Cook  till  soft.  Add rice and pour liquid over mixture and give it a quick stir.  Add shrimp, chicken, scallops olives and artichokes,  Bring to a boil,  Cover  and  reduce  heat until all  liquid is  absorbed.  Sprinkle with chopped  parsley and paprika

  

Sambal Fish Stew with Cod Fritters and Garlic Scape Fuu Fuu

I bought this giant Ghana yam, have no idea what to do with it so I did a quick search and what came up was Fuu Fuu. Basically, Fuu Fuu is like mashed potatoes but using any starchy root vegetable, yucca (cassava) , or yams. It's a bit chilly outside so I had the craving for a warm tomato based fish stew with West African spices and needed a base to pour it on top of, and what better than something called Fuu Fuu. In all honesty, I'm making it just because I like the name. When people ask me what I did all weekend, I can say " Dude, I made spiced Fuu Fuu, Afro/Brazilian style, it rocked, I can still taste it" or "Sorry, cant help, I'll be making Fuu Fuu for hours" even as a pick up line " Want to head back to my loft kitchen and make hot steaming Fuu Fuu?" Sambal has a great kick to it, more of an earthy smokey flavor than Latin American chile pepper, is used to flavor sauces and stews. For this dish I think it would be a great to have cod fritters with a yogurt sambal sauce to give cooling and burning at the same time. Also , I have been experimenting with carbonating fruit juice, so, In the same manner, bubbles and citrus enhance the burn, mixed with a guava or mango cools the burn. Like one of those "Icy Hot" patches, just edible. For the fish, I chose tilapia for several reasons. Its very versatile, light and absorbs flavors easily. It's cheap, its farm raised and its what Jesus fed people with at the "Sermon on the Mount" but can be done with snapper, cod, sea bass, or any white fish.

For Stew

2 large onions coarsely chopped

3 gloves garlic

1/2 tsp each cumin, coriander, ginger, red pepper, mace, turmeric, nutmeg, paprika, sugar (or to taste as needed)

3 tbls Sambal

3 cups water

salt and black pepper to taste

1/2 cup Italian parsley

1 large can crushed tomatoes

1 cup fresh cut tomatoes ( about 3 plum tomatoes)

2 lbs tilapia filet's

Sweat onions and garlic lightly. Add spices and reduce heat. Add fish, water, tomatoes, parsley and sambal and simmer slowly for 1/2 hour.

For Fritters

1/2 lb salt cod soaked overnight , water discarded.

1 cup breadcrumbs

2 eggs

Soak cod over night, discard water and rinse thoroughly, chop finely, add egg and bread crumbs and form into small fritters. Lightly fry and remove with metal slotted spoon, place on plate with paper towels to absorb excess oil.

For Fuu Fuu

1 large Ghana Yam

1/2 stick butter or ghee

1/4 cup garlic scapes

salt

black pepper

Boil yam for 1/2 hour , strain and mash with masher or wooden spoon.

Mix in scapes, butter, salt and pepper

For Yogurt

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

2 tbls sambal

squeeze of lime

To Serve, line bowl with Fuu Fuu, pour stew over and server fritters on the side with the yogurt dipping sauce.

For Drink

1 part mango, guava, or pear nectar

2 parts Club Soda

squeeze of lime

Pour over crushed iced

Senegal Peanut Curry with Summer Squash and Zucchini, Spiced Red Lentils, Couscous and Purple Yams

I have never made Senegalese food before yet I was reading about the health benefits of Baobab Juice, and the only place to get it is in Little Senegal in Harlem, NYC. So I decided to give it a try, plus I have been dying to make goat cheese, I figured if they sell goat meat why not milk. I did a bit of research and saw that some of the main components in cooking are Yucca, Peanuts, Fish, Yams, Couscous and Palm Oil (which is basically a coronary in a bottle) plus a medley of spices from West Africa. I whipped this dish up and it really came out unusually aromatic, perfectly spicy and I wish I was a cow so I had 4 stomachs. As sides I made red lentils in parsley tomato broth, couscous and fried purple yams. The tall glass of homemade baobab fruit juice has never tasted better. Plus the goat cheese is in the fridge, setting for breakfast tomorrow.

Make Spice Mix.

Add equal parts powdered:

Cumin, coriander, red chili, turmeric, black pepper, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, cardamon, ginger

Peanut Curry

3 Cloves garlic-chopped finely

1 Large Onion-chopped coarsely

1 tsp freshly minced ginger

3 tbsp spice mix

1 tsp salt

1 can vegetable broth

1 can coconut milk

1/2 cup powdered peanut

Sweat the onion and garlic in olive oil then add all spices and slowly stir in liquids. Let simmer on low heat as you chop up adding as you cut.

1 cup chopped zucchini

1 cup chopped summer squash

1 cup red onion

Slowly simmer for half and hour.

Tomato Parsley Spiced Red Lentils

2 cups red lentils

5 cups water

2 tbsp salt

3 gloves garlic

1 can tomato puree

2 tbsp spice mix

1/2 cup chopped parsley.

Combine all ingredients, bring to a boil them reduce heat, simmer 1/2 Hour

Serve over couscous accompany with purple yam fries and baobab juice