Huevos Rancheros con Chorizo

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Huevos Rancheros is one of my husband’s favorite things to order at our local Mexican restaurant. Much to his dismay, it’s only available on the lunch menu. We eat so much tex-mex at home, I figured it was about time I gave this classic peasant dish a shot. I had picked some up chorizo at the grocery store last week – so I went ahead and worked it into the recipe. The fat that rendered off the sausage was perfect for cooking the onions – wafting porky goodness throughout the entire dish.

A pretty easy breakfast to throw together on a weekend morning. And, it surely mixes up the pancakes and sausage routine. Also makes for a wonderfully easy dinner, as most folks already have these items on hand. Try this soon!

Huevos Rancheros con Chorizo

8 ounces chorizo, casing removed
olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped (about a half cup)
1 (15-ounce can) diced fire roasted tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 corn tortillas
Butter
4 eggs
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

To make the sauce, add 1 tbsp olive oil to a large skillet and brown chorizo, breaking apart with a wooden spoon. Once nice and browned, remove from pan and set aside. Add onions to the rendered fat and cook for several minutes, until translucent and starting to brown around edges. Add garlic and cumin, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, along with their juice. Return the cooked chorizo to the pan. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low, and let simmer while you do the rest of the cooking, stirring occasionally. Reduce to warm after it has been simmering for 10 minutes. Add salt to taste if needed.

Heat the oven to a warm 150°F, place serving plates in the oven to keep warm. Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet on medium high, coating the pan with the oil. Heat the tortillas in the pan, a minute or two on each side, until they are heated through, softened, and pockets of air bubble up inside of them. Then remove them and stack them on one of the warming plates in the oven to keep warm while you continue cooking the rest of the tortillas and the eggs.

Using the same skillet as was used for the tortillas, add a little butter to the pan, about two teaspoons for 4 eggs. Heat the pan on medium high heat. Crack 4 eggs into the skillet and cook for 3 to 4 minutes for runny yolks, more for firmer eggs.

To serve, spoon a little of the sauce onto a warmed plate. Top with a tortilla, then a fried egg. Top with more sauce, sprinkle with cilantro if desired.

Source: adapted from Simply Recipes

Chipotle Honey Roasted Peanuts

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The past couple of years for Christmas, we’ve received a big tin of these wonderful  spicy peanuts from a family member. Sadly, this year she was not able to attain a tin. I look forward to them all year, so I must admit I was a little bit disappointed when they weren’t under the tree for us. However, it got me to thinking – how hard could they be to make at home?

After a little bit of recipe sleuthing, I found a recipe that seemed that it fit the bill.  I’m happy to report that I like this homemade version just as much, if not more, than the original. With just the right amount of kick from the chipotle powder, and a nice background sweetness from the honey – you’ll find yourself reaching for another handful.  Consider yourself warned, they are addicting! It makes a big batch, great for snacking on all week long. While I’ll still gladly accept a tin of Hot Honeys if gifted to me, I’m happy to know that I’ll be able to make my own at home all year long.

Chipotle Honey Roasted Peanuts

1/3 cup white sugar
1½ teaspoons chipotle chile powder
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound skinless peanuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Stir together the sugar, chipotle powder, chili powder, and garlic powder in a small bowl; set aside.

Stir together the butter, honey, and kosher salt in a large saucepan over medium heat until the butter has melted, and the mixture is bubbly. Stir in the peanuts until well coated, then pour out into a 9×13 inch baking dish.

Bake in preheated oven until the nuts are golden brown, about 30 minutes. Stir the mixture 2 or 3 times to ensure even cooking. Once done, scrape the peanuts into a large metal bowl, and sprinkle with the spice mixture. Toss the peanuts to evenly coat with the spice mixture. Allow the peanuts to cool to room temperature, tossing every few minutes so the nuts do not stick together.

Source: Allrecipes

Guacamole

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In my noobular years, I disliked avocado.  I know, I know. Shame on me! Thank Heavens I came around. Like most people, it was guacamole that brought me around. Rich, creamy, and cool – it’s pretty much the perfect condiment. Lots of people have their own spin on guacamole, and mine is no exception. It’s similar to most guac recipes, but, I like to add a little bit of sour cream. It gives it a nice tangyness, and lightens it up a bit. I’m sure you could also use Greek yogurt, and get the same effect. We put it on everything; enchiladas, tacos, even scrambled eggs. Which, incidentally, I also add a bit of sour cream to. That’s a tip I picked up from Ralph Cifaretto in “The Sopranos”, right before he got whacked (one of my favorite episodes, btw, for all you Sopranos fans out there). Ahh, I miss that show!

I digress. The guacamole. With all the football game goodness we have to look forward to in the coming weeks (Go 9ers!), save room on your table for a big bowl of guacamole and tortilla chips. It’s always one of the first things to go! I’ve also got another great munchie coming up tomorrow that’s perfect for football snacking. Stay tuned!

Guacamole

3 ripe Haas avocados, seeded and meat removed (see here for a great rundown)
juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons sour cream (reduced fat is fine)
1/2 cup pico de gallo
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Mash avocados and lemon juice well with a potato masher. Add in remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Add additional salt to taste.

Place in serving bowl, and cover the surface of the guacamole with plastic wrap to prevent oxidation. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Chicken and Dumplings

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Here, on the Eastern Shore, chicken & dumplings might as well be a food group. My mom made chicken or turkey and dumplings as I was growing up, but she made drop dumplings. Tender, biscuit-like little pillows. Fluffy dumplings. While they were delicious, they were never my favorite. My first “slick” dumpling was at the local Chincoteague Fire Department Pony Penning dinner. The Ladies Auxiliary sells tickets for a chicken & dumpling dinner, served immediately following the saltwater cowboy’s return to the carnival grounds with the wild horses that have made the swim. It’s really more like lunch, considering it’s served at around noon – but, here on the shore lunch is “dinner”, and dinner is “supper”.

After my first bite at the fair grounds, I was sold on rolled dumplings. Thick, chewy pieces of eggless pasta – swimming in a rich chicken broth, with lots of tender pieces of chicken. Comfort food at it’s finest! Once I married a man from the island, I knew I had to get my chicken & dumps recipe straight. Like I said before, for a Chincoteaguer, it’s almost a food group. For a couple of years I used dumplings I found in the freezer section, which is well and good. But, I knew I’d really take pride in making them from scratch. Flour, milk, and salt is all you need to make them happen. I usually do a double batch of the dumplings, as I’ve found this recipe doesn’t produce as many as I like. Homemade chicken stock is always your best bet, but a low-sodium store-bought stock is okay in a pinch. I’ll usually just pull the meat off a roasted chicken and refrigerate, make the stock from the carcass, and use the reserved chicken to combine with the dumplings.  A favorite dish in our home, it doesn’t get more comforting than this!

Chicken & Slick Dumplings

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus about 1 cup for rolling
11 ounces milk
1½ teaspoons baking powder
4 quarts chicken stock or broth
Meat from 1 roasted or rotisserie chicken
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
kosher salt
fresh chopped parsley, for garnish

Place flour, milk, baking powder, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Stir just until the dough beings to come together. Using the paddle attachment, mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and let sit at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes.

Place broth in a large dutch oven  over medium heat and bring to a rolling boil.

Lay down 2 large pieces of parchment or freezer paper and tape them to the counter (I have quartz countertops, and usually skip this step. Also, a pastry mat would be great too). Generously sprinkle the surface with flour, about 1/2 cup. Divide the dough in half. Roll one half of the dough 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick, generously sprinkling more flour onto the dough so that it is well coated. Slice the dough into 1-inch-wide strips and then into 1-inch squares. Set the dumplings aside on a sheet pan. Repeat with the second half of the dough.

When all of the dumplings are cut, gently drop them into the boiling broth, a handful at a time. Once all of the dumplings have been added, cook for 35 minutes at a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally. After the sauce has thickened well, add the chicken and pepper and stir to combine. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes, or just until the meat is heated through.

Source: adapted from Feasting on Asphalt: The River Run