eG Foodblog: rsincere - DIY cooking school/cooking therapy in WI

[RSincere]

Forgot to mention what Daniel had last night--a personal size Red Baron cheese pizza and a banana.

Finally! Lunch! This meal is more in my comfort zone when it comes to preparation, but the ingredients had several curve balls for me.

Here's the mango salsa. Cuisina was right, it did need salt, and the salt really improved it. I forgot to add the lime zest, though. That's okay, there's leftovers!

This shows you the innards of the enchilada. Bottom layer is a whole wheat tortilla, then chicken breast, then pepperjack cheese, then scallions, then peanuts! I never would have thought to add peanuts, but they are so good in this! The recipe said to put 3/4 cup scallions per enchilada, but I thought that was wayyyyy too much. I like scallions, but not that much.

I've made my own tortillas for other dishes, but I wanted these to be uniform, and to be a circle. I have yet to produce an actual circle from my many, many tries. I can make the state of Florida, and I can make a cloven hoof, but I can't make a damn circle.

I'm not so good with the flipping, but I managed to keep them together well enough, and here's my oh-so-artfully arranged plate!

Thought you might be sick of the same corner of my kitchen counter, so I changed the view. This is a lot of food. Even Jason couldn't finish his plate. We're saving half of it in the fridge to reheat for dinner. This is why I cut the recipe in half in the first place, all the recipes in the CIA cookbook serve 8. This is also why I don't tend to make too many dishes in one meal--we'd be eating leftovers forever.

Reactions--Jason loved it. He said, "I can't believe there was a time when you didn't even know how to cook meat." My reaction is that I would be happy to be served this meal in a restaurant. It would probably look better than my version, but I don't care about that. I wasn't sure about the mango salsa when I just tasted it by itself, but it is so good with the enchilada. The peanuts were an awesome idea. And I'm glad I didn't overdo the scallions.

I would love it if people would give me suggestions on what would go with the different meals I make. For instance, looking at the chickpea tagine, to tell me "I would have served it with ___" or "Those enchiladas would have been really good with ____." I just tend to find recipes that have a protein, fruit or vegetable, and starch, all in one dish, or at the most put plain rice or mashed potatoes on the side, and I tend to get stumped when trying to think of a side dish. I noticed the CIA cookbook recommended black bean salad with cilantro-lime vinaigrette with this meal, and I can see how that would have been good.

More specifically, in the next couple of days I'm going to make chicken breasts with an apple-cream sauce. What on earth would go with that?

[daniellewiley]

More specifically, in the next couple of days I'm going to make chicken breasts with an apple-cream sauce.  What on earth would go with that?

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Maybe some mashed sweet potatoes? Or, a potato gratin?

Green beans with almonds would also be tasty with that.

I think eG favorite roasted cauliflower, or even a roasted cauliflower/brussel mix would be good too.

[Smithy]

Wow!

I'm coming in really late on this blog, but add me to your list of fans, Rachel. I'm very impressed at your adventuresome approach to cooking. I had cookbooks for years, loving to look at them, but my first years of actually learning to cook were pretty mainstream stuff. You're just jumping in, and doing a right good job of it.

I hope everyone isn't sick of the Malt-O-Meal discussion by now, but I'm here to tell you that I grew up watching TV ads for it in California. We never ate it, but I remember the commercials.

As for the chicken: how about a nice bed of rice to soak up that sauce? Maybe mix some toasted walnuts in with the rice to give an extra crunch and compliment the apple component of the sauce?

[Laksa]

They pointed out that if you put a mango on it end it will resemble an egg shape (pointing up and down). the entire center is that tough pithy part. Peel the mango with a veggie peeler, stand it on it's end like an egg, and cut off the flesh in large arc's or c shapes staying away from the core. You will get 2 thick sides and 2 thinner. Then dice. Does that make sense to anyone??

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Yes, that makes sense to me. Bear in mind that the mango seed is a flattish oval disk. You need to be aware which way it is aligned to make the best cuts. You can usually guage from the shape of the mango how the seed lines up.

The tail of the mango usually tapers off into a point that is curved in one direction. If you imagine a line extending out from the pointy ass of the mango, and then imagine a plane that cuts through the mango along its length parallel to this line, the seed is aligned inside the mango along this plane. You should cut into the mango more or less parallel to this plane, arcing out to allow for the curve of the seed to get the thickest possible slice.

Trust me, it's a lot easier than it sounds!

If you're worried about wastage, you can always eat the flesh still left on the seed like you would corn on the cob.

Edited October 14, 2004 by Laksa (log)

[Carrot Top]

Bravo on that good-looking yummy stuff you've made, Rachel.

For the chicken side...maybe a wild rice pilaf that includes carrots/onions/mushrooms?

[Jujubee]

Here's how I dice mangos. Looking at the mango, you can guess where the big flat seed in the middle is. I cut two big slices off the sides by slicing parallel to the flat sides of the seed. You end up with two wide boats of mango still in the peel. Then I score the flesh (criss cross knife marks) into the size cubes I want, all the way down to the peel, but not cutting through the peel. Then flip the "boat" inside out, and all the cubes will stick out and start to pull away from the peel. Use a knife to finish cutting the cubes off the peel.

Sometimes I also cut thin slices from the sides of the mango and cut cubes out of that, but other times I just eat the rest. I never bother to try to get extra meat off the seed, I just suck on that. Cook's treat. Messy, but good.

[little ms foodie]

excellent looking lunch rachel, and is that ice water you had?! Good for you!

idea for the Chicken, how about some easy egg noodles tossed in butter and a ton of chopped up herbs?

Edited October 15, 2004 by little ms foodie (log)

[ludja]

Bravo on that good-looking yummy stuff you've made, Rachel.

For the chicken side...maybe a wild rice pilaf that includes carrots/onions/mushrooms?

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Ditto on the bravo!

I think some simple buttered green beans would go great with the pilaf and your chicken breasts in apple-cream sauce.

Seems nice to keep the sides simple to focus on the richness and flavor of the sauce and a pilaf will soak up some of the sauce nicely without contributing a lot of extra richness itself. Also, mushroom in the pilaf will go well with the apples and cream...

Just my 2 bits...

Edited October 14, 2004 by ludja (log)

[Mottmott]

Think color as well as flavor, especially if you use rice which will give you white on white. So unless you're doing a white theme dinner, I'd skip the cauliflower, good as it is, and go with some vibrantly green steamed broccali (blanched or not allowed to sit about to go grey green or too soft).

When I'm having something creamed I often like to use something with a vibrant flavor contrast, vinaigrette or sweet/sour. Someone is sending me a recipe from one of the Julia della Croce books for a sweet/sour carrots that would be terrific. If it arrives in time, I'll give it to you.

Another idea is to sweet/sour pickle carrots and daikon and maybe some red & yellow sweet peppers. That would also give you some color, texture, and taste contrast. There's always pickled beets which you can even buy in a jar, though home made is better. None of these take long to make and keep well in the fridge for a week or two.

And of course there's always green salad.

[Dejah]

With enchiladas, I used to make a salad of orange segments and avocado slices, marinated in Kraft's Catalina dressing.

How about throwing some cardamon or a stick of cinnamon with basmati rice with that chicken dish. Cinnamon and apples always seem to go together.

I also cut my mangoes the way jujubee does. I never dice the side slices...'cos I want to enjoy sucking every juicy bit off myself!

Edited October 14, 2004 by Dejah (log)

[bloviatrix]

Because of the apples, I think roasted beets would be a good side.

[RSincere]

No joke...I was just taking a nap, and I bolted upright, wide awake. "I was calling them enchiladas, wasn't I?" I do that all the time. Quesadillas, right? Don't laugh.

I'll respond to the awesome suggestions later...back to my nap...

[Fritz Brenner]

I realize that you can't polish a turd, but in the spirit of eternal optimism, I garnished with parsley anyway:

i love your humor. i'm really enjoying your blog.

[patti]

Mmm, the quesadillas look yummy.

Rachel, you've already been offered great advice for cutting up a mango. In case you're like me, and like to see a picture, here's a link (scroll down about midpage):

http://freshmangos.com/aboutmangos/

[tejon]

That looks delicious

I'm in comfort food mode, so I'd add roasted potatoes (toss with olive oil, s/p, done in our toaster oven if it's just for two!) and some cabbage cooked in a bit of butter, s/p, and some caraway seed. Apple and cream beg for heartier, root type vegetables and simple starches, at least to me.

Edited October 14, 2004 by tejon (log)

[suzilightning]

More specifically, in the next couple of days I'm going to make chicken breasts with an apple-cream sauce. What on earth would go with that?

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[Squeat Mungry]

Because of the apples, I think roasted beets would be a good side.

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I second this suggestion. In fact, you could combine this with the rice idea and do a roasted beet risotto.

Great blog, Rachel. Thanks!

[lamb]

More specifically, in the next couple of days I'm going to make chicken breasts with an apple-cream sauce.  What on earth would go with that?

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see the roasted cauliflower thread

cauliflower

It goes with almost everything, and is very simple to make. As an added plus, my kids love it. Tell Daniel it's like French Fries!

[Behemoth]

I'm in comfort food mode, so I'd add roasted potatoes (toss with olive oil, s/p, done in our toaster oven if it's just for two!) and some cabbage cooked in a bit of butter, s/p, and some caraway seed. Apple and cream beg for heartier, root type vegetables and simple starches, at least to me. 

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Or mashed/roasted sweet potatoes (with sage?) if you want color on the plate.

Nice blog! I am also in the midwest so it is interesting to see what-all kinds of stuff is available to you.

Oh, BTW: our local wal-mart seems to carry a lot of ingredients that I usually otherwise only find in mexican groceries...eg mexican sour cream, which I sometimes use as a nice (cheap!) sub for creme frais, as well as queso fresco, oaxacan string cheese, various chiles, key limes, cliantro, masa...etc. We are really in the middle of nowhere so it might reflect the migrant population. Maybe it is the same for you?

[RSincere]

Too many ideas...I want to make them all.

Definitely, the roasted beets win for me, because the last time I encountered beets I was a kid, the beets were the canned/sliced variety, and I had to eat four bites if I wanted to be a member of the "clean plate club." I have never worked with or eaten fresh beets, and they might be good! That's what happened this summer when I tried fresh asparagus for the first time--I was so traumatized by the slimy canned kind we had as kids, that I would never try a recipe containing asparagus, until I saw some at the farmer's market and thought, what the heck, it's only a buck. I roasted it and it was so good.

Then I like the rice idea for another side, because I'll want somewhere for the sauce to go, and I'm very comfortable making rice so I won't get too freaked out about making three different dishes at once. The toasted walnuts might be cool...as a matter of fact, maybe if the beets were roasted with butter, toasted walnuts might be good on those too?

I'm seriously annoyed with myself for my gaffe--who goes on a cooking website and confuses a quesadilla with an enchilada?

Behemoth, I just noticed that at our Walmart, they have that Mexican table cream and queso fresco, etc. I never realized how inexpensive jalapenos and serranos turn out to be when priced by the pound. I get a huge handful for about 50 cents. The only thing I can't find, either here or in Madison, is the chorizo that's hard like salami, that you can slice. The only kind I ever find is the kind that you take out of the casing and crumble.

[Behemoth]

I'm seriously annoyed with myself for my gaffe--who goes on a cooking website and confuses a quesadilla with an enchilada? 

I really wouldn't worry about it.

Behemoth, The only thing I can't find, either here or in Madison, is the chorizo that's hard like salami, that you can slice.  The only kind I ever find is the kind that you take out of the casing and crumble.

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The hard kind is Spanish Chorizo, the crumbly one is Mexican. I like both, but have only been able to find the Spanish one (a brand called Palacios here) at a semi-foofy gourmet shop in Urbana. I have no idea what you could substitute, but since it doesn't need to be refrigerated, you could probably order it fairly easily online, or try a foofy gourmet shop in Madison and stock up.

[bloviatrix]

Too many ideas...I want to make them all.

Definitely, the roasted beets win for me, because the last time I encountered beets I was a kid, the beets were the canned/sliced variety, and I had to eat four bites if I wanted to be a member of the "clean plate club."  I have never worked with or eaten fresh beets, and they might be good!  That's what happened this summer when I tried fresh asparagus for the first time--I was so traumatized by the slimy canned kind we had as kids, that I would never try a recipe containing asparagus, until I saw some at the farmer's market and thought, what the heck, it's only a buck.  I roasted it and it was so good.

Then I like the rice idea for another side, because I'll want somewhere for the sauce to go, and I'm very comfortable making rice so I won't get too freaked out about making three different dishes at once.  The toasted walnuts might be cool...as a matter of fact, maybe if the beets were roasted with butter, toasted walnuts might be good on those too?

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Walnuts compliment beets very well. Beets, apples and walnuts is a great combination.

[RSincere]

Would a little orange zest be overkill?

I'm now going to heat up my leftovers--you know it's good if I'm willing to eat the leftovers, I'm allergic to leftovers. And then I'm going to have a Star Bar and watch some reality TV--I mean, I'm going to go for a 5-mile run and then eat some fiber and save some orphan puppies on the way.

[ludja]

That looks delicious 

I'm in comfort food mode, so I'd add roasted potatoes (toss with olive oil, s/p, done in our toaster oven if it's just for two!) and some cabbage cooked in a bit of butter, s/p, and some caraway seed. Apple and cream beg for heartier, root type vegetables and simple starches, at least to me. 

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I must perloin this idea tejon! (thanks)

[tejon]

I must perloin this idea tejon! (thanks) smile.gif

Another cabbage idea, not quite as subtle in flavor - cabbage, cut into large chunks, cooked in butter over low-med heat with minced garlic, salt and pepper until it's just barely tender. Doesn't sound like much, but it's indredibly good.

Edited October 15, 2004 by tejon (log)