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Light Yet Hearty Springtime Spanish Tortilla

19 May Tortilla with spring vegetables

The pressure was on! We had an invite to a brunch that would bring together some of the contributors to the new Edible Long Island magazine (launching first edition digitally in July, and then print editions starting in September). And everyone was to bring something.

A brunch full of food writers focused on local, hand-crafted food is a brunch full of people who know their way around a kitchen and know good stuff when they taste it. So this called for a dish that features seasonal ingredients, preferably locally-sourced, and perhaps expressing something about who I am and where I come from.

Portable and tasty, tortillas are a terrific potluck solution

Portable and tasty, tortillas are a terrific potluck solution

Continue reading 

Kids Learning Spanish the Fun Way: By Making Fantastic Latino Dishes!

2 May hands-on cooking class - in Spanish!

This is a half-Spanish- half-English-speaking household. Just as we cook Latin sometimes and American (whatever that is) sometimes, we bounce back and forth between languages. The linguistic term is “code-switching” and Puerto Ricans in particular are the acrobats of the code-switching word – leaping off the English sentence into a whirl of Spanish and flipping backwards to finish in English. Or not. We understand each other, but other people think it’s gibberish. And while some derisively call it “Spanglish”, we know they’re just jealous of our daredevil dual language skills!

An equal opportunity eater!

An equal opportunity eater!

So of course I have done my best to help my son become bilingual.

Miss Susana introduces the recipe and its ingredients

Miss Susana introduces the recipe and its ingredients

This is not easy. These days most of my life is conducted in English – both my writing and my teaching, my social life, his school, the T.V. news. My parents have gradually abandoned speaking to him in Spanish altogether. Some days I forget to switch back to Spanish at home. I am that tired.

¡Susa!

¡Susa!

So I am lucky to have the support of Spanish All Year, the cultural language school that he attends a couple of hours a week. Which brings me to the reason why I am telling you – who are expecting to read about food and are instead hearing about language acquisition woes – about this. Continue reading 

Five Tasty, Terrific, and Totally Easy Mushroom Recipes!

16 Apr Sauteed Mushrooms and Onions

According to Organic Gardening magazine, today is National Mushroom Day (although according to every other source it is not!). Dramatic and sustaining, mushrooms are a quick way to jazz up your basic burger, make a delicious appetizer or add some sexiness to a tapas night. So in honor of the day that may or may not be, here are my top five mushroom posts.

They can all be made with the basic white button mushroom, which tends to be the most economical. Look for unblemished crowns and on the underside, try to get mushrooms which are closed around the stem, not fanning out. Wipe them clean with a damp paper towel (the woman I worked for in France had me peel them one by one, but I don’t recommend that for every day cooking. Too much work!)

Click directly on each photo to connect to the recipe.

One of my all-time top posts: Sauteed mushrooms and onions is the Best Burger Topping. Ever.

One of my all-time top posts: Sauteed mushrooms and onions is the Best Burger Topping. Ever.

Continue reading 

Top Ten Easy Latin Bean Recipes (Fiesta de Frijoles y Habichuelas)

3 Apr Criollo/Creole Black Bean Soup (Sopa de Frijoles Negros)

Some of you have reported hunting down my bean recipes. Well here are some of my faves, all gathered in one place! Just click on the image to get to the recipe.

Make it yourself and enjoy whichever texture you prefer!

Home-made refried beans! (Vegan, but you’d never know)

Five Minute Black beans - I KID YOU NOT - FIVE MINUTE PREP

Five Minute Black beans – I KID YOU NOT – FIVE MINUTE PREP

Garbanzos con chorizo (chick peas and hot dry Spanish sausage)

Garbanzos con chorizo (chick peas and hot dry Spanish sausage)

Continue reading 

Fish on Friday: Five More Fab Seafood Solutions

28 Mar Creamy, sweet, tangy, chunky, light Swedish Skagen Salad (the best shrimp salad EVER)
Spanish tapas: Mussels vinaigrette (make 'em the night before)

Spanish tapas: Mussels vinaigrette (make ‘em the night before)

The last Friday in Lent is coming up. Why just pan-fry filets (again), when you could try some of these much more entertaining and tasty takes on seafood? This is Part Two of my Lenten seafood series. I know you’ll end up making them all year long. I certainly do!

Shrimp and Avocado Salad, Spiked with Chipotle (charming served in an avocado shell)

Shrimp and Avocado Salad, Spiked with Chipotle (charming served in an avocado shell)

Pasta al Tonno: One of the fastest pasta sauces known to man. (switch out the green olives for black) Deeply flavored

Pasta al Tonno: One of the fastest pasta sauces known to man. (Feel free to switch out the green olives for black and skip the capers) Deeply flavored!

Creamy, sweet, tangy, chunky, light Swedish Skagen Salad (the best shrimp salad EVER)

Creamy, sweet, tangy, chunky, light Swedish Skagen Salad (the best shrimp salad EVER)

Cioppino Latino...sí, sí, sí

Cioppino Latino…A San Fran Seafood Stew Classic with a special Latina twist

For more seafood recipes, click here!

Taco Tuesdays: DIY Refried Beans. Banging Flavor without the Fat

11 Mar Make it yourself and enjoy whichever texture you prefer!

We’ve been doing Taco Tuesdays for the last month or so. Our neighbors across the street do it, so Leandro decided we should too. I actually like it, because it gives me a solid plan and lets me tinker. I don’t actually do the taco thing – by the time all the accoutrements get to the table I have eaten more than my share of shredded cheese and settle for rolling a veggie wrap for myself (ripe avocado slices are my solution when I crave creaminess and  am trying — quite unsuccessfully — to battle my cheese dependence).

Olive oil, onion and peppers add to my sorta Mexican veggie wraps on Taco Tuesdays

Olive oil, onion and peppers add to my sorta Mexican veggie wraps on Taco Tuesdays

One of the things I have been tweaking has been refried beans (which are not really refried at all). You can buy them out of a can, and I won’t deny that they taste good, but do I really need that much lard in my life? Actually, I do wish I had more lard in my life, but I would like to know where it came from before I serve it up. Continue reading 

Easy Curried Butternut Squash Soup! (vegan)

26 Feb Sriracha...don't leave the kitchen without it...

I had a butternut squash from way back in the fall and a desire for real arroz con habichuelas (Puerto Rican pink beans and rice), which may seem not to have anything to do with butternut squash soup, but after I boiled the squash, I realized I had about twice as much as I needed!

This recipe uses just about a half a typical butternut squash

This recipe uses just about a half a typical butternut squash

Waste not want not is my motto (as much by necessity as by design), so I thought it would be nice to simmer up a warm soup.

A bit of home-made sofrito (substitutes included in recipe!)

A bit of home-made sofrito (substitutes included in recipe!)

Thus, this ever so simple butternut squash soup, vegan (unless you swirl in some yogurt or sour cream at the end), and rich without being fatty. I used some sofrito I made the other day, but give instructions for store-bought or home-made substitutes.

squash and seasonings simmering

squash and seasonings simmering

Easy Butternut Squash Soup

2 Cups butternut squash, peeled and boiled until soft in vegetable broth. RESERVE broth

1 tsp olive oil

2 Tbs sofrito (homemade or Goya. May be substituted with a tablespoon of finely minced onion and a tablespoon of finely minced green cooking pepper like cubanelle, in which case you need to saute a bit longer until tender)

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ tsp mild curry powder

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp salt

Fresh cracked black pepper

(dab of pesto, hot sauce or –if you aren’t vegan – yogurt or sour cream to finish, optional)

In a medium soup pot, heat oil at high until fragrant. Lower to medium, add sofrito and garlic and sauté until fragrant and getting dry. Add curry powder and cumin and toast until slightly fragrant. Add broth and squash, bring to a boil, then simmer for 15-20 minutes until very, very soft. Use an immersion blender or food processor or blender to liquefy. Season to taste and serve with optional toppings.

Arroz con habichuelas (click for basic recipe!)

Arroz con habichuelas (click for basic recipe!)

Or click for another MORE basic recipe!

Frankenbeans! (Hot Dogs and Pink Beans in a Skillet)

18 Feb Frankenbeanie!

It’s a sad irony that I finally have perfected Latin white rice (thanks to my dad’s technique) and the doctor tells me that I have to reduce carbs for my triglycerides or somesuch! Terrible.

But Leandro received no such warning, so he gets to enjoy my now fantastic rice with any number of dishes.

Here’s franks and beans with an ever-so-slightly Latin flavor. Goya’s Latin-style tomato sauce and cilantro and culantro put a little spring in the step of this easy, kid-friendly dish. My parents used to make us something similar when we were kids, so it was fun to try and recreate them. They have very little in common with the sweet gooey canned Franks and Beans you find. This are actually grown-up worthy too!

Beans and Franks

Beans and Franks

I use Applegate Farms Organic Beef Hotdogs. I prefer organic meats as a rule. These also don’t use synthetic nitrites, but it isn’t clear from what I have read that natural nitrites are any better than synthetic. They are more expensive than your standard supermarket dogs, but I feel that they are worth it.

Leandro loves these, and they reheat very well for his lunch thermos the next day. (In the morning, when I am boiling water for tea, I boil extra to pour in the Thermos to warm it up. Then I dump the water, put in the hot food, and it is still warm a few hours later for his lunch ).

 

Frankenbeanie!

Frankenbeanie!

Frankenbeans

1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

½ Cup onion, minced

1 tsp garlic, chopped

3 hot dogs, sliced into ½ inch rounds

1 Tbs fresh cilantro chopped

1 tsp fresh culantro (recao; sawtooth coriander) or other green herb of your choice, chopped, optional

8 oz can Goya Latin Style Tomato Sauce

2 pinches salt

2 pinches hot red pepper flakes

½ tsp ketchup

1 Cup pink beans (soaked or from a can)

In a large skillet, heat oil on medium high and add onions, Stir to coat, lower heat, and cook for 2-3 minutes, then add garlic and cook an additional minute or two, until the house smells good and the vegetables are wilted. Add hot dogs and stir, then add cilantro and culantro or other herbs. Cook for another 2-3 minutes, then add tomato sauce, salt, red pepper, and ketchup to taste. Add beans. You will probably want to add about ¼ Cup water to thin. Simmer for 10 minutes r more and serve with Latin-style white rice.

Super Bowl Tapas and Snacks (Easy and More Elegant than the Average Tailgate)

30 Jan Mussels vinaigrette
Chorizo on toast

Chorizo on toast

If you are getting ready for a Super Bowl party, I’ve got some styling, kickin’ tapas ideas for you! Just click on the picture for the recipe…they are all pretty easy (with the exception of the tortillas, which require a bit of derring-do, but are well worth it). They are also portable! Have a great Game Day…I’ll be back with more ideas soon!

¡Ole! ¡Fantástico!

¡Ole! ¡Fantástico!

Mussels vinaigrette (make em the night before)

Mussels vinaigrette (make em the night before)

Tortilla Torcal

Tortilla Torcal

2011 October potluck, hatti, tomatoes, avocado, tortillas 034

Tortilla española

The Little Chef and his work

Red Grapes and Latin White Cheese

2012-12-02 04.08.30

Smoked Salmon and Capers on Endives

2012-08-10 06.11.07

Champinones al ajillo (Spanish Mushrooms in Garlic Sauce)

2012-09-14 21.29.36

Black Olive Paste (Tapenade)

The pictures are awful, but these oven-roasted mushrooms are amazing!

20 Jan Champinones al ajill...al horno

If I had known how good these mushrooms in garlic were going to turn out, I would have been more careful about the pictures!

Mushy focus!

Mushy focus!

This is a wonderful variation on the classic stove-top champiñones al ajillo or mushrooms in garlic sauce, that is a staple of Spanish tapas places and that I have posted before (with butter  or with olive oil)My friend, Marianne and I made them as sort of an afterthought as we were packing the oven with roasted vegetables for our New Year of Eating Right. Why not throw these in too, since we have some space?

Genius.

Get the crusty bread ready, because you are going to want to mop up every bit of sauce.

Blurry photo, clearly delicious

Blurry photo, clearly delicious

Oven-roasted mushrooms in garlic (Champiñones al ajillo, al horno)

10 oz. button or baby bella mushrooms

2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbs chopped parsley, optional

Salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400°F. Wipe mushrooms clean. Trim off woody stem bits and cut into ¼” slices. Mix mushrooms, garlic , and oil in an ovenproof dish and roast, turning once, for about 30 minutes or until mushrooms are shiny, opaque and dark brown. Sprinkle parsley over, salt to taste and serve with toothpicks as a tapas dish or mix with warm pasta for a light primo piatto (first dish/appetizer).

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