This recipe is to die for.  I brought this to a family function and even the sworn “avocado haters” loved it.

creamy and sweet, this "guacamole" is to die for. you may not want to share.

Avocado Delight Dip*

4 medium sized, ripe avocados, pitted and mashed

1 garlic clove, very finely chopped (about the size of your thumbnail)

1/8 cup yellow onion, finely chopped

1/8 cup unsweetened, dried cherries, roughly chopped (Bare Fruit is my favorite brand)

1/2 pack of NuNaturals brand Stevia

1 squirt Agave syrup (aprx 2 tsp)

Mash all your ingredients together in a bowl.  Enjoy.

Tip! Avocado browns quickly in the fridge.  This recipe is best made before guests arrive so that it will not have time to brown before enjoyment.  (The brown does not mean that it has gone “bad”- but it is not attractive looking either).

*For those of you that follow “combinations”- this “guacamole” does not combine with dipping chips. It does however make an excellent raw veggie dip or dressing for a baby mixed greens salad.

Do you have a signature dish you bring to parties?

10299 U.S. 36

Avon, IN 46123

It’s Christmas Eve, cold, and dreary.  Shopping is all done and the only thing on my mind is getting something to eat.  I know that my wife’s favorite place to eat on the Westside is On The Border and we were close enough so I decided to stop there.  We had already gone to Target and Barnes and Nobles and OTB is right there in front of them so it was an easy drive as well.

We were greeted promptly once we entered the restaurant and since it was not a busy time for them, we were easily able to pick out where we wanted to sit.  This was to be a late lunch/early dinner.  Our server introduced himself as Josh.  Have you noticed lately that so many servers DON’T introduce themselves?

Turns out that Josh was attentive throughout the time we were there.  At one point, he refilled my wife’s iced tea but took no notice of the 2 ounces remaining in my glass.  I commented about this to my wife but sure enough, next visit to the table, “Would you like another beer”?  So he redeemed himself on that one.

Because we still had an evening ahead of us filled with light snacks and goodies, we went with the sampler.  It has chicken quesadillas, pico de gallo, guacamole, chicken flautas, steak nachos, sour cream, and queso.  With the tortilla chips and salsa provided while we waited, this was MORE than enough for the two of us!  And all HOT and DELICIOUS!

All in all, the food was great and I’d have to say that Josh hit the right balance between pestering and neglecting.  OK, that sounds like a negative statement but it really isn’t.  I’m sure you’ve had the server who won’t let you eat—and the server who would just as easily let you starve.  There’s a balance between the two and Josh hit it.  He even offered dessert which is only appropriate.  Any server who doesn’t should be fired!

Thanks, Josh, for making our Christmas Eve after-shopping-lunch/dinner experience a pleasant, relaxed, and satisfying one.

Before the tip, the outing came to $23.50.  Here’s the breakdown:

Border Sampler     $11.49

Tea     $2.09  (with unlimited refills)

Dos XX (2)     $7.98  (or $3.99 each)

Tax     $1.94

At 20%, Josh’s tip would have come to $4.70.  I preferred to round up in this case.

Tip    $5.00

TOTAL $28.50

This is the first time I’ve blogged about OTB but by no means the first time we’ve been there.  This has been our place for American-style Mexican food now for the past 3 years or more.

MORE:

http://www.ontheborder.com/

Of all the many, many reasons we have an epic, undying love for nachos, perhaps most importantly of all, nachos bring people together.  They are the quintessential sharing food, as it is difficult and often inadvisable to eat nachos alone.  Nacho reviewing is the perfect activity to engage in with old friends, new friends, or with one with whom one wishes to become more than friends.  It is especially good to engage in with parents, as it can provide needed conversational respite from all those pesky questions about your “future” and and “job prospects”, in addition to making you seem like you’ve done something with your life since you at least have your own URL.  Yes, a nachos were definitely in the cards when 2/5 of our parents (you do the math) rolled into town for Christmas.  But no ordinary nachopatrol would do: these people are card-carrying members of the extra-virgin-olive-oil, baby-arugula-and-heirloom-tomato, artisanal-goat-cheese-drizzled-with-balsamic-reduction club.  There is no way they would be cool slumming it at the Pour House, no matter how cheesy the nachos.  So, we set out to find some upper-crust, high-fallutin’ nachos to share!

Enter Zocalo Cocina Mexicana.  Conveniently located just a short walk from Nacho Patrol World Headquarters, Zocalo is a bright, colorful restaurant peppered with wacky Oaxacan statues.  On top of their fantastic margaritas, multiple varieties of sangria, and downright delicious food, Zocalo offers tableside preparation of guacamole and ceviche, which is an opportunity not to be missed.  Yes, for a mere $8.50, a burly man will wheel his cart over to your table and make short work of limes, chili, and more avocados than you would like to think you can ingest, then present it to your table in a giant stone crock.  ¡Shazam!  We also went for the Nachos Supremo, with steak:

• Appearance: ( 8 )A bright kaleidoscope of colors and textures, a little lacking in the green but that could be helped by a little guacamole.  We did notice that some of the cheese did not seem to be completely melted…
• Quality of Ingredients: (8 ) The chips, the same ones brought out in a complimentary basket with salsa, were just OK…it was hard to tell if they were house made or not.  The beef, on the other hand, was delicious, in little chunks of tender steak.  Black beans and pico de gallo added nice little pops of flavor.  The jalapenos were actually edible for us gringos, and added a nice spicy flavor.
• Distribution of Toppings: (6) The cheese could definitely have been melted more, which would have added a little extra glue to keep the toppings on the chips.  Overall, because they didn’t have chili, these were a rather dry nacho, but the flavor of the ingredients more than made up for it.  There was no layering, but these were rather flat, and we could use the naked chips underneath to scoop up the extra toppings.
• Price: (9) At only $8.50 (with steak!), these nachos are a steal, especially for this restaurant.  Not too huge, but they make up for it in taste.
• Overall: 31.  A pretty darn good nacho, but not as delicious or exciting as many of the other items on the menu.  Still, mission accomplished, parents impressed!

• 4 ripe Hass avocados
• 1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 small handful cilantro leaves, lightly chopped
• 1/4 cup finely diced white onion
• juice of 1 lime
• salt
• optional: pinch of cumin

The simple martini in the world of guacamole. It’s not quite straight up, not mashed, just 2 diced avocados folded gently with the juice of 1/2 a lime, a pinch of chopped cilantro and a little salt – that’s “Dry with a twist.” This is the fresh puritan sister of the rich and luscious Dirty version.

Good afternoon!  I just had the best lunch EVER.  But before we get there, let’s backtrack …

Last night I had a few dried apricots right before bed.  Even though I was exhausted, I ended up not falling asleep til around 1!  And I woke up at 5:30 and couldn’t get back to sleep   I eventually got up and made some Candy Cane Lane, read blogs and farmed for about an hour and was able to pass back out til a little before 9.  I guess it was that 3 hour nap yesterday .. oops!

Brekkie was disappointing:

3/4 c Fage 0% Plain, 3/4 c Kashi Heart to Heart, 1 c frozen blackberries, 1 c frozen strawberries

The blackberries were so bad.  I guess they were freezer burned to the extreme.  Ironically, the strawberry bag was open in the freezer and they were fine!  I didn’t eat any of the blackberries after I tried them   Opening a new box of Heart to Heart was exciting though – the first handful from a freshly opened bag always tastes the best.  It’s the little things, people.

I set off to Target to finish my Christmas shopping and mail some packages.  Well, my car making weird and loud noises, a FedEx that I thought was a UPS and one closed-down post office later, I gave up and came home to eat.  But we were out of what I had been craving/dreaming about so I went to Stop & Shop since I was frustrated and breakfast wasn’t so great.  This is what I got:

La Tortilla Factory wraps, guacamole, Amy’s burritos, TruVia (from Target), low sodium black beans, sweet potatoes, and two movies – Stand By Me and Clue (also from Target)

I went just for the wraps and black beans, but .. you know.  I decided he guacamole would be an amazing addition to lunch, and the burritos were 2 for $5 … and my mom asked me to get the potatoes.  The two movies from Target were $5 each!  And I wonder I am legitimately broke.  Not okay, really.

BUT LUNCH WAS SERIOUSLY AMAZING. For some reason, I really wanted a black beans quesadilla.  Obviously I had to give in to my cravings.

The Best Dang QuesadiLLa Ever:

• La Tortilla Factory wrap in Traditional (they didn’t have WW )
• plain Laughing Cow wedge
• 1/2 cup low sodium black beans
• Plus 0% plain Fage, salsa, and guacamole for dipping/slathering purposes

I Pam-ed a large skillet and spread the LC wedge on half of the wrap.  I added the 1/2 cup of black beans so the cheesy side of the tortilla and carefully put it in the pan.  I let it brown up a little while I got my dippings ready and flipped it with my hands to avoid bean spillage.  After letting the other side toast for a little, I flipped again, less carefully, resulting in some bean leakage – hence, the random scattering of beans on top of the quesadilla.  No harm done.

I forgot how good guacamole is!  I got the 100 calorie snack packs of Wholly Guacamole for easy portion control and only used half here.  Honestly, next time (like, for dinner.  Sorry in advance.) I’d just use salsa and the guac.  I use Greek yogurt for everything else but guacamole is JUST TOO GOOD.  Monday is quesadilla day in our dining hall and I always got them last year.  This year, however, and my awareness of the probably less then stellar ingredients of the ginormous tortilla, questionable chicken, trans-fat filled cooking oil, most likely HFCS-filled guac and full fat sour cream restrained me.  This honestly tasted better than those (which, at the dhall isn’t hard) and is SO much healthier.  Score!  Seriously though, this will probably be dinner too.

I’m making some coffee to take to go FINALLY ship these books out and then I might go running at the trail (not too cold today) or just go to the gym before/after dinner later.  Usually I prefer to get my exercise in in the mornings, but going to the gym in the late afternoon/evening hasn’t been bad at all!  Plus I usually have extra energy then.  Wish me luck!

]]> http://duodishes.com/2009/12/23/you-say-potato/ Wed, 23 Dec 2009 08:00:03 +0000 duodishes http://duodishes.com/2009/12/23/you-say-potato/

Potato, potahto, tomato, tomahto.  You can interpret the lyrics of this old song as literally or figuratively as you like, but today, we’ll go with the latter.  What makes guacamole guacamole?  This dip was taken to a potluck dinner party during the dead of fall.  If someone asked what it was, one could easily have said ‘Avocado dip’.  And that is what was said.  Funny enough, someone said ‘You make a good guacamole for someone from the East coast.’  The fact that East coasters may or may not be able to make guacamole is a side issue, and if anyone wants to chime in on that one, they are welcome.  The funny part was that he called this guacamole.  This is in no way to call him out, but it does raise an interesting question about how people classify what a dish is and what it definitely is not.  In our opinion, this is a dip all the way, but what if it had been chunkier and studded with tomatoes (tomahtoes, if you prefer) and onions?  What would you call it then?

There are some people who will fight you tooth and nail when it comes to authenticity of dishes, especially as they relate to cultural or regional traditions.  That’s why it helps to be generic, and we’ll just call this a dip for dip’s sake.  When something tastes good, who cares what you call it!  You shouldn’t talk with food in your mouth anyways, so that stops all debate.   Enjoy this one for your next party.  In the meantime, are there any other potato/potahto foods out there?

Avocado Dip – Serves 10 to 12
5 large avocados, pitted and diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
1 Serrano pepper, finely diced
2 green onions, chopped
1 cup sour cream or crema mexicana
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne
1/2 teaspoon ground chili powder
Zest and juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon kosher salt

1. Place avocado pieces, cilantro and garlic in a food processor and blend until smooth.

2. Place cream cheese into a medium sized bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add sour cream, serrano pepper, green onion, lime juice, zest, honey, spices and salt. Mix well.

3. Scrape puréed avocado into the bowl and mix until well combined. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

There’s been snow showers on and off all weekend and more to come.  My Dad usually bets on whether we’ll have a white Christmas every year and I think the odds are we will this year.  I took this picture yesterday evening as it was getting dark.  Thankfully I keep my car in the garage so it didn’t end up looking like these in the picture.

Anyway on this cold morning I had a warming bowl of oats with frozen berries and peanut butter.  I love how the berries melted into the oats and made a lovely colour.

I can’t believe how quick last week went and I can’t believe it’s Christmas Day in 3 days.  How time flies.  My week off work seems a distant memory and I’ve settled back into my working life.  We have the radio on in the warehouse in which my office is situated and at the mo they’re constantly playing Christmas Songs which we all sing along to.  My favourites are Band Aids first charity song “Do they know it’s Christmas?” and Wham’s “Last Christmas”  of course I like the usual Slade and Wizard songs.  What are your favourite Christmas songs?

My work lunch was made with some whole meal crusty bread my Mum made and filled with egg mayo, cress, tomato and bacon (pinched from my Dad’s breakfast )

I also had a cranberry and walnut muffin a work colleague had brought in.

Today’s exercise was a 40min core yoga session from yoga download.  I don’t really do much exercise during Christmas and New Year week, I normally just do some when I feel like it.  It’s nice to have a break for the holidays.

I got on with dinner about 6:00ish. I marinated some salmon in soy sauce, ginger, garlic and black pepper and put under the grill.  Meanwhile I steamed some broccoli, cauliflower and carrots and added some shavings of parmesan.

I just love salmon done like this, it’s my favourite fish ever and along with chicken I could live on it.

After dinner M. came over for a visit.  He’s going to Wales on Thursday to spend Christmas with is family (btw he isn’t Welsh, he and his family lived in Yorkshire but his Dad got a promotion at work which also meant moving and M. wanted to stay here. Thank God he did or I would never have met him) anyway he came over to say Merry Crimbo to my parents as he won’t see them again till next year. I’m so thankful they all get on so well.

We all got into a game of Monopoly, had a few drinks and snacks including Doritos, salsa, guacamole and sour cream.

Hope everyone’s enjoying the beginning of Christmas Week.

Taylor

Maybe it was the lack of sun or the obscene amount of rain or maybe it was the craving for some cilantro, but I had a craving for some Mexican food.

Dona Cata was recommended by a colleague of mine at work who happens to be Mexican. He told me it’s good for Mexican food in Vancouver, but it’s not going to be like you’d find in Mexico. So with that cautious endorsement, I made my way to Dona Cata. I ordered taco al pastor (marinated pork) and taco carnita (pulled pork) and of course some guacamole. As I was waiting, I was given a plate of tortilla chips and to my surprise there was a counter of about 7-8 salsas to choose from. I scooped on some green salsa which had a nice kick to it.

Tacos and guacamole at Dona Cata

When I got home and dug in, my colleague was correct. It was decent, but having tasted taco al pastor in Mexico, it just wasn’t the same. The meat was a little overcooked and dry, which essentially makes or breaks the success of any taco. So needless to say, it was a disappointing, since overcooked meat can be avoided. Visually speaking, it was authentic, the flour tortillas were soft and it was garnished with cilantro and lime. As for the guacamole, that was very good, it was creamy and no doubt homemade!

Tacos at Dona Cata

If you have a craving and can’t quite make it across the border, go check out Dona Cata.

Dona Cata Mexican Restaurant & Taqueria

5076 Victoria Drive
Vancouver BC V5P 3T8

Tuesday to Saturday – 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM & 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Sunday – 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Monday – Closed

Robbie and I are unintentionally working our way through the Rosa cookbook. Here are a few recent successes. Robbie did 90% of the work (at least) on all of these. Few things beat coming home to him after a spin class, making a fantastic dinner for us.

The first is Zarape de Pato. Robbie did all the work on this one…We used MayWah smoked duck, which he marinated in a mixutre of chipotle in adobo, garlic, tomatoes, and jalapenos, and onion. The sauce is an incredible roasted red pepper habanero sauce. He also made homemade tortillas.

The next dish is straight from the cookbook and is called Salmon with Fruity Mole. The mole, which we had from a previous dish, is an incredible mixture of tomato, onion, cloves, ancho chiles, guajillo chiles, plantains, pineapple, allspice, garlic, Mexican cinnamon, cider vinegar, piloncillo, sugar and salt. Lots of ingredients, but well worth it. It is an incredible mole, that can easily be used for lots of different dishes. We pan seared MayWay vegan salmon on the grillpan, and made some black beans with corn. To assemble, we spooned some mole in the bottom of the dish, placed some of the bean/corn mixture above that, then topped it with the salmon, a pineapple slice, and cilantro.

Finally, after a sweaty spin class, I came home to a surprise dinner of lemon achiote grilled tofu tacos- homemade tortillas and guac as well! Achiote is my new favorite spice…it is really fragrant, and surprisingly sweet as well. Thanks, baby…

More to come!!

We’re driving to Ohio for X-mas, and while we’re there, we’ll be visiting Dragonfly in Columbus. We went last year, and it was incredible. Full review/pictures are in order.

In my humble little opinion, the most authentic Mexican cuisine here in Ottawa is found at Pancho Villa. I am at an advantage to know this, as my mother in law is Mexican. In addition to this fact, Pancho Villa is really easy on your wallet.

The best part? The food is delicious, and the service is always pleasant.

You also get a lot of food on your plate. My all-time favourite dish is the Pancho Special, but made with slight variations than how it is on their menu. The Pancho Special is essentially just three enchiladas, which can be stuffed with either beef, chicken, or Monterrey Jack cheese. On the side you are served with re-fried black beans, a salad, and a nice dollop of guacamole. I usually get two chicken enchiladas and one beef one, or one of each if I’m craving cheese.  I also always ask for an additional side of guacamole, and a side of sour cream.

This is what I recommend you do to your Pancho Special, with a picture to boot!

Ask your server to bring you the Pancho Special, but with the following three sauces, instead of bare. Ask for mole (pronounced moh-lay), salsa verde (ver-day), AND the red sauce so that the sauces are sprawled across the three enchiladas. (I’ve brought in this picture to show them, so that they KNOW what I’m talking about- I’m that crazy)

What I then do, which you don’t have to, unless you’re obsessed with condiments and sauces like I am, is then take your re-fried beans, layer them across all your enchiladas, do the same thing with your guacamole, and last but not least, take your sour cream and layer it on top of all of that. Then you have the most flavourful meal of all time, for around twelve dollars. Oh, I almost forgot the hot green sauce! Make sure you ask for that, and dabble that on top too!

Food genius, I know! Or just disgusting to some.

Pancho Special or not, Pancho Villa has a lot of meals to try, and a great patio in the summer. As my friend would say, be there or be square!

 ~Darleya~

Ingredients

2-3 pieces of boneless chicken ( cut up into bit-sized pieces )
1/2 green pepper
1/2 red pepper
1/2 yellow pepper
1 stalk celery, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup grated cheddar
1/2 cup mozzorella

Sour cream
guacamole
salsa
( no measures, just use what is desired )
tortillas – large size

Prepare

So recently there’s been all these rave reviews about above said restaurant so I thought I’d add my own two cents and let you know the real deal. To make it easier for all of us, I’ve coyly divided my review into four categories for location, price, ingredients/food and service. Let me know if you’ve found this helpful and whether your experience was better or worse.

The Location:Getting to Tomatillo’s is pretty simple. Go out of exit 6 from Jonggak Station and in less than 5 minutes of walking (about 30 meters) it’ll be on your left side. You can also go from Gwanghwamun Station exit 5. There are two other franchises near Samsung Station (exit 5 in connection with the Hyundai Department store, B1) and Yeoksam Station (inside Gangnam Finance Center building connected from B2 of exit 2). Looking at just the convenience of location, I would say that Tomatillo has done pretty well for themselves in the efforts of branching out not only in the southeastern region but in the north end as well. I would hope that in the future, they’ll consider opening another location near Hongik or Yonsei University as well as some other branches near Hyehwa, Sindorim and Apgujeong.

The Price:

Considering the wide demographics of customers (from college students to families) the prices are slightly above modest, at best. What absolutely shocked me (to my very core) was a 10% VAT tax. Honestly, this is not some high class restaurant. For example, if you factor in that on top of the price for a burrito (6,800won) it comes out to be a little less than 7,500won. Our set menu was 9,900won (w/ VAT) and included a side of chips, salsa and soft drink. Other choices from the main menu were tacos (4,180won), quesadillas (also about 7,500won), tostados (6,050won) and nachos (also 9,000 to 10,000won). One thing I will commend them for is prices on alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Strawberry, lime and peach margaritas are a meager 6,050won and tequila shots for 4,400won. The priciest drinks are their smoothies in pina colada, gold medalist and peach fuzzy flavors and Coronas for 6,600won.

Am I overreacting? Maybe a little but once again looking at the fare alone, this is an average of 1,000won more than other similar Tex Mex style restaurants that DON’T charge this nonsense tax. A quick note to tourists, you can file for a refund later so keep your receipts.

The Food:

They have plenty of delicious and fresh side orders to choose from, some more memorable than others…though they could do without the Mexican salad, tortilla soup, cinnamon choco chips and dessert cake. I felt like these were added just for the sake of ‘pleasing’ the Korean pallet. I mean cookies and cake at a Mexican restaurant? A little odd, if you know what I mean. I say they should stick with the basics and do their best to keep prices low on what really matters: the meats, cheese, salsas and made to order chips! In fact, I don’t even expect them to ever lower the price for guacamole and sour cream (having lived in Korea for more than 2 years, I’ve grown accustomed to excluding them altogether) however believe these too are a must in a legitimate Mexican menu.

Back to what’s important, my order. Going with a friend I decided to get the baja fish burrito and she, a chicken burrito set with chips and cola. The last time I had a fish burrito was at Taco Del Mar in Seattle, 2+ years ago and it was DE-LI-COUS. So of course, I had high expectations. They didn’t do a good job of layering the ingredients as the first few bites were tasteless and bland, also probably because the ‘insides’ didn’t take up much space on the tortilla. I even asked for more vegetables, except rather than bursting from the seams, my burrito was roughly 1/4^th smaller than what I was used to.

With that being said, on taste alone I gave high marks. The freshness of the lettuce blended well with the melted mild cheddar cheese, sour cream, fried fish and Spanish rice. I would even go as far as saying that the rice was THE best in Korea, long-grains, not sticky and with just the right amount of heat to keep your tongue tingly happy after each delightful bite. I did miss not having fresh tomatoes but as it was already falling apart midway, that might have been a good thing.

My friend’s chicken burrito was also a bitter-sweet experience. Everything was great expect the portion size, sauce drips making a mess all over her hands even with the aluminum wrapping (I mean where did they learn to fold, beginners origami school?!) and cold chicken. Last but not least, I was very saddened by the measly 8 pieces of chips that came with the set menu. On the other hand, the salsa made from yellow tomatoes was a perfect contrast to the main dish, not too watery or sweet. For more bang for your buck I suggest the combo plate (includes chips, salsa, rice, beans and soda for 5,500won) or just chips and salsa (for 3,850won) and opt for their free water with lemon.

The Service:

As a final point, I want to note the ever soo slooooww service. With only a handful of customers, I honestly have never experienced such sluggishness by a restaurant’s employees. As a quick solution, I suggest they import some hard working Mexican workers to replace the unenthusiastic, undeniably oblivious Korean’s behind the counter. The only time you know they’d get distracted would be looking at all the Korean girls wearing mini-skirts and heels in the dead of winter! All jokes aside, we waited 20 minutes for our food to come out and once it did, think of how disappointing it was: two average size burritos, one cold (mine was warm only because of the fried fish), a soft drink and some chips tossed in the basket for good measure.

So the ultimate question is would I ever go there again? Yes and no. If I’m in the area and craving some non-Korean food I’d probably stop by and hope that it won’t take another millennia. But being slightly out of my way and living (in the Itaewon area) next to Amigos and Chili Chili on the same block, I envision far and few visits to Tomatillo’s.

*Note: Except for the link to directions in English, the site has not been fully translated.

For some of you 22 degrees is a cinch (and I am envious of you all) but I have been fortunate enough to have lived three years of my life in Los Angeles and the rest of my life in the suburbs of New Jersey and Connecticut, where, sure!  It gets really cold, but I have almost always had a car with seat warmers, or at the very least, internal temperature control!

Look at this little guy. He looks a little down, eh?

I spent the weekend in New York City.  A place that I hope to call home, soon.  However, I question my sanity–  22 degrees and it feels like 6?  I am wondering how I ever managed to spend winter in negative-degree, Connecticut weather?  It must have been the car and sheer determination.

For many, including myself, a drop in temperature can mean a change in behavior.  Perhaps, you do not want to leave the house as much and thus, can become socially withdrawn.  You might feel lonely or down.  Weight gain and lack of energy may be an issue.    S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder) can be rough and as the temperature decreases, it is more likely that are bodies are going to start gravitating towards “comfort foods.”  I can become an eating machine.

Hang in there!  As someone who suffers from some form of S.A.D.,  here are a few of my tips for staying warm, happy, and healthy without having to reach for that late night bag of potato chips.

1.  Take a warm bath.  Add bubbles and light a candle to make it different from an “ordinary” bath.

2.  Enjoy a caffeine-free, herbal tea.  I personally like the warming Yogi tea:  Classic India Spice.  Add a tbsp of raw honey or NuNaturals brand Stevia.

Visit yogiproducts.com for more delicious varieties.

3.  Increase your heart rate.  You do not need to go to the gym, but do some jumping jacks or rebound on a miniature trampoline.  Increasing your heart rate circulates more oxygen to the tissues and it can increase your energy, mood and raise your internal body temperature.  (Sometimes I make myself go to the gym just to warm up my body- it works!).

4.  Refrain from pouring that extra glass of wine.  I am a regular offender, but truth be told, not only does alcohol lower body temperature, but it also lowers your inhibitions, and… all of a sudden that warm chocolate torte is looking pretty darn delicious.

I love red wine during the winter but sometimes it can be very easy to fill... and refill the glass during the colder months

5.  Enjoy a warm but satisfying and nutritious meal.  (Pictures to come).  Comfort food does not need to be pizza or chocolate chip cookies.  I love slicing up squash and zucchini and steaming them in a vegetable broth (with garlic) right on the stove top.  I then drench them in my favorite piping hot, marinara sauce and sprinkle on raw goat cheese.  I like using squash because it is very starchy and imitates pasta.  The veggie broth ads more flavor than water.  For those of you that enjoy grains, I like Eden Foods, Kamut Pasta.

6.  Have a gathering at your place.  In order to keep my mood elevated, I need to be around people.  However, I am on a tight budget.  I suggest buying two bottles of inexpensive but nice wine. Ask guests to bring their own favorite.  Break out the CLUE, Scrabble, and Pictionary.  Offer a simple but healthy snack.  Fresh guacamole is filling and delicious.  Try one of Whitney at Lettuce Love’s wonderful guacamole recipes.  Serve it with organic carrots and/or Blue corn tortilla chips, for dipping.

My wine suggestions:  Rich and buttery Chardonnay:  Chateau St. Jean, aprx: $9.99  Full Bodied Cabernet Sauvignon:  Snap Dragon, aprx: $7.99

7. Dark Chocolate for dessert.  I love the organic Dagoba dark chocolate in Concada.  It is 73% cocoa and provides closure to my meal.  I carry it around in my purse so that I never feel like I am missing out at the dessert table.  World Wide Chocolate is offering 10% off any size order when you enter promo code: santa10 at checkout!!

What keeps you happy and healthy during the dark, cold months?  Does anyone have any suggestions?

Recently, I have found myself absorbed in the holidays and having more sugar, salts and wine than normal.  It is for this reason, I believe, I have developed a stuffy nose.  Today marks Day 1 of my “detox” from all things sugar.  Follow me for four and a half days as I keep busy and try the Candida-Free Diet plan… (I shall explain more about this tomorrow).

Having guacamole in my house is never a very good idea.  I really have a little bit of a portion problem when it comes to dips, so I decided I needed to create a dinner that would use the guacamole , so I wouldn’t be constantly tempted to reach into the pantry, grab some corn chips and dip away!  I also had ZERO interest in going out to the store, and needed something fairly quick since I would be gone most of the day.

I stared at my crockpot and my giant bag of potatoes and started to get some inspiration.  For some reason, the idea of chili cheese fries sounded amazing on such a cold, windy night.  Now, mind you, I have NEVER had chili cheese fries.  In my life.  Why those sounded so good to me is beyond my understanding, but I decided to not question it.

I figured I could try making fries in the crockpot and see how that turned out.  I knew I wouldn’t have a lot of time to make actual fries, so I was hoping and praying this worked.  First I took down my ton of potatoes.

I sprayed my crock with some nonstick cooking spray, and cut up about 10 potatoes into wedges.

I coated them with EVOO and a ton of taco seasoning.

Give it a few tosses, and set your crockpot on high for about 6 hours.  Come home to the most amazing smell in your house.  MMMMM…spices.  Can I just say that I ADORE spicy fries.  I always loved them, but it really went over the top when I was studying abroad in Melbourne, Australia.  So many of the pubs served “spiced wedges” with sour cream and sweet chili sauce.  Heaven!

I also had the foresight to defrost the rest of the chili from the other night.  Now we started building!  First came the fries.  They weren’t soggy, but they weren’t crisp.  They tasted good, but were kind of soft (which is why they are all falling apart here).

A layer of chili

Some cheese (microwaved for a few seconds for some melty, cheesy goodness).

Finally, a layer of guacamole (By the way, to keep it from browning, put one of the avocado pits in with the guacamole!).  Next, DEVOUR!

Look at that beautiful cheesiness!  This is kind of what my mom and I call a “dump recipe.”  Dump it all together, and you get yumminess!

‘Twas good, try it!

Now, click here!

Do you ever make any “dump recipes”?  What’s your favorite?

Jessica made guacamole the other day, and I haven’t been able to think about much else since them (well, except for making cookie dough truffles, but that’s being saved for another day).  Seriously, everything she makes looks good, doesn’t it?

I bought some guacamole, the premade kind.  It kind of sucked.  It just didn’t do it for me or Solomon, and I was determined to fix this situation and have good guac.  Imagine my surprise when avocados were on sale and priced decently, rather than the cost of a year of college a piece!  I decided 2 should be enough (duh, it wasn’t), did a quick mental inventory of the contents of my fridge, picked up cilantro and headed home to make guacamole.

Unfortunately, once I cam home, I realized the tomato I had was a little yucky.  Bummer, because I really love tomato in my guacamole, but can’t win them all.  I decided to just go ahead and make guac without tomato, because like I said, I was fully determined to have guacamole!  First, I cut each avocado in half and removed the pit.  I like to cut into the flesh and turn the avocadoes in on themselves to release all of the meat inside.  I totally got this idea from Bobby Flay.  I love him!

I throw this into my bowl first, and mash it all up.  If I am making a big batch of guac, I’ll use a potato masher.  I wasn’t this time.

I threw in a little bit of chopped red onion next.  I love red onion in my guacamole because of it’s flavor, and I like the nice bit of color it adds, as opposed to white onions.  Foods should be colorful!

A few sprigs of cilantro went in next.  I know some people can’t stand cilantro because it tastes like soap to them.  I feel so fortunate not to be one of those people, because I adore the taste!

Like I said, I normally like tomatoes in my guacamole, and much more texture, but hey, can’t win them all, right?  Now was time to flavor it!  First came salt and pepper.  I decided instead of regular salt, to use one of my fun artisinal salts from Savannah!

You can’t tell, but this salt has an orange color to it!  It’s suggested uses are on fruits, raw vegetables and salads, so I figured why the heck not?

Next came my guacamole secret weapon (when I don’t feel like chopping up jalapenos!)

A little garlic powder, lime juice, some chili powder and of course, cumin!  I always like to let guacamole sit in the fridge for about an hour before serving it, just to let the flavors come together.

Not my favorite batch ever, but it did the trick!

While this was going on, Solomon decided to have some fun with our label maker, at poor Rufio’s expense.

It says Rufio.  Of course.

While this was being done, I made myself a green monster because I knew I couldn’t wait until dinner!  Joel at YouBar sent me a whole bunch of fun products to sample.  YouBar is a company that allows you to customize bars, shakes, trail mix, cookies and chocolate! It’s such a great idea because you can make your creation in any flavor you can imagine, you can control the nutritional content, and make sure there isn’t anything in there you don’t want!

Even though it was the afternoon, I decided to give the Breakfast Shake a try.

It contains whey protein, egg white powder, organic cane juice, cocoa powder and organic bananas. It has 100 calories, 1 gram of fat and 15 grams of protein. Not bad for an afternoon snack!  I threw in some spinach, almond milk and a little almond butter for the perfect afternoon snack!

I love the idea of customizing ANYTHING, and think this makes for the perfect gift!  I especially love that you can create cookies and customize them to your specific nutritional needs and wants.

If you want to try anything from YouBar, they have provided a coupon code to Live, Love, Eat and Play readers for 5% off.  Just enter  liveloveeat&play at checkout and start customizing!

Oh yeah, and the guacamole?  I’m basically an animal for any kind of dip known to man.  Bad idea!  Despite the shake, I did save room for dinner, and I’ll be posting that tomorrow!

Remember my Wusthof giveaway!  You have 5 ways to enter!

Random question…what are your New Year’s Eve plans?

Small observations:

1. Arriving for supper at Brown’s restaurant, which is on King’s Parade just opposite King’s College. I look over at the bar and I see a group of about eight students, all wearing suits and formal dresses, and they have the academic robes on–the kind you see at graduation ceremonies. But there is no graduation ceremony this time of year. I inquired: it turns out that at many of the colleges, academic robes must be worn to two or so evening dinners each week called “formal hall”. And when students go out after formal hall for drinks at the bar, they leave the robes on. It’s apparently quite common.

2. A friend took me to a very out of the way pub called St. Radegund’s, tiny with a distinctive wedge shape because it’s on a corner. Near Jesus College. One patron had his large English Sheepdog sitting on the floor.

3. At a fairly working class fish and chips place in Ely (it’s called Petrou) I noticed everyone had green stuff, something like guacamole, on their french fries. So I thought, do as the locals do, and asked for it too. I kind of wish I hadn’t. I’ve since learned it’s called “mashed peas” and that’s exactly what it was.

There’s another story about mashed peas that says a lot about the current election season here in Britain. Gordon Brown, current prime minister of Labour, has fairly low poll numbers but is gaining on his challenger, David Cameron of the Tories. Cameron’s problem is that he is very upper class (Eton, Oxford) and not very good at hiding it, which is a problem because the Tories are historically associated with wealth and privilege whereas Labour is the party of everyone else. And you can’t win an election if only rich people vote for you. Anyway, when I described my experience with mashed peas to a local, I was told a story about David Cameron: not long ago, he went to a local fish and chips place, attempting to show he was just one of the guys. He failed miserably when he said  “And I’ll have some of that guacamole on my chips.” (Of course, I was told this story by a Labour voter.)

Correction: It wasn’t David Cameron, it was Peter Mandelson. This story is even more complicated for a non-U.K. reader than the incorrect one above. Mandelson is solid labour, but is “new labour” (trust me you don’t want a long blog about new and old labour) and actually from a working class background. He is known for cozying up to rich folks and generally acting upper class, for a couple of decades denying his working class roots. He was visiting a town up north (the home of industrial labor in the U.K.) and is said to have asked for “avocado” on his chips. Thus displaying his rejection of his working class roots and his wholesale adoption of upper class attitudes, so the story goes.

A quick Google search suggests that this story is probably false anyway, even though I swear every person I’ve told about my Ely Petrou experience immediately tells me about Mandelson, it could be an urban myth, which would make it even more telling about British political culture:

http://msgboard.snopes.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=print_topic;f=101;t=000327

Sunday night was the season finale of The Amazing Race.  I don’t think I was the only one to be a little verklempt about going into the final episode without the Globetrotters.  Flight Time and Big Easy were such good sports and showmen and just so darn likeable that even when Big Easy spectacularly blew the Kafka challenge in Prague and they were eliminated in the previous episode, I still sort of expected them to be at the starting point for the finale anyway.  How could we go on without them? 

Well, we did manage to soldier bravely on, thanks in part to guacamole, Jambalaya/Paella, and homemade ice cream. 

Before Kate and Aaron arrived, we were talking about danger foods.  You know–the food you simply can’t keep in your house or you’ll eat ALL of it?  Rob said homemade ice cream was his downfall, and I admitted that for me, it’s chips and salsa or guacamole.  Enter Kate and Aaron, who plop down a giant bowl of guacamole and a bag of chips, directly in front of me on the coffee table.  Dip, munch.  Dip, munch.  Uh oh! 

I did manage to tear myself away from the guacamole for long enough to dish up a plate of their yummy dinner.  Was it jambalaya, or was it paella?  I’d call it a successful fusion of both, one pan featuring sausage, and the other with shrimp.  Lightly spicy, with bits of bell pepper, the rice was cooked to a perfect crust on the bottom.  Then there was that bowl of guacamole still in front of me, for a postprandial snack. 

Rob’s homemade ice cream was the last word in ice cream.  I tend to be suspicious of the homemade variety.  Too many times, it’s been over-hyped as the ultimate dessert, then when the ice cream maker is proudly opened, I end up with a mushy bowl of something resembling, heaven forbid, ice-milk–thin tasting with annoying ice crystals in it.  Well, we had none of that ice-milk sadness.  Both the eggnog flavor and the Reese’s peanut butter cup flavor were as rich and creamy as anything Haagen-Dazs ever churned out, but with much fresher flavors. 

I could only spare room for a few bites of the ice cream however, because there was still a little bit of guacamole in the bottom of the bowl. 

And congratulations to Lindsey, the lucky winner of the Amazing Race betting pool.  May she take her winnings to Vegas and parlay them into a cool million.

(I love the “Friends” titles) I enjoyed reading all your Santa stories.  I also remember as a child being scared of Santa, it scared me knowing he sneaks into your bedroom while your asleep.  In the end my Dad said they’d leave my stocking downstairs so Santa would leave the presents there instead of my bedroom.

Even though I’m on holiday I still got up quite early, well around 9:00 after my parents had left for work   I made myself a quick breakfast of cheerios and then got ready to meet my friend for more shopping.

I met my friend in the Victoria Quarter Arcade, which hosts the famous Harvey Nichols, the first store to be opened outside of London so there

Anyway we grabbed a coffee, yes another starbucks, but consider I very rarely go there throughout the year I thought to hell with it I’m treating myself. 

We picked up some more Christmas presents and searched through about a million dress shops looking for the perfect dresses (see further on for the shopping finds) then stopped off for lunch.

We ordered the club sandwich, which is made with chicken, bacon and salad, with chips, we ended up just sharing this one as there was too much for just one person.

WEDNESDAY’S WARDROBE

I’ve been looking for a couple of dresses to wear for upcoming Christmas parties.  I really wanted an orange dress for my works Christmas do and a black tassel dress for my group of friends’ Christmas night out. 

I actually found what I was looking for, which is very surprising as normally when I have a specific idea in my head I can never find it.  I found the orange dress on sale at Zara and the black dress from H&M.  I can’t wait to wear them now. It’s my work’s do on the 19th and my friends’ night out this weekend YIPPEE!!!

I was so hungry when I got home and made a quick quesadilla with cheese, spinach and tomato, along with a big dollop of guacamole.

and a nice juicy pear for afters. 

I found out that “Glee” is coming on TV here next week.  I haven’t the foggiest idea what it’s about, but I’ve been reading alot about it on other blogs.  Can’t wait to check it out.

Taylor

So I didn’t really know what to write about because my weekend wasn’t exactly a cooking extravaganza. Everything was pretty normal and not all too thrilling, though I did manage to cook some.

I made homemade skillet hashbrowns on Saturday morning, though they kinda ended up like mashed potato pancakes because we over cooked the potatoes before shredding. Note to self, leave a little cooking to be done!

Then Saturday night we had tacos, well tostadas…with seasoned shredded chicken..yum. and mom had me make my guacamole. I make the BEST guacamole. there is only one other place where I will actually order guacamole…and that is Chipotle. I LOVE CHIPOTLE! a veggie fajita burrito bowl with black beans and corn salsa, guac, cheese, sour cream, and lettuce….oh god i’m in heaven. and i want one…NOW!!! seriously the guacamole takes my breath away everytime. though their chips are a little too salty. sorry but i have to have just one complaint.

anyway here is my best take on guacamole:

3 avocados (mashed but still a little chunky)

~1 cup pico de gallo (i used to chop of onions, tomato, jalapeno, and cilantro…but this is wayyyy easier)

a splash or two of lime juice (fresh is fine, but sometimes bottled is all i got)

sea salt to taste

a large-ish dallop of sour cream (for creaminess)

and that’s it! but it tastes like a million bucks, and people who aren’t guac fans love it. I have a friend who is allergic to tomatos so sometimes i’ll leave those out. But pretty much its the same everytime! and we seriously eat the entire bowl worth in one sitting! yeah i know…chub alert!

I also made white chocolate and chocolate covered pretzels and graham crackers this weekend. most of which have since been annihilated.

last night’s dinner was boring, leftovers. we needed to clean out the fridge of them. I may or may not have a container of rice leftover from thanksgiving! Oops! but we had bbq pork roast shredded.

and then breakfast today was the usual banana, pumpkin butter, and almond butter on whole wheat toast. with some coffee of course. and now i’m sipping some green and white fusion Stash tea. seriously FAVE! and i just finished munching on some laughing cow swiss with rosemary melba toast! YUM! enough to hold me over until lunch!

so i’ve been reading everyone’s blogs and everyone does some 12 days of something, like 12 days of cookies. Well, I was trying to think of something I could legitimately do…i mean cookies means baking and since I work 2 jobs…that’s just not practical. So i decided to do something to educate myself and others on whole grains. So introducing 12 DAYS OF GRAINS! I’ll try to feature a different grain everyday during one of my meals and educate you about it, its healthy qualities, and other uses for it! Plus recipes of course. I might start this adventure tomorrow since we already have a night out planned with friends for dinner, and I already have my lunch planned too. But maybe I’ll surprise you!

So get ready for 12 DAYS OF GRAINS!

So Many Avocados, So Little Time

Avocados keep falling from the tree…tons of them, well I exaggerate, approximately 7 per day.   Then they ripen at lightening speed.  We are using them instead of butter, eating them on every sandwich, putting them in salads and slathering spicy guacamole on everything.   I’m even making my own california roll sushi.  I might start making skin cream and hair treatment, then I could market the stuff.   Two people cannot eat 7 avocados per day.

Avocado Grounded

These are wonderfully creamy sweet avocados they work well with both the local lemons and limes.  The good news is this cultivar’s flesh is  slow to turn brown.  I make all kinds of guacamole.  Sometimes simple with just lemon juice, salt and garlic.  Sometimes with chopped onion, lime, salt and cilantro.  Sometimes with hot chilies and lime.  Sometimes with cumin, salt and rice vinegar.  I found this great spicy salt called Tony Charhere’s Orignal Creole Seasoning which makes a damn good “yakamolay” (word coined by friend Kandiss) with just a little lemon.

When God Gives You Lemons and Avocados...Make Guacamole!

I love avocados, I never thought I could say I had too many.  Too bad they just don’t keep and it is illegal to mail fresh produce to the mainland.   Doing some research I found it is difficult it is to process and keep avocado oil.  Too bad mainlanders I cannot share.

We had friends over on Saturday to play some poker and it was a perfect flashback to those lazy college weekend days when nothing more than eating delicious foods and lounging around all day with your friends is enough.
 
Hangover and wallet in hand, I forced my boyfriend to accompany me to the Whole Foods in Chelsea to pick up the necessary ingredients to whip up three different guacamoles (one normal, one smokey and spicy, and one unusual because let’s be honest, there is no such thing as too much guacamole ever) and these fantastic chicken enchiladas that can be time-consuming but are a complete crowd pleaser.
 
The unusual guacamole – which involved pomegranate seeds and chopped up pears – never came to fruition (ha, pun!) but the other two guacamole recipes were absolutely delicious and disappeared in minutes. And let it be said that New York is the greatest city in the world and reason #4892 is because we were able to get two bottles of champagne delivered to our apartment at six in the afternoon after we were too full to go outside ourselves to pick up additional booze.
 
Guacamole

Adapted from Food Network (Alton Brown)

Ingredients:

3 Haas avocados, halved, seeded and peeled; 1 lime, juiced; 1/2 tsp kosher salt; 1/2 tsp ground cumin; 1/2 tsp cayenne; 1/2 medium onion, diced; 2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced; 1 tbsp chopped cilantro; 1 clove garlic, minced
 
Directions:

In a large bowl, place the scooped avocado and lime juice and toss to coat. Once all of the avocado is coated, drain and reserve the lime juice. Using a potato masher, add the salt, cumin and cayenne to the bowl and mash. Fold in the onions, tomatoes, cilantro and garlic. Add 1 tbsp of the reserved lime juice.
 
Guacamole with Fresh Corn and Chipotle

Adapted from Epicurious.com

Ingredients:

2 large ripe avocados, halved, pittled and peeled; 1 tbsp fresh lime juice; 1 ear of fresh corn (thawed frozen corn can be a suitable substitute); 1 Roma tomato, seeded and diced; 2 green onions, chopped; 1 or 2 canned chipotle chiles, finely chopped; 1/4 cup sour cream
 
Directions:

Mash avocados with lime juice in medium bowl. Using sharp knife, remove corn kernels from cob and add to avocado mixture.  Stir in tomato and green onions. Combine chipotle and sour cream in a small bowl and whisk to blend. Stir cream mixture into avocado mixture. Season with salt.
 
Chicken Enchiladas with Roasted Tomatillo Chile Salsa

Adapted from Food Network (Tyler Florence)

Ingredients:

Roasted Tomatillo Chile Salsa: 1 lb tomatillos, husked; 1 white onion, peeled, sliced, and quartered; 4 garlic cloves; 2 jalapenos; 2 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp salt; 1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves; 1/2 lime, juiced
 
Enchiladas: Olive oil, 1/2 medium onion, diced; 3 garlic cloves, chopped; 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin; 1/4 cup all-purpose flour; 2 cups chicken stock; chopped cilantro leaves; 1 deli roasted chicken, boned and meat shredded (or buy a raw cut up whole chicken and place all the pieces in a big pot with enough water to cover all the chicken, bring to a boil and reduce to simmer for 30 minutes); salt; black pepper; 10 large flour tortillas; 1/2 lb Monterey Jack cheese, shredded; 2 cups sour cream; chopped tomatoes and cilantro for garnish
 
Directions:

For the salsa: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a baking tray, roast tomatillos, onion, garlic and jalapenos for 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer the roasted vegetables and any juices on the bottom of the tray to a food processor. Add the cumin, salt, cilantro, and lime juice and pulse mixture until well combined but still chunky.
 
For the enchiladas: Change the temperature of the oven to 350 degrees. Heat a 2 count of olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and caramelized, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cumin then cook for a further minute. Sprinkle on the flour and stir to ensure the flour doesn’t burn then gradually add the chicken stock to make a veloute. Continue stirring over a low simmer until the flour cooks and the liquid thickens. Turn off the heat, add half of the roasted tomatillo chile salsa, some additional fresh chopped cilantro and fold in the shredded chicken meat. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Take a large baking dish and smear the bottom with some of the reserved tomatillo salsa. Now take the flour tortillas and briefly flash them over the stove-top flame or heat on a skillet if using an electric stove. Using a shallow bowl, coat each tortilla lightly with the reserved salsa mix. Put a scoop of the shredded chicken on top of the tortilla followed by a sprinkle of the shredded cheese. Fold the tortilla over the filling and roll like a cigar to enclose it. Place it, seam down, in the baking dish and continue to do the same with all the tortillas. Pour the remaining salsa on top of all the enchiladas and sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes, until bubbly and cracked on top. Garnish with tomatoes and cilantro.