Mexican Feast

Recently I made a Mexican inspired dinner. More than anything, it was “Tex-Mex’’ inspired, but nonetheless, it was delicious. I made quite a lot of food; the menu is below:

·         Roasted corn soup

·         Tortillas stuffed with chicken, and green peppers

·         Roasted corn guacamole

·         Fresh salsa

Everything turned out wonderfully, and my family devoured the food. Below, are all the recipes. The tortillas and the salsa are my own creation, but the soup and the guacamole are based off recipes from epicurious.com

Roasted Corn Soup

3 cups frozen corn, defrosted

2 cups veggie stock

2 Tbs olive oil

1 tsp coriander

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/2 red onion, chopped

3 Tbs fresh cilantro, chopped

1 jalapeño, stemmed and chopped

1/4 cup bottled salsa

Juice of 1/2 lime

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot heat the olive oil, and add the onions, garlic, coriander, corn, and jalapeño. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes until all of the veggies and soft and browned. Next, add the stock, lime, and salsa. Bring to a full boil, and then let simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in the fresh cilantro. Put soup into food processor, and blend until smooth, about 5 minutes. Place back in pot on stove top, and season with salt and pepper to taste. 

Serve hot, with roasted corn guacamole.

Roasted Corn Guacamole

2 cups frozen corn, defrosted

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and black pepper

1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped

1 lime, finely grated zest and juice

1 jalapeño, stemmed and seeded, finely chopped

1 avocado, pitted and chopped

Preheat oven to 450F

Place corn on a baking sheet. Season with olive oil and salt and pepper, and put in oven and bake for 20 minutes. The corn should be slightly caramelized and a little crunchy. Put the corn in a bowl and mix in the rest of the ingredients.

 Tortillas with Chicken and Green Pepper

4 large flour tortillas

1 Tbs canola oil

300 grams of ground chicken

3 Tbs taco seasoning

1 large green pepper, cut into strips

1 onion, diced

1 tomato, chopped

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

2 Tbs mayonnaise

1 Tbs. lime juice

1 Tbs. Chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 350F

In a large frying pan over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the onions and green peppers, and cook until veggies are soft. Then add the chicken and 2 Tbs of the taco seasoning stir until chicken is fully cooked. In a small bowl mix the mayonnaise, lime, cilantro, and the remaining taco seasoning. 

Spread all of the tortillas out on the counter top. Evenly distribute the mayonnaise mixture on all of the tortillas, spread it evenly.  Next, evenly distribute, the chicken mixture between the tortillas.  Then, evenly distribute the cheese and tomatoes. Fold the tortillas in half, and place on a greased cookie sheet. Place in oven, and cook for about 15 minutes. Tortillas should be lightly brown and cheese should be fully melted.

Serve tortillas while they are still hot.

Fresh Salsa

3 large tomatoes, chopped

1/4 red onion, chopped

Juice of ½ lime

1 large garlic clove, finely chopped

1 Tbs white vinegar

1 Tbs fresh cilantro, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Let sit for 20 minutes before serving so flavours can mellow.

  

 

Chicken Burgers with Chorizo

I made up this recipe off the top of my head. The measurements of ingredients are estimated, because I just threw everything together without measuring.

The burgers turned out really well!  I also made little hash-brown patties out of leftover mash potatoes to go with them. The ingredients for those are also estimated.

Here are both recipes.

Burgers

2 packets of ground chicken
1 chorizo sausage, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
3 Tbs cilantro, chopped
1 large carrot, grated
3/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1 Tbs mint sauce
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp old bay seasoning
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375F

Mix all ingredients in a large bowel until thoroughly combined. Line two cookie sheets with tin foil, and spray the tin foil with non-stick cooking spray or canola oil. Using your hands, shape the chicken mixture into patties, put onto baking sheets, and then place in the oven.  (The patties should be about one and a half inches thick and four inches across.) Cook for ten minutes and then flip burgers. Switch the position of the cookie sheets in the oven.  Cook for another ten minutes, and then broil the burgers for about three minutes to finish off the cooking and to brown the burgers.

Serve on toasted buns, with desired toppings. Pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber and cheese are good.  

Makes about 10 - 13 burgers.


Hash-Brown Patties

3/4 cup leftover mashed potatoes
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
4 Tbs Olive oil (for frying)

Mix all ingredients. Then using your hands form into little Pattie shapes. About two inches across, and one inch think. Heat a cast iron skillet on high, and heat the oil. Let the oil bubble and then put the patties in the pan. Turn heat down to medium. Cook for about five minutes, until dark brown on bottom side. Flip and cook until dark brown on the other side. Turn take pan off heat, and let sit for five minutes before eating.

Serve with burgers, or eat on their own.