Jumbo Shrimp, Basil, Lemon, Bacon, and Creamy Penne Pasta

Meghan said, enough Latin food. So I put it down for a night, and went back to my old love, Italian. Bought some really fresh (smelled really good) shrimp (7-9), fresh (5 leaves) basil, 1 lemon, 2 slices fletchers dry cured bacon (crazy good), 6 crimini mushrooms (capped), 2 large garlic cloves, crushed red pepper, 1/2 cup cream, 2 tbsp butter, 1/4 cup sherry wine, s/p, a pinch of ancho powder (I couldn't resist), 1 fresh roma tomato, and some fresh parsley...and it made some magic.

First slice the mushrooms, bacon, and than smash 2 large garlic cloves. Add the bacon to the pan, render the bacon down for a few minutes. In the bacon fat add the mushrooms and garlic. Cook until the mushrooms are done. Pour that mixture onto the plate. Add to that 2tbsp of butter. Zest a whole lemon (large), and chop. Slice basil as well. Add the shrimp to the high heat and butter/bacon fat. Add the pinch of ancho, enough salt, pepper, lemon zest, and basil. Cook until on one side for 2 min. Flip the shrimp, then add the sherry wine. When that has reduced, add the bacon and mushrooms back to the pot. At this point LOWER the heat to the lowest option, but keep the pan on the burner. Add the cream and stir. Slice and deseed the tomato. Then dice it into small pieces and add to the pot. The cream will just barely bubble. Stir it all around. At this point add the fresh parsley.

Enjoy a little piece of shrimp heaven.

SXSW

I called this one south by southwest. Fried chicken with a 7 spice blend coating, orange pepper ancho sauce, potatoes au grautin, and collard greens. I will eventually type in a recipe, but it is just too much typing for me.

Broiled Mahi on Wild Rice with Zesty Hollandaise

Smoked Squab and Crab Sauce served over brown rice

It was crazy good, I will go over the recipe sometime...at least the next post has a recipe!

Three Chile Shrimp & Mahi on Sofrito Rice

A little somethin somethin I was working on. It was crazy good. The shrimp and mahi had a simple rub. 1 part ancho chili powder, 1 part chipotle powder, and 1 part chile negro powder. Added to that was a little garlic powder, salt, butter, lime juice, and parsley.

The sofrito rice, is just brown rice, sofrito (onion, green peppers (in this case jalapenos), tomatoes (fresh 2 romas), and garlic. With a new mexican spice mix.

It was topped with a ranchero salsa, and cilantro. Ranchero salsa is one large reconstituted ancho chile pepper, 1 roma tomato, a slice of onion, one garlic clove, one jalapeno (chopped), a bunch of cilantro, 1tsp of vinegar, 1tsp lime juice, salt, pepper.

The shrimp and mahi were cooked in a mixture of butter and olive oil. The oil is added to temper the butter (so it won't burn), so I can cook it on a higher heat.



Some good eats.

Goodbye Winter

No more winter days like this...


means no more of this...


or this...

Series: New spice rub -- ancho and chile negro mix...

Spice Rubbed Mahi on reduced charo beans and cilantro corn sauce and a side of ancho mango sauce, topped with mango relish, and served with an ancho mango and mascarpone stuffed sweet pepper


It was really good.

Smoked rack of pork loin with a spice rub, and covered in an ancho chipotle honey glaze, topped with roasted mango salsa, and served with chicken tamales.



Pretty much the Best Smoked Chicken ever


Chicken Tamales


Some killer chicken Charo Beans

Spice Rubbed Three Sauce Ribeye Steak Topped w/ a Balsamic Reduction Braised Crimini, served w/ Fresh Bread, Creamed Spinach, and Mashed Potatoes

AKA...The Ribeye meal everyone got to eat.

Ribeye Dinner that no one got to eat...

Blackened Ahi-Tuna Steaks over Parsnip puree served with Asparagus and Hollandaise Sauce

This was fantastic. And fairly easy. The hardest part is the hollandaise sauce, but once you've done it once you get a real knack for making it again. I think I have a perfect recipe for it. But I'll let you be the judge.

Tuna:
1/2 pound tuna (in two small steaks)
2 teas freshly ground Ancho chili powder
handful of flat leaf parsley
1 teas chili powder
1/2 teas garlic powder
zest of one lime, chopped fine
juice of one lime
salt/pepper

Rub the tuna with the spices and s/p & put in a dish. Add the lime juice, zest, and parsley. Let that rest while you prep everything else. When everything else is prepped, add 1 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp EVOO to a hot pan (high heat). Now add the tuna, and sear for 3-4 min on each side. Watch carefully for burning butter. Turn the heat lower if the butter starts to burn.

Parsnips:
2 Parsnips
1/2 cup cream
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp ancho
s/p

Parsnips are my new favorite root veggie. Sort of like a carrot if it were white, mixed with a potato. It's easier to blend than a potato (which is tempermental because of how much starch there is), because it has less starch. Meaning you can even add it to a food processor without it turning into paste (like a potato). Peel the parsnips, and cut them up in chunks and add them to a pot with 2 cups of water. Boil for 10 min. Strain and add them to the FP. Now add 1/2 cup cream, 1 tbsp butter, 1 teas ancho chili powder, 1 teas thyme, and s/p. And now that's ready to go.

Asparagus:
Half bushel of asparagus
1 tbsp butter
1 teas thyme
s/p

Bring water to a boil in a pan. Wash the asparagus and cut off the bottom inch or so and discard. Blanch them in boiling water for ten minutes and no longer. This will have them keep their crunchiness and nice green color. Add to a sauce pan with butter, thyme, and s/p on high heat. Stir around for a couple of minutes and these are done.

Hollandaise Sauce Recipe...it's killer

Plating:
I added the aspargus first starting at the same point and fan them out. Then scooped on the parsnip puree. Put the tuna on top and press it down a little bit. Then pour on the hollandaise sauce. The end. Good food.

Sweet Pepper Rice with Spiced Chicken

Sauces: Corn Sauce, Sweet Chipotle Sauce
Chicken: New Mexican Spice Variation
Rice: Basmati, sweet pepper, onions, crimini mushrooms, water, chipotle paste, s/p, cilantro...I'll type it all out sometime. But it's from the same series.

Sweet Pepper Cilantro Sauce on Spiced Chicken and Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Sauces: Sweet Pepper Cilantro, Chile Negro and Mango
Chicken: New Mexican Spice Variation Rubbed
Potatoes: Small red potatoes mashed with butter, milk, cilantro, roasted garlic, s/p

Enjoy.

Chipotle Tri-tip on Sweet Potatoes and Creamy Spinach

Sauces: Corn Sauce, Pasilla Mango Sauce, Sweet Chipotle Sauce

Steak: Rub: with 1 teas New Mexican Spice Rub, 2 teas ancho chile powder, 1/2 teas garlic powder, s/p., 1 teas thyme. Rub on the meat. Sear on high with EVOO on one side until a dark brown sear is visible, flip to the other side and sear for another few minutes. Take out the meat. Add a half cup of water, chipotle paste, 2 teas balsamic vinegar. Add the meat back. Make sure the top sear of the meat is not touched by the water solution. Cook down on medium until there is virtually no more liquid. And remove from the heat.

Sweet Potatoes - cut and boil two large sweet potatoes. Task out and use a mill to rice the potatoes. Now add 1 tbsp butter, 2 teas brown sugar, 2 tbsp milk, 1 teas thyme, salt, pepper, one pinch of cloves, and a grind of nutmeg.

Spinach - 1 pound of fresh spinach (rinsed). Add 1/2 cup milk and spinach to a pot on high heat. Add1 tbsp honey, 1 teas chipotle paste, 1 tbsp butter, salt, and grind some nutmeg on top. Cook until milk is thick and cooked down low.

Add the spinach, then the sweet potatoes, and steak. Puch the steak down into the potatoes. Add corn sauce around all of it. Smother the steak in the sweet chipotle sauce,and use artistic flare to add pasilla sauce.

Roasted Chicken and Potatoes with Ancho Enchilada Sauce

This one is fairly simple. But you'll love it.

Potatoes:
- 6 small red potatoes
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 teas garlic powder
- 1 teas thyme
- 1 teas onion powder
- s/p heavily

Cut potatoes in small squares, add to a baking dish, and spread them out as best as possible. Add spice mix evenly throughout. Add oil, and get your hands messy. Mix all of the oil and spice with the potatoes to make sure each potatoe slice is covered. Add to the oven at 425 degrees for 45 min, or until roasted to a nice light brown color.

Chicken - 3 chicken thighs. 3 tbsp New Mexican Spice mix, 2 tbsp olive oil. Rub the oil and spice on the chicken. Sear in a pan for 2-3 minutes per side, then add to the 425 degree oven for 25 minutes.

Sauce: Ancho Enchilada Sauce

Spice Rubbed Chicken on Three Sauces with Baked Potatoes and Asparagus

Sauces: Corn Sauce, Pasilla Pepper Reduction, Cilantro Tomatillo

Spice Rub: New Mexican Variation

Ingredients:
- 3 chicken thighs (boneless & skinless)
- 6 large gourmet asparagus stalks (Costco)
- 6 small red baked potatoes
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 teas thyme
- 1 teas ancho chile powder
- 1 teas garlic powder
- s/p
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp canola oil

Rub the chickens and sear them in a hot pan with canola oil. Sear on both sides. Then add to a 400 degree oven for 15 min. Cut off the bottom inch of asparagus. Peel the bottom half with a peeler to remove the tough fibery/stringy outside skin. Turn heat on high and add to a a sauce pan. Lay them down next to each other, add water until it is half as deep as the asparagus. Add salt. After 3 minutes, turn each asparagus, and cook the other side for another 3 minutes. The water should almost be cooked out. At this point add the butter, thyme, garlic powder, and ancho chili powder. Sear the asparagus on each side for a minute or two, or until the butter turns a light nutty brown. Cut the baked potatoes in half, and lay them on the plate. Add the corn sauce, then the pasilla sauce, and finally the cilantro tomatillo sauce. Criss-Cross the asparagus on top of the chicken and serve.