Cazuela de Vaca (Beef and Butternut Squash Stew)

Cazuela de Vaca

As temperatures cool and the autumn sets in, we look for new ways to enjoy the summer's bounty. So, this recipe for Cazuela de Vaca (Beef and Pumpkin Stew) which showed up in my email a few days ago looked worth checking out.

Since we had a butternut squash already, I decided to use that instead of the pumpkin. And, instead of the one large chunk of each ingredient in the recipe, we chopped the ingredients a bit smaller. And, I skipped the polenta and reduced the number of potatoes to keep the starch down. Normally I would buy a roast or some round or sirloin steak and cut it myself, but since the butcher at the grocery had some already cut for the same price, I was lazy and bought that.

Here is my version.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds beef roast
1 (32 ounce) carton beef broth
2 cups water
5 red potatoes, cut in small chunks
1 1/2 medium onions, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 pounds chopped butternut squash
1 ear fresh corn, cut into four sections
1 carrot, peeled and cut into small chunks
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 stalks celery, cut into small chunks
3 green onions, chopped coarsely
1/2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp paprika
 1/2 cup coarsely chpped cilantro leaves

Directions:

1. Cut the beef into small chunks. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Add the beef chunks and brown briefly. Add the garlic, onions, and celery chunks and cook until the onions are partly cooked and begin to soften. Pour in the beef broth and water. Heat to a boil, reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer about one hour or until tender.

2. Add the potatoes and cook for 15 minutes.

3, Add the squash, corn, carrot, bell pepper, and green onions. Add the dried oregano also. Simmer about 10 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Sprinkle the paprika on the stew and stir thoroughly. Heat for 5 more minutes.

4. Ladle into serving bowls, and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

Enjoy!
We served it with some small multigrain crackers.

Baked Parmesan Salmon

Baked Parmesan Salmon

Grand Openings are a good time to find some special deals on food. So, when our local grocery store had a big re-opening sale after a major remodeling and offered pink salmon for only $0.02 a pound more than ground beef, how could I resist?

Salmon split in half to finish broiling

But, I wanted to do something a little different with the salmon this time, so my honey suggested this recipe for Broiled Tilapia Parmesan.

It needed a little adjustment though, since I was using a whole fish (about 2.8 pounds) instead of the 2 pounds of filets in the recipe. Rather than filet the salmon and then cook according to the recipe, I decided to bake it first.

So, I lined a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and sprayed it with cooking spray. Then I set the salmon on the cookie sheet upright with the small outward sides spread apart to hold it upright. I baked it at 350F for 30 minutes, then removed the salmon. I split it down the middle and it sliced off the center bones fairly easily. I laid the two halves side by side back on the foil-lined sheet.

Salmon with parmesan sauce spread on top

Then I switched the broiler to low and broiled it for five minutes to finish cooking the darker center parts. I then covered it with the parmesan cheese mixture and broiled it for another 3 minutes till the top was lightly browned.

Parmesan sauce is lightly browned

We served it with a cole slaw made with boiled vinegar and oil dressing for a light and heart healthy dinner!

Salmon and cole slaw

Peach Crisp Ramekin with Vanilla Ice Cream

We had earlier baked 4 ramekins of peach crisp and one of those with a small scoop of ice cream made a great dessert!

Parmesan Cheese Mixture

Ingredients

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon celery salt

Instructions

In a small bowl, mix together the Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise and lemon juice. Add the seasonings and mix thoroughly. Set aside in the refrigerator until you're ready to spread it on the salmon.

.....edited addition 8/27/13 ......

Parmesan Tilapia

We returned today hoping to catch another salmon, but they were sold out. Fortunately, we found some tilapia that were even cheaper than the salmon! So, we decided to follow the original recipe.

Adding some fresh sweet corn on sale and more cole slaw gave us a great meal for less than $5.

Parmesan Tilapia with Sweet Corn and Cole Slaw

Chicken Stroganoff

After my last recipe, the Five Spice Chicken, I was looking for something else to cook with the noodles. When the August issue of Diabetes Forecast showed up with a recipe for Turkey Stroganoff by Robyn Webb, I knew it would work well with the rest of the boneless chicken thighs I had. I used the oriental noodles instead of the traditional egg noodles, but of course this will work with either. I often like stroganoff served over rice because it absorbs the sauce better than noodles. I made a few changes to her recipe because of available ingredients so here is my version. Guten appetite!

Chicken Stroganoff with Oriental Noodles

Ingredients
8 oz Oriental noodles
1-2 Tbsp canola or olive oil to toss with the noodles
cooking spray
12-16 oz fresh boneless chicken cut into thin strips (I used 3 boneless thighs)
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 1/2 Tbsp flour
1 1/2 tsp beef bouillon
2 cups water
1 cup reduced-fat or light sour cream
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp dried parsley

1. Cook the noodles in boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain and toss with the oil so the noodles won't stick together. Set them aside in a boil.
2. Coat a large skillet with cooking spray. Add the chicken slices and saute for about 3-5 minutes until they start to brown and turn less pink. (I cooked mine a bit longer because they were frozen and I only partially thawed them in a microwave before slicing them.)

Saute the chicken slices

3. Add the sliced onions, sprinkle with the salt and pepper and saute them for 3 minutes.

Add the onions and stir frequently

4. Add the mushrooms and saute for about 3-4 minutes until the mushrooms are soft and the chicken is cooked through. Transfer the chicken and vegetable mixture to a bowl and set aside.

5. Heat the canola oil in the skillet or a heavy pot. Add the flour and bouillon powder and stir to make a roux.Gradually add the water, stirring often to blend into the roux to make a smooth mixture. Add any leftover liquid from the chicken-vegetable mixture. Heat to a slow boil, reduce heat and stir until the sauce starts to thicken.
6. Reduce the heat to low. Blend in the sour cream and mustard. I had more trouble with the sour cream clumping than I usually do with regular sour cream. So, I suggest blending a little of the sauce into the sour cream in a separate container in two or three stages to form a smooth mixture. Then add this to the sauce.

Broth and sour cream

7. Stir in the chicken and vegetable mixture and the dried parsley and cook until heated through. Do not boil!
8. Serve over the noodles.

Notes and suggestions:
After stirring the sauce with the other ingredients, the sour cream clumps smoothed out.
I liked the result. It had a mild flavor, but a good chicken and mushroom taste.
You might want to try adding a fresh or dried herb like basil or marjoram to perk it up just a bit.

Picturesque Perea's Tijuana Bar & Restaurant

Yesterday we were looking for a different place to enjoy a little family lunch. A friend had suggested Perea's Tijuana Bar & Restaurant which serves lunch from 11-2, Monday through Saturday. So, we decided to cross the Rio Grande on Alameda and cruise along the west bank past the horse paddocks along Corrales Road until we passed the library and came to Perea's.

Although I wouldn't rate the food quite as highly as Gil's Thrilling (and Filling) Blog does, the food was good and the portions were just right, satisfying without being overwhelming. The prices are also reasonable, but having to pay cash was a bit of a nuisance since we didn't know and hadn't funded up for the visit.

It's possible to eat outside on the patio.

But, we chose to dine just inside the door at the north end of the building.

One of my favorite authors often has her characters meet for a little family meal in a picuresque little restaurant and pub that apparently dates back to the late Middle Ages. Perea's building isn't quite that old, but at over 200 years it is about as close as you can get in the Albuquerque area.

At least we didn't have to duck to get under the log beams supporting the ceiling! The building is made of terrones, thick slabs of earth rather than the sun-dried mud bricks that are adobe. But, the look is much the same.

The menu is fairly simple, but the choices are good.

I chose the #1 Enchilada casserole, which came with beans and a corn and squash side dish. I added sour cream and onions.

Perea's seasoning is light on the salt, which is fine for me and better for people trying to control or avoid hypertension. You can add more salt to taste. The beans tasted quite good and were well seasoned without being overwhelmed by a "beany" taste.

My friend had another New Mexico specialty, the frito pie.

This usually consists of chile served on top of Fritos, but she ordered it with her favorite, the carne adovada (pork marinated in red chile). The pork was well marinated, although the chile hadn't quite penetrated to the center of a couple of the larger pieces. I tasted a sample and it had a good red chile taste that built up as you ate it. Overall the heat was about medium, tasty but not too hot. Real fire-eaters, though, might be disappointed.

Another guest ordered the #4, stacked enchiladas, which were served at his request without red or green chile.

And another choice worth sampling is the green chile cheeseburger seen here.

There is also a central dining room along the west wall between the bar and the patio.

I especially liked this picture which was displayed on the wall.

And, if you use the facilities or relax at the bar, you may get entertained by another guest on this Leyhe piano. Since they were only made from 1907 to 1912 and the company went bankrupt in 1914, it's a bit of an antique itself.

I tried a couple C chords, and John told me that despite a few dead keys, several of the visitors like to play it and produce rather enjoyable music for the other guests.

All in all, it was an enjoyable visit and we'll be back!

Five Spice Chicken Lo Mein

Five Spice Chicken Lo Mein

After our recent shopping expedition to the Talin Market, I decided to use a couple of our purchases (five spice powder and Asian noodles) for last night's dinner. We purchased some boneless chicken thighs that were on sale and snow peas to add to the veggies. The result was fairly simple and quick to make since the noodles cook up in only 3 minutes!

Five spice is a mixture of star anise, cloves, Chinese cinnamon,  sichuan pepper, and fennel seeds. You could mix it up yourself, but star anise can be tricky to find in regular grocery stores and the seeds would need grinding. So, I prefer to buy a commercial mixture.

The noodles I used were Sangil brand, which is distributed by Hosan Co., Ltd., and are made in Korea. But, other varieties will certainly work. Be careful not to overcook them. If they are too soft, they will fall apart when you mix them with the other ingredients.

Five Spice Chicken Lo Mein

Ingredients:

3 boneless chicken thighs, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
4 oz mushrooms, sliced
4 oz snow peas
4 Tbsp canola oil (2 for marinade, 1 to stir with noodles, 1 for stir fry)
2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp and 1 tsp five spice powder
1/2 Tbsp minced garlic

8 ounces Oriental style noodles

Steps

1. Chop or slice the vegetables and place in separate bowls.
2. Slice the chicken thighs and place in a plastic container to marinate.
3. Combine the 2 Tbsp canola oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar and five spice powder and mix thoroughly. Then, pour over the chicken and stir to color and coat the chicken pieces. Cover and place in a refrigerator to marinate for about 10-15 minutes.

Chicken in the marinade

4. Heat one gallon water in a pot to boil. Add the noodles and cook for 3 minutes. Then drain and toss in a bowl with 1 Tbsp oil to coat the noodles and keep them from getting sticky.
5. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a wok over high heat. Add garlic and  heat. When the garlic sizzles, sprinkle in 1 tsp five spice and stir quickly to toast the spice.
6. Strain the chicken and add to the wok. Stir frequently for about three minutes to cook the chicken. Remove it and place in a bowl.

Stir fry the chicken

7. Boil the liquid in the wok for about a minute until it starts to thicken.
8. Add the onion and stir fry for 1 minute.
9. Add the bell peppers, mushrooms, and snow peas. Stir fry for 1 minute.

Stir fry the vegetables

10. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the chicken and any remaining marinade and stir thoroughly to mix.
11. Turn off the heat and add the noodles and mix thoroughly.

Mix all the ingredients

This makes quite a lot and could easily have served 6-8 people, so you might want to reduce the ingredients by one half or even one third.

The result had a mild but pleasant taste from the five spice and we really enjoyed it.

I hope you will, too!

Chinshan Chinese Restaurant

One of the joys of eating out is the pleasure of discovering a really good place to dine that's worth visiting again. And, we definitely experienced that on a recent visit to Chinshan Chinese Restaurant!

The owners ran a restaurant in Los Alamos for 18 years and decided after their daughter went off to college to move to the big city. After some scouting around, they wisely (I think) chose this location on the east side of Coors NW just a bit south of the shopping mecca of western Albuquerque, the Cottonwood Mall location.

Although the interior design shows it wasn't originally built as a Chinese restaurant, the practical but stark interior is relieved by some beautiful and elegant Chinese art works.

I especially like this fish that graced a dividing wall in the dining room.

Several of the dishes feature XO sauce, a spicy-sweet sauce made from dried seafood that originated in Hong Kong.
Considered the emperor of all sauces, it will definitely be on our selection for our next visit.

But, for this time, we decided to try the House Special with Bean Curd in Clay Pot, which includes pork, chicken and shrimp.

We chose to complement that with beef lo mein.

Tofu or bean curd is common in Chinese dishes, especially the vegetarian ones. The light flavor is easily enhanced by a variety of sauces. But, too often the flavor is only surface deep covering a bland interior. In the House Special Clay Pot, however, the bean curd is saturated and wonderfully enhanced by the mild seasonings used in the pot. For a change, I actually sought out the chunks of bean curd to enjoy more of the flavor. And, as you can see, there was plenty of the other ingredients to feed two with more for take home!

We enjoy moist noodles, especially lo mein, and the beef lo mein was excellent. We'll also need to return to try one of the udon noodle dishes. The only, very mild, disappointment was that the mild seasoning was very similar to that of the clay pot. But the lo mein was certainly good and at least some of the mushrooms were not the ordinary button kind!

The menu also features Peking Duck, which should merit a try on a future visit.

The owners purchase all of their oriental ingredients at Talin Market, a world inport market on Central SE where we also like to shop and it shows in the quality and flavor of both the dishes we enjoyed!

Although you don't get much of a view form inside the restaurant looking across the parking lot, a short stroll outside will give a nice view across the Rio Grande towards the Sandia Mountains in the north and the Manzano Mountains a bit to the south.

Strawberry-Apple-Blueberry Salsa

I was looking for a light side dish to serve with ribs later today and was inspired by something I saw posted online. (Thanks, Marilyn!) I couldn't find the actual recipe and decided to substitute blueberries for the suggested raspberries and add some walnuts. So, here is my version.

I think it has a nice Red White & Blue look for the 4th of July!

1. Cut strawberries in quarters and then coarsely chop to make two cups.

2. Slice one red or golden delicious apple and cut into smaller pieces. You might want to chop it even more than I did.

3. Add one cup fresh blueberries, thoroughly rinsed.

4. Cut 1/2 cup of walnuts into coarse pieces and then chop into finer pieces.

5. Mix the following thoroughly to make a thick vinaigrette dressing.
     a. 1/4 cup strawberry preserves
     b. 1 Tbsp honey
     c. 2 Tbsp cider vinegar
Pour it over the fruit and stir it together.

6. Chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

Enjoy!!