Chipotle Chicken Tacos

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

One of my favorite lazy Sunday afternoon activities is watching back to back episodes of Cooks Country. One of the beauties of PBS is their day-long marathons of a specific show, and I'm not one to complain of a full day of cooking shows! On one such afternoon, a particular recipe really caught my eye and after coming off my Cooks Illustrated high, I decided I was ready to jump back into a multi-process recipe with a slew of exotic ingredients.

 Ok, so yellow mustard isn't exactly what you'd call exotic, but the chipotle in adobo sauce...wow. And can someone tell me why it's taken me so long to embrace the chipotle? It's my new favorite ingredient, by the way, making an appearance in everything from stuffed bread to chili. And despite its actual description (smoked jalapeno in adobo sauce) there not at all spicy which did leave me a tad disappointed. But that didn't last long as I was taken in by the smoky-sweet complexity of this little pepper. It transformed the whole dish from a regular chicken taco to something that sings on your taste buds! Forgive me if I'm being overly dramatic, but this little can has really changed the scope of my cooking...for the better, alhamdulillah.

Like the General Tso, this dish takes a couple more steps than I would normally like, especially when a simple one-pot chicken fajita is a weekly staple around here. But variety is the spice of a life and when that variety has a hint of a adobe in it, well, then wonderful things happen.

I paired these with some country fries and jalapeno poppers, but their bold taste is enough to eat on its own. Left over filling would be amazing on some crispy salad too!

Easy Chicken Tacos Recipe
(serves 6, taken from Cooks Country)

12 flour tortillas (6-inch)
3 tablespoons butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
Salt and pepper
Optional taco toppings such as shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, shredded cheese, diced avocado, and sour cream

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wrap the tortillas in foil and heat in 350 degree oven for fifteen minutes.

2.In a large skillet melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add garlic and chipotle and cook about 30 seconds. Stir in the orange juice, Worcestershire sauce, and 1/2 cup cilantro. Bring mixture to a boil, and then add chicken. Cover the skillet and simmer over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes. Flip the chicken over and continue to simmer in the covered skillet until the chicken is done (160 degrees) about 5 to 10 minutes more.

3.Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover it with foil to keep it warm and let it rest. Increase the heat under the skillet to medium-high and cook until the liquid is reduced to 1/4 cup, about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from the heat and whisk in the mustard. Set the skillet aside.

4.Uncover the chicken and using two forks, shred it into bite-sized pieces. Return the chicken to the skillet. Add the remaining cilantro and stir until everything is well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with tortillas and desired taco toppings.

Spinach and Shrimp Quesadilla

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

My Mom always says the impromptu, unwritten recipes always turn out the best. The kinds of dishes that are inspired by your personal palette and a dire need to use up the last of the leftovers and not a finished product of someone elses taste preferences. And like more often than not, Mom is right again.

I had a few tortillas left in a the cupboard, half a box of frozen spinach, a couple spoonfuls of sour cream and a bag of frozen shrimp taking up space in my freezer for the past several months. So in other words, I had the ingredients for some spinach and shrimp quesadillas, alhamdulillah.

That being said, I urge not to follow this recipe step by step (unless you want to, that is), rather use it as a spring board to experiment in the kitchen. Hide the measuring spoons, rely purely on taste-testing and what you can find in your fridge right now and have a go. The most important thing is trusting yourself as the cook and having the confidence to whip up something on your own and having it turn out fabulous, insha'allah!

Oh, and when it come to quesadillas there are a couple things to remember: don't over do it on the cheese, just sprinkle a light layer of your favorite and most-melty cheese on half of the tortilla, lay your filling on top and another light sprinkle of cheese on top of that. In this way, the cheese will melt and act as a glue keeping the quesadilla in one piece. You don't need a grill pan (but you'll get pretty grill marks if you use one!), any large skillet will do...the key here is to have it nice and hot before you throw the quesdilla in it. And the most important tip is to not flip too soon. If you attempt to turn it over and it begins to open up or is still floppy, then it's too early to flip. If you pan is nice and hot and the cheese melts, then the quesadilla will feel firm and crisp on the underside, making the flip very easy and smooth.

Shrimp and Spinach Quesadilla
1 lb wild caught, peeled and deveined shrimp
1/2 box of frozen spinach, thawed
4 tortillas
1/2 cup shredded cheese of your choice
1 tablespoon garlic and ginger paste
1/2 onion diced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro, more for garnish
2 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tsp adobo seasoning (optional)
1 jalapeno, chopped (adjust to your heat level)
1 tablespoon cajun seasoning
sour cream and tomatoes to serve
Jalapeno Poppers (optional)

1. In a bowl, combine shrimp with adobo and cajun seasoning. Set aside.

2. In a pan on medium heat, saute onions and garlic and ginger paste. Cook for one minute, add spinach (squeeze out as much water as you can before this) and jalapeno slices. Cook until there is no liquid left in the pan. Add shrimp, garlic and ginger paste and lemon juice. Cook until shrimp have curled up, about 4 - 5 minutes, depending on size. Remove from heat.

3. Begin pre-heating a large skillet or grill pan on medium high heat.

4. Assemble tortillas by layer cheese, filling and a little more cheese on half of the tortilla. Fold the top over and carefully place in lightly oiled skillet/grill pan. Allow to cook fully on one side before filling (refer to notes in post), about 2 - 3 minutes.

5.  Remove and cut in to wedges. Serve with optional cilantro, sour cream and tomatoes.

Chilaquiles

 Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

If you like Mexican food, if you liked the tomatillo salsa, if you lasagna or if you like anything that just taste good, then this is the meal for you.

Originally a way to use up old tortillas and left over meats, chilaquiles are a Mexican masterpiece. Feel free to use fresh tortillas (I used the whole wheat flour that I had in the pantry) and whatever left over meat you have from last nights dinner. 

It sounds a lot more complicated than it is but trust me, if you can make lasagna then this is gonna be a cinch. It comes together in no time and the hardest part of the whole meal is waiting long enough for it to cool down before diggin' in. And like its Italian counterpart, the leftovers only get better the next day. 

Chilaquiles

Tomatillo Salsa 3 cups shredded cooked chicken, turkey,or 2 teaspoons, or as needed, fine sea or kosher salt Vegetable oil Ten 6-inch corn tortillas (I only had flour tortillas), cut into 2-inch wide strips 1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese 1 cup grated Parmesan, manchego or cotija (I used mozzarella because, again, its all I had)

1.Make your sauce per recipe directions. Then pour the liquid into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, then adjust the heat so the sauce is simmering. Cook until the sauce is thickened slightly about 20 minutes. Set aside 1/2 cup sauce.

3. Stir the shredded chicken into the remaining sauce. Add the salt.

4. Heat the oven to 350° F. Pour about 1/4 inch of vegetable oil into a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Dip a corner of one of the tortilla strips into the oil; when it gives off a lively sizzle the oil is ready. Add to the pan as many of the tortilla strips as fit without overlapping. Fry the tortillas, turning once until golden brown on both sides, about 4 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining tortilla strips.

5. Butter a 9 x 11-inch casserole or baking dish deep that is at least 2 1/2 inches deep. Make a layer of the fried tortilla strips over the bottom. It doesn't matter if the layer is perfectly even or not, just be sure to cover the bottom. Spoon half of the sauce and chicken over the tortillas. Top that with 1/3 cup each of the Monterey Jack and Manchego or Parmesan cheese. Make another layer of the tortillas, sauce and cheeses. Top with another layer of tortillas and spread with the remaining sauce. Top with remaining cheeses.

6 Bake until the edges of the casserole are bubbling and the top layer of cheese is golden brown, about 35 minutes. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Tomatillo Salsa

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

Everyone once in a while, you just fall into a rut with cooking. You find a few meals you can make well and keep repeating them. And while I personally feel there's nothing wrong with that - heck, I have one night designated a week for one of our family favorites - it can be exciting to try something completely different and new. Cue the tomatillo: from the outside it looks like a ball of leaves, from the inside it looks like a green tomato. From the taste of it, it can be nothing farther than leaves or tomatoes. It's vibrant and fresh, firm-fleshed with runny seeds, small but boy does it pack a punch.

Few things can really showcase the beauty of the tomatillo like a salsa. Keep things simple, just a dash of lime juice, jalapeno for spice and cilantro to play off the brightness of it all. I've made a version with and without the onion and personally I would leave the onion out next time, just to make sure our star ingredient really shines. Make a good sized batch of this and keep it in a bottle in your fridge. It's perfect for dipping chips, serving alongside quesadillas or something a little more interesting that I'll fill you in on tomorrow insha'allah.

Tomatillo Salsa
adapted from Daisy Martinez

• 1 pound fresh tomatillos
• 1 large Spanish onion (about 12 ounces), cut into large chunks (about 3 cups)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 packed cup coarsely chopped cilantro leaves
• 1/2 jalapeno (seeds and all if you like heat)
• 1/2 lime, juiced
• Kosher or fine sea salt

Directionns

Pull the husks from the tomatillos and wash them under cool water until they no longer feel sticky. Cut them into quarters and put them into the work bowl of a food processor. Add the onion and garlic and process until smooth. Add the cilantro, jalapeno and lime juice and process until the jalapeno is finely chopped.

Scrape the mixture into a small saucepan. Season lightly with salt and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is boiled off and the salsa looks relish-y, about 15 minutes. Cool before using. The sauce can be refrigerated for up to 1 week. If refrigerated, you may want to add a little salt and/or lime juice to the salsa before serving.

Jalapeno Poppers

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

Back in high school, I used to love stopping by the local grease-joint, aka, fast food restaurant, for an order of jalapeno poppers. I got so hooked on those things that I set out to making my own. So when nobody was home, I took some little green chili's, filled it with cheddar cheese and dropped them in hot oil. That's exactly how you don't make jalapeno poppers. A good start would be to use jalapenos, of course, but what did I know? That was probably my first expiremental cooking adventure. It would be another 8 years until I was married and perfecting this hot and spicy snack for family and friends.

After much research, tweaking and accidental eye-rubs (ouch!), I think I've got, alhamdulillah. At least the brothers who cleaned off a tray of them in a matter of minutes seem to think so.

Jalapeno Poppers

Jalapenos, washed and cut in half length-wise

Filling: (amounts vary according to how many peppers you need to fill, plan for about 1tsp filling for each half pepper; alternatively you can use a vegetable dip or flavored cream cheese)
cream cheese
salt to taste
garlic powder
dry oregano
dry basil
sprinkle of grated cheddar cheese

seasoned bread crumbs
flour
eggs
oil for frying

1. Blanch peppers for 1 minute, immediatly remove and drain on paper towels (blanching too long will give you limp, floppy peppers that are hard to fill).

2. Mix filling ingredients in small bowl. Using teaspoon, fill pepper halves, slightly mounding filling. Lightly roll in flour. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.

3. Dip the chilled peppers in egg and roll in bread crumbs. Place back in fridge for another 10 minutes. Repeat this process three times, making sure to chill for 10 minutes in between each coat.

4. Shallow fry in medium low oil until evenly golden brown; drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and enjoy!

Leftovers, Oh How I Love Thee....

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem




Alhamdulillah, we had plenty of fajita leftovers from last nights impromptu dinner so I didn't have to do much else than reheat and assemble. These fajitas are my attempt at recreating my mother-in-laws fajitas, so she really get all credit for this one. It was her suggestion to me on how to use up leftover chicken or meat, but they're so good I defrost fresh meat just for it! Besides being incredibly delicious, they're come together very easy and is my go-to meal for those hectic days when I can't spend much time in the kitchen.


Chicken Fajitas
1 chicken breast (boneless/skinless) small dice
1 green pepper, cut into 1/2 " strips (or half a green pepper and half a red pepper)
1 small onion , cut into 1/2" strips
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp cajun seasoning (I love Tones over anyother brand,use what you like)

1. In a little oil over medium high heat, sweat out the onions and peppers (for a charred effect, add less oil and keep them moving as they get black spots). As they start to get soft, create a well in the middle of the pan and chicken. Sprinkle with salt to taste, minced garlic and cajun seasoning.

2. When chicken is no longer pink on all sides, stir peppers and chicken together (add more oil to the pan as needed). Add in lemon juice and keep things moving. Reduce heat and continute cooking until chicken is cooked through. If you find things drying up too much and burning, add small amounts of water, but make to sure cook off any liquid at the end. Excess liquid creates soggy fajitas, thats a no-no!


Toppings: sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole


Roti
1 cup all purpose flour (or half allpurpose and half whole wheat)
1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp oil
1/2 cup very warm water (add in small amounts as needed)

1. In a large bowl combine flour, salt, yeast and oil. Mix with hands.

2. Slowly add water (1/4 cup at a time) until dough comes together in a ball. Add more flour if its too sticky, more water if too dry. Once the dough forms one smooth ball, knead for a 2 minutes.

3. Lightly oil bowl and turn dough to coat, cover with kitchen towel and leave it alone. You don't want your rotis too "puffy" for fajitas, so I wouldn't suggest letting the dough double. Instead, leave it to reast about 20 minutes and the yeast will create a soft dough that will give you soft and tender rotis to roll you fajitas in.

4. Break off pieces of dough into egg-size balls (for bigger or thicker rotis, break-off bigger pieces). Gently pat into flattened circle and lightly dip into bowl of reserved flour; shake-off excess.

5. On a clean surface (you shouldn't need to flour the surface as the dough has been dusted with flour already) roll flattened circle into 6" circle. With a rolling pin, start rolling from center of circle outward with continue long rolls (don't start and stop in the middle of the circle).

6. Drizzle a little oil on a hot skillet (I use a tavvah, but a large frying pan or skillet does the same job). Make sure your skillet is hot to begin with. Carefully lay roti in hot oil. Let it cook on one side without disturbing, until you see little bubble appear on the surface. Using a large spatula, flip roti and cook second side.

7. Arrange cooked and hot rotis on a plate and cover loosely with foil. Best eaten hot.


Oven Fries
1. Pre-heat oven to 420.

2. Peel large russet potoates (I leave the skin on and give it a good scrub). Slice length wise into thirds. Slice each third into rought 1/2" strips. Oil a baking sheet (or cover with oiled sheed of foil) and spread out fries in a single layer.

3. Drizzle fries with enough to oil to light cover each piece. You can add more during the cooking process if they are beggining to burn. Sprinjle with garlic powder, cajun seasoning or Italian seasoning. Using hands, toss to ensure fries are evenly coated with seasoning. Spread back into single layer.

4. Bake in oven until cooked through (keep testing at around 15 minutes). Sprinkle salt over fries AFTER they have been removed from oven.

Enchiladas

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

Can't finish that whole roasted chicken? Left over leg of lamb? Need to use up leftovers and out of ideas? Then call it a Mexican Night and ole, your problems are solved! Fajitas are our favorite way to use up any leftover meat, but on a recent bout of homesickness I remembered my sisters enchiladas and my mind was set. This was quick, easy and not mention cheap. To balance out this rich meal, I whipped up a light corn and tomato salad with a little flair. Hope you all enjoy it as much as we did!

Enchilada

- 1/2 red onion diced
- 1 bell pepper diced
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 jalapeño diced (adjust amount to your liking)
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (reserve 1 tsp for garnish)
- 1 1/2 cup shredded cooked chicken (or any other meat you have on hand!)
- 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 can enchilada sauce
- 4 tortillas (flour or corn)
- queso fresco cheese (Monterey jack, mozzarella work fine)
- sour cream


1. Pre-heat oven to 375.

2. Saute onion and bell pepper until soft. Add garlic half way through.

3. Add shredded chicken, cayenne pepper, lemon juice and jalapeno. Cook on low-med heat to incorporate flavors. Add cilantro in last 5 minutes of cooking.

4. Slowly add 1/4 cup of prepared enchilada sauce and remove from h eat.

5. Prepare a oven-safe baking dish with a little oil and 2 teaspoons of enchilada sauce spread on bottom.

6. Fill 4 tortillas (or as many will fit in dish) with chicken mixture and cheese. Carefully roll up and place seam-side down in baking dish. Top with remaining enchilada sauce, cheese and cilantro.

7. Bake for 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Serve warm with a dollop of sour cream




Corn and Tomato Salad
Add a can of black beans for a delicious protein punch!

- 1 can sweet corn (frozen or fresh corn can also be used)
- 1 tomato diced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp chopped cilantro

1. Drain and rinse can of corn

2. In a little oil, saute corn with a pinch of salt and pepper, cayenne pepper and lemon juice. Saute for a few minutes or until fragrant.

3. In a separate bowl, mix diced tomato, pinch of salt and cilantro. Add the corn mixture and stir to combine.