November 21, 2024

Easy Chicken Mole

March 6, 2015 by

Easy Chicken Mole

The first time I had mole (say moe-lay) it was at a small but very well-regarded Mexican restaurant in Los Angeles, La Loteria.  I had heard of mole poblano before and decided to take a chance.  Que rico!  What a glorious taste!  It was rich, a tiny bit spicy, a little bitter, and a little fruity.  It was really a savory fiesta in my mouth.  However, when I went home with the intent to find out more about this magical dish and how to make it, all the recipes I saw were 40 ingredients long and took days to make.  No me gusta – I just didn’t have time to mess with that.  So after some more research, I came up with this recipe – my Easy Chicken Mole!

The two ingredients that most moles share to give them such depth of flavor are dried chiles and chocolate.  Really!  Buy the darkest chocolate you can find.  You can use baker’s unsweetened chocolate, but that will make it bitter, and you’ll probably want to bring it back around with some added honey or brown sugar.  I used bittersweet chocolate, 63% cacao.  I think it worked well, and next time I might even add a little more.

As far as the chiles go, it gets a little confusing.  Oftentimes a chile will have one name when it’s fresh and a different name when it’s dried (I guess kind of like grapes vs. raisins.)  To be honest, I think I bought ancho chiles, but I’m not sure – there were two kinds and neither were labeled!  You want chiles that are a very dark reddish-brown—like the color of dried blood—and about fist-sized.  I used two but I may use three or even four next time.  I removed the seeds, and that’s where the heat resides, so you only get the smoky, fruity flavor of the chiles and not the spiciness.

Try this recipe.  If you’ve never had mole, this is a great place to start.  If you are a mole aficionado, go ahead and tweak my recipe to get the taste you like.  Either way, I bet you’ll say, Que sabor!  (Or if you don’t habla espanol, ‘So tasty!’)

Easy Chicken Mole

Ingredients:

  • 2-4 dried chiles (use ancho, pasilla, or guajillo)
  • 2 onions, chopped
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup sesame seeds (or use pepitas, peanuts, or almond butter)
  • 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup brewed coffee
  • 2 slices bread
  • 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or use breasts, up to you!)
  • diced avocado, cilantro, sesame seeds to serve
  • rice or tortillas to serve, optional

Directions:

  1. Put the dried chiles in a bowl and cover with boiling water.  Put a plate over the bowl and let the chiles soak for about 15 minutes.  When they have softened, remove the stem and seeds and roughly chop.  Discard the stem, keep some seeds if you want some heat.
  2. While the chiles are soaking, cook the onion in the butter in a very large pot or Dutch oven.  Stir to make sure they don’t burn.
  3. Add the chopped chiles, minced garlic, and sesame seeds.  Stir and cook for 3 minutes.
  4. Add the chocolate, raisins, cinnamon, salt, and oregano.  Stir to combine and cook for another 2 minutes.
  5. Add the chicken stock and coffee.  Crumble in the bread.  Cover the pot with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes.
  6. CAREFULLY transfer sauce to a blender and blend until pretty smooth.  You could use an immersion blender, too.
  7. Return the sauce to the pot and add the chicken thighs.  Tuck them into the sauce and stir.  Make sure the chicken is covered in sauce, then cover with the lid.  Let simmer for about 25 minutes.
  8. The chicken is done when you can shred it with forks.  To serve, ladle the chicken and lots of mole into a bowl.  Garnish with lots of avocado, cilantro and sesame seeds.  You can also eat this in tortillas – just serve with less sauce if you are making tacos.  You can also serve it over rice to soak up the sauce.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipes, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

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Veggie Burritos

January 30, 2015 by

veggie burrito

Despite what restaurants would have you believe, a burrito (or taco, for that matter) doesn’t have to be the same boring combo of meat, rice, and beans.  Believe it or not, you can make burritos or tacos with whatever you have.  I have a great cookbook by Rick Bayless, who despite his gringo name, is one of the preeminent Mexican chefs in America.  His book has recipes for mushroom tacos, squash tacos – you name it, you can make it into burrito or taco filling.  Following his lead, I steered clear of the meat-rice-beans set-up and created my own version of the Veggie Burrito!

Of course, you can use whatever veggies you like, and please feel free to add or subtract vegetables from my recipe.  This one features toothy black beans (instead of the heavy refried beans you usually find plastered to the inside of a tortilla), onions, chopped mushrooms and sautéed kale.  Then get crazy with the accoutrements:  salsa, cheese, diced avocado, sour cream (or Greek yogurt in my case).  Need something a little more filling?  Replace the boring rice with quinoa!  You get more protein that way.

If you have leftover veggie mix, you can just heat it up and serve with a fried egg on top for a healthy breakfast, or make a burrito bowl:  veggie mix, quinoa, avocado, salsa – basically everything but the tortilla!

Veggie Burritos (Makes 2 burritos)

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 4 cups chopped kale, washed
  • 8 ounces mushrooms (white or cremini), sliced
  • 1 can black beans, drained
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 tortillas
  • salsa, grated cheese, sour cream or Greek yogurt, chopped avocado, cooked quinoa – your choice of any or all

Directions:

  1. In a large frying pan with a lid, add the butter, salt, and chopped onion.  Cook over medium for about five to ten minutes to get a little color.  Don’t let them burn!
  2. While the onions are cooking, prepare the kale – wash and spin it.  It doesn’t need to be dry, since a little water will help it steam and get tender.  Slice the mushrooms.
  3. Stir the washed kale into the onions in the frying pan and cover with a lid.  Cook for about 5 minutes.  Then remove the lid and add the mushrooms.  Cook for five to ten minutes, until most of the water has evaporated and the mushrooms are cooked through.  Add the black beans and stir for another minute.
  4. Put the two tortillas on a plate and cover with a damp dish towel.  Microwave for 30 seconds, then fill with a heaping scoop of the veggie mix.  Top with salsa, cheese, et cetera, and fold tortilla to close.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

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Shrimp with Corn and Black Bean Salad

June 2, 2014 by

So, remember last week I shared my husband’s epiphany in realizing he really does like Tex-Mex, Cal-Mex, Mexican type foods?  Ok…n-o-w he is requesting it as part of our weekly menu!   The following is an easy, quick-to-make weekday supper that is healthy but oh-so-yummy!  First dish is a Black Bean and Corn Salad along with some delicious Tex-Mex influenced shrimp.  I am definitely going to keep this in the summertime meal rotation…light, refreshing, and won’t heat up the kitchen!

Black Bean and Corn Salad

2014-06-01 15.44.41

ingredients:
2 cups corn (fresh or frozen)
1/2 cup cucumber, peeled, small diced
1 small jalapeno, seeded and finely diced (optional)
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup sweet onion, finely diced
juice of 1/2 large lime
1 teaspoon olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

salad directions:
combine all ingredients; pour into a storage bag or container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes for flavors to combine.

Tex-Mex Shrimp

marinade ingredients:
juice of 1/2 large lime
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder
1 heaping tablespoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon honey
pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
sea salt to taste (I used a lemon-pepper-salt combo)
1/2 # medium to large shrimp, tails removed

marinade directions:

  • simply whisk ingredients together in a medium-sized glass bowl
  • add in shrimp and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

To finalize your dish

  • heat a saute pan over medium-high heat
  • pour shrimp and some of the marinade into the pan
  • cook for 1-2 minutes ‘til starting to turn pink
  • immediately flip over and cook other side for additional 2 minutes
  • remove from heat; do not over cook

2014-06-01 19.45.41

To serve:
I warmed up a couple of gluten free flour tortillas, and placed them (folded up) on each plate with a portion of the Black Bean and Corn Salad and some of the marinated shrimp. On the side, we also had some Spanish rice, fresh guacamole, and a dollop of sour cream.

This would also be delish (and low-carb) served with lettuce leaves to spoon the shrimp and salad into and roll up. I would love to hear of some of your ideas for serving and side dishes!


♥   ♥   ♥   ♥   ♥

God loves you!  ♥  (Don’t ever forget that!)

♥  coleen

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Crockpot Pork Tacos

May 9, 2014 by

Crockpot Pork Tacos resize

If your idea of Mexican food is based on the dollar menu at Taco Bell, you are in for a treat!  Authentic Mexican food is easy to make at home and is quite healthy for you.  This Monday was Cinco de Mayo, so I made these Crockpot Pork Tacos, and they were muy delicioso!

In Mexico, and in authentic Mexican restaurants here in California, there is no shredded lettuce or cheddar cheese.  Tacos are simple and small and are often eaten on-the-go, so they’re not all covered in sauces or messy vegetables.  Chopped onions and cilantro are usually the only thing you’ll see, with a squeeze of lime.  I added avocado to mine because it pairs great with the pork.  It’s a traditional accompaniment to tacos and adds a creamy note to balance out the sharpness of the raw onions.

As far as the pork goes, I usually use a big shoulder roast, but you can use whatever pork roast you like.  The seasoning is simple here, but you can spice it up as much as you want.  Try adding a can of chipotles in adobo sauce for a smoky flavor, or a jar of salsa verde to the crockpot.

Finally, tacos are kind of like sandwiches.  You can make a thousand different kinds of sandwiches and all are tasty.  But if you only ever eat a turkey sandwich, you may never know how much you’d love a Reuben.  So:  if taco night at your house always means ground beef and diced tomatoes, you owe it to yourself to try something new.  Ready?  Vamanos!

Crockpot Pork Tacos

Ingredients:

  • 1 large pork roast, 2 or 3 pounds
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
  • 1/2 red onion, diced
  • 1 or 2 avocados, sliced or diced
  • corn tortillas
  • lime or lemon wedges, to serve

Directions:

  1. Combine the salt, garlic powder, and cumin, and rub all over the outside of the pork roast.  Place in your crockpot and cook for 8 hours on low.  When done, the pork should pull apart easily.
  2. Warm up your tortillas:  I wrap a few tortillas in a clean, damp dish towel and microwave for 20 seconds.  If you try to use them cold, they’ll crack!
  3. Shred your pork with two forks, or chop roughly.  To serve, put about 1/3 cup of shredded pork in the center of a tortilla.  Sprinkle with cilantro, onion, and avocado.  Squeeze lime over taco.  Eat several.  Don’t wipe your hands on your pants!

If you have leftovers, and I always do, I usually skip the tortilla and just eat the pork, reheated in the microwave, covered in cilantro, onions, and avocado.  Skip the carbs, and squeeze lots of lime!

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

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Roasted Chipotle Salsa

September 13, 2013 by

Roasted Chipotle Salsa

 

I planted my garden a little late this year, so my tomatoes are just getting ripe now.  My husband loves tomatoes in any form, in any dish.  As for me, the ONE food I don’t like is plain raw tomatoes.  I keep them off my sandwiches and salads.  Every other preparation is fine with me – ketchup, tomato sauce, anything with cooked tomatoes – and especially salsa!  And while I like raw tomato salsas a lot, I like this Roasted Chipotle Salsa even better!

Chiptole peppers in adobo sauce are easy to find – just check your local grocery store in the “ethnic” aisle with all the other Mexican food.  They’re cheap, and they are nearly pickled in the adobo sauce, so once you open the little can, you can keep the rest of the peppers and sauce in a small container in your fridge for months.  (A little Ball jar, or leftover jelly jar, is perfect for this.)  Then, if you find you love the smoky, mild heat of chipotles, use some of the others in your jar to make this dinner salad.  If you can’t find fresh cilantro at your store, you can leave it out, but it really adds a burst of freshness to this spicy sauce!

This recipe made a little more than a cup for me.  That said, my husband and I ate it all in one night!  It was “taco” night at our house, but we were using lettuce leaves instead of taco shells.  Ground beef with onions, avocado slices, and this salsa – delish!

Roasted Chipotle Salsa

Ingredients:

  • 3 regular-sized ripe tomatoes (around 1/2 pound, or a little more)
  • 1/2 onion
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • salt
  • 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (or more if you like it spicy!)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • small handful cilantro, about half a cup
  • 1/2 lime or lemon

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to Broil.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Slice the tomatoes in half, removing any core or stem you don’t like.  Slice the onion into rounds.  Peel and smash the garlic cloves.  Lay these out on the baking sheet and drizzle lightly with olive oil.  Season with salt.
  2. Broil the vegetables until they start turning brown and are very juicy – about 8-10 minutes, depending on your oven.  Remove from the oven.  Pour the vegetables and any juices into a food processor.  Add in the cumin, chipotle pepper, cilantro, and hit start.  Process for a few seconds, then squeeze in the lime juice.  Process again – leave it chunky!  Taste for seasoning – maybe more salt or lime?  Process again until you reach your desired consistency.  I like mine to still have some texture and not be a puree.  Refrigerate until ready to use.  Tortilla chips, burritos, enchiladas – even over scrambled eggs – this stuff is yummy!

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

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