What "The Old Fart" Can Teach You!!!

How can it be that since I moved north, the summers are even hotter than South Texas? With temperatures consistently clearing triple digits, I am up to my eyeballs with my favorite hot weather food, i.e., Black Bean-Chicken Tostadas with Salsa and Tangy Romaine, Retro Wedge Salad with 1916 Roquefort Dressing, and Schlotzky's "Original" Sandwich, just to name a few. What I really want, which sounds insane, is a nice bowl of soup! Yes, I said soup, even in triple digits!!!

Luckily, My local grocer just started receiving Colorado corn! I don't know what it is about Colorado corn, but I swear it is the best I've ever tasted! Maybe it's the fresh mountain air, or perhaps nostalgia for the beautiful state of Colorado? Either way, it makes the most delicious "Corn Soup with Coriander!" You may think that this sweet, spicy, and exceedingly fresh tasting soup is from my Texas heritage, but it's not! It's Canadian, specifically, from a relic Canadian magazine called The Old Fart! Lucky for me, Laura Calder included this recipe in her newest cookbook! She recommends serving it as a starter, followed by steak, salad, and summer pudding; however, it's HOT, just give me a bowl and an ice cold cerveza, and I'm perfect!

Corn Soup with Coriander

Serves 8

Ingredients:

6 ears of corn

3 tablespoons butter

2 large onions, minced

2 small red peppers, chopped

1/2 teaspoon chili pepper flakes, or to taste

1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped

2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped

4 cups chicken stock

1 cup milk or light cream

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Leaves from a bunch of coriander (cilantro), roughly chopped

Directions:

Shuck the corn, and with a small knife shave the kernels from the cobs. (Click my "Techniques" tab for tips on removing corn from the cob.) Melt the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat, and saute the onions until translucent. Add the corn, red peppers, and chili flakes and saute for 5 minutes. Add the jalapeno, tomatoes, and chicken stock; simmer for 15 minutes. Add the milk and heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the chopped coriander, and serve. Pretty easy, eh?

Recipe adapted from Dinner Chez Moi: The Fine Art of Feeding Friends, by Laura Calder.

You say poblano, I say Green Chile Cheeseburger!

A few years ago, I was absolutely convinced that I would win the HGTV Dream Home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I loved that place. I was so convinced, that after hearing someone talk on Splendid Table on NPR about the New Mexican staple, the Green Chile Cheeseburger, I spent quite a while trying to figure out a recipe. This is what I came up with. A wonderfully juicy, spicy, cheesy version of the original! Although I didn't win my dream home in the mountains, I won't stop making this delicious burger!

Green Chile Cheeseburgers 

Makes 4 burgers:

Ingredients:

4 "Hatch" green chiles (if available) or 2 large poblano peppers

1 smallish yellow or red onion, thickly sliced but do not separate into rings
garlic powder
1 pound ground chuck
Kraft cheese slices (I'm normally a stickler about processed food, but here it just works!)
lettuce
1 tomato
mayo
ketchup, optional (a real "no-no" in New Mexico!)
onion sandwich rolls
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

First you need to roast the hatch/poblano peppers. Click here to find out how. Next, drizzle the onion slices with olive oil, salt, and pepper on each side. Grill (I use a grill pan) the slices until soft and no longer opaque.  Now chop up the peppers and onions into the same size pieces. (I do it about 1/4 to 1/2 inch size.) Mix them together and plop back into a bowl. Heat up a saute pan and cook the poblano/onion mixture for a few minutes. Throw in a good dash of garlic powder, salt, pepper, and stir. This step is important. If you don't heat the mixture up the flavor is just not there. When done, drop into the same bowl and cover until ready to make burgers.

Divide the meat into 4 balls. Flatten with the back of a plate. Make them bigger than the rolls so they will fit after cooking, as they will shrink. Season liberally with salt and pepper on each side.

On a grill (but I have cooked them in a skillet) cook the burgers. I do about 5 minutes the first side. After flipping the first time, top each burger with as much poblano/onion mix that will stay on top. Continue to cook about 3 to 5 minutes on the second side. Now, a couple of minutes before done, I top each burger with 2 slices of Kraft cheese slices (don't judge me). Once the burgers look good and the cheese has melted smooth, remove.

Cover each side of the buns with some mayo. Put burgers on the buns. I top with some lettuce and a slice of tomato. I don't put the ketchup on the buns, just on the side to dip the burger in bite by bite. If you put it on the burger, the green chili flavor gets lost.

I think these are best served with roasted potato wedges (seasoned with cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper) and a nice cold Shiner Bock from my childhood state of Texas. Prosit!

What I want to eat when it's freakin hot outside!

Today it's 99°, with a heat index of 110°!!!! Ick!  I'm so sick of the heat and the dreaded question of "What's for dinner?"  At times like this, I immediately think of the ultimate, quick, hot weather food from Rick Bayless's Mexico One Plate at a Time. Black bean-chicken tostadas with salsa and tangy romaine makes a perfect dinner that no one in my family will turn down. My version simplifies things by buying packaged tostada shells, a rotisserie chicken, using my favorite salsa, and a couple more tweaks. In fact, this is so fast that I pull this out when I'm in a pinch for time.

Black Bean-Chicken Tostadas with Salsa and Tangy Romaine

One package tostada shells

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 medium white onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1, 15oz can black beans or frijoles negros, drained

Kosher salt

2 cups shredded chicken (use a store bought rotisserie)

3/4 cup mexican crema or sour cream (I can find crema at my local mexican market. It's awesome and worth looking for! If not you can make your own crema!)

1 cup or so of your favorite salsa (I like a tomato/jalapeno type for this recipe)

1/2 cup crumbled queso fresco, cotija, or even shredded cheddar

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cups loosely packed, thinly sliced romaine

chopped tomatoes and cilantro for garnish

For the beans:

In a medium saucepan, heat the 2 tablespoons canola oil over medium heat.  When the oil is shimmery, add the onion and cook until golden, approximately 7 minutes.  Add the garlic until you can smell it (about a minute, no more).   Then add the beans.  Using a potato masher, mash the beans until they are soft and creamy.  Add a little water, if necessary.  Don't worry about lumps.  It should be lumpy but still smooth.

For the tangy romaine:

Toss the romaine with the vinegar and olive oil and about 1/4 teaspoon salt.

To serve family style (or you can plate to make it more special):

Put out the tostada shells, bowl of shredded chicken, bowl of beans, the tangy romaine, crema, salsa, chopped tomato, chopped cilantro, and cheese. 

To assemble:

Take a tostada shell and spread the bottom with the delicious black beans.  Top with some chicken, romaine, salsa, crema or sour cream, and cheese.  Garnish with the tomatoes and cilantro.  Enjoy and don't forget to tell your kids to lean over their plate!!!