chile

Instant Pot Orange Chicken Lettuce Wraps

This better-than-P.F. Chang chile-flavored orange chicken lettuce wrap recipe is incredibly easy to make thanks to the Instant Pot pressure cooker that does double duty as a self-serve, low-carb appetizer or as a healthy main meal that’s quick to make and even more fun to eat.

Just ask any three year old—or my 13 year old daughter’s best friend Elise who has yet to conform to the norm—eating with your hands is supremely gratifying.

Her parent’s say she’s “expressive and artistic.” I think she’s just laser-focus hungry and doesn’t want to play by anyone else’s rules. Either which way, lettuce wraps are a fun way to “nosh-on-it” and this Asian chicken lettuce wrap recipe proves it.

Because who says eating with a knife and fork should be the norm anyway? Cultures all around the world have eaten without utensils for centuries, and even more. Indian. Ethiopian. From Asia to Africa to the Middle East. As quoted in this New York Times article, cookbook author Julie Sahni emphatically states, “Eating with the hands evokes great emotion,” she says. “It kindles something very warm and gentle and caressing. Using a fork is unthinkable in traditional Indian eating. It is almost like a weapon.”

Okay. It looks like I need to give Elise a break. But I will NOT ease up on reminding her to wipe her hands and her face, even if I get that teenage “look” in return nearly every single time.

When Williams Sonoma Test Kitchens sent me their new The Instant Pot Cookbook to review, I was more than happy to say, heck to the yes, let’s do this. Their cookbooks are some of my very favorites and I regularly refer to their entire Dish of the Day series and every single Williams Sonoma cookbook authored by Kate McMillan who is one of my favorite recipe developers because of the series.

But this cookbook is different, just like the Instant Pot itself.continue to the recipe… about Instant Pot Orange Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Quick and Easy Homemade Chile Verde Burritos

Homemade chile verde is only a few steps away from your dinner or lunch time eats thanks to this supremely simple recipe that’s ready to create lean pork and Hatch chile-sauced burritos in no time flat.

My husband has a several traits that define him.

He’s a hugger. Man, woman, child or animal. Get ready, he’s coming in with a big smile and arms open wide.

He’s funny. When my mom asked what in the world ME—the sorority girl—saw in THIS GUY—the purple haired, ear-lobe-double-pierced singer in a punk band who moonlighted as a waiter—I told her, “He makes me laugh.” She thought I was crazy, and also said just a litttttttle bit more. Now, over 25 years later, she’s laughing at him even harder than I do.

He’s a foodie, and this guy knows what he likes to eat. And when Mexican food is on the menu. it’s no surprise when his number one choice is chile verde. I think he’s been on the hunt to find the best chile verde since he cut teeth. And today, he’s proud to say, he thinks this recipe is it.

Too often, home cooks are intimidated by the notion that chile verde is a complicated recipe to create, when in reality, homemade chile verde is totally quick and easy to make.

This is my man’s recipe for making homemade chile verde that can be just as much a part of your weeknight meals as those spent creating for the weekend. Here’s how…

continue to the recipe… about Quick and Easy Homemade Chile Verde Burritos

How to Make Authentic Enchilada Sauce

A mix of dried New Mexico and guajillo chiles plus Mexican spices create an authentic but easy homemade red enchilada sauce that’s perfect for enchiladas, chilaquiles and more.

I’m right there with you when it comes to that last minute rush to get dinner on the table. Those time when it seems its all you can muster to pull a can of enchilada sauce from the pantry, toss some cheese in the middle of a few tortillas, break out the can opener, pour, and bake, and a pretty okay dinner is served.

But then there are the times when you want more flavor than an aluminum can can deliver. When you want more Mexican authenticity to create a from scratch meal, and that’s when you plan ahead and are STILL able to fix a fast dinner because you were a kitchen smartie-pants and food prepped ahead with tips from my weekly meal plan.

This authentic red enchilada sauce makes all the difference in homemade enchiladas. I’ve seen quite a few recipes that use flour and oil to create a roux for the base and then add tomato paste that then ends up tasting more like a spicy tomato sauce rather than a vivid enchilada sauce.

Mine however calls for dried chiles that have been reconstituted and blended as the main part of the base for that real chile flavor.

Prepped ahead this sauce is just as fast to use when you have it on hand. And it’s just as easy to prepare. And even better, it’s muy auténtico!continue to the recipe… about How to Make Authentic Enchilada Sauce

Lime and Chile Butter Chicken Skewers

Please, please, please! Say it ain’t so! But yes, it’s true, we’re headlong into the wind down of summer.

Sniffle here and sob there, I’m harboring some serious resentment at the fact that summer is quickly fading into fall. This is mostly due to the fact that in mid-July I broke my wrist and the elbow of my other arm (of which I’ve lamented about my gimpness on the blog and you’re sick of hearing about since it happened) and that the wrist required surgery to give me a fancy new metal plate and 10 screws surgically inserted into my limp old wrist. Yep, I’ll be the one setting off the alarms, bells and whistles at the airport security line.

It also turned most of my summer of bar-b-ques on the deck and hostessing of summer fun into a self-imposed 3 week marathon of feeling-sorry -for-myself-BRAVO-watching-reality-show-obsession because I couldn’t chop, cook or even pull my hair into a top knot. And if any of you know me in person, the top knot is what really put me under.

But, I gave myself ’til this week to finish my sulk and now I’m back at ‘em, working the wrist so it doesn’t turn into a stiff log of a limb and I even took off my bandages all by my-freak-out-at-any-medical-condition-that-may-result-in-blood-self. I was happy and surprised to see a completely healed 3-inch scar.

Friends, I’m back.

And it’s a good thing too, because yesterday, when Smudge asked me why we haven’t had any parties with and of our friends who are parents of her friends who we would usually have summertime parties with, I knew I wasn’t the only one feeling the lack of party pain. Remedy solved, we’re having a party tonight and putting our summer party slump to bed.

This recipe doesn’t require a party to make it special. In fact, if you’re in need of a fast dinner with minimal effort but big flavor, this chicken skewer recipe is a keeper.

continue to the recipe… about Lime and Chile Butter Chicken Skewers

Mango Margarita with Chile Salt and Lime

Frozen cocktails aren’t really my thing. I save my frozen tendencies drinkable with a straw for milkshakes and smoothies.

My idea of a great margarita is to make it strong and put it on the rocks.

That is, until, it’s a Mango Margarita. Then I say make it fruity, a bit limey and add some spice and bring me another.

The first time I had a mango margarita was on a Mexican vacation in the small beach town of Todos Santos (if you haven’t been, you HAVE to go) with my little family of three and my BFF Kim and her husband. We’d rented our other friend’s vacation house (see it here) where we blew up the pool toys and made the very necessary trip to the Mexican market to stock up on essentials: Chips and salsa, Mexican pancake mix (loaded with sugar and insanely delicious,) Nutella, mangos, lime and tequila.

Bienvenidos! Let’s get this party started.

continue to the recipe… about Mango Margarita with Chile Salt and Lime

Spicy Chocolate Bark with Chipotle and Almonds

Sweet treats don’t have to be time consuming. They just have to be good. In my book there’s nothing quite as simple, and definitely not as good, as a decadent, rich chocolate. Hit it with a little Chipotle spice and a salty crunch and man oh man, I go weak in the knees. Sounds like every Valentine’s dream, right?

I’ve had a thing for chocolate bark ever since I featured Gerry of the food blog Foodness Gracious in my Holiday Issue of FoodieCrush magazine. Not only does the guy do savory, he also knows his way around the sweet side of the kitchen.

But that wasn’t the first time I fell hard for his confections. The first time I met Gerry was at The Big Traveling Potluck when he handed me one of his luscious specialty caramels. Let’s just say we started off on a very good foot which left me licking my fingers clean.

continue to the recipe… about Spicy Chocolate Bark with Chipotle and Almonds

Todd Porter and Diane Cu of White on Rice Couple Plus Homemade Sriracha Sauce and a Cookbook Giveaway

With the release of their cookbook, Bountiful, Recipes Inspired by Our Garden, foodies Todd Porter and Diane Cu of White On Rice Couple invite us to share their insanely delicious seasonal recipes, including a condiment I can never get enough of, Homemade Sriracha Sauce. And you have the chance to win a copy of their cookbook for yourself.

Todd and Diane are often referred to as one and the same, White On Rice/Todd and Diane/Diane and Todd, most likely due to the fact they are equally talented and share duties both in the kitchen and behind the camera.

They take turns clicking the camera for print and video, they both cook, create and style their photos and recipes (Todd is often found as the author of most of their baking posts while Diane has a penchant for spring rolls) and they share a passion for gathering people around food they love.

But before there was a cookbook, Todd and Diane created a following of faithful food blogging novices, eager to listen and learn about food photography and styling at food blogging conferences across the country.

continue to the recipe… about Todd Porter and Diane Cu of White on Rice Couple Plus Homemade Sriracha Sauce and a Cookbook Giveaway