It was not too long ago when some friends of ours said they were heading up north Wisconsin to visit some friends and that there was some cheese, the best cheese, in Wisconsin there. They had asked if I wanted some to bring back, and I said sure, get me twenty dollars worth of cheese, a mixture of a creamy blue, and some cheddar. I love soft blue cheese. I truly do. About a week later, I met up with them at our kids baseball game, and she forked over a bag of cheese, as promised, and she also threw in a blended cheese called Jamaican Jerk. They were not too pleased with the blend, however she said that I could probably make something out of it. I did. This pizza.
At first bite, I really did not care for the cheese to be quiet honest with you, however I wasn’t going to let it go to waste. I figured I was going to make a queso fundido out of it, and then it sparked of how much I love Jamaican jerk chicken, that I would make a pizza out of it as I already had made a batch of pizza dough for the family.
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
1 batch of your favorite pizza dough, rolled or tossed to your desire
2 cups of cooked chicken, shredded
2 1/2 cups of Jamaican Jerk cheese, shredded
1/2 cup of your favorite pizza sauce
That’s it. Pretty simple. The Jamaican Jerk cheese is actually a blend of a mozzarella style jack cheese so it went perfect when melted.
Start by preheating your oven to the highest temperature, mine only goes to 500. If you have a pizza stone, preheat that as well.
Next, get your dough tossed or rolled out to your desired thickness. I went a bit on the thinner side on this pizza.
Spread a thin amount of pizza sauce on the pizza. Top with the Jamaican jerk cheese, and then add the shredded chicken. If you have some cheese left over, sprinkle it onto the chicken.
Place in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the crust is nice and golden and the cheese is nice and melted.
I’ll admit, the result was pretty darn good. The cheese did still have some of the funk that it had when eaten by itself, but the pizza sauce, along with the chicken somewhat balanced it out.
Have you ever tried Jamaican jerk cheese? What are your thoughts? Hope you enjoy!
I recently watched a show surrounding Indian culture, the northern part, and I was just amazed about the complexity, yet simplicity of their food. Much of the food on the show was focused on vegetarian dishes, and in all honesty, I was hooked. I’ve always been a fan of Indian food, and granted I am not eating it on a regular basis, probably once every few months, but when I do, I am in love. I love eating things like lentils, and butter chicken, scooping up the sauce with things like naan, or roti. The flavors are always complex. It is beyond a standard curry powder that you might pick up at th e store, and that’s what I really love about Indian cooking. Toasting spices, and building flavors as you progress in a dish. With that said, I set out to make a Sunday meal consisting of green lentils, and kidney beans. It was a dish that was so comforting, and made for great leftovers throughout the week.
I began cooking this in the morning, and let it go throughout the early afternoon, tasting, and building along the way. This Indian green lentil curry with kidney beans rocked. My wife loved them, and well, sometimes that is all that matters.
Let’s get started.
2 cups green lentils
5 cups of water
15 oz can light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
4 tbsp canola oil
2 inches of fresh ginger, smashed
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, minced
2 whole roma tomatoes, diced
2 whole green chilies, smashed
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp chili powder (reduce for less heat)
1 tsp tumeric powder
1 1/2 tsp salt (to taste)
1/2 cup heavy cream
Fresh cilantro, torn
Naan (optional)
Roasted Chicken (optional)
Indian Pickled Relish (optional, but recommended)
I’m a big believer in stocking up on spices and condiments for that matter. After all, when you have a hankering for a certain cuisine, you should have the arsenal to quickly get started. Well, as I had a handful of items, I needed to stock up on a few things as my masala dabba did not offer a few things I was looking for. This was good because it led me to a place in Milwaukee that I had never been, and I loved this place. It was called Best Food Store, located on 13th street in Milwaukee. It looked like a 7-Eleven from the outside, but was a really great grocery inside, and it was authentic. Let’s just say I was the only Caucasian browsing pickled relish in the store. They had everything though, from fresh vegetables, to flours, to an array of lentils, and frozen items. Let’s just say I’ll be back. I picked up my items, and quickly headed home to cook.
Start by getting a saucepan on the stove. Combine the lentils, tumeric, and water. Stir, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat, and cover, and simmer on low heat for about 30 minutes. Check the lentils about 20 minutes in for tenderness. You don’t want them to be mushy, but you do want a little bite to them.
About 20 minutes in add the ginger, chilies, and the kidney beans. Stir.
During this time, heat the oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Toss in garlic and onion, and let those sweat for about 5 minutes. Add in the cumin seeds, coriander, garam masala, chili powder, and salt. Mix and cook a couple of minutes, then add in the tomatoes. Give a good stir and set aside.
Remove the ginger and chilies from the lentil mixture and discard. Add in the onion mixture, and give a good stir. If you need to add a bit more water, feel free. Add in the cream, and stir again. Cover, turn off the heat, and prepare any other items you are going to serve, such as the roasted chicken, or naan.
When you are ready to serve, Add the Indian green lentil curry with kidney beans, and serve alongside the pickled relish, roast chicken, and naan. The lentils pack the warmth and flavors that you would expect in an awesome curry, and when paired with the pickled relish (highly recommend), it almost cleanses the palette, along with some really great heat. Scooping up the curry with the chicken, and curry was just a hit. Hope you enjoy!
My family and I have been visiting a local restaurant in town known as Buffalo Wild Wings. You have probably heard of it, and it is basically bar grub such as wings, burgers, flatbreads, and the like. When it first opened we were pretty stoked as the food was half way decent, the service was good, and it was a place where the kids could agree on. Over the course of the past year, if not more, service has gone down hill, and in my opinion so has their food. Their wings are becoming rubbery, even somewhat cold on one occasion, and their nachos, which both my wife and I love, are never consistent. Point of the story is two things; we stopped going, and I figure out how to make their garlic and parmesan sauce, which is finger licking delicious, and I’m not one to lick my fingers if you know what I’m saying.
I’m a sucker for really good wings, dry or wet, so why not take a chance and make them your own, right? I’m also into baked chicken wings, and a bit on the drier side, but you make them any way you desire. This sauce has that perfect tang, with awesome roasted garlic flavor. They were hard to stop eating, let’s just put it that way.
Start by getting a sheet of aluminum foil out, and place the garlic cloves on top. Drizzle with the olive oil, and place in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes. Remove, and let cool.
During this time, add the remaining ingredients to a small mixing bowl. Once the garlic is cooled, remove from the skins, and mash into small bowl, then mix well into the sauce. Set this sauce, covered, in the refrigerator for at least one hour to let the flavors merry.
Deep fry or bake your wings until the are fully cooked and crispy. I like to bake mine. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Use two baking sheets if you have to. place the chicken onto the baking sheet, and place in the preheated oven for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Turn once around 60 minutes. After 1 1/2 hours, turn off the oven, and let them sit in there for another 15 minutes.
Once you are ready to eat and the wings are fully cooked, add them to a larger mixing bowl. Add in as much or as little sauce, and coat to your liking. Give them a nice toss and dig in.
The result is awesome. Perfectly crisp chicken wings with the roasted garlic and parmesan sauce just sold me that I no longer need to visit the longer Buffalo Wild Wings, plus I make better nachos to boot! Hope you enjoy!
Start by getting a sheet of aluminum foil out, and place the garlic cloves on top. Drizzle with the olive oil, and place in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes. Remove, and let cool.
During this time, add the remaining ingredients to a small mixing bowl. Once the garlic is cooled, remove from the skins, and mash into small bowl, then mix well into the sauce. Set this sauce, covered, in the refrigerator for at least one hour to let the flavors merry.
Once you are ready to eat, and the wings are fully cooked, add them to a larger mixing bowl, add in as much or as little sauce, and coat to your liking. Give them a nice toss and dig in.
The result is awesome. Perfectly crisp chicken wings with the roasted garlic and parmesan sauce just sold me that I no longer need to visit the longer Buffalo Wild Wings, plus I make better nachos to boot! Hope you enjoy!
There are many things I never order off the menu when dining out at a Mexican restaurant, and one of those is enchiladas. I have no idea why I don’t order them because I do love them, and everything about them for that matter. I’m probably just stuck in my ways of defaulting to ordering the tacos because darn it, they are just so flipping delicious. Enchiladas are something that I make at home quiet a bit however, and it is something that both my wife and I really find comforting. When I began thinking of making enchiladas, I was reminded by this hole in the wall in Dallas where I first encountered enchiladas suizas, and I fell in love with them.
I would typically have enchiladas with a red chili sauce ladled over the top, however enchiladas suizas is something special, and it is really easy to make. The Swiss were lucky enough to influence Mexico on this dish, and as there are a couple of different ways to go about making these, I find that a simple roasted chili verde sauce, along with a combination of cheeses hits the spot. If you want to go out and make a bechamel sauce, feel free.
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
5 tomatillos, husks removed
2 poblano peppers
4 cloves of garlic
3 serrano chilies
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup fresh cilantro, loosely packed
salt, to taste
cracked black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup Mexican crema, or sour cream
2 cups Monterey jack cheese, shredded
6 slices of Swiss cheese
1 russet potato, peeled (optional), cubed and cooked
3 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
Corn tortillas
oil
Start by adding the tomatillos, garlic, peppers, and chilies to a roasting pan. Drizzle with the olive oil. Place in a preheated 425 degree oven for 40 minutes. Remove and immediately place the poblano peppers in a sealed plastic bag to let steam, and hence allow for the skin to be removed.
During this time, add the chicken to a pot of water, and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 25-30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Pull the chicken apart with a couple of forks. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, and set aside.
If you are using the potato, add to a pot of cold water, bring to a boil, and let cook for about 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Drain and set aside.
Add the roasted items to food processor, removing the skins from the garlic prior to doing so. Toss in the cilantro. Revisit those pobalano peppers, and remove the skin from the exterior of the peppers. Remove the stem, slice open and remove all of the seeds. Add the poblanos to the food processor as well.
Pulse until you have a fine sauce. Taste, and season with any salt. Add about 1 cup of this sauce to the bottom of your baking dish. This sauce can actually be used as a salsa as well, so reserve some if you desire. It’s good. It’s really good.
Add the Mexican crema to the rest of the salsa verde, and give a good mix. This is now your creamy salsa verde that will be used on top of your enchiladas before baking.
Lightly brush oil on each corn tortilla, and stack them up. I used about 10 tortillas. Once they are stacked, place them in the microwave for about 45 seconds, until they are warmed through and pliable.
Take a tortilla and add some potato and shredded chicken, then roll, and place seam side down onto the salsa verde in the baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
Pour over the creamy salsa verde, top with the shredded cheese, then place the Swiss cheese slices to cover.
Bake in a 350 degree oven, uncovered for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese is golden and melted through.
Serve with Mexican or Puerto Rican rice and refried beans.
These enchiladas suizas have comfort food written all over them. I add a bit more of the reserved salsa verde on top as well. Super cheesy with just that great, subtle Swiss cheese flavor, and then the creamy salsa verde is just over the top in flavor. Tender, and delicious, it is a perfect dish any day of the week and great for leftovers, and who doesn’t love that during a busy work wee, right? Hope you enjoy!
1 russet potato, peeled (optional), cubed and cooked
3 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
Corn tortillas
oil
Instructions
Start by adding the tomatillos, garlic, peppers, and chilies to a roasting pan. Drizzle with the olive oil. Place in a preheated 425 degree oven for 40 minutes. Remove and immediately place the poblano peppers in a sealed plastic bag to let steam, and hence allow for the skin to be removed.
During this time, add the chicken to a pot of water, and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 25-30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Pull the chicken apart with a couple of forks. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, and set aside.
If you are using the potato, add to a pot of cold water, bring to a boil, and let cook for about 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Drain and set aside.
Add the roasted items to food processor, removing the skins from the garlic prior to doing so. Toss in the cilantro. Revisit those pobalano peppers, and remove the skin from the exterior of the peppers. Remove the stem, slice open and remove all of the seeds. Add the poblanos to the food processor as well.
Pulse until you have a fine sauce. Taste, and season with any salt. Add about 1 cup of this sauce to the bottom of your baking dish. This sauce can actually be used as a salsa as well, so reserve some if you desire. It’s good. It’s really good.
Add the Mexican crema to the rest of the salsa verde, and give a good mix. This is now your creamy salsa verde that will be used on top of your enchiladas before baking.
Lightly brush oil on each corn tortilla, and stack them up. I used about 10 tortillas. Once they are stacked, place them in the microwave for about 45 seconds, until they are warmed through and pliable.
Take a tortilla and add some potato and shredded chicken, then roll, and place seam side down onto the salsa verde in the baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
Pour over the creamy salsa verde, top with the shredded cheese, then place the Swiss cheese slices to cover.
Bake in a 350 degree oven, uncovered for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese is golden and melted through.
Serve with Mexican or Puerto Rican rice and refried beans.
These enchiladas suizas have comfort food written all over them. I add a bit more of the reserved salsa verde on top as well. Super cheesy with just that great, subtle Swiss cheese flavor, and then the creamy salsa verde is just over the top in flavor. Tender, and delicious, it is a perfect dish any day of the week and great for leftovers, and who doesn’t love that during a busy work wee, right? Hope you enjoy!
