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I am a believer in dry beans. You can find these at pretty much any market. Soak them overnight in cold water, and when you awake the next morning, drain and rinse them and make something new. For me, it was coming up with a hearty bean soup that I could bring to work and have a healthy, and hearty meal to keep me going. This is my take on a chorizo and mixed bean soup. It serves a lot, can be made in a slow cooker if you wanted, and is a perfect meal for lunch or dinner. Heck, maybe even breakfast!

Let’s get started.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 1 lb mixed beans, dried
• 3 ribs of celery, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 5 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 3 links of chorizo, thick sliced
• 1 link of venison sausage, thick sliced (optional)
• 4 cups of vegetable stock
• 2 cups of water
• 1 whole bay leaf
• Salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• 1 whole baguette

Begin by soaking the beans in cool water, overnight. The following morning, drain and rinse the beans, and set aside.

Heat a soup pot on medium heat. Add in the sliced sausages, and brown on all sides, about 12 minutes. The sausage will release some fat, and this is what we will cook our vegetables in. After they have browned,  add in the carrots, onions, celery, and garlic, and give a good stir. Let the vegetables begin to sweat, about 8 minutes. Stirring every now and then.

Add in the stock and water, give a good stir. Give a good pinch of salt and pepper to the mix, and toss in the bay leave. Let this come to a simmer, cover, and let it cook for 2 1/2 hours.

Give the soup a taste, and adjust any seasoning. That’s it. How easy was that for a pretty healthy meal?

When you are ready to serve, slice off a good nub of the baguette. Ladle in a generous amount of the bean soup, and eat with the bread. The result is a creamy textures from the beans, a bit of spice that balances that with the chorizo, and just a good old dunking element with the bread. Not only that, but now you have lunch and dinner throughout the week! Enjoy.

Serve with some nice crusty bread.

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Lets get started.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 4 whole jalapeño peppers, large and firm, stems removed
• 1 tbsp canola oil, to lightly coat the peppers
• 1 1/2 tsp sea salt
• Heavy cast iron skillet

That is it. Three ingredients that when combined, will knock your socks off. Let me also state that these peppers can be hot, so if you are into the hot food, this is great. Remember, the seeds are in there, but if you eat around the edges, you should be just fine.

Begin by adding the peppers to a mixing bowl. Add in the oil, and mix around until you know all of the peppers have been coated with the oil.

Add these to a cast iron skillet, and heat on medium to medium-high heat. As the skillet comes to temperature, begin moving the peppers around in the skillet, making sure all of the sides become roasted. This should take anywhere for 8-12 minutes for them to roast.

As soon as the peppers are fully roasted, carefully move them to the mixing bowl and shower them with the salt, gently mixing. Add them to a serving bowl and have your guests (that like hot and spicy) add one to their plate. You simply eat them whole, starting with the smaller tip, and eating your way down.  These can be served alongside just about anything, and they go perfect if you and your friends are drinking beer.

The flavor, although mildly spicy in my opinion, is really amazing. Something about the salt and the roasted flavor of the chile really get the meal going. Simple, fun, and delicious. What could anyone else ask for? Enjoy.

As my interest has grown around the ideas of Korean style cooking, I stumbled across an image a few years back of a Korean style pancake that was loaded with green onions. I knew how to make pancakes, the non-savory type of course, but these savory type of pancakes sparked my interest, and grew to what became my version of a Korean pancake.

Let’s get started. (Makes approximately 5-6 pancakes)

Ingredients for pancakes: [Print this Recipe]

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 2 whole eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups of water, approximately
• 1 whole bunch of green onions, half of them thinly sliced, the other part sliced thinly lengthwise
• 1 shallot, minced
• Generous pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup of canola oil

Ingredients for Dipping Sauce:

• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 shallot, minced
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• 1/2 cup of soy sauce
• 3 Thai Bird’s Eye Chilies, smashed

Begin by adding everything but the oil, green onions, and shallots to a mixing bowl. Mix really well until you have a light pancake batter. The goal is to not have a thick batter, almost like a crepe batter, if you have ever made those.

Fold in the green onions and shallots, mixing along the way, then let the batter sit, at room temperature, for about ten minutes.

During this time, make the sauce. Combine all of your ingredients, mix well, and set aside.

When you are ready to cook the pancakes, heat a large skillet on medium heat. Add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan.

Ladle on the pancake batter, enough to almost fill the pan. Let these cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side. When the pancake is cooked on the bottom side, much like you would check for a classic, American pancake, flip, and cook on the other side for the additional amount of time.

When the pancake is cooked, remove and place on a paper towel lined plate.

Repeat, until the pancakes are cooked.

When you are ready to serve, slice the pancake into quarters, stacking them nicely on a plate, and serve with the dipping sauce.

The result is a pancake that is out of this world in flavor. Texturally, the pancake is loaded with green onions, but oddly enough, not over powering, and the pancake itself is a bit crisp, yet spongy. When dipping it into the sauce, the bite is just balanced with a great soy and vinegar spice.

Explore, and talk to random people about food. You might be glad you did. Enjoy.

But, I am there, and as often as I joke around that I should be managing the store because I know where everything is at, and have helped a numerous amount of people find things in aisle three, the fact is that my kids are growing, and eating a lot of things in sight. The one pizza is now two, the one loaf of bread is almost consumed at lunch. You know what I am saying. With that said, rice has become somewhat of a staple throughout the week. We are probably cooking rice at least three times a week. Not one cup, but close to three cups of rice. They love it, and I do to, as I can throw in some nice jasmine rice into the rice maker, forget about it, and make the rest of the dinner.  But there are times where we have plenty of leftover rice, and that is exciting to me because there is nothing better than leftover rice than to make a killer fried rice.

With that said, you might have read from my previous posts, I am hooked on kimchi.

With my remaining jar of kimchi, and my leftover rice, I was bound to throw some classic kimchi fried rice together, and now, so should you.

Lets get started.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 2 cups of leftover jasmine rice, room temperature
• 2 cups of kimchi, chopped
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp dark sesame oil
•  pinch of salt
• pinch of black pepper
• 1 whole egg, per serving

Begin by adding the one and a half tablespoon of canola oil to a heated wok, or pot. Toss in the garlic and kimchi, and give a good stir. Toss in the rice and incorporate all of the ingredients, making sure the kimchi coats the rice. Reduce the heat, and continue to stir and flip the rice around. Add in the sesame oil, about half of the chopped green onions, and toss in the salt and pepper. Stir, and remove from the heat.

In a separate skillet, heat the other half tablespoon of oil, then crack the egg, cooking sunny side up. The goal is to have a cooked egg, with the yolk warmed through, and when breaking into the cooked egg, the creaminess of the yolk, with the stir fried rice, well, that really sets you into a whole other world.

To plate, get a serving bowl out, per person. Add a good amount of rice into the bowl, shower with some sliced green onions, and top with the egg. Slice into that egg and get in there. A bit of spice and salt, this fried rice is really balanced well with the creaminess of the egg. It’s a must try.

My kids, I think, notice that. And to me, that is great.

Two weeks ago, my second child, eagerly asked if he could help me make a salad. I should back track a little bit and say that my lovely wife suggested that I make a salad for an upcoming party. “You know, that pasta salad you made that one time with cheese, and stuff?”. I like surprises, but don’t get me wrong…

So to both of their surprises, I said yes. Yes, you can help me with the salad, and yes, I would love to make a salad for the party. But what salad was it, that one with cheese?

Most of my creations are just that. Creations. Our backyard garden. Fresh herbs, and everything in between. Cheese? I remember one that I came up with cheese, and chunks of salami… but just cheese?

Ingredients:

• 1 package cheese stuffed ravioli, cooked
• 1/2 lb your favorite pasta, cooked al dente
• 1 small head of brocoli, steamed for 3 minutes
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 zucchini, diced
• 1/2 cup of sliced cherry tomatoes
•  1 orange bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 cup of fresh mozzarella cheese balls
• 1 cup of radicchio lettuce, diced
• 1/2 cup of olive oil
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp salt, more to taste
• 1 tsp cracked black pepper, more to taste
• 1 cup of colby jack cheese, cubed
• 1/4 cup of fresh basil, torn

Lets begin and get to the story a bit later.

Every time you cook, it is important you prepare all of your ingredients. If you have eager people that want to help, use them!

To a large bowl, add your vegetables. Drain your cooked pasta and add it to the bowl, and mix. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper, and let it come to room temperature.

In the meantime, make your dressing. To a mason jar, or sealed tight container, add your oil, salt and pepper, garlic, vinegar, and mustard. Shake this vigorously for about a minute until it looks like a nice, thick salad dressing.

Add the cheeses to the bowl, toss or mix, then add in your dressing. Mixing again.

My story continues…

“Can I do something for you Dad?”. A tear about came to my eye. It was one of those moments I had been waiting for. That moment. As I am not a mechanic, or tinkerer for the most part, I am a technologist, with a creative mind, and a hobby of cooking. That question simply got me.

I brought out a couple of knives, and began teaching him what I knew of knife skills. Fingers are precious, so curl them, and cut. Dice, and be precise. Take your time. He got it, and instantly took his time slicing and dicing.

Teachable moments. A moment and faint memory of cubes of cheese, and a lovely pasta salad that pleased many. I was won over by my nine year old son who began thinking of cooking and helping out in the kitchen. This pasta salad goes out to my lovely wife, and my son who is eager and willing to learn basic cooking skills. Enjoy.

What you end up with is a bowl of your backyard garden. Fresh and seasonal. The best part, well, probably two parts awesome; your kid wanting to cook with you and your wife wanting you to create something you never recall ever making. Maybe it was the cheese. Who knows.

That is when I took it into my own hands to show everyone just how easy it is to come up with a really great, and simple chip dip. Creamy, a bit spicy, and super easy to make, you might have your guests asking about this one at your next get together.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of sour cream
• 2 packages of your favorite Ramen noodle seasoning packets (I used Hot Chili Ramen)
• Homemade Potato Chips (here), (here), (here)

Add the seasoning packets to the sour cream. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

Now how easy was that? Do it yourself. Skip the thought that store bought is better and create your own. Enjoy.

Some times you just want something different from those standard side dishes. This is where a classic macaroni salad came into play. I did not necessarily do this for myself, rather, I wanted to surprise my wife with something new, and I think I did just that.

This classic macaroni salad has everything you would expect in flavor and texture. A nice light dressing along with the great crunch from fresh celery, made this macaroni salad go great with the barbecue. So whether you are making chicken, pork, beef, or something in between, skip the bland deli style salads that you would typically pick up from the grocery store and try this one before summer ends. You will be happy you did.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb of macaroni pasta, cooked al dente
• 1/2 cup of celery, small dice
• 1/4 cup of red onion, small dice
• 1 small roma tomato, small dice
• 1/2 cup of light mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp Italian leaf parsley, chopped

Begin by boiling your pasta in salted water. While the pasta is boiling, prepare your ingredients, chopping all of the vegetables. When the vegetables have been chopped, make the dressing.

Combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, salt, pepper, mustard, sugar, and sour cream to a small mixing bowl. Do just that, mix well until you have a nice and thin dressing.

When the pasta is done cooking, drain, and rinse with cold water to cool the pasta. Drain well.

To a large mixing bowl, add the pasta, chopped veggies, and top with half of the dressing. I say half because depending on the pasta, you want to make sure the sauce stays nice and light, not too much sauce. Mix to incorporate everything until you have the desired about of consistency with the dressing.

Taste. Adjust any salt and pepper to your liking. When you are ready to serve, transfer the macaroni salad to a serving bowl and garnish with fresh parsley. Serve cold, or at room temperature. Enjoy.

Ajvar is very simple to make. It is basically red bell peppers, eggplant, a bit of garlic and lemon, and just like that you have a wonderful, lightly spicy and fresh condiment.

Ingredients:

• 2 large eggplants
• 3 large red bell peppers
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 tsp paprika (optional)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup of olive oil

Simple ingredients. Begin by roasting the red bell peppers and the eggplants, either on a hot grill, or in the oven on high heat. The goal is blacken all of the skin on both the eggplants and the peppers. This process takes about 25 minutes. Once the skins are blackened, place them in a ziplock bag, or paper bag, and let them rest for about another 10 minutes. What happens when the vegetables are sealed in the bag, is that they begin to steam and allow you to easily remove the thicker skins on both vegetables.

Once the vegetables are slightly cooled, remove the skins off of all vegetables as well as their stems. Add the eggplant to a food processor. Before adding the red bell peppers, make sure you remove the seeds from them.

Next, toss in the remaining ingredients and begin pulsing the mixture down until it is nice and smooth. If you want more texture in your ajvar, by all means pulse it down to your desired consistency. Me? I like it nice and smooth.

Transfer this mixture to a large saucepan, and bring it to medium heat, covered, and cook for about one hour on a simmer. Let cool.

Once your ajvar is cooled, pour into storage containers, and when you are ready to eat, simply spread on bread such as naan, or heck, even some nice crostini. First bite, and you will understand how delicious this condiment is. The big question is why are we learning about how awesome ajvar is today?

Hope you enjoy.

So on one Saturday morning, I over heard an older couple going back and forth on purchasing this ‘thing’. I later found out it was kohlrabi. So as I often do, I approached the couple and asked what they were going to make with this kohlrabi. The man actually got excited and informed me that he loved eating this kohlrabi thinly sliced with a bit of salt. Then I slowly approached the farmer and asked her about kohlrabi, and how she liked eating it. She informed me that she liked it thinly sliced and served with ranch dressing of all things! I had to buy one. I had to thinly slice this thing and see for myself how it was going to taste. Not only that but I was curious if I were to get as excited as the older man who later came back to talk to me and let me know that when he was growing up as a kid, that kohlrabi was the thing that he and his friends would crave and hunt down during the summer months.

Kohlrabi is actually a turnip and tastes similar to that of a mild cabbage or apple, if you will. There is a bit of thick outer skin that needs to be peeled away before exposing the white, crunchy interior. As I sliced it thin and tasted with a bit of salt, I immediately fell in love and decided to come up with my own take on raw kohlrabi.

Lets get started.

Ingredients:

• 1 whole kohlrabi, skin peeled and cut into thin slices
• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
• salt, to taste

Begin by adding the chopped thyme to the olive oil and let this sit for approximately one hour to let the thyme flavor set in.

When you are about to serve, add the sliced kohlrabi to your serving plate. Filter your oil to remove the chopped thyme, and with a spoon, drizzle the oil all over the kohlrabi. Season generously with salt, and garnish with a small sprig of thyme.

The result is something truly simple and delicious. Crisp with a fantastic taste of light thyme and salt. It was refreshing, and as simple as it was, I could see why this man, and farmer at that, was excited when they talked about the kohlrabi.

Lesson learned: Try new things and talk to those around you. You will never know what you might find out. Enjoy.

Sure enough, I did.

One thing I love about Mexican corn is not only how simple it is, but more importantly the creaminess from the mayonnaise, and the subtle heat from the chili powder. I think I am drooling just thinking about the corn. So I decided to take some of the basics of what I did for the creamed corn and turn it into the flavors I loved so much from Mexican corn, and boy am I glad I did.

Lets get started.

• 3 whole ears of corn, husked, and grilled until nicely charred
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup of cream
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1/2 tsp salt, more to taste
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 cup of cotija cheese, or substitute parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp fresh cilantro
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

Begin by grilling your corn. Remove the husks, and wash the corn with cold water. Place on a grill, cooking on all sides until nice and charred, but not overly burnt.

Once the corn is cooked, remove them from the grill and let them cool to room temperature.

When they are cooled, take each cob, standing it upright, and run a knife down the the side of the cob cutting off the kernels, cutting as close to the cob as possible. Do this on a baking sheet as the cobs like to fly around a bit. Save the cobs as we are going to save those for a bit more flavor.

Once you have all of the corn cut off the cob, bring a small pot to medium to low heat on the stove. Add the cream and the cobs. If you have to break the cob in half, do that. Let the cobs cook in the cream for about 15 minutes.

Remove the cobs with some tongs, but before doing so, take the back of a knife and run it down the cob, getting as much of the flavor out of the cob, and any remaining cream that got into it.

Once all of the cobs have been removed, add in the butter, corn, sugar, salt, chili powder, and mayonnaise. Give a good stir, and cook until the corn has been heated through. This will only take a few minutes.

Next add in the cotija cheese. Stir, and get ready to eat.

When you are ready to serve, plate in a small bowl, top with some chopped cilantro, a lime wedge, and some additional cotija cheese.

Talk about a creamed corn that rocks in flavor! Try this if you are looking for the best of both worlds. Enjoy.