Crispy Black Bean-Bacon Tacos

These are basically homemade taquitos. The recipe suggested serving it on a bed of lettuce and tomatoes, Mexican BLT anyone? We live in Wisconsin and in my opinion tomatoes are not worth it this time of year. I decided to go with a rice and beans route instead. Normally both of which are side dishes but with the beans in a taco they make a perfect main. This recipe is from Rick Bayless' Mexican Kitchen cookbook. No big deal, but it is a signed copy. It is no big secret that I love him, his food and restaurants. Anyways, I decided to make this recipe because it calls specifically for store bought corn tortillas and I am expecting a tortilla press from Santa this year (homemade are thinner). 

The process may seem difficult, but in reality it is very straightforward and quick. It is a perfect meal to cook with a friend. After the bean mixture is finished, one person can flash fry the tortillas, and the other can fill and roll them. I used to hate using corn tortillas until I tried the flash frying method--no tearing or breaking. Make sure that the oil is hot enough before you start the rolled and filled tacos. I did not use a thermometer. Instead I dropped a stray bean into the hot oil, if it sinks, bubbles and rises to the top quickly the oil should be hot enough. If you are going to make this for more than four people I suggest doubling the beans, there were no leftovers when I made this for my parents as a Thanksgiving Eve meal (although my Dad and I can really put it away). Try serving it with Red Chile Rice and enjoy!

Ingredients:

8 slices bacon

1 medium white onion, chopped

15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

2-3 pickled jalapenos (seeded, stemmed and chopped) or 1/4 cup jalapenos slices chopped

Vegetable oil

12 corn tortillas

2/3 cup crumbled Mexican queso fresco

Instructions:

1. In a 10- to 12-inch skillet, cook the bacon until crispy over medium heat. Remove the bacon to paper towel. Pour off all but a thin coating of the drippings. Add the onion and cook until deep golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in the beans, then coarsely mash the beans with the back of a wooden spoon. Crumble in the bacon along with the jalapenos. Season with salt and set aside in a bowl. This could be made several days ahead if you wanted.
2. Clean the skillet, pour in a splash of oil and heat over medium-high. One by one, quick fry the tortillas for several seconds to soften and pat dry on paper towels. Add more oil as needed. Remove the oil from the heat. Fill each tortilla with 2 tablespoons of the bean mixture, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon cheese, and roll up. 
3. Add 1/2 inch of oil to the pan and heat over medium to medium-high heat (about 375F). Fry the taquitos 4 at a time, placing them flap-side down in the oil. Fry on each side for about 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon or tongs, drain on paper towels and tip them to be sure no oil is inside. Serve with rice.

Easy Peasy Cheesy Potatoes

One of my favorite sides to make with dinner (or it's happened a couple times as a meal itself when I'm feeling like having a very unbalanced meal) is cheesy potatoes!  It's super easy to make and tastes delicious every time.  The roommates always love when I make this because I always share with them.  I will admit though that this batch did not turn out quite as good as it usually does, I think it might be because I used a mixture pack of cheese instead of just cheddar.

Ingredients

• 1 16 oz package of frozen hashbrowns, thawed
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 8 oz package of shredded cheddar cheese
• 16 oz light sour cream
• Corn flakes (or similar cereal, or crushed saltine crackers or other similar cracker)
• 2 tablespoons butter

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix thawed hashbrowns, soup, sour cream, and cheese in a 9x13 pan. (Grease pan to make it easier to clean.)
3. Sprinkle corn flakes in a layer on top.
4. Drizzle melted butter over corn flakes.
5. Cook for 40 minutes or so.

Nate's Angel Food Birthday Cake

My boyfriend's birthday was this past weekend so I told him I would bake him a cake and he could pick whatever kind he wanted.  I was secretly a little disappointed when he chose angel food cake because it's one of the few cakes that I would say I don't really like, but I stuck to my word and made it since it's one of his favorites.

Having never made an angel food cake before I did not really know what to expect and it ended up being a little more complicated than I was expecting.  (I guess I should've read the recipe more thoroughly before waiting until late morning of a home Badger football game to bake a cake!)  The cake turned out just fine though. Topped with homemade whipped cream and strawberry bits it received raving reviews, especially from my roommate Tonia. (The birthday boy liked it too!)

Recipe adapted from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups egg whites (I used 11 large eggs.  It is very important that no yolk gets into the cake!)
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup granulated sugar

Directions

Stiff peaks

1. In a very large mixing bowl, allow egg whites to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2. Set flour and powdered sugar together in a separate bowl and set aside.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees with baking rack at the lowest position in the oven.
4. Add cream of tartar and vanilla to the egg whites and beat at a medium speed with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. (Soft peaks are when you pull the beaters out of the batter and the batter that pulls up into a peak curls over.)
5. Gradually add granulated sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. (Stiff peaks are when the batter stands strait up when you pull the beaters out of the batter.)
6. Sift flour mixture onto batter in fourths, folding into batter along the way. (To fold the batter, cut down through the batter with a spatula and bring up and around.)
7. Pour batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan. (I greased mine which made the cake come out very easily, but I think it may have stayed a little fluffier if I hadn't.)
8. Cut through batter with a skinny metal knife to release any hidden air bubbles.
9. Bake on lowest rack of oven for 40 minutes or when top spring back when lightly touched.
10. Turn cake pan upside down immediately and let cake cool while still in the pan.
11. Loosen sides of cake from pan and enjoy!

Pumpkin Cheesecake

My family celebrates Thanksgiving by having a big dinner feast with just the immediate family.  My mom usually makes pumpkin tort for dessert, but this year she decided she wasn't going to so I volunteered to make a pumpkin cheesecake instead.  I was a little nervous though because I had never made a cheesecake before!

I found a recipe online of Paula Deen's online that I decided to use.  After reading a bunch of the reviews I decided to add a pan of water in the oven when I cooked the cheesecake to help so it didn't dry out.  I also adjusted the baking time and added about 20 minutes to what Paula's recipe called for.  The cheesecake ended up cracking a bit, but I'm sure that is something that will be fixed with experience.  One side also ended up being a little darker than the rest of the cheesecake but I think that is because I placed the pan of water on the rack under the cheesecake unevenly.  The cheesecake turned out quite delicious anyways and got raving reviews, especially when topped with homemade whipped cream!

Crust

• 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 stick melted butter

Filling

• 3 8oz packages of cream cheese at room temperature (I used low fat cream cheese)
• 1 15oz can pumpkin puree
• 3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 cup sour cream (I used light sour cream)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. For crust, combine graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
3. Add melted butter.
4. Press down flat into a 9-inch springform pan.
5. For filling, beat cream cheese until smooth.
6. Add pumpkin puree, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, sugar, and spices.
7. Add flour and vanilla.  Beat together until well combined.
8. Pour filling into crust and spread out evenly.
9. Bake in oven containing a separate pan of water for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until cheesecake only lightly jiggles.
10. Remove from oven and let sit for about 15 minutes.
11. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Red Chile Rice

I made this the other night to go along with Crispy Black Bean-bacon Tacos. Everything about this was amazing, especially the rice being cooked perfectly. You will have leftover seasoning paste, which you could use as a rub on chicken or fish. I used the leftover paste to make more rice and the rice was cooked perfectly again. I added a can of beans and a cup of corn after the rice was cooked to make it into a meal for myself, delicious.


The seasoning paste was not as spicy as I was expecting it to be. If you want it to be spicier add a few dashes of cayenne pepper or use dried guajillos instead of the anchos. You will need a food processor or blender to make the paste. It is a lot easier to make than it may seem and well worth it. 

Recipe courtesy of Rick Bayless
Ingredients:
Essential Sweet and Spicy Ancho Seasoning Paste:
8 garlic cloves, unpeeled
8 medium (4 ounces) dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup chicken broth or water
Rice:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup white rice
1 medium white onion, diced
1 2/3 cups chicken broth or water
Instructions:
Ancho Seasoning Paste:

1. Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat. Place the garlic in the pan and roast for 15 minutes until softened (they will blacken in spots); cool and peel. While the garlic roasts, open the chilies and lay them flat in the pan one at a time pressing down with a spatula for a few seconds on each side until you hear it crackle or send up a wisp of smoke.  Put the chilies in a small bowl with hot water and let re-hydrate for 30 minutes.
2. In a food processor or blender, combine the oregano, black pepper, cumin, cloves, salt, peeled garlic, chilies and 2/3 cup broth or water. Process to a smooth puree.

The Rice:

1. In a large measuring cup, heat the broth and 5 tablespoons of ancho seasoning paste in the microwave on high for 3 minutes. 
2. In a medium saucepan heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and rice, stirring regularly, until the rice looks chalky, about 5 minutes. Pour in the broth and ancho seasoning paste with the rice, stirring a few times and scraping down any stray kernels from the side. Turn the heat to low, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Uncover and check a few grains of rice; it should be nearly cooked through. If it is just about ready, turn off the heat and let it it sit covered for 10 minutes. If it is far from done, replace the lid and cook for another 5 minutes. Enjoy!