Roasted Potatoes with Artichoke Hearts
(This post was originally published here as part of the Whip It Up challenge.)
Last week while I was in Seattle, I got a hankering to cook something. I decided that as long as I documented the process, I could count it as my Whip It Up contribution. I knew we were having a BBQ that night, complete with Bratwurst and I decided that something with spicy mustard would be a perfect pair to a nice, crispy Brat. So I thought, and I thought, and I thought, and when I gave up and finally let the nice folks at Google do my thinking for me. I came up with this recipe for roasted potatoes with artichoke hearts, and thought that spicy mustard would make the whole thing quite divine.
These potatoes were an absolute hit! Everyone loved them, even the little kids. I actually was a little embarassed at all the praise tossed my way. I fully admit that I am much better at googling something and following instructions than I am at actually cooking.
The recipe will be after the break; here’s the nitty gritties:
- Total Prep-Time: 10 minutes to put together, about 30 minutes to cook.
- Was the recipe easy to follow: Yes, this is perhaps one of the simplest “gourmet”ish dishes I’ve ever whipped up.
- Are the ingredients easy to find: Yes, potatoes, onion, garlic and canned artichoke hearts.
- Do you need special equipment: No
- Does the end result taste delicious: It was absolute divine! I did have to add some more salt and fresh-ground pepper. The spicy mustard really added some kick!
- Would I make it again: It will be added to my staple-foods.
Key Lime Pie-cakes
(This post originally published here as part of the Whip It Up challenge.)
For the first time since joining the Whip It Up challenge, I think I am actually doing the suggested theme in the week it is suggested, but really, who doesn’t like to make dessert? I had this recipe for Key Lime pie floating around in my recipe box, ripped out of a magazine, sadly waiting to be whipped up. Last weekend I threw my first ever quasi-dinner party. I made Cafe Rio goodness FROM SCRATCH (for all ya’ll not familiar, that means slow-roasted Pork Barbacoa, Cilantro Rice, Creamy Tomatillo dressing, fresh Pico, and black beans. It was a blast, and I promise to post the recipe(s) on Friday for my final Whip It Up cooking adventure. Updated: Link Here) At any rate, with all this Mexican food, I wanted a dessert that would be small-ish, but absolutely fantastic. My solution? Key lime pie + baked in a cupcake tin and VIOLA! Pie-cakes! I switched out the graham cracker crust for vanilla wafers, and topped the whole thing with freshly whipped cream and a slice of lime. My mouth is actually watering just thinking about these. If anyone asks, I only had two. (If we’re being honest, I may or may not have eaten four.)
You know the drill, the recipe will be after the break; here’s the nitty gritties:
- Total Prep-Time: 20 minutes (5 mins prep, 15 mins bake), let cool 1 hour, refrigerate until time to serve no more than 6 hours or so or they start to get soggy.
- Was the recipe easy to follow: Ohmygoodness, yes. Easiest thing EVER!
- Are the ingredients easy to find: Any grocery store, any season. This recipe made about 10 pie-cakes, I would definitely suggest making a double batch for a party. I my guests did not have nearly enough pie-cakes. I am listing a single batch recipe, which fits into a 9″ graham cracker pie-crust, ya know, if you’re interested.
- Do you need special equipment: I love my lime juicer, but it is not required.
- Does the end result taste delicious: Fantastic. Again, I ate “two.” This is a fancy-looking dessert with restaurant quality taste, and it takes absolutely no time and no skill. Highly recommended.
Lemon Bars
(This post was initially published here as part of the Whip It Up series.)
The last couple of weeks I have this indescribably craving for lemons and lemony things. I have made Lemon Madeleines again, and still had this insatiable desire for lemon. Growing up, my mom made these fantastic Lemon Bars with a dusting of powdered sugar on the top. I’ve had lemon bars before that have too much crust and not enough lemon. That is not the kind of lemony dessert I was craving, so I called my mom and got her recipe for perfect lemony goodness. I quickly whipped them up, impatiently waited for them to cool, and then myself and a certain Handsome boy of mine may or may not have eaten a half of the pan. Maybe. But wouldn’t you?
The recipe will be after the break; here’s the nitty gritties:
- Total Prep-Time: 1 hour 45 minutes. 15 mins prep, additional 25 mins bake, 1 hour cool. So, make these before dinner. Or, make them for dinner. Ya know, whatever.
- Was the recipe easy to follow: Super easy, one bowl to mix, one pan to bake. Easy-peasy.
- Are the ingredients easy to find: Yes, just make sure you use fresh lemons! No artificial juice, please.
- Do you need special equipment: No, but a cheese-grater (or lemon zester) and a lemon juicer help quite a bit.
- Does the end result taste delicious: If by “delicious” you mean “24 bars were devoured by 1.5 people in 3 hours…then Yes. They were DELICIOUS!
- Would I make it again: This is going to be added to my “Make Often” file, absolutely.
Garlic-Lime Chicken with Cafe Rio’s Cilantro Rice
(This post originally published here as part of the Whip It Up challenge)
You know you are a real Utahan when you crave Cafe Rio fortnightly and will stop at (nearly) nothing to fulfill your craving. Out-of-staters, Cafe Rio is perhaps the best Nouveau Mexican restaurant in the history of Americanized Mexican food. Sort of along the lines of Chipotle, but Cafe Rio burritos are FAR superior and they also have these a-MAY-zing salads that I–and a lot of other “natives”–fantasize about quite regularly. I will be making a few other Cafe Rio recipes (Pork Barbacoa, Creamy Tomatillo-Ranch Dressing) over the next week or two, but I thought I’d start out on the easy-side with their Cilantro Rice. And because I cannot subsist on rice alone, I dug up a garlic-lime-cilantro vinaigrette to slather over a little grilled chicken.
This recipe makes about 6 cups of absolutely delectable, flavorful rice that would go with just about any grilled, Mexi-dish. If you have Real Kitchen Skillz–which I do not–I’m sure you can cut this down to a more manageable batch size. However, as far as I’m concerned, extra rice will motivate me to set aside 18 hours of crock-pot time for the famed Pork Barbacoa, which will be photographed and shared, I promise. The garlic-lime vinaigrette on the chicken is a cinch to make and gives the chicken a tangy hint of citrus combined with the oniony flavors of the cilantro. It takes 3 minutes to put together and can keep in the fridge for a couple of days. I brushed my chicken with a little olive oil and seasoned with salt, pepper and a bit of cumin. All-in-all, this Whip It Up experiment is perhaps the best full-meal I’ve cooked in weeks.
The recipies will be after the break; here’s the nitty gritties:
- Total Prep-Time: About 10 minutes, although a food processor would cut down your chopping time significantly. The rice takes about 30 minutes to cook, which is plenty of time to get your Grill on for the chicken, or white fish, if that’s what you prefer.
- Was the recipe easy to follow: Yes. Both require a bit of chopping and then dump everything together to combine.
- Are the ingredients easy to find: Yes. I did need to make a special trip to the grocery store for cilantro, but I had everything else in my fridge.
- Do you need special equipment: No, but again, a food processor would make things easier.
- Does the end result taste delicious: Yes, it was delish! And I will enjoy it for lunch the rest of the week. (6 cups of cooked rice will go a very long way.)
- Would I make it again: Absolutely.
Salsa Padre
(This post was originally published here as part of the Whip It Up challenge)
For whatever reason, I didn’t get the “this week, it is ‘pasta'” memo until considerably later in the Whip It Up game, and by that time I had already decided to post the recipe to my favorite salsa/bean dip dish. Everyone loves it, it’s super easy, and you’ll go away from your pock-luck/BBQ feeling like a domestic diva. Perfect for Whip It Up, no?
Salsa Padre was half-invented by my bachelor father, and then half-tweaked by yours truly. I actually made this last night at a family BBQ, in a kitchen-less park. With no running water and no electricity. In fact, I made this dish with nothing but a can opener and a large bowl. Goodness, I sound like an Extreme Survivor Chef or a Girl Scout on steroids or something! But seriously, that’s how easy-peasy Salsa Padre ranks in the wide world of recipe-ness. My aunts and cousins watched and oooh’ed and aaaah’ed and asked for the recipe, which I can spout off without the help of a 3×5 card. I felt decidedly domestic diva-ish, which is a rare turn from my usual domestically dormant state in the kitchen. Rachael Ray (and your super-annoying voice), you’ve got NOTHING on me! Ha!
Ahem, so, without further ado, Salsa Padre.
- 1 can black beans
- 1 can corn
- 1 can sliced olives
- 1 can green chilies*
- 1 tub of fresh salsa*
- 1 pound shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 bunch chopped cilantro
- 4 diced Roma Tomatoes**
- 2 chopped avocados, soaked in lemon juice.
Drain off all the liquids from the beans, corn, olives and salsa, (especially the salsa) and then dump everything but the avocado into a large bowl. Stir everything up to combine and add the avocado chunks at the end (so they stay more-or-less chunked), stir a few more times and Voila! You are the creator of the Best Bean Dip Ever! Add a bag of your favorite corn chips and wait for the compliments to start flowing.
*This dish can be as mild or hot as you like, depending on the hotness of your green chilies and your salsa, I generally use “medium” hotness. **Roma tomatoes work really well in this dip because they aren’t quite as watery as vine tomatoes.
The nitty-gritties:
- Total Prep-Time, including chopping: less than 10 minutes.
- Was the recipe easy to follow: Yes.
- Are the ingredients easy to find: Yes, in any grocery store.
- Does the end result taste delicious: Absolutely.
- Would I make it again: Absolutely, and again and again. I make this at least once a month, more often in the summer.
heidikins cooks 