Recipe: Faro and Roasted Vegetable Salad

AND... We're back!

So it has been a long while. I haven’t posted all summer, because Maru and I have been in the process of traveling and moving, moving and traveling. It’s been a little hectic! But now we are settled into our apartment in Brooklyn, NY!! We’ve got a great little place, we’ve made the small kitchen entirely functional, and in spite of all the wonderful eating out options this city has to offer, we still plan on making our own food on a regular basis. Take, for example, this hearty salad we made this past week. I actually copied this idea from a recipe in one of Jaime Oliver’s cookbooks. It’s one of my new favorite things. It requires very little actual work and this time of year, with vegetables everywhere, it is really cheap. With tons of vegetables and a healthy, whole-grain base, this one is good for you too. You will be amazed at how tasty this dish is. You could use it as a side dish with just about any entrée, but it also stands as a meal all on it’s own.

The time for this recipe goes into waiting for vegetables to roast. It will not be ready quickly, but this recipe makes a lot of food. You’ll have leftovers for quick weekday lunches or snacks. I’ve listed the ingredients that I used, but you can use whatever vegetables you have on hand and/or that you like. The original recipe calls for faro or spelt, which is fabulous if you can find it; nutty and chewy. Bulgur is much easier to come across and also good. Either way, enjoy!

Faro (Bulgur) salad with roasted vegetables

2 cups faro or bulgur

1 medium-size eggplant

2 medium-size zucchini or summer squash

2 red bell peppers

1 ear of corn

1 fennel bulb

1 large onion

4-6 cloves of garlic

A little under ¼ cup of balsamic vinegar (or an herb vinegar)

Salt and pepper to taste

Up to ½ cup olive oil

¾ cup chopped fresh herbs (a combination of parsley, mint, and basil is best)

Grated parmigiano or romano cheese (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400⁰ F. Slice the eggplant and zucchini or summer squash into ¼” thick half moons. Roughly chop the bell peppers, onion, and garlic. Remove the leafy part of the fennel bulb and set aside. Remove the tough outer later of the bulb, then thinly slice the rest. Cut the ear of corn into three pieces. Place all of the vegetables in a shallow roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Ideally, you want the vegetables to be in one even layer, so you will probably need two roasting pans. Place the pans in the oven and roast the vegetables for 40-50 minutes or until they begin to brown evenly. Every 10 minutes or so, give them a stir with a pair of tongs. Once they come out of the oven, drizzle some vinegar on them and let them cool for a few minutes.

Meanwhile, place the faro or bulgur in a bowl, cover with cold water, and let sit for 20 minutes. Pour off the soaking liquid, put the soaked grain in a large pot, cover with double the amount of water, add a dash of salt, and place on the stove on high heat to bring to a boil. Simmer the grain for about 15-20 minutes or until tender but still slightly chewy. Drain off the water and place in a large bowl. Add a drizzle of olive oil, then let it cool slightly.

Once the vegetables are cool enough to handle, give them all a rough chop. The chop doesn’t have to be pretty. This is a rustic dish. You just want things to be more or less bite size. The corn can be cut right off of the cob. Add the chopped veggies to the grain, and then add the herbs and the leafy part of the fennel. Generously salt and pepper the salad, add another drizzle of vinegar and oil, then mix well. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve warm with grated parmigiano or romano.

Recipe: Vegetarian Chili (Crockpot)

This is a simple recipe for vegetarian chili that I’ve developed with a little experimentation. It’s great because it cooks in the crockpot. You can prepare it the night before, leave everything in the crockpot in the fridge overnight, then plug it in and turn it on when you go to work and come home to a delicious slow-cooked meal. Prep time here is minimal (about 10-15 minutes), and you only need one pan apart from the crockpot. You could make the chili without precooking anything, but I think you get a deeper flavor if you sautee the veggies first with the chili powder as described here.

Since the chili is done in the crockpot, all of the beans and lentils are dried instead of canned. They are cheaper this way, and the flavor and texture are better.

As far as vegetables go, celery, onion, and carrot are the base, but from there, add whatever you have in your fridge. Bell peppers are really good. You could also throw in potatoes, winter squash, peas, corn, turnips, etc. I would just avoid soft vegetables like zucchini as they will just disintegrate with the slow cook time.

If you wanted to do a meat chili, you could follow the same steps, just cut down on the amount of legumes and brown the meat before adding the veggies and chili powder.

The spiciness of your chili really depends on the chili powder you use. If you use the chili powder recipe I posted yesterday along with the ingredients outlined here, you’ll have a nice, medium-hot final product.

Like all chili, this recipe is great to freeze. Since we normally cook for two, we usually have quite a bit leftover, even after eating it for lunch the next day. Just put the leftovers in a sealed container in the freezer and thaw on the stove or in the microwave whenever you want. It’s a homemade TV dinner.

Toppings should be whatever you like; cheese, yogurt or sour cream, raw onion, chopped cilantro, chives, corn bread, etc.

Vegetarian Chili (quantity is for a 3 liter crockpot)

3 Tablespoons veggie oil (this is the only added fat)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped (total volume of carrots and celery should equal the onion)

2 bay leaves

1 jalapeño, seeded and diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 Tablespoons chili powder (see recipe here)

½ ounce tequila or mezcal or ½ cup of beer (optional)

2 cups dried, mixed lentils and beans (I usually use about ¾ cup of brown lentils, ¾ cup pinto beans, ¼ cup black beans, ¼ cup garbanzos. Use whatever beans you like best. I recommend a good amount of lentils as it makes for a “meaty” chili. Red lentils in particular give a nice meaty texture to the finished dish.)

1 cup stewed or canned tomatoes (recipe here)

2 teaspoons salt

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

Water to cover (I’ve used stock in place of water before. It doesn’t make much difference though. The flavor from the spices and the beans is quite enough.)

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, warm the oil and add the onion, carrot, and celery. Cook until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and jalapeño and cook for another 2 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant. Add the chili powder and stir to combine. Cook for about another minute until the chili powder begins to darken.

If you are using tequila, beer, or mezcal, add it now to deglaze the pan, cook until the liquid evaporates, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan, and then dump everything into the crockpot. If you are skipping the alcohol, dump the cooked veggies into the crockpot, then add a cup of water to the hot pan and scrape the sides and bottom. You don’t want to lose all that chili powder!

Rinse the beans and lentils and remove any pits or stones you may find. Add them to the crockpot. Add the tomatoes, salt, and brown sugar. Fill the crockpot within a ½ inch of the top with water. Mix everything to combine.

Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-6 hours. Serve with desired toppings and freeze any extras. Enjoy!

Note: Chili is an acid bomb of a dish. The added sugar in this recipe will help to smooth things out a bit, along with yogurt, cheese, or sour cream if you add them. Sometimes though, the tomatoes you get are just more acidic. If you try the cooked chili and you think it might burn a whole through your stomach, add about ¼ teaspoon of baking soda to it and stir before serving. This will help to neutralize some of the acidity.

Recipe: Chili Powder

Grinding your own spices and making your own spice blends is really simple. The main advantage of making your own, other than cost (whole spices are usually much cheaper), is flavor. What you buy already ground at the supermarket is not necessarily that fresh, and even if it is, how long is it going to take you to use up that whole thing of ground cinnamon? By the time next year rolls around and you want to sprinkle some on your French toast, it will have almost zero flavor. If you buy whole cinnamon sticks though, you can grind as needed, and the whole sticks will still be flavorful for a long time (like years).

The only kitchen gadget you need is a spice grinder. In my experience, they can be hard to find in the store as they are not a sought-after item, but we live in the age of the Internet! Find one online. Should run you about $25-45 depending on how fancy or powerful it is.

Two spice blends I commonly use are chili powder and curry powder (or garam masala). For right now, let’s talk chili. Next time you’re in the store, or if you have it in your cabinet, pick up a thing of chili powder and read the ingredients. If they bother to list the spices, you’ll probably see cumin and pepper and several different chiles. There is also most likely onion powder, garlic powder, and some additive to prevent caking. When you make the powder yourself, you can skip the onion and garlic powder. I think they put that in there to cover up the loss of flavor from old, ground spices. You’re going to put garlic and onion in your chili, so you don’t need the powder.

I've tried several different recipes for chili powder that I've found online, sometimes with lots of different spices. I think I have nailed it now though. Not to say there won't be future experiments, but this blend is really good.

This recipe makes about ½ cup of chili powder, enough for about three batches of chili. It is spicy. If you want to make it milder, cut down on or cut out the chiles de arbol. They are there for heat. The guajillos and anchos are there for flavor, don’t skip them. And if you want things to be hotter, add a couple more of the little guys.

Another great thing about making your own chili powder is you can put what you want into it. If you want to go heavier on the cumin, do it. Want to add cocoa powder? It also adds nice flavor. For your first time though, follow the recipe, other than adjusting for heat as needed. It is tested and solid.

So here is the recipe.

Left to right: anchos, guajillos, chiles de arbol

Chili Powder

2 ancho chiles

2 guajillo chiles

5 chiles de arbol

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

½ inch piece of cinnamon

½ teaspoon black peppercorns

Remove the stems and seeds from the chiles and tear them into pieces. Place everything except the peppercorns in a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Stirring constantly, dry fry the spices until they begin to turn a few shades darker and become very fragrant. It should take 8-10 minutes. Don’t let the spices burn. If anything does turn black, remove it. Probably your best measuring stick are the coriander seeds, since they start out pretty light. Once they are a golden brown, you’re ready.

A word of caution: as those chiles roast, they will release oils that may bother your nose and eyes if you’re not used to it. Open a window and turn on your exhaust fan.

Put the spices on a plate and let them cool. Once they are room temperature, add the peppercorns and grind everything in batches. Be careful of the fine powder that comes off the grinder when you take the lid off. You don’t want to breathe that in.

Mix the ground spices to make sure everything is uniformly distributed and store in an airtight container. It will be flavorful for about a month and not-too-bad the following month. See how easy it is?

This powder is great for your favorite chili, but you can also sprinkle it on cucumbers, jicama, or even mangos and pineapple like they do here in Mexico. Go nuts.

Recipe: Arroz Verde

Arroz verde con plátanos fritos

I remember when my siblings and I were little, my mom used to do Spanish Rice every once in a while from a mix. We loved it at the time, then when I got older, I started to think it was just kind of tasteless. You know that red rice you get at “Mexican” restaurants in the US? It’s kind of mushy and has almost no flavor. I just always think, “Why did you bother putting this on my plate?”

This rice is the real deal. Its fluffy, slightly al dente texture is great, and the flavor is delicious, but understated enough to quickly become a comfort food. It’s also very versatile as far as serving goes. As a side dish, it can accompany just about anything, and you can also serve it as a course all its own or even make a complete meal out of it (as we just did!).

Popular ways to serve Mexican rice is with sliced bananas (fried or raw), a fried egg on top, or with a spoonful of beans. There are many possibilities.

Here is the recipe for our house favorite, green rice. At the end of the recipe you’ll find how to make red or white rice as well. Mexican rice is basically a pilaf with the rice grains being fried before steaming them. What varies with each color is what you mix into the cooking liquid.

I will be honest and let you know that you probably won’t get perfect rice the first few times you make this dish. It’s tricky to get the texture just right, but if you follow these steps, you should be good to go. Just don’t be dissuaded if your rice ends up a little over or underdone. Try, try again. It is well worth it. Once you get the hang of making Mexican rice, it will be a meal that you can prepare very quickly. It’s also cheap, delicious, and nutritious (especially if you opt for brown rice).

Arroz Verde

2 poblano chiles

2 Tablespoons chopped onion

1 clove garlic, peeled

¼ c loosely packed fresh epazote (You can skip the epazote, or use cilantro. Either way will change the flavor significantly.)

1 teaspoon salt

2 c stock or water (Veggie or chicken stock adds a nice flavor to the rice, especially if it is homemade, but you can get delicious rice just with water.)

2 Tablespoons veggie oil

1 c medium grain rice (White or brown is fine. See below for cooking difference for brown rice. Note that brown rice will give a very different texture and a nuttier flavor.)

½ c mixed vegetables (Diced carrot, corn, diced potato, and/or peas are most common. Carrots or potatoes should be cut to the size of a grain of corn.)

With a grill, broiler, griddle, or flame of a gas range, roast the poblanos until blackened evenly all over. Wrap them in a clean towel or place them in a paper bag to sweat for 15 minutes. This “sweating” will make them easier to peel. Remove the stems, seeds, and blackened skin from the chiles and place them in a blender.

These chiles are properly roasted!

To the blender add the onion, garlic, epazote, salt, and stock or water. Blend until everything is well liquefied and well combined.

In a medium sauce pan over medium high heat, warm the oil. When hot, add the rice. Fry for about 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly until the rice grains go from translucent to opaque and give off a nutty aroma (Brown rice will pop a little like popcorn!).

This rice is fried and ready for the liquid.

Add the liquid mixture all at once. It will spit and bubble furiously for about 5 seconds then calm down. Be careful. Add the mixed vegetables. Stir everything together.

Bring the rice to a boil, then cover and turn the heat down to low. Simmer the rice for about 20 minutes (If you are using brown rice, it will take about 50 minutes for the rice to cook completely.). Remove the lid, fluff the rice, scraping the bottom, and then put the lid back on and let it rest for about 10 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

For Arroz Rojo

3 roma tomatoes

¼ inch thick slice of white onion

1 clove garlic with the peel still on

1 teaspoon salt

Roast the tomatoes, onion and garlic clove on a grill, in a broiler, or a griddle on the stove. The tomatoes should be evenly blackened and the onion and garlic cooked until slightly blackened and soft. Peel the skin off the tomatoes and the garlic clove. Place in a blender with two cups of water or stock and follow the above instructions for Arroz Verde.

For Arroz Blanco

¼ inch thick slice of white onion

1 clove of garlic

1 teaspoon salt

3 whole, Serrano chiles

1 sprig epazote

Blend the onion, garlic, and salt with two cups of stock (stock in place of water is more important with white rice for flavor). Follow instructions for Arroz Verde. At the moment when you add the mixed veggies, add the sprig of epazote and the whole chiles.

Recipe: Pasta al ajillo con champiñones

Here in Puebla, it's pretty common to see pasta al ajillo in restaurants, often with an option to add shrimp. I've never seen it with mushrooms though, and one day, Maru and I thought it would be good, and we were right!

This is one of those everyday dishes that will be done in less than 30 minutes. The biggest time sucker is waiting for the water to boil, and you'll most likely finish making the "sauce" before the pasta is done, so you'll have time to throw a salad together if you want.

The name of the dish comes from the guajillo chile, which is a medium-hot dry, smooth-skinned chile. Any dry chile with smooth skin will work (chile de arbol, costeño, cascabel), although many are quite a bit hotter than the guajillo.

This mixture could also be a good base for a stir fry or for a nice piece of fish. This recipe will serve 2 as a main course or 4 as a side dish. It is easily doubled.

Pasta al ajillo con champiñones (Guajillo pasta with mushrooms)

½ lb. dry pasta (spaghetti works well)

3 Tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced (it’s a high garlic to pasta ratio on purpose)

1-2 guajillo chiles, sliced in ¼ inch pieces, seeds removed

1 ½ cups sliced fresh mushrooms

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

Parmigiano cheese for garnish (optional)

Salt to taste (probably about a teaspoon in total)

Put salted water on to boil for the pasta. Cut up the garlic, chiles, and mushrooms. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and sautee for about 1 minute, then add the chiles. Cook, stirring constantly (you do not want burnt garlic!), until the chiles start to turn almost black (not burned, but starting to blacken), which should take about 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms with a dash of salt and cook until they are done, about 5 minutes.

Cook the pasta. Once the pasta is al dente, drain it, and add it to the pan with the mushroom mixture immediately. Stir everything together while keeping the pan over medium heat. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil and another dash of salt and stir until everything is evenly incorporated. Turn off the heat, then mix in the parsely.

Plate and top with grated parmigiano. Enjoy! The chile pieces are totally edible if you have a taste for them, and big enough to avoid if you don’t.

A note on spiciness:

As far as spiciness goes, this dish is probably “medium” or so. For most people, it will have a nice kick, but nothing that can’t be quenched with a cool drink. If you want it hotter, just add more chiles, or leave the seeds in. Obviously, you can add fewer chiles too, but another option would be to leave the chiles whole, sautee them with the garlic, then remove them before cooking the mushrooms. They will infuse the oil with some of their flavor, but very little spiciness. I would only recommend that route if you have almost 0 tolerance for spicy food. The flavor of the chiles is a really important part of this simple dish.

Recipe: Savory Mango Soup

Had a tough time with this pic. It looked even better in real life!

I know it's been a while, so I am going to reward your patience with an original recipe. How about that? Enjoy!

Ok, I am sure that someone somewhere makes something like this soup, but I have honestly never had it or heard of it. I am going to consider it a personal creation for now. I was literally struck by inspiration one day, and the final product was so delicious, I made it again and am now sharing the recipe with you. As far as soups go, this one is really easy and doesn´t take long to make (as little as 45 minutes if you don´t simmer it too long). Prep time is super fast, probably 5-10 minutes depending on how fast you work a knife. You´ll need a blender (stick blender is convenient but an upright blender works too) and a mesh strainer. We have a big one that cost $2, and it´s perfect for soups.

If you are averse to mango because of it´s texture (like Maru), don’t worry! This soup will leave you with nothing but the delicious tart, tangy, and slightly sweet flavor of a ripening mango. It also feels great on the throat. I think it would be really nice for someone with a sore throat.

While the soup isn’t hard to make, the color is gorgeous, and it could easily be part of an elegant dinner. It´s pretty light, which makes it good to accompany other light, summer fare like veggie dishes, fish, or chicken. But that’s all just suggestion. Do what you will!

Also, I haven´t tried it yet, but I bet this same recipe would work well with tart peaches. I’ll have to try that and get back to you.

About mangoes

These are the mangoes you want. Mangoes are all over the place in the markets in Mexico right now. The big red, yellow, and green ones are the best for this recipe in my opinion. They are tarter than the little yellow mangos, which makes them great for savory dishes. Plus, for those of you in colder climes (I´m looking at you Michigan people), they are much easier to find. You want to use them for soup when they are still pretty hard, not exactly green, but not exactly ripe and sweet. The fruit should yield slightly when you squeeze it. Here is a really easy way to clean any mango whether you want to use it for a recipe like this or just eat it: 1. Rinse the fruit under cold water. 2. Stand it up on its end and with a sharp knife, cut just along the large pit (about a ¼ inch off center). Repeat for the other side. Your knife should scrape along the pit as you go so that you get as much fruit off as possible. 3. Using a spoon, scoop the fruit out of its peel in one, large piece. 4. Chop or slice as desired. 5. Remove the peel from around the pit. Cut off any excess fruit or just nibble on it (be ready to floss afterwards!) Savory Mango Soup 1 Tablespoon veggie oil 1 small onion, chopped 1 carrot, chopped 2-3 cloves garlic, minced 1 Tablespoon ginger, minced 1 roma tomato, chopped 2 large mangos, cleaned and chopped. Reserve the pits. (Best if not quite ripe. See instructions above.) 2 dried chiles de arbol whole, with seeds removed (Any other smooth skin dried chile will work too. You can skip the chile, but it adds a really nice flavor, and if you remove it before blending, you probably won´t even notice the spice.) ½ inch piece of cinnamon, whole 6-8 cups veggie stock, heated (calculate about 1 ½ cups of stock per serving) 1 avocado, chopped ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley Salt and pepper to taste Heat the oil in a large pot over medium eat. Add the onion and carrot with a sprinkle of salt. Sautee until the vegetables are beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and sautee until very fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the tomato and cook for another 5 minutes. (If you have a little white wine on hand, this would be a good time to throw in a ¼ cup or so. Cook until the liquid is almost completely evaporated.) Add the chiles, cinnamon, and mango. Add another pinch of salt. Stir and cook for about a minute, then pour in the stock. Add the pits to the pot (without the peels!). As they simmer, that extra fruit and juice clinging to them will add its flavor to the soup. Bring the soup to a boil then lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for at least 20 minutes, preferably about 40 so that the flavors can come together. Remove the mango pits and the cinnamon stick. If you are concerned about your soup being too spicy, you can also take out the chiles. If you want it to have a little kick, leave them in there. Using a stick blender or in a regular blender in batches, puree the soup. Taste and adjust seasonings. Pour the soup through a medium mesh strainer. This filtering will remove a fair amount of roughage and leave you with a wonderfully silky soup. Adjust the seasonings on the strained soup one last time, and get ready to serve! To serve, divide the chopped avocado among six soup bowls. Ladle in the soup, then sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve immediately.

Recipe: Mexican Beans

Frijoles negros

Beans, beans the magical fruit. Many people have written about the health benefits of this near perfect food (fiber, protein, iron, oh my!), so I won´t go into it. Needless to say, you should eat beans! And not out of the can. It is so easy to make your own. With a pressure cooker, you don´t even really need to plan, no soaking or anything. And you need very few ingredients. If you have dried beans in your pantry, you always have a delicious and nutritious meal on hand, and they´re cheap! Probably the biggest bang for your buck in terms of nutrition and filling you up.

You will have to make them a few times in order to perfect the texture but that doesn´t mean your beans won´t be tasty, they just won´t be perfect J (I´m pretty sure that takes a while. I´m still working on it).

Here in Mexico, they say a house is not a home if there are no beans. In Puebla, black beans are the most common (and they are often referred to as frijoles Michigan!), but if you go to the market, you´ll be dazed by the different colors and sizes.

This recipe is of my own creation, incorporating some tips that Maru´s grandmothers have given me as well as some tricks we´ve developed on our own. One classic mistake you do not want to make is over-seasoning. Notice that besides the beans, even if you add in all the optional ingredients, it´s just onions, chile, epazote, and salt. No garlic, no cumin, no pepper, nothing. And if you just want to use onions and salt, your beans will be yummy. The things are bursting with flavor all on their own.

Also, if you are concerned about gas from beans, you can always use Bean-o, but in reality, if beans and other legumes (like lentils) are a regular part of your diet, you won´t notice any discomfort or excess gas, because your body will be used to processing them. So don´t worry about taking them to work for lunch!

Basic Beans (vegan depending on fat or stock used)

2 cups dried beans (black, pinto, whatever your preference)

1 medium white onion, halved

1 sprig fresh epazote (optional)

4-6 cups water

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil (lard is good here too)

1-2 whole dried chiles (optional. Remove the stem and seeds. Pasilla, guajillo or chile de arbol are good.)

Salt to taste

1-2 cups chicken, veggie, or pork stock (optional)

First, you need to get those dried beans cooked. There are a few different ways to do this; in a pot on the stove for hours, in a crockpot, or in a pressure cooker. The latter, obviously, is the fastest way, and in my opinion, gives the best result. Our pressure cooker was left behind in the States, so we´ve been using the crockpot, which works, but the texture of the beans isn´t quite as good. If you are going to just do them in a pot, you will want to soak the beans overnight. For all three versions, rinse the beans well, place them in your pot of choice, cover with enough water or stock for the beans to triple in volume, put the onion and epazote (if using) in the water and cook. Don´t salt the beans for this first step as it may make them tough.

On the stove in a regular pot, covered: Bring to a roiling boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. The beans will take anywhere between 2-4 hours to cook, depending on how fresh they were to begin with.

In a crockpot: Cook them on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-10 hours. This is a good way to do them overnight.

In a pressure cooker: Cook them under pressure for 35-45 minutes.

However you first cook your beans, you can taste them to see if they are done. Also, when you spoon out a couple and blow on them, the skin should split. Perfectly cooked beans should be soft but not mushy.

To finish the beans after they are cooked, thinly slice the other half of the onion. Heat the oil over medium heat in another pot large enough to hold the beans with water (a cazuela is perfect for this). Sautee the onions until they are beginning to soften and brown, about 5-7 minutes. If you want to use chiles, now is also the time to add them. Add about half a teaspoon of salt to the chiles and onion. Continue cooking and stirring as the onions brown (if a couple blacken, that´s ok. This is a dish where that is a nice flavor.). The chile will become very fragrant and blacken just slightly.

Here is the secret to a delicious finished bean broth. As your onions sautee (or before you start cooking them if you prefer to avoid multitasking in the kitchen), remove the other onion half and the epazote from the cooked beans. Remove the epazote leaves from the woody stem and discard the stem. Place the onion and the leaves in a blender with about a cup of the bean water and a half teaspoon of salt. Blend until smooth then add the mixture back to the beans. (Note: I have also been known to cook a dried chile with the beans and blend it up too. It´s nice and makes the final broth spicy.)

Once your sautéed onions and chile are ready, dump the beans and their water into the pot and stir to combine. Add another half teaspoon of salt and if you wish, now is a good time to add some stock. On its own, the bean broth will have a lot of flavor, but you can make it even richer with a nice homemade stock. It also depends on how watery you want them. Some people like a lot of broth. You need to have enough liquid for them to be covered, but beyond that, it´s your preference. Simmer this final mixture for at least 10 minutes and up to 30. The flavors will develop nicely. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Your beans are now ready to be enjoyed as is, as a side, for enfrijoladas, or however you like them. The beans are best the first and second day, but are good in your fridge for up to a week. Once they´ve been refrigerated for a few days, then you can consider making refried beans. Refried beans are supposed to be made with older cooked beans. It´s a way to bring them back to life.

Refried beans: Heat 1-2 tablespoons of veggie oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Sautee a little onion (depends on how many beans you have left, you don´t want it to be too oniony) and a fresh, diced chile (jalapeño or Serrano). Add the beans to the pan with just some of their broth. Cook until hot, then start mashing them with a potato masher. Add more of the broth as they soak up the juice and until you get the consistency you want (again, personal preference dictates how liquidy you want your refried beans). Salt to taste, and you´re done. Takes about 10 or 15 minutes to make refried beans. Now they´ll be good in your fridge for another 3 or 4 days.

Go forth and make beans! Seriously.

Recipe: Salsa Verde

It´s time for some Mexican basics. This week and next, I want to share some simple, everyday Mexican recipes so that anyone who wants can start getting to know this wonderful and versatile cuisine for what it really is (hint: it´s a lot more than just tacos and burritos, and there´s not really any ground beef involved.) So here comes basic recipe #1, one of Maru´s favorites: Salsa Verde.

Go to any restaurant in this part of Mexico and you´ll usually get two little bowls of salsa, one green, one red. Depending on the establishment, the specifics of the salsa (the chiles used, roasted or not, etc.) will vary, but those are the colors. The green is made with a base of tomatillos, which look like little green tomatoes in a husk. Over the past few years, they have become readily available all over the US. I think even Glen´s in Grayling has them.

The recipe here is for a basic and versatile green salsa. It can be used just to dip, for enchiladas, chilaquiles, or whatever else you can think of. There is almost no chopping, and from start to finish, it will be done in about 20 minutes, super easy. It is great when it´s fresh, but making it a day ahead is also not a problem.

For a more rustic version, you can skip the blender or food processor and use a molcajete or large mortar and pestle to smash everything together.

Salsa Verde (makes about ½ liter of salsa, easily doubled) Vegan

1lb tomatillos (or ½ kilo)

¼ of a medium white onion

1-2 cloves of garlic still in their paper

1-3 serrano chiles (If you are worried about spiciness, you can also use a jalapeño, which is a little milder. This salsa is supposed to be on the spicier side, but make it how you want it!)

2/3 cup, chopped, loosely packed cilantro (including tender stems)

½ teaspoon salt or to taste

First, remove the papery husks from the tomatillos and rinse off the sticky coating they have.

There are two basic ways to begin this sauce, both are tasty, but the flavors will be different. The more traditional way is to place the tomatillos and chiles in a pot of water, bring them to a boil, and cook them for 3-5 minutes, until the tomatillos are soft. The onion and garlic should be roasted. Place them in a dry, non-stick pan over medium-high heat or on a regular pan coated with tin foil. Turn them so they roast and brown evenly.

The second way is to grill or broil the tomatillos, chiles, onion, and garlic. Whether on the grill or in the broiler, you want everything to blacken evenly. This method will give the sauce a smokier, deeper flavor. It´s my favorite version of the two.

However you cooked the tomatillos and chiles, now you just need to blend! If you want a milder salsa, remove the seeds from your chiles. Remove the garlic from it´s paper. If you grilled the tomatillos, you do not have to peel the blackened skin off. It´s a big part of the flavor. Place all the cooked veggies in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add the salt and the cilantro and blend until everything is incorporated. Be careful of the blender top popping off if the salsa is hot!

Taste your salsa to see if it needs more cilantro or more salt. Remember that while the temperature of the salsa is hot, it will taste spicier. Once it cools down, the spiciness will mellow out. Sometimes, depending on the tomatillos, the finished product will be a little too acidic. You can add a teaspoon or two of sugar to offset the acid. Again, it will mellow with a little time.

The salsa is best used right away, but it will still be good in your fridge for about a week. Don´t worry if it is kind of like jelly after a day or two in the fridge. That´s just the tomatillos setting up. Once you reheat the salsa (in the microwave or on the stove), it will be back to a smooth consistency.

Enjoy! More recipes using this one to come soon...

Recipe: Tabbouleh and Hummus (with homemade tahini)

Throughout the course of the usual What should we do for dinner? discussion, Maru suddenly said, “I want some nice, light Mediterranean food.” Sounded good to me, so we picked up the extra ingredients we needed and headed home. High quality Lebanese food is sorely lacking in Puebla (oddly enough since there is a history of Lebanese people living here) and something we both miss about southeast Michigan, but the basic hummus and tabbouleh is so easy that we had no excuse not to do it. In the past, I have followed recipes for both of these simple dishes. I think that if you know what flavors you want and the essential parts of each one, you can definitely wing it, which is what I ended up doing this time. Here is my estimation of what went into a delicious final product. Adjust at your leisure!



Tabbouleh (this fresh salad normally has bulgur wheat to add some texture and protein. I didn´t have any so just skipped it.) VEGAN

• 2 bunches of fresh, flat-leaf parsley, cleaned and chopped (I used about half of the stem finely chopped also. It´s good roughage.)


• 2 tablespoons chopped, fresh mint.


• 2-3 diced roma tomatoes.


• 2-3 T freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice (lemon is more traditional, but limes are what I had).


• Salt to taste.


• A dash of extra virgin olive oil.

Toss together the parsley, mint and tomatoes. In a small dish, dissolve the salt in the lime juice, then toss into the salad. Top with just a touch of good extra virgin olive oil. It tastes best if you let it sit for an hour or so.

If you have bulgur wheat, definitely add it (it needs to soak for a while in hot water I think). Also, I prefer my tabbouleh with just a little bit of tomato, while some versions have a lot or even add a little raw onion.

This salad is good by itself as a side or mixed with hummus on some good flatbread. I was at a house once where my friend´s aunt of Lebanese descent actually served the tabbouleh on lettuce leaves instead of bread. Makes a light dish even lighter and perfect for a snack on a hot day.



Hummus VEGAN

• 250 grams (about 1.5 cups or 1 can) cooked garbanzos. If you cook your own from fresh or dried, the final product will be significantly better. If you use canned, be sure to drain off the water and rinse them.


• 1 ½ T tahini
  
  
  
  • I did not have access to store-bought tahini, but man, this sesame paste is too easy to make on your own and way cheaper that way. Just put 3-4 tablespoons of toasted sesame seeds into a spice grinder and pulse them until they are ground into a dry paste. Then add a pinch of salt and olive or sesame oil and stir with a fork until it forms a nice thick paste the consistency of molasses. Poof! Tahini!


• 3-4 cloves garlic. I roasted mine on a griddle.


• ¼ of an onion, roasted.


• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil.


• 2-3 T lime or lemon juice (again, lemon is more traditional) or to taste.


• Up to ½ cup of water.


• Salt to taste (it needs a fair amount, probably 1.5 t)

In a blender, food processor or bowl to be used with a stick blender (that´s how I did it), place the garbanzos, tahini, garlic, onion, half of the oil, a couple pinches of salt, and the lime juice. Begin blending, adding just enough water to make the mixture workable. It should look about like lumpy mashed potatoes at first. Add the rest of the oil and continue blending. At this point, add water and blend until the hummus reaches your desired consistency. Some people like it chunky and thick, others smooth and creamy, and others somewhere in the middle. I tend to like smooth and creamy, so I added about half a cup of water in total and thoroughly blended it. As far as salting goes, it helps to dissolve it in the water you add to make sure that the mixture is evenly seasoned. Taste and adjust as needed (maybe you like more lime juice!).


Maru and I thoroughly enjoyed our afternoon repast with a strawberry lassi (fresh or frozen strawberries blended with plain yogurt) and some whole wheat tortillas we had purchased.