Cooking

I'm slowly going to get all the old information from my old website consolidated into my blogs so you'll see new things here and there. (I'm getting rid of the website.)
Enjoy.
Karen

Labels: consolidation

I actually had time to cook lunch for us both today. We came home from work together about 2 and didn't have to go back until early evening - I had a class in a local bank at 6 and Rafa had class at the Lenin branch at 6.30. So, I did a quick lazy meal - some pasta, some frozen veg mix, some pasta sauce and some cheese and hey presto, voilá - a very nice lunch.

Labels: cheese, main meal, pasta, veggie

It's very easy to make. Simmer the apples with a little sugar and cinnamon and hey presto. You can add tequila to taste, and any other fruit for that matter. A little lemon gives it a little kick; a little orange is pleasant; in Mexico you would add some tamarind.

OK, the temperature has risen and it's only just below freezing at the moment, so we didn't really need warming up but we had apples that were a little old so I thought it would be good. Then I had my evening class cancelled today so was able to make it for Rafa. Being that we are in Russia we had a little vodka in it and it was most pleasant. I actually learnt how to make this the first time I was "here" though "here" wasn't really "here" as it was the Soviet Union and I was in Latvia but that's another story.

Today I had comfort food for lunch - cheese, fried egg and beans on crispbread. Actually, rather than comfort food it was lazy food as it took about 3 mins to do and it was delicious!

My favourites! Great for the cinema or just to nibble. These are prepare them yourself nachos. You open the plastic box. Take out and open the plastic bag full of nacho chips. Put them back into the box. Cover with liquid cheese and bits and pieces. We love to have onion, tomato and chillies (jalapeño) plus ketchup. Hey presto. Enjoy!

For lunch yesterday I had "queso fundido" which is basically melted cheese. It's done in the oven (in a little clay dish, if possible) and eaten with corn tortillas, which are more popular in the north of the country (rather than the maize ones common here.) As far as I know you cook the additional ingredients until they are nearly done, then put it all in the oven. I used Edam cheese yesterday as I happened to have some but any cheese that melts will do. I believe Oaxaca cheese is normally used here.

You can try "queso fundido" with just cheese or a variety of ingredients - the most common being mushrooms, "rajas de chile poblano" (slices of poblano chilli) or chorizo (spicey sausage.) This one has nopalitos (cactus) and chipotle chilli.

Sunday is often snack time, especially when Mexico are playing football on the tv.

So what is there?

Nopalitos salad:
diced nopales (cactus) mixed together with diced onion, tomates, "juanes" (like a runner bean that grows like a carrot!!) and coriander. Bought like this at the market.
Chilli and feta cheese added by me.

Cream cheese - this is just Philadelphia plus chopped spring onions.

Refried beans - just straight out of the tin and heated up. (Bit of chilli and salt added.)

Egg Mayo - Typical English recipe this is, no frills attached. Mash up boiled eggs with mayo, adding salt and pepper to taste. (No pepper here as Rafa doesn't like it much.)

Guacamole - Typical Mexcian recipe this one. Very very easy to do too: Mash up avocadoes with diced tomatoes, tiny diced onion and Jalapeño chilli. Add salt and garlic powder to taste. YUM YUM.

We ate this first with warm fresh tortillas and then with "totopos" (like Doritos.)

OK, not quite today's side salad as it was from last week.
I bascially mixed together bits and pieces I had left over before going to the market at the weekend and hey presto! (Very tasty it was too. We had it with pasta.)
Ingredients:
sliced red bell pepper
a tin of peas, carrots and sweetcorn
goat cheese
dash of olive oil
salt, pepper and powdered garlic

Finally - my chilli guajillo soup. I hadn't made it since we moved back to Atlacomulco and Rafa was just dying for some (and so was I!) Right, how to make it. This actually takes longer than most of my cooking but it's well worth it.

Ingredients
chilli guajillo (bought dried)
red tomatoes
green tomatoes (about half the amount of the red)
onion - a couple of slices
garlic - one clove
oil
salt
panela cheese

1. Boil the chillies. You'll know they are ready as they go from dark red to a much lighter colour. (I use about 6 or 7. Take the pips out before you cook them.)
2. Fry the onion, garlic and chopped green tomatoes. When they are almost cooked at the chopped red tomatoes. Cover and simmer until cooked. (I use about 9 red tomatoes to about 6 green ones.)
3. Put the chillies and the tomato mixture in the blender and blend with a little water. (I use some of the water I boiled the chillies in.)
4.Heat a little oil in a saucepan.
5. Sieve the sauce mixture into the oil in the saucepan. Add salt and fry on a low heat until it's all mixed nicely. (It just takes a few minutes.)
6. Chop the Panela cheese into cubes. Add to the sauce.
7. Serve hot with chunky bread.

Rafa's favourite food - or at least one of them - ready to be served.
Another easy to make breakfast option. (Though we had this for tea last night.)
Slice some onion and lightly fry it.
Slice the cactus. Add it to the onion. Cover and continue to the cook.
You'll know the cactus is ready as it changes colour from a vibrant green to this one. (Most of the goo will have gone too.)
Add three eggs (to 3 cactus "leaves" approx.)
Mix well and continue to cook, now with the lid off.
Add salt.
Serve immediately with tortillas and beans.

This is a version of the one I learnt in Latvia - Taisia's Tasty Soup!
The original recipe she taught Renee and I is as follows:
Ingredients: potatoes, cabbage, carrots, onions, tomatoes, garlic, butter, salt and pepper, water
1. Wash and chop all the vegetables.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan.
3. Add vegetables and small amount of water with salt.
4. Boil gently (covered.)
5. When almost cooked add pepper and hot water, gently simmer to finish off.
6. Add more salt and pepper to taste as necessary.
Enjoy!

This version has no cabbage in it but it does have cauliflower.

OK, so I really must change the title to just cooking rather than Mexican cooking as this really isn't Mexican, is it?!!

Very easy to make.
Chop potatoes and cook them. I like to steam them but they can also be boiled.
When they are cool add peas and carrots. OK. This one has a tin of peas, carrots and sweetcorn.
Add mayonaise, salt and pepper.
Mix it all up.
Enjoy.