sour cream – Bitchin Camero

sour cream

September 29, 2008

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

mel entree, recipe, sides & bites bacon, cheddar, jalapeno, potato, soup, sour cream, spinach, yogurt

Crisp Gnocchi with Lemon & Garlic Greens

Hot on the heels of the homemade gnocchi post, diabetes and pregnancy here’s another method for cooking fresh gnocchi that will make those little potato pasta pillows even more delicious and addicting. Pan fry them until they’re crisp and brown. I would describe the taste as a cross between pasta and a french fry. MMM. There’s nothing better than that!

As with the last batch of gnocchi, I didn’t want to smother them in sauce. I wanted them to really shine. So, I sauteed some kale with basil, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and serrano peppers. The greens were spicy and garlicky and lemony and the perfect compliment to the crisp, starchy gnocchi.

I used a batch of frozen homemade gnocchi for this dish — it went straight from the freezer into the oiled pan and crisped up nicely. You can also use fresh and frozen gnocchi, but I would avoid the shrink-wrapped kind you find in the pasta aisle. You’ll lose all of the creamy potato-ness if you go that route.

This dish came together in under 20 minutes and is delicious and fancy enough for guests. Just make sure you make a whole bunch — people will be wanting seconds.

Shamless Plug: Head over to Kelly Spitzer’s Flavor a Deux to read her “Foodie Spotlight” all about yours truly. I had a great time working with her on this interview. Thanks Kelly!

August 27, 2008

spicy pozole with steak, avocado & lime

mel entree, recipe, sides & bites avocado, cilantro, corn, lime, pozole, soup, sour cream, steak, stew, vegetarian

spicy pozole with steak, <a href= drugstore avocado & lime” />

Wikipedia says that Pozole is a traditional Mexican stew made from hominy that’s been cooked with meat and seasonings and topped with garnishes, drugs such as avocado, cabbage, radishes and lime juice. It’s like a hearty, Mexican corn chowder. I actually spotted a recipe on Elise’s site awhile ago and knew I had to make it for Tom. He has an unnatural attachment to Mexican cuisine. Since I always lose them, I never printed out the recipe, but saw some dried pozole at the market and decided to wing it.

While you can use canned hominy, it has a much softer texture than the dried pozole kernels. You can get these online or at Hispanic markets, some grocery stores and Whole Foods. They’re like beans in that you have to soak them overnight, but their texture is much meatier and provides a nice chewiness to the dish.

They soak overnight and then stewed with dried chile de arbol and ancho peppers, making a nice, spicy broth. Just add a bit of cream to thicken it up, then top with your favorite garnishes. I used what I had on hand — avocado, red onion, thinly sliced skirt steak (leftovers!), sour cream, lime juice and cilantro. The garnishes are really the fun part. You can set them all up on the kitchen counter and have everyone assemble their own pozole the way they like it. It’s kind of like taco night with a spoon.

And it was delicious with all of the different textures and flavor contrasts. I think someone will be begging me to make it again quite soon.