avocado tacos (and some awesome salsa.)

Last week I discovered one of my favorite farms finally set up shop on Thursdays across the street from my office.

Upon discovering this, I practically wept.

I manage to encounter a farmer's markets at least 5 of the 7 days a week and usually these markets have everything I could possibly need depending on the season we are in.  But most lack the "rare" produce - concord grapes, sugar pumpkins, and tomatillos.  These are the items that I love getting my hands on at least once a season. These are the kind of ingredients that makes cooking fun and interesting.

When I stumbled across the tomatillos last week, I knew fresh salsa was in order.  It also happened to coincide with the discovery of the most epic-ly simple recipe from the NYTimes.  This recipe is the kind of thing I want to eat when I am exhausted and have minimal energy to cook anything.  Avocado wrapped in corn tortillas with homemade salsa? Yes, yes, and more yes.  The salsa is both robust and mild.  It plays well with neutral flavors but manages to add an extra dimension of smokiness that you can never get from store bought salsa. Eating simple has never tasted so good.

Avocado Tacos 
Recipe adapted (barely) from the NYTimes

You will have A LOT of salsa left which if you ask me it's a good thing.  I am already planning on spooning in on baked sweet potatoes and pouring it over bean and cheese enchiladas.  It would be killer on a breakfast taco as well.

Serves 3 - 4 depending on your level of hunger

4 pasilla chiles

½ teaspoon coarse sea salt

2 garlic cloves

10 tomatillos, boiled in salted water for 15 minutes or until soft

Juice of half a lime

3 avocados, sliced thin

12 corn tortillas

½ cup chopped cilantro

Optional toppings: Crumbled queso, sliced radish, black beans, lime juice

Make the salsa: Snap the stems off the chiles and remove the seeds. Using tongs, carefully hold the chiles over a medium flame to char on all sides. Transfer chiles to a food processor, add the salt and process into a powder. Add the garlic and tomatillos and purée until smooth.  Add lime juice.  Taste.  Add additional salt if necessary. (This makes 1 pint salsa, more than needed; refrigerate the rest in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.)

To serve, place 3 or 4 slices of avocado on each tortilla and top with salsa, cilantro, and any additional toppings of your choice.

jalapeno flour tortillas.

Do you know how many ridiculous ingredients are in flour tortillas from the supermarket?  A lot. I know this because I have a slightly absurd obsession with reading labels in order to better understand some of the ingredients that get added to the simplest of foods.  Out of principle, I don't buy bread that contains 2 inches worth of ingredients.  If I want bread I bake it or I buy it from the awesome French bread shop down the street from my apartment (hi Choc-o-pain!) or I buy Bread Alone bread since they don't add all of that extra junk.  

For a while I struggled with what to do about flour tortillas because there is a certain level of convenience associated with tortillas from the supermarket.  But after another week of wondering why I needed to eat something with azodicarbonamide in it (which is apparently a dough conditioner according to Google and is also used to make yoga mats YUM), I decided to finally tackle the flour tortilla at home and after doing so, I wondered why I waited so long.  These homemade tortillas ate the tenderest version I have ever encountered and FAR superior to anything you can purchase in the stores. They are oh so fluffy and perfect for everything from bean and cheese quesadillas to steak fajitas.  Once you make them once, you'll find yourself looking for things to stuff in them.  

Jalapeno Flour Tortillas 

Recipe adapted (barely) from the Homesick Texan

The original recipe called for roasting a chile and while I normally would have done that, it was cold and I didn't feel like visiting the supermarket for the 10th time that weekend so I added some diced jalapenos and that worked beautifully, just pat them dry before adding them to the dough. The jalapenos can be omitted if you so desire but they make an excellent addition especially if you are using the tortillas for breakfast burritos.  

¼ cup pickled jalapenos, diced small
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
3/4 cup warm water

To make the tortillas, in a medium bowl stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt until well combined. Stir in the diced jalapeno until well distributed. Pour in the oil and warm water, and stir until a soft dough is formed (if it feels too wet, you can a more flour, a tablespoon at a time.) Cover the dough and let it rest for 1 hour. 

After an hour, divide the dough into 8 balls. Lightly flour a clean surface and one at a time place a dough ball on the floured surface, pat it out into a 4-inch circle, and then roll with a rolling pin from the center until it’s thin and about 8 inches in diameter. If the jalapeno fall out of the dough as you roll, pick them up and then lightly press them in the center of the tortilla, flip the tortilla, and then continue rolling. 

Keep the rolled-out tortillas covered until ready to cook. 


In a dry cast-iron skillet heated on medium high, cook for 30 seconds on one side, flip it and then cook for 1 minute on the other side. It should start to puff a bit. Flip it again and cook for 30 seconds more. Place cooked tortillas in a basket lined with cloth. Repeat process for remaining balls of dough. 

These will keep refrigerated for 1 week. 

coconut-lime pork tacos with black beans.

Right now, New York is in the midst of a blizzard named Janus (really who names these things?) which is leaving commuters to battle against sideways snow, great gusts of wind, and slush filled sidewalks.  I made it home (my toes are still frozen but I have high hopes feeling will return to them by the time I finish catching up on Girls) but not before thinking a great deal about moving to the west coast (California I still love you).  I will not do such a thing the number one reason being that fall in New York steals my heart, but don't think I haven't thought a great deal about it.   

While I can't experience sunshine beating down on my face anytime soon (I think April will be the earliest that will happen and even still that's a far ways away), I can shove tacos into my face, sit it front of a portable heater, and drink tequila which is almost as good as actual sunshine (once you're drunk everything is great).  

These tacos are a great winter dish for when you find your insides aching for summer (or at least some warmth). Nothing screams the tropics like ground pork combined with coconut! lime! pineapple! avocado! (I've become an avocado addict).  The spices add the necessary heat and warmth which is something I crave immensely this time of year.  Serve it lots of hot sauce and some tequila and lime and you basically have the beginnings of a really awesome winter party.  

Coconut-Lime Pork Tacos with Black Beans 

Recipe adapted from Food 52

When I initially read this recipe I thought the dish would bring together the world of Thai food and Mexican food onto a flour tortilla and it kind of does that but in a much subtler way then how you would imagine.  The coconut milk provides the subtlest level of sweetness but more importantly keeps the pork moist which in my mind is the most important thing. Being the spice obsessed person that I am, I upped the amount of spices in this dish to cater to my own tastes and flavor preferences.  I think for an entire pound of pork you can use the extra punch of flavors but adjust according to your own tastes.  

Serves 4 to 6

1 pound ground pork

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 ½ teaspoons oregano

1 teaspoon paprika

1 ½ teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika

Cayenne pepper, to taste

2/3 cups coconut milk, stirred (full-fat recommended)

3 tablespoons pineapple juice

2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice, from about 1 lime

2 cups or one 15 ounce can cooked black beans, drained and rinsed

Corn or flour tortillas, for serving

1 large avocado, diced or sliced

Other recommended toppings: corn salsa, chopped cilantro, sour cream, shredded cheddar or Monterey jack cheese or cotija cheese, hot sauce 

In a large skillet, heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and a large pinch of salt and pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften, about 3 to 5 minutes. Push the onion and garlic to one side of the pan, and add the cumin, chili powder, paprika(s), oregano, and cayenne. Let sizzle in the pan until they’re toasted and fragrant, about 1 minute, then stir well until the onions and garlic are evenly coated with the spices.

Add the ground pork to the pan. Cook over medium-high heat, breaking up any large chunks of pork and stirring occasionally, until the pork is just cooked through. Season with salt to taste. Remove any excess fat from the pan.

Add the coconut milk; simmer for about 5 minutes until thickened, then stir in the black beans, pineapple juice and 1 tablespoon lime juice and cook for an additional minute or two. Taste and add more lime juice if needed. Adjust the seasoning to taste. You can serve right away, or cover the pan and let the pork gently simmer over low heat.

Using a slotted spoon, divide the ground pork equally among lightly warmed flour tortillas. Serve with lots of avocado and other toppings of your choice.

swordfish with chile pesto.

I was spoiled (like all New Yorkers) earlier this week when the sun shone bright and the air was warm and I could sit outside for 10 minutes during the middle of the work day to read a book and not need to wear a jacket.  And then psyke! The rains came and the clouds poured in and the temperature dropped so much that I needed to take that heavy black coat back out of the closet and throw it back on in order to leave the house without freezing to death.  (The weather is playing mean games with my head.)  Those few days of warmer weather convinced me that spring produce was coming.  That I was just a few short days away from seeing asparagus arrive and peas make an appearance and that soon all my meals would include freshly picked green produce.  This is a lie.  I still have a few more weeks and I am mad about this.  I am feeling duped and deceived but instead of spending the next few weeks sulking I figured I needed to look for new ways to find the taste of spring which is how I found myself consulting my file of Mexican recipes.  Some would consider Mexican food rather heavy but that is the more Americanized version of Mexican food.  Typical Mexican food is all about citrus and chiles and lean proteins.  Ingredients that pack a lot of punch and flavor.  This recipe for Swordfish with Chile Pesto is the perfect transition to spring dish.  It's light and easy (as the weather warms up cooking should become easier and quicker).  The pesto is smoky, spicy, and complex making it the perfect accompaniment to simple grilled swordfish and creamy avocado.  It's a new way to look at spring.  

Swordfish with Chile Pesto
Recipe via Tasting Table 

Serves 4 - 3 Tacos each (I also think you could slice the swordfish smaller and use 16 tortillas, up to you!)  

This makes a decent amount of pesto which is a good thing in my book.  I am envisioning using the leftovers to make a Mexican chicken salad or just using some as a condiment on a grilled chicken and avocado sandwich.  

Chile Pesto

Dried guajillo chiles, 5 (stems removed and seeds discarded)
Dried ancho chiles, 3 (stems removed and seeds discarded)
Water, 1½ cups (boiling)
Extra-virgin olive oil, ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon
Pumpkin seeds (pepitas), ½ cup
Limes, 3 (2 juiced and 1 sliced into wedges for serving)
Cilantro leaves, ¼ cup
Red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon
Garlic cloves, 3 (roughly chopped)Kosher salt, 1 teaspoon
Finely ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon

Swordfish

Swordfish, two 8-ounce steaks
Extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Corn tortillas, 12 (warmed for serving)
Avocado, 1 (halved, pitted and thinly sliced)

Make the pesto: In a medium bowl, add the Guajillo chiles, Ancho chiles, and boiling water. Cover the bowl with a sheet of plastic wrap and set aside for 15 minutes. Use the tongs to transfer the chiles to a paper towel-lined large plate. Reserve ½ cup of the chile water and discard the rest.

In a small skillet set over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil and the pumpkin seeds. Cook, using the wooden spoon to stir frequently, until the pumpkin seeds are golden brown and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer the pumpkin seeds to a blender or a food processor and add the reserved, softened guajillo and ancho chiles, ¼ cup of the chile water and the extra-virgin olive oil, lime juice, cilantro leaves, red pepper flakes, roughly chopped garlic, kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper.  Process until the pesto is smooth, adding more of the remaining ¼ cup of chile water if needed to thin and smooth the mixture. Use the rubber spatula to scrape the mixture into a medium bowl and set aside.

Make the swordfish: Season both sides of the swordfish steaks with extra-virgin olive oil, kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Place a grill pan over medium heat and add the swordfish. Cook until marked from the pan, about 2 minutes. Use a spatula to flip the swordfish steaks over, cooking the other side until the fish is cooked through, about 2 – 3 minutes more. Transfer to a cutting board and rest the swordfish for 5 minutes before slicing crosswise into 1-inch-thick pieces. Arrange the swordfish on the serving platter and serve with the chile pesto and the warmed corn tortillas, avocado slices, and lime wedges.             

chicken tomatillo soup.

I’ve been stuck on foods that make no sense given the weather we’ve been having and now I’ve allowed my cravings to take over the kitchen.  I have permitted myself to indulge in all illogical meals, which is how, on a perfect summer evening; I ended up making us tomatillo chicken soup for dinner.  I would like to say that we needed to clear out some of chicken from the freezer to make space (since someone insists on it) so making chicken broth was a logical thing to do.  If you’re going to make chicken broth it seems silly not to use some of the broth to make soup. I happened to have tomatillos in the fridge from the farmers market and a recipe for tomatillo soup so I felt that since all the components were in the house then I might as well go for it and I am glad I did.  The result was wonderful (and oh so quick!) and despite it being a soup, it still tasted summery.  We garnished our bowls with shredded Monterey Jack, dollops of Greek yogurt (I was out of sour cream), and a substantial sprinkling of cilantro. 

Chicken and Tomatillo Soup

Recipie Adopted from Cookstr

2 bone in and skin on chicken breasts

Salt

Pepper

3 tablespoons oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves finely chopped

1 pound fresh tomatillos, husk removed, coarsely chopped, or 2 cups drained canned tomatillos, coarsely chopped

2 jalapeno chilies, finely chopped

1 teaspoon cumin

4-5 cups chicken broth or water (I would highly recommend using at least some broth)

¼ cup finely chopped cilantro

Sour cream or Greek yogurt for garnish

Grated Monterey Jack or Cheddar

Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then brown it on both sides in the oil over high heat in a sauté pan or heavy duty stock pot (this saves dishes).  When the chicken is well browned, after about 8 minutes on the skin side and 10 minutes on the flesh side, take it out of the pan and lightly sauté the onion and garlic in the fat left in the pan.  (If the fat has burned, pour it out and add 2 tablespoons more).

Return the chicken to the pan along with the tomatillos, jalapenos, broth and cumin.  Cover the pan and simmer gently until the chicken is done – it will be firm to the touch – about 15 minutes. 

Take the pan off the heat, remove the chicken, and let it cool for 10 minutes.  Remove and discard the skin, pull off the chicken meat, and cut into bite size pieces and discard the bones.  Skim off any fat or froth that has floated to the top of the soup.

Pour the broth and tomatillo mixture into a blender (or use an immersion blender if you have one) and process until smooth.  Return the broth to the pot and add the chicken.  If soup is too thick add a little more broth or water.  Stir in cilantro.  Taste and season with salt and pepper if necessary.  Serve with sour cream or yogurt and grated cheese. 

roasted corn with cheese and lime.

This past weekend I was feeling exceptionally lazy which is very rare for me.  I usually spend my weekends working on cooking projects, reading my ever-growing stacks of fashion and food magazines, visiting food and farmers markets to load up on that weeks produce, and spending some (quality?) time at the gym.  I sometimes feel like the energizer bunny on the weekends – I only have two days to get everything done and I tend to go non-stop in an effort to accomplish everything.  At some point, I find myself exhausted, which is what happened this weekend.  I ended up spending the next 48 hours on the couch with the remote in one hand (watching the Olympics) and cookies in the other (I have become addicted to the Olympics it is bordering on an obsession). 

When Sunday night rolled around, I still had not even given a single thought to dinner (I keep thinking that maybe I was ill since I am always thinking about dinner!).  When 6:30 came and went, I knew it was time to do something.  I tore through the freezer in search of the empanadas I had stashed in there and decided the perfect companion for them would be a corn dish since I had several ears languishing in the fridge.  I roasted the ears of corn in the oven in their husks to give them a charred taste and then cut the corn off their cobs.  I then sautéed the corn and when it was cooked through mixed in some diced jalapeno, smoked paprika, chives, lime, and some Spanish cheese.  The result was delicious – it was a neater version of the Mexican corn on the cob I adore.  The flavors worked perfectly together and they all played off one another – the lime gave the perfect amount of acidity, the cheese made it creamy, and the jalapeno gave the dish a wonderful crunchy bite of heat.  The best part was dinner was done at eight so I had plenty more time for watching the Olympics.

Roasted Corn with Cheese and Lime

Recipe from Bon Appétit

Serves 6

6 ears of corn (they suggest yellow but I used bi-color), unhusked

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced

½ - ¾ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or hot smoked Spanish paprika

2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest

1 lime cut into 4 wedges (zest the lime before cutting!)

1 cup finely grated Manchego or Mahon or aged cheddar

¼ cup thinly sliced chives

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Roast unhusked corn on a baking sheet, turning occasionally, until heated through and crisp- tender, about 15 minutes.  Let cool.  Husk corn and cut kernels from cobs.  Discard cobs.

Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat.  Add corn kernels and sauté until heated through and light golden in spots, 3-5 minutes.  Add butter; stir until melted.  Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Transfer corn to a large wide bowl or deep platter; sprinkle jalapeno and red pepper flakes (or smoked paprika) over. Squeeze lime wedges over the dish; sprinkle with cheese, chives, and lime zest. 

tacos with carnitas and pineapple salsa.

The taco obsession continues - it has gone from a minor one to a major one.  By the time summer is over, I will probably have put just about every vegetable and meat I can think of on a blistered corn tortilla.  Maybe some people have issues with eating like that (maybe some people don’t know a good thing when they meet it), but until the idea of hand held meals make me run away screaming, I will continue to fold up everything I find into a tortilla. 

The latest version involves pork shoulder taking a little bath in citrus flavored water.  During the cooking process, it somehow transforms into amazingly tender, crispy, salty chunks of meat that falls apart with the most gentle of nudges.  We piled it high into homemade corn tortillas.  As fantastic as it was plain, we decided to add in sliced avocado and spoonfuls of pineapple salsa.  The avocado added a wonderful bit of creaminess and the salsa added the necessary sweet/spicy crunch.  The perfect side dish?  Watermelon cocktails loaded up with gin and lime.  I can’t imagine getting sick of eating like this.

Carnitas

Recipe from Smitten Kitchen and the Homesick Texan Cookbook

3 pounds boneless pork shoulder or pork butt cut into 2 inch pieces

½ cup orange juice

¼ cup lime juice

4 cloves of garlic peeled and crushed

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

Place the pork in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot.  Add the orange juice, lime juice, garlic, cumin, salt, and enough water to just barely cover the meat.  Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer.  Simmer uncovered for 2 hours.  Don’t touch the meat.

After two hours, increase the heat to medium-high and while occasionally stirring and turning the pieces, continue to cook for about 45 minutes, or until all the liquid has evaporated, leaving only the rendered pork fat.  Let it sizzle in this fat long enough to brown at the edges, turning pieces gently (they love to fall apart!), only as needed. When pork is brown on both sides, it’s ready!

Pineapple Salsa

2 cups pineapple, diced

1 jalapeno, seeded and diced

1 large radish (or 2 small radishes), diced

¼ cup cilantro, chopped finely

1 clove garlic minced

Juice of half a lime

Salt to taste

In a medium bowl, combine pineapple, jalepeno, radish, cilantro, garlic and lime juice.  Stir to combine.  Season with salt, to taste.  Let sit at room temperature for 15 min to allow flavors to meld.  Serve at room temperature or chilled. 

houston style green salsa.

There are certain dishes that scream warm weather to me – any meat on the BBQ, potato salad, ice cream sandwiches, lobster rolls, tomato and mozzarella on fresh foccacia, and BLT’s!  There are plenty of other dishes, but those dishes can carry me through the dog days of August when cooking shouldn’t be much work.  I don’t like working when it’s hot, I can’t imagine why anyone would.  It is far more fun to sit outside, drink beers, and eat your farmer’s market bounty.

Recently I discovered a love for all things Tex-Mex.  The love affair began when I purchased the Homesick Texan cookbook.  It’s filled with the stick to your ribs food you desire in the wintertime but it is also filled with the refreshing food you crave during the summer.  I have practically every page of the book marked with sticky notes.  Reading all of these recipes has made me dream about Tex-Mex food, in particular tacos.  My taco thoughts have become so overwhelming that I have regaled them as my new favorite warm weather dish. 

Actually, it’s not tacos that are my new favorite dish but rather the Green Salsa that I have been slathering on all tacos that is my new favorite dish.  Its bright and spicy and it goes with just about everything.  I’ve made chicken tacos and steak tacos and I imagine it would amazing with roasted vegetables as well.  It’s going to be a long summer of hand held dinners which sounds about perfect to me. 

Houston Style Green Salsa

Recipe from The Homesick Texan by Lisa Fain

3/4 pound small tomatillos, husks removed or one 11 oz. can of whole tomatillos, drained

1 avocado peeled and pitted

1 or 2 serrano chiles, stems and seeds removed, roughly chopped 

4 cloves garlic chopped

1 tablespoon lime juice

1/4 cup cilantro

salt, to taste

If using fresh tomatillos, on high heat, bring a pot of water to boiling and cook tomatillos until soft, about 5 minutes.  

Add the tomatillos to blender along with the avocado, serrano chiles, garlic, lime juice, and cilantro.  Blend until smooth and then add salt to taste.  

corn, leek, and spinach quesadillas

I am having a love affair with leeks.  I never thought much of them before, but in a farmers market buying frenzy a few weeks back I bought some and since then they have become a weekly staple.  Add in to a frittata with asparagus? Try Leeks!  Looking for a quick soup?  Try Leek and Potato! Making a pasta dish with spinach and goat cheese?  Why not add Leeks to the dish!  I have found myself adding leeks to pretty much everything – I love the sweet taste they get when sautéed in a bit of butter and olive oil – and using that technique I’ve created a foundation for a lot of different dishes.  The latest being spinach, leek, and corn quesadillas.

The corn came from our freezer stash (last summer Tyler and I had the genius idea of buying corn, cutting it off the cob and freezing it – some how we ended up with 3 dozen ears of frozen corn..I still don’t know how that happened or how it all fit), the spinach and leeks came from the farmers market, and the tortillas were leftover’s from a Mexican fiesta night.  The meal came together quickly and the beauty of it was that it was vegetarian and filling; creamy and yummy.  The kind of perfect meal for a rainy spring evening.

Corn, Leek, and Spinach Quesadillas
Serves 2 (and by 2 I mean this will make 3 quesadillas and if your boyfriend is like mine he will eat 2 and you will eat 1!).

1 Leek (white and light green parts only), cleaned and diced.
4 cups spinach, cleaned and chopped
¾ cup frozen corn
1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon heavy cream
Cheese of your choice (I love goat cheese and Monterey Jack but really anything works!)
6 tortillas
Salt and Pepper to Taste

In a large sauté pan heat the butter and oil on medium heat.  Add the leeks, stirring to combine with the butter and oil. Turn the heat down to low and let the leeks cook until softened, about 10 minutes. 

Add the spinach to the sauté pan, and stir to combine with the leeks, add the corn in as well, cooking the mixture for another 2 min until the spinach has wilted and the corn is heated through.  Add in the tablespoon of cream and stir to combine the mixture.  Salt and pepper to taste. 

Heat a second pan up with a bit of olive oil – while that is heating, assemble your quesadillas with your cheese of choice, the leek, corn, and spinach mixture, and more cheese.  Cook until golden brown on each side and melted through.