Tostones (or Patacones)

TOSTONES

2-3 large, ripe plantains
Oil, for frying
Salt

Peel the plantains by using a knife to cut a slit in the side and working peel off using a spoon.  If you haven't used plantains before, they don't peel as easily as bananas so don't worry if it takes a little effort to get the peel off.  Slice into 3/4-inch disks on a slight angle.

Pour enough oil into a large saucepan to cover the bottom of the pan and heat over medium-high heat until oil begins to shimmer.  Once the oil is ready, use tongs to set the plantain slices into the oil and lightly fry on both sides, turning when each side becomes golden.  Don't overcook them here because they will be fried for a second time.  Once the plantains are golden on both sides, remove to a plate and smash them, one at a time using the flat bottom of a glass or another plate.  If you cut the plantains too thick to begin with, they might just crumble, but if done right, they should just smoosh and flatten out a bit.

Check the temperature of your oil - you might want to turn it to low while smashing the plaintains and then bring it back up to medium-high before frying again.  Return the smashed plantains to the hot oil and fry them for a second time, turning once each side turns a darker golden color.

Remove from oil and set on paper towels.  Sprinkle with salt (I prefer the flaky kind for these).  Serve immediately with guacamole for dipping or use in place of tortillas or tortilla chips with carnitas, pico de gallo, and guac.

Sauteed Mushrooms, Onions, Green Beans, and Broccoli

This side dish comes together super fast and is super delicious with red meat especially (because steak and mushrooms equal amazing).  I tend to buy mushrooms on impulse because they sound good with no additional plan for what to do with them and this is what I concocted when I was looking for a different way to serve vegetables that was Whole30 compliant.  When I do Whole30, I prefer to eat in a way that if guests were over they would have no idea that the entire meal was dairy, gluten, sugar, soy, and legume free because the flavors, mouthfeel, and satisfaction-level of the dishes carry the day and this method of serving vegetables is on point because they are so far from bland, plain steamed veggies or a boring salad.

You can change up what you put in this and substitute asparagus, bok choy, or bell peppers if that is what you have on hand and you are trying to clean out your vegetable drawer in your refrigerator.  I was happy to have a little bowl of leftovers in the fridge the next morning because I just chopped the sauteed vegetables up a little more then scrambled them up with a couple of eggs and had a deliciously savory and sublimely easy breakfast (that was also Whole30 compliant).

SAUTEED MUSHROOMS, ONIONS, GREEN BEANS, AND BROCCOLI

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped into bite-size pieces
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups mushrooms, sliced (I like the baby bellas but you could use whatever mushrooms are on hand)
1 cup green beans, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup broccoli, cut into bite-size pieces
Salt, to taste

In a large pan, heat oil over medium heat, then add onion and saute for 5-7 minutes, or until onion softens.  Add garlic and cook 30 seconds, until fragrant.

Add remaining vegetables and season with salt, to taste.  Cook, stirring occasionally to ensure that the vegetables are all cooking evenly and not burning, until the mushrooms release their liquid and the beans and broccoli are bright green and tender-crisp.  Serve immediately.

Chipotle Chicken & Corn Chowder

At almost 5 years old, this is Clara's favorite soup.  Next week is her 5th birthday and she is turning into such a fun, sweet little lady with definite opinions that she is comfortable expressing.  As I was preparing this for dinner the first time, not knowing quite how it would turn out and whether it would be a hit or a miss, Clara ambled into the kitchen during her play, paused to inhale deeply, then exclaimed that it smelled amazing in there.  Then she climbed up on the counter and gushed over the "beautiful pattern" I had made with all the different chopped peppers, garlic, potatoes, beans and chicken and snitched bites of green bean and red bell pepper.  And when it came time to actually sit down and eat dinner, she raved over how it is the best thing I have ever made and she "love, love, love, love, LOVED" it.

She woke up the next morning talking about it even and saying she couldn't wait until it was time for lunch and she could eat that yummy soup again.  What a funny kid.

Incidentally, Paul and I had a miscommunication about this chowder because I was at a Relief Society midweek meeting when he got home and I had texted him that there was "chipotle chicken and corn chowder in the refrigerator" that he could heat up.  He thought that it was from the restaurant chain, Chipotle, rather than realizing it was actually an ingredient in a recipe.  I figured the pots and cutting boards in the sink would clue him in, but apparently he didn't recognize the mess as a sign of my hard work and thought I had just randomly picked up soup to-go, lol.

Chipotle Chicken & Corn Chowder

INGREDIENTS

1 can chipotle chilies in adobo sauce (really you only need 1 chili from the can and 1 teaspoon of the sauce - the rest you can freeze or use in Swiss Chard & Pinto Bean Burritos)
2 tablespooons butter
1 poblano pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups whole milk (when I don't have whole milk on hand, I will just use skim milk and add a little cream to it if I happen to have that in the fridge)
2 cups chicken stock
6-9 small red potatoes, peeled and diced small
1 cup green beans, chopped into small pieces
4 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
4 ounces Cheddar cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
2 cups diced, cooked chicken
2 (15-ounce) cans sweet corn, drain
1 (15-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 cup crushed tortilla chips
Juice from 1 lime (about 2 tablespoons)
Chopped cilantro, to garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Mince one chili from the can of chipotle chilies.  Remove 1 teaspoon of the adobo sauce and set aside to be used later.  The remaining chilies and sauce freeze well for future uses.

Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven or stock pot over medium heat.  Add the peppers, chili, and spices, and saute for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the peppers soften.  Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.

Stir in the flour with a wooden spoon and cook for 1 minute.  Slowly stir in the milk and brother, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan as you stir.

Add the potatoes and green beans, then bring the mixture to a bowl and reduce the heat to low.  Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and can be easily pierced with a knife.

Slowly add the shredded cheese, one handful at a time, stirring after each addition until the cheese is completely melted.  Then stir in the chicken, corn, chips, lime juice, and the reserved 1 teaspoon of adobo sauce.  Cover and cook an additional 10 minutes, or until the soup is completely heated through.  Serve immediately, garnishing with chopped cilantro.

Note:  Leftovers that have been refrigerated and reheated may need a little extra chicken stock to thin out the soup as it tends to thicken up in the refrigerator.

Recipe from Brown Eyed Baker (slightly adapted by me)

Roasted Green Bean, Chicken & Potatoes (One Pan)

When I had jaw surgery and members of the Relief Society were bringing in meals for my family, my visiting teacher Feleicia brought this dish in and Paul and the girls gobbled it up.  So once I could start eating regular food again, I found the recipe on Pinterest and made it myself and it was absolutely delicious and so, so easy.  Definitely a keeper for an easy weeknight meal.

Roasted Green Bean, Chicken & Potatoes

INGREDIENTS

12 ounces green beans
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 lb. small red potatoes, diced
1/4-1/2 cup butter (I made this according to the original 1/2 cup instructions but felt like the amount of butter could have easily been cut in half)
1 small envelope Zesty Italian dressing seasoning
Salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a 9x13-inch baking dish, arrange green beans, chicken and potatoes in 3 vertical rows, side by side.  Cut the butter into thin slices and arrange evenly around the pan on top of the green beans, chicken and potatoes.  Sprinkle the Italian dressing packet evenly over everything and then salt and pepper the dish to taste.

Bake uncovered for 1 hour, until the chicken is no longer pink and the potatoes are soft.  If the green beans start looking overdone around the 45 minute mark, place foil over the pan for the remainder of the cooking time.

Source: High Heels & Grills (although I saw this pinned to other sites online and have no idea where the original version came from - my guess is this is one of those dishes that has been around for years and nobody knows who created it)

Best Big, Fat, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Paul has always raved about my chocolate chip cookies.  And then our friend Tiffany brought over a plate of chocolate chip cookies one Sunday evening and Paul betrayed me by declaring her cookies to be superior.  So naturally I had to ask her for her recipe and she kindly shared.  So these are Paul's favorite chocolate chip cookies.  They have greater proportions of brown sugar, a difference of an egg yolk instead of an entire egg, and more vanilla than the recipe I have always made and it gives them just the right texture of super soft inside with a slightly crispy exterior.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup butter, melted

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 egg

1 egg yolk

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (or 1/2 semisweet, 1/2 milk chocolate)

DIRECTIONS

Mix butter and sugars until well blended.  Add egg, additional yolk, and vanilla and mix until light and creamy.  Add dry ingredients until just blended.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Drop by 1/4 cup at a time on cookie sheet.  Bake at 325 degrees for 14 minutes.

Source: Tiffany Ball by way of allrecipes.com

Raspberry Dessert

There are few things in life that taste like "summer" to me more than raspberry dessert.  It's not much of a name, really, but it's what has stuck in my family for decades.  And as far as I can tell, this dessert pretty much only exists within my family.  It's more famous cousin, the raspberry jello pretzel salad, is chunkier and has that salty-sweet, cream cheesy thing going on.  But this fresh, bright, summery concoction is just sweet, soft Nilla wafer crumbs on the bottom, a creamy drizzle on top of that, followed by fresh, whole raspberries in jello, sweetened whipped cream, and a few more Nilla wafer crumbs and raspberries on top for garnish.  

Paul didn't ask me to marry him because of this dessert, but only because we started dating at the end of summer and were already married before raspberry dessert season came around.  It's what he has requested almost every year in place of birthday cake, which is saying a lot for someone like Paul who would typically go for a chocolate cake any day of the week.  Unless raspberry dessert is in play.  Then it's a fight to the finish to see who gets the last bite.  

Word to the wise though:  don't use birthday candles with this.   We learned from experience that the Nilla wafer crumbs on top go flying everywhere when the candles are blown out.

RASPBERRY DESSERT

Makes 1 square 8"x8" pan but we usually double it if it is for more than just the two of us

INGREDIENTS

1 package Nilla Wafers, finely crushed
1 small box raspberry Jello (don't mess around with sugar free)
1 egg
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2-3 cups fresh raspberries, washed and dried
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
2-3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS

Prepare Jello according to package directions, then place in the refrigerator to cool until it is thick and syrupy but not yet firmly set.

Place Nilla wafers in a gallon size Ziploc bag and crush to a fine powder using a rolling pin or pulse in a food processor. Use about half of the Nilla wafer crumbs to cover the bottom of a square 8"x8"­inch baking dish. Set remaining crumbs aside for the top of the dessert. Press down so it is compact, but don’t worry that there is no butter or anything to hold a crust together ­ it really is just Nilla wafer crumbs on the bottom of this dessert.

In a medium bowl, add butter, egg*, and powdered sugar and whisk until light, about a minute or two, to make a smooth and creamy sort of sauce that can be drizzled over the Nilla wafer crumbs.

The sauce doesn’t have to completely cover the crumbs on the bottom of the dish so don’t try spreading it around or anything because that will just create a mess. Just drizzle it on to get mostly even coverage. Next, sprinkle 2 cups of fresh raspberries over the sauce and crumb layers, making sure they are evenly distributed. Once the Jello has thickened to a syrupy consistency but hasn’t entirely set, pour over raspberries, then return dish to the refrigerator and allow Jello to set completely:­ at least another hour or two. When Jello has completely set, whip cream with powdered sugar and vanilla in a bowl, then gently spread on top of Jello and raspberries. Sprinkle remaining Nilla wafer crumbs on top (you may not need all of them if you feel like this layer is getting too thick), then use the remaining raspberries to arrange a pattern on top of the dessert and serve.

* Yes, this dessert has a raw egg in it and lots of people freak out about raw eggs, but I’ve eaten this every summer since I was a little girl and never had a problem. You can buy pasturized eggs if you are concerned because the USDA says those are safe to consume raw.

Buttermilk Pancakes

1 cup flour
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk
2 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan. Sift and measure flour; sift again with sugar, salt and baking soda.Beat egg in medium bowl. Blend in buttermilk. Add dry ingredients, beating until smooth. Blend in melted butter.Add  up to 1/4 cup more buttermilk for thinner cakes. Adjust consistency as required to maintain a pourable cake batter by adding additional flour or buttermilk.  Scoop 1/4 cup onto griddle and turn when surface bubbles begin to break. Serve immediately.

Yield 2

Notes: I never sift my ingredients and I double the recipe and it is plenty for my family. I use butter to grease pan.