Happy Labor Day Celebration Weekend

Nicaraguan White Rice - Arroz Banco Nicaraguense

A Two for Tuesday Recipe 

The first time I had Nicaraguan white rice, I realized what I had been missing out on and what all the fuss was about. To me, white rice was white rice, you boil it, add some salt, cook it for 20 minutes and you're done. BOY was I wrong! I could eat this stuff all by itself, in fact, I do.

By slowly cooking the onions and the peppers in the oil first, the vegetables release their delicious juices into the oil, which is absorbed into the rice as you lightly "fry" it before bathing it in water, a little salt and the secret ingredient my father-in-law, Aurelio, told me about ... a tablespoon of sour orange juice. Don't worry if you don't have access to sour oranges, you can make your own. See my post "Don't Have Sour Oranges? Make Your Own!"
Like most every Nicaraguan recipe I post, I learned how to make this from my in-laws ... so a big ¡Gracias! (thank you) to both Aurelio and Lupe for sharing. This recipe isn't for plain old white rice, it's for white rice taken to a new and yummier level ... a Nica* level!


Serves 4

1/4 cup of canola oil (do not use olive oil for this)
1/2 an onion, cut in thick lengthwise strips
1/2 green pepper, roughly chopped
Pinch of salt
2 cups of white rice
3 1/2 cups of water
1 tablespoon sour orange juice
3/4 teaspoon salt

Nicaraguan Salpicón! Chopped Beef in Zesty Lime with Onions and Peppers

A Two for Tuesday Recipe 

Today I am taking you on a culinary trip down south to Central America, Nicaragua to be precise. The Hub and his family are from Nicaragua. Nicaraguans refer to themselves and anything Nicaraguan as "Nica". So if you see me using the term "Nica", now you know what I am referring too!

I was introduced to this Nicaraguan dish, like most of the Nicaraguan food I have come to love, at my in-laws. My father-in-law, Aurelio, is a fantastic cook and he taught me how to make Salpicón (pronounced SAL-PEE-CONE). And by taught, I mean he told me what goes in it (no exact measurements) and what the process is. That's the sign of what I call a "natural chef"! This dish is tooted as being dietetic because there is absolutely no fat in it, and uses a lean cut of meat ... eye round. When you look at the actual recipe you tend to think it's too simple and can't possibly be all that flavorful, but I got to tell you, it is! The lime juice breaks down the rawness and mellows the flavor of the onions and peppers and gives the finely chopped meat a light and tangy taste. Traditionally, Salpicón is served with Nica white rice and boiled or fried plantains. However, it's absolutely divine served in a lettuce wrap with pickled onions, radishes and cucumbers, sprinkled into a simple salad, or wrapped in a tortilla, preferably a Nica tortilla, with "crema" (similar to crème fraîche) and a little crumbled "queso ahumado" (similar to Feta, only smoked) over top. So pack your culinary taste buds as we head into the land of Nica food!

2 pounds eye round, trimmed of any fat, cut down into smaller chucks,
roughly 2"
2 quarters of water
1/2 of a head of garlic, cloves smashed and peeled
2 onions:

• 1 onion, chopped into quarters 
• 1 onion, finely diced about 1/8"  

2 bell peppers, 1 green, 1 red:

• 1/2 a green and 1/2  red, chopped into quarters
• 1/2 a green and 1/2  red, finely diced about 1/8"

1/2 - 3/4 cup of lime and the zest of the lime
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Salt

Creamy Cannellini Bean, Kale and Mini-Meatball Soup

The weekend has come and gone, and we are back to Monday. Mondays has become a soup and salad night for us. Not only does my creamy cannellini, kale and mini-meatball soup help getting over a weekend of over-indulging in too much food and drink, it helps soothe away the very long workday that Monday always seems to bring with it. What I love about this soup is that it is creamy but not to the point of over-indulgence, it's only a 1/2 cup of cream to five cups of soup. It's packed with lots of veggies, like sweet carrots, savory celery, earthy potatoes, creamy cannellini beans, the best source of beta-carotene ... kale, and mini-meatballs. It's a warm, homey meal, that's big on taste and satisfaction.


Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 medium carrots, peeled and sliced on the diagonal
3 stalks celery, sliced on the diagonal
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 medium red potatoes, peeled and diced
1 - 151/2 oz can cannellini beans
8-10 sage leaves, tied in a bundle
2 bay leaves
4 cups kale (or your green of choice)
8 oz cooked mini-meatballs (see notes)
4 cups herb and wine infused chicken stock (see notes)
1 cup of water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper or to taste
1/2 cup of heavy cream or half & half

Heat a soup pot over moderate heat, add the first 5 ingredients, cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the remaining ingredients except for cream, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cook covered for 30 minutes. Stir cream in, allow to simmer for 2 minutes just to heat through.

To serve sprinkle with Parmesan or feta, along with a crisp salad or crusty bread. ENJOY!

Recipe notes:
To infuse the chicken stock; add 4 cup of homemade or store bought chicken stock, one cup of dry white wine and a large bouquet garni tied bundle to a pot, bring to a rolling boil and simmer while you chop and saute the vegetables. The bouquet garni can be any fresh herbs you have on hand, I used sage,flat leaf parsley, rosemary, and thyme.
For the mini-meatballs, I like to make 5 pounds of meatballs and freeze them already cooked to have on hand for a quick meal or to add to recipes. I used the recipe featured in my post Cheesy Cheese Stuffed Meatballs, but when it came time to make the mini-meatballs, I omitted the cheese, and made the mini-meatballs about the size of the width of a nickel.

Stuffed Cuban Meatloaf

A Two for Tuesday Recipe 

My mom use to make Cuban Meatloaf when I was kid and I was always fascinated by how she got the egg into it and made it not only taste great but look so pretty. My mom would always wave me off when I complimented the dish and she'd say "eh that's just picadillo with an egg in the middle, nothing special", but it was to me! Her comment is how I figured out how she made it.

My parents came over from Cuba in 1960 and I am thinking this may very well be a Cuban-American recipe, not sure that I've ever seen this in a Cuban food cookbook, but I use to see it at a few Cuban restaurants. The flavors are reminiscent of a Cuban Picadillo, one of my favorite of Cuban meal, which is a ground beef dish that simmers in onions, peppers garlic and lots of seasonings in a rich tomato sauce. But I digress, so back to the meatloaf! The meatloaf stays very moist because of the cooked onion, peppers and garlic that are added to the raw meat. It packs a big flavor punch that is a result of the blend of spices in my homemade sazón completa seasoning.  When you cut into it, you see a perfectly cooked egg, hugged by a blanket of pimientos and dotted by Spanish green olives, it's really impressive and is just so flavorful and delicious! If you have leftovers it's great the next day in a sandwich or you can make my cheesy biscuit empanadas!


1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound of ground pork
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
2-4 garlic cloves, minced
2 small pinches of salt
1/4 cup dry white wine or Vino Seco
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablesspoons Cuban sazón completa {you can make your own*}
1/2 cup finely grated Cuban cracker or panko breadcrumb
1 egg
Grated zest and Juice of 1 lime

Herbs de Provence Red Lentil Soup

It seems that lately the Hub and I have been "over-indulging" on the weekends, and by Monday we are fed-up with food (HA, pun intended!). What we both tend to crave on Mondays is a warm soup and a fresh, crispy, crunchy salad. I especially love this soup because it's broth-y but you can thicken it by running an immersion blender through it if you prefer a thick soup. The broth gets it's flavor from a rich homemade chicken stock (although the carton variety is just fine too), a mire-poix of carrots, celery and onions, herbs de Provence, a splash of white wine and turkey bacon. It's homey, warm, satisfying and pretty much ready to eat in under an hour. It's definitely a great weeknight meal!

Serves 2 - 4

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 package of turkey bacon, diced
1 large onion, chopped
3 celery stalks, diced
4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon garlic
1 cup red lentils
2 medium red potatoes, peeled and diced
Handful of celery leaves and parsley, chopped, set aside 2 generous tablespoons
1 1/2 teaspoons of dried herbs de Provence
8 cups chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon fleur de sel, sea salt or kosher salt
Pepper to taste

How to Make the Perfect Soft-Boiled Egg

I can't think of a more simple, yet satisfying breakfast than a perfectly soft-boiled egg. When done right the velvety, creaminess of the yolk is nothing short of amazing. I am craving one right now! A lot of folks are intimidated by making a soft-boiled egg but it is so very easy to make, I'll show you how.

Serves 2-4

4 eggs
6 cups cold water
1 tablespoon white vinegar
Salt & Pepper to taste

Place the eggs in a pan with high sides, add water, bring to a  boil and then immediately lower heat so that it is barely simmering. Simmer for 5 minutes, remove from water immediately/

Place in an egg cup, or in my case, I use shot glasses. With a serrated edge knife, carefully cut across the top 1/4 or so of the egg. The creamy yolk should be visible, if not just poke through with the tip of a spoon.

Salt and pepper to taste.

That's it... pretty easy huh?

Recipe Notes:
I know that traditionally soft-boiled egg is served with toast but I personally like it with a toasted, chewy bagel with butter slathered on it or some crusty french bread. I find that regular toast just buckles under pressure, i.e., dipping deep into the egg and scooping out that golden yolk. I also like to use a grapefruit spoon because it's pointy and slim enough to scrape out every last bit of egg, you better believe I am not letting any of it go to waste!
I cook my egg straight from the fridge, and not at room temperature. If you have them at room temperature I suggest you take them out of the simmering water at around 4 minutes or less.