Mexican Street Corn

My son was building a city out of Legos the other day.  Being a child of the 80's, I asked him, "Did you build that city on rock'n'roll?"  After he glared at me with a perplexed look, he asked, "What does that mean?"  I turned to good ol' Youtube and pulled up the Jefferson Starship video for "We built this City."  It was hard for him to listen to the music because he couldn't get past the fact that the girls had crazy, feathery, mullet-ish boy haircuts, and the boys had on more make-up than the girls.  In the background of the video, they were showing some scenes from Las Vegas.  I saw one hotel that has since been imploded, and I mentioned that to him.  He asked, "What does imploded mean?"  I quickly turned off the 80's cheesiness that is Jefferson Starship and googled implosion videos.  The next seventeen minutes was spent watching a compilation of 2012's best implosions.  His eyes were glued to the computer.  After the seventeen minutes was over, he went back over to his city.  I don't think that he gave rock'n'roll a second thought because he was trying to figure out how he could blow-up his city.  You've gotta love boys.

I'd like to see an implosion up-close, and when I do, I'm going to make this corn to gnaw on while I watch it.  This corn was so tasty!  The lime zest and juice was a nice touch.  My husband, who generally only prefers corn when it is popped and smothered in butter and salt, ate three pieces of this corn.  He said that it was the best corn he'd ever eaten.  I might have to agree.  It was incredible, and it is a good side dish for any Mexican feast you're having.  Ole'!  

Mexican Street Corn
source: Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Publications Mexican edition

6 large ears of corn, husked and silks removed
1/2 c snipped fresh cliantro
1 T ancho chile powder
2 t lime zest
1/4 to 1/2 t cayenne pepper
1/4 c melted butter
2 T mayonnaise
2 T sour cream
2 T lime juice
cotija cheese

Boil your ears of corn according to package directions.  Once it is cooked, turn off the heat and let it sit in the water while you prepare the rest.

In a small bowl , stir together the cilantro, ancho chile powder, lime zest, and cayenne pepper.  Set aside.

In another bowl, mix the melted butter, mayonnaise, sour cream, and lime juice.

Remove the corn from the water, drain.

Brush the butter-mayonnaise mixture onto the cooked corn.  Sprinkle the cilantro mix onto the corn.  Place on a serving platter and garnish with Cotija cheese.

Hawaiian Grilled Huli Huli Chicken with Brown Sugar Pineapple Spears

Hell has frozen over.  I have now asked my oldest brother for a recipe on two different occasions.  Let me explain something- Growing up, he barely cooked anything.  It was a miracle if he busted out some macaroni and cheese or Ramen.  My mom and other brother also love to cook, so we just figured that my oldest brother was the black sheep.  Well, he found himself a wonderful girlfriend and something happened.  His inner chef busted out like a 13 year old girl being let into a One Direction concert.  He's whipping up scallops, and pork tenderloin sliders with coleslaw and homemade biscuits.  I'm just waiting for the turducken.  One day when we were over the recently, he marinated some pineapple, and it was so dang delicious.  Marinated grilled pineapple is out of this world.  And to have it alongside this chicken is the perfect pairing.  I have noted the source for the chicken, but the pineapple was from my brother.  My husband couldn't get over how good the chicken was.  He was eyeballing the kids' plates to polish off theirs, and he did.  The marinade for the chicken is so quick and easy, and it really makes for delicious grilled chicken.  

Hawaiian Grilled Huli Huli Chicken with Pineapple Spears
source: http://what2cook.net/2013/02/09/hawaiian-grilled-huli-huli-chicken/

Chicken:
1/2 c brown sugar
1/4 c. + 2 T ketchup
1/4 c + 3 T low sodium soy sauce
3 T chicken broth
1 t ginger
1 t minced garlic
2 chicken breasts

Pineapple:
I pineapple
1/2 c brown sugar
1 t cinnamon

Combine all the marinade ingredients in a bowl.

Prepare the chicken breasts by trimming them of all the nasty stuff.  Cut off the tender from each breast.  Slice each breast horizontally so they are thin.

Put the trimmed and cut chicken in a Ziplock bag.  Add half of the marinade.  Reserve the rest for basting.

Marinade the chicken in the fridge for up to 8 hours. I only did two hours, and it was amazing.

After the chicken is place in the fridge, trim the outside of the pineapple.  Cut off the top and bottom. Slice it in half from top to bottom.  Slice a half in half again.  Cut diagonally to get the core off the pineapple.  Slice the remaining part into spears.

Place the spears in a Ziplock bag and add 1/2 c brown sugar and 1 t cinnamon.  Place this in the fridge with the chicken.

Once the marinating is over, prepare the grill.  Preheat it to medium-high heat.  Oil the grate.  Place the chicken on and lower the heat to medium.  Cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes on each side.  Since it is so thin, it doesn't need much time to cook.

After you've flipped the chicken once, baste it with the extra marinade.

Put the pineapple spears on the grill as well.  Cook it for 1-2 minutes per side while the chicken is cooking.

Serve the chicken over brown rice with the grilled pineapple spears on the side.

Italian Drunken Noodles with Sausage and Peppers

Would you ever try to make Mexican food without cheese?  How about bread without flour?  Maybe making shish-ka-bobs without skewers.  Riiightt... Well, I was all gung-ho to make this dish.  I started it, and got all the way to the part where I add the tomatoes.  I go into my tomato storage in my closet, and there are no tomatoes.  Don't panic... I text three different neighbors, and the only one that had some on hand was out of the house.  I could have thrown in the towel, tossed the kids in the car, and headed to McDonald's for the ump-teenth time.  I kept on keeping on.  I just followed the recipe exactly minus the tomatoes.  It turned out amazing!  I'm not a huge chunky tomato fan anyway, so this fit the bill for me.  The different peppers, the cooking wine, and the sausage made for a delicious one pot meal. 

Italian Drunken Noodles with Sausage and Peppers
source: http://thecozyapron.com/a-cozy-pasta-italian-drunken-noodles-and-shaking-things-up-a-bit/

Olive oil
4 Italian mild sausages, casings removed
1 onion, quartered and thinly sliced
1 1/2 t salt
1 t Italian seasoning
1/2 t freshly ground black pepper
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 orange bell pepper, whole (just kidding- thinly sliced)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c white wine (I used dry cooking white wine)
1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes, with juice (I didn't have any tomatoes on hand, so I omitted this)
2 T flat leaf parsley, chopped
1/4 c basil, cut into strips, divided
8 oz. pasta (I used extra thick spaghetti noodles- original recipe called for Pappardelle)
fresh Parmesan

Heat 2 T olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Once it's hot, add the Italian sausages.  While they are cooking, break them up into chunks. Brown the sausage on all sides.  Once it's browned, remove it and set it aside.

Add the onions to the same pan.  Cook them for about five minutes.  Stir them often and add more olive oil if necessary.

After the are browned a bit and soft, add the salt, Italian seasoning, and pepper.  Stir,  Add the bell peppers.  Saute for a couple minutes.

Add the garlic; Cook a minute longer.

Add in the wine and allow it to reduced almost completely.  Stir occasionally. Add the diced tomatoes and the cooked sausage.  Stir to combine and cook for 3-4 minutes.  Turn off the heat and add 1-2 T more olive oil.

Stir in the parsley and half of the sliced basil.

Keep warm while you cook the noodles.

Once the pasta is cooked al dente, drain it, and add it to the sauce.  Use tongs to gently toss it all together.

Serve onto a plate and top with the remaining basil and fresh Parmesan.

Crock Pot Beef Carnitas

I once read an article about recipes that were found on pinterest, and it listed the top five reasons why the pins for food are awful.  One of the reasons is all the crockpot recipes.  It said in the article, "It doesn't help that the Mormons give a crockpot away with every baptism."  I about fell out of my chair laughing.  I have been to several baptisms, and little does this lady know that we give out one for the baptized and we raffle off two others.  :)  I enjoy my crockpot, but I only use it about once a month.  This recipe was definitely one of the better crockpot recipes that I have done.  I mean, who doesn't like shredded beef tacos?  Besides my son... Who doesn't like them?  No one.  That's who.  The smell of the beef, peppers, and onions will taunt you all day long but it will be worth it in the end.  

Crock Pot Beef Carnitas
source: http://www.eatliverun.com/crock-pot-beef-carnitas-tacos/

2 lb flank steak
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced

for spice rub:
2 t chili powder
1 t cumin
1/4 t onion powder
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t cayenne
1 t salt
1/2 t black pepper

tortillas
chopped avocado
diced onion
chopped cilantro
cheese
chopped tomatoes
sour cream
Any other toppings you'd like

Sprinkle half of the rub on one side of the steak and spread it around.  Flip it over and repeat with the remaining rub.  Use it all up!

Place the steak in the bottom of your crockpot.

Top with the onions, peppers, and jalapeno.

Cook on low for eight hours.

After the time is up, remove the meat and shred it with two forks.  If you have a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, put chunks of the meat in the mixer bowl with the paddle attachment and turn it on low.  Be prepared to have your mind blown.  It shred the meat perfectly within a minute.

Heat the tortillas in the microwave for about 30 seconds.  Serve the warm tortillas with the beef carnitas and toppings.

This is really easy and really fast!  It's amazingly tender, too.