Saturday Trip Around the World

Recently Mom, dear sister and I went on a little adventure. We were looking for Hibiscus flowers to make tea. It took us to a little shopping center in Broadmoor where we enjoyed a Vietnamese lunch and shopping in a Super Mercado. They were right next door to one another. It was like a quick trip around the world.

Danh's Garden is a nice Vietnamese restaurant that offers a large selection of Vietnamese and Thai dishes. They have everything; spring rolls, noodle soup, pho, fried rice, stir-fries and bubble tea. We ordered fresh spring rolls, Tom Yum Soup with Vegetables, Basil Fried Rice with Chicken, and Basil Shrimp. Oh and we split a Milk Bubble Tea three ways. All very tasty.

When we finished lunch we went next door to Carniceria Super Mercado La Ranchera. They have a great selection Mexican herbs and spices, fresh meats and produce that you can't find in your typical grocery store. They even had a freezer with paletas (popsicles). We found the Hibiscus Flowers and decided to buy two bags. We also found some fresh Chorizo for my Birthday Taco Dinner. More about that in my next post. Dear sister had to have Bistec (thin beef steaks) to marinade for tacos. Mom and I had to buy the Nopals (Cactus Paddles) again for tacos. We all agreed we would not have a problem eating Mexican food two days in a row.

The Bistec was perhaps the most challenging. I just struggle with cooking thin cuts of beef on the gas grill. I think I need to break down and get a charcoal grill. They were very tasty because I used the marinade from my Mexicana Beef Tacos. But they never got those smoky grill marks you look for from grilling. We topped them with some Spicy Avocado Cream, Pickled Red Onions, Cilantro and Cotija Cheese. We made the Spicy Avocado Cream from a jar of jalapeno salsa dear sister brought back from Canton and an avocado. It was a big surprise how spicy and flavorful just those two ingredient turned out. It was so good. Creamy and spicy. I put it on everything until there was not a drop left. 

Then there was the nopals. I loved the cactus! We grilled it with some corn and made tacos. We adapted this Grilled Cactus and Corn Salad recipe into our own taco recipe. Again we loaded these tacos with Spicy Avocado Cream, Pickled Red Onions, Cilantro and Cotija Cheese. This was my favorite of the tacos. I loved everything about them. They had great texture and flavor. Cleaning the cactus was work but the tacos made it worth it. The next day Mom and I made a quesadilla with all the leftover steak, cactus and corn. That was Mom's favorite. I think she would do everything again just for another quesadilla. All in all this was a successful dinner and a fun trip. I look forward to going back to both of these little Broadmoor spots. If for nothing else to get more tacos ingredients. Now for the recipes.

Grilled Cactus and Corn Tacos
Serves 4

Ingredients

4 nopales, or cactus paddles
2 small to medium cob of sweet corn
Olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Lime, cut in half for juice
8 corn tortillas
Spicy Avocado Cream (recipe below)
Pickled Red Onions (recipe below)
Cilantro, coarsely chopped
Cotija cheese, crumbled
Lime, cut into wedges

Directions

Pre-heat the grill to medium-high heat for 10 minutes.

Clean and prepare the nopales. Trim or cut the edge off each paddle; trim the stem end too. Use a small knife to trim each of the needle locations flush with the rest of the paddle. Brush the cactus and corn with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Grill the nopales and corn until soft and slightly charred. The nopales should take about 5 minutes on each side; cook the corn for roughly the same time rotating several times. Let cool, then cut nopales into thin strips about 1/4 inch and cut corn kernels off the cob.

In a large bowl, combine nopales, corn, juice of half a lime, cilantro, and a light drizzle of olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Warm tortillas on the grill flipping often until soft and warm about 30 seconds or in the microwave again for about 30 seconds.

To serve place a spoon of cactus and corn mixture in each tortilla. Garnish with pickled red onion, spicy avocado cream, cilantro and cotija cheese. Just before eating, squeeze a little fresh lime juice over each.

Note: The cactus and corn mixture could be served as a salad or side dish as well.

I grilled extra corn. Dear sister loves corn.

Spicy Avocado Cream
Make about 2 cups

Ingredients

1 cup jalapeno green salsa (We used Green Fudge brand from Canton)
1 large avocado, seeded and peeled

Directions

Place ingredients in a blender and blend until well combined.


Pickled Red Onions
Adapted from Bon Appetit
Makes about 1/2 to 1 cup

Ingredients

1/2 cups white vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 red onion, thinly sliced

Directions

Place first 3 ingredients and 1 cup water in a pint or quart size mason jar. Stir until sugar and salt dissolve. Place onion into jar; pat down to make sure onions are covered with vinegar mixture. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour. Place in refrigerator until ready to use. Can be made 2 weeks ahead.

Linking to:

The Lazy Gastronome - Taco Tuesday Blog Hop

Recipe Review: Total 10 Protein Bowls

So why have I not been posting more recipes. Well I have been cooking other people's recipes. I saw Dr. Oz had a new diet plan out and while I did not decide to do the plan I did decide I wanted to try a few of his recipes. I made all the Total 10 Protein Bowls, the Greek Yogurt Mayo and Crunchy Artichokes Hearts. I also made the Total 10 Turkey Breakfast Sausage, Huevos Rancheros and Caprese Eggs.

One thing I did notice is that the recipe instructions left a lot up to interpretation. It really annoyed many commenting on the site. I think the writers were leaving it open to allow for different tastes but it annoyed most people. Seems like they wanted to be told exactly what to do. There maybe a lesson in that for us bloggers and recipe developers. It is fine to offer options to change the recipe for others tastes, but they want to know how to make the recipe in our photos. I got a little side tracked there but it is something we should all think about when we post.

Back to the reviews. Below is a review and further instruction as to how I made these recipes. The links to the recipes are in the first paragraph. Be sure to read the comments for other tips as to how people made these recipes work for them. Be sure to check them out. They really are tasty healthy recipes. I am sure glad I found them.

Mexican Bowl
It was very filling but not my favorite so far. I grated the cauliflower mixed it with all ingredients except salsa, avocado and tomatoes. I microwaved covered until warm then topped with remaining ingredients. I ended up adding some sazon seasoning. It was just okay. Next time I will add cilantro, more salsa and maybe cook the cauliflower with some seasoning. Worth experimenting with one more time.

Italian Bowl
I cooked two portions at once. I started with the Total 10 Breakfast Sausage then added 1 onion, 1 garlic clove, 1/4 red bell pepper all chopped. I also added one pint of grape tomatoes halved. I cooked that until the onion was cooked and the tomatoes broke down releasing it's liquid. I took off the heat and added the zucchini noodles(3 small) and basil stirring to combine for a few minutes. I wish I had a little more zucchini noodles. I will use more next time. It was delicious I will make again.

Chinese Chicken Bowl
I made this bowl first. I grilled the chicken and took it off the grill to rest under foil. While it rested I stir fried the veggies. I made two portions and used 1 bunch broccoli(crowns only), half a 4 oz pkg mushrooms, 2 handfuls snow peas, 3 green onions, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes. I drizzled in the soy once the veggies were bright green. I just stir fried until tender crisp. Served topped with diced chicken. Very tasty!

Thai Chicken Bowl
I made this bowl second. I made the dressing first; everything but veggies and almonds. I shook it in a jar. Then I made a bowl of slaw, 1 green onion, a few chopped snap peas and red bell pepper. I topped it with almonds, avocado and chicken, then I drizzled with the dressing. You will have dressing left to make a few more bowls. This was very delicious too!

Mediterranean Bowl
This was the last bowl I tried. I made it raw. I did not cook any of the veggies. I used 1 small zucchini, 1 small yellow squash, 2 radishes, several slices of cucumber, 2 pepperoncini sliced(instead of pickles), some red onion, 5 yellow cherry tomatoes. I skipped the cabbage all together. It made plenty. I seasoned with salt, black and red pepper. Stirred together with the hummus and a little lemon juice. Then I topped with can tuna. I did not want to bother cooking the chicken. It was very good! The liquid from the veggies mixed with the hummus and made a nice dressing. I really liked the pepperoncini too. I would make again.

Greek Yogurt Mayo
This is a tasty dip or dressing. I made 1/3 of the recipe. I did not think it taste similar to mayo but I really liked it. It would be great in a potato or pasta salad. Maybe even a chicken or egg salad. I used it as a dip for the roasted artichokes. I can't wait to try it with steamed artichokes.

Crunchy Artichoke Hearts
I am a bit confused about this recipe. They are tasty and crispy but also really oily. They almost fry in the oil. I think this is too much oil for one can of artichokes. I placed them on paper towels to try to remove the excess oil. I made the yogurt mayo for a dipping sauce. It was a great combination. I just need to find a way to get them crispy without all that oil. I used the artichokes packed in water too. I think I will mix in a bowl first next time and then lift out the artichokes and put on a cookie sheet. I followed the directions and mixed on the cookie sheet. They were swimming in the olive oil. They were so tasty it is worth trying again.

Turkey Breakfast Sausage

Delicious! I used it in the Italian Bowl and it taste like Italian meat sauce. Very good. Might use a little less sage next time, my family noticed it. They are not fans of sage.

Huevos Rancheros
This was also delicious and so very simple. I loved the crunch of the red bell pepper. The salsa is great too. I made it twice once with red salsa and once with a green salsa, both very good.

Caprese Eggs
These eggs were very good. I grated about 1/4 of a garlic clove and sauteed it with a handful of yellow cherry tomatoes. Added the eggs and when they started to cook stirred in the basil. Very tasty!