Creamy Artichoke Habanero Dip

Creamy Artichoke Habanero Dip

Creamy, rich and delicious with just the right amount of kick - Man, was this good!

I wish I knew the name of the lady I was chatting with in line at the San Jose Airport week before last. She gave me the idea for this wonderful dip. We were talking about food and how we both liked spicy things and then she was telling me how she likes to mix cream cheese, mascarpone cheese and habanero peppers to make a dip. My mind instantly went to artichoke dip and I thought wow, that would make a nice variation. The only problem was - I've never worked with habanero peppers before.

Habanero Peppers
Heat range between 150,000 to 575,000 Scoville units
compared to Jalapenos at 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville units

So, I'll be honest...the habanero peppers scared me. I used gloves when working with them (actually I just used a plastic sandwich baggie to cover my hand and it worked just fine). I also marinated them in a vinegar mixture thinking this would mellow them a little, and the result was fantastic.

marinating in distilled white vinegar with garlic and kosher salt

I simply cut up a couple of them, put in a bowl with some fresh chopped garlic and a heavy pinch of kosher salt, then covered with distilled white vinegar. I covered the bowl and let it set out on the counter for several days. The beauty of this was that not only was I able to use the peppers in this dip but the vinegar mixture is quite hot and very tasty now, and would be great sprinkled over cooked spinach or other greens (it's a southern thing).

Special prep: Marinate the fresh habanero peppers for 1-3 days in advance. If you don't want to do this, or don't have time, just use fresh or jarred jalapeno peppers.

Serves 4-6 as an appetizer

Oven 350 degrees F

Ingredients:

4 ounces cream cheese (softened to room temperature)

4 ounces mascarpone cheese

1 7.5-ounce jar of marinated artichoke hearts, drained and rough chopped (reserve liquid)

1 teaspoon diced marinated habanero peppers, seeds removed (or use 1 to 2 Tablespoons minced jarred or fresh jalapeno peppers)

3 large cloves of garlic, minced

1 Tablespoon good mayonnaise (I used Best)

2 Tablespoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano

2 teaspoons reserved liquid from marinated artichoke hearts

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper

chopped fresh chives for garnish (or you could use green onions)

In medium bowl mix all ingredients together except fresh chives. Mixture will be the consistency of creamy mashed potatoes. Spoon mixture into medium baking dish and spread evenly.

Bake for 30 - 35 minutes until hot, bubbly and lightly browned. Garnish with fresh chives and serve with raw veggies, tortilla chips, french bread, pita bread, or whatever strikes your fancy.

All I had on hand were a few tortillas,
so I cut them up and served alongside

so good it disappears!

luckily there was still more :-)

Thank you for the inspiration, nice lady at the airport!

Tropical Dragonfruit Granita

Tropical Dragonfruit Granita

Does it make me an "ingredient hoarder" if I actually do use the many and varied ingredients I can just never seem to get enough of? I mean it's like I'm shoe shopping or something... Oh my gosh, look at that... Oh boy, gotta have those... Geez, cannot pass that up... and so goes my visit at the market, replete with  "ooooohs" and "ahhhhhs".

So I'm at Gelson's the other day and what do I spy but the most fascinating and beautiful specimen in the produce section I think I've seen in quite some time. It was a dragonfruit, imported from somewhere (perhaps Asia or South America, I'm not sure), organic and...expensive. I was so not gonna go there, but once the produce guy cut it open and exposed the glowing magenta flesh, I was captivated. One taste and I was sold. My rationale? I get to photograph it, admire it, learn about it, share it with you guys, and oh yeah, I get to eat it! And it was luscious, sweet, and delicious. Think prickly pear cactus... in fact, dragonfruit is part of the cactus family.

they are just as vibrant in person
the little black flecks are edible seeds, almost imperceptible as you eat

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

2 Tropical Dragonfruit (with the magenta inside, these are the sweetest)

4 teaspoons honey

Juice of 1 lemon

scant pinch of kosher salt, optional (see Cook's note)

2 ounces rum, optional (I use 10 Cane)

Cut each dragonfruit in half, scoop out magenta-colored fruit and place it in food processor or blender. Add honey, lemon juice, scant pinch of kosher salt (optional), and rum (optional). Blend. Mixture will be quite "liquidy".

Pour mixture into 9x13 baking dish and place in freezer. Mixture will be slushy/frozen in about 2-3 hours.

Using a fork, rake through the slushy/frozen mixture. Serve in glasses or bowls and garnish with mint if desired.

You can make this a day ahead and just do the raking right before serving. I realize other granita mixtures may not work this same way, but for some reason this dragonfruit was completely forgiving. I tried it with and without the rum and both versions worked equally well.

rake your fork through to make it slushy

pretty as a picture

Cook's note: Kosher salt...I probably should have clarified this earlier on in my posts, however, with the distinct possibility of over salting a dish like this, I feel it's not a bad time to call this out. There are 2 sizes of granules for kosher salt widely sold. The course ground (larger) and the regular (smaller). I always use the regular (smaller).

this is the kind I use

Chicken Tortilla Soup...chile today and hot tamale :-)

Chicken Tortilla Soup

It was kind of chilly and overcast here yesterday, so I was definitely feeling the fall soup vibe. And with Hatch chile season upon us, I'm always looking for dishes to sneak them into.


Although I live in Southern California now, I was born and raised mostly in Texas. Along with "southern-fried everything", Tex-Mex food is a staple where I'm from, so I'd like to share a Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe that I hope you'll enjoy. 

There are so many ways to make this soup, but I've found making the chicken in the slow cooker yields the most tender and juicy results.

cooking away in the slow cooker aka "crock pot"

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (see Cook's note)

3 cups chicken stock

2 cups water

2 medium vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped in large chunks

1 medium to large red onion, diced

4-6 large cloves of garlic, minced

2-3 Tablespoons diced roasted hot Hatch chiles (or use one to two 4-ounce cans of diced mild green chiles)

3 limes, divided

3 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

2 cobs of fresh corn

1 avocado, cubed (wait till right before serving to cut avocado to avoid browning)

1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

creme fraiche or sour cream for garnish

tortilla chips, crushed for garnish

Place chicken, chicken stock, water, tomatoes, onion, garlic, chiles, juice of 2 limes, cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper to slow cooker set to low.  Close lid and allow to cook for 6-8 hours until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink.

When fully cooked, take chicken from slow cooker and remove bone and skin from chicken breast meat. Cut breast meat into bite-size pieces and return to slow cooker.

Cut raw corn from cobs and add to slow cooker. No need to cook any longer, the corn will be juicy and crunchy and warmed from the soup. Mix and taste for seasoning. Add additional salt or pepper if desired.

Cut 1 lime into wedges. Spoon soup into bowls and top with avocado, fresh cilantro, dollop of cream, and tortilla chips. Serve with wedge of lime.

To easily cut corn from cob: stand corn on flat end in large shallow dish,
hold top end of corn with corn on the cob holder, cut from cob

fresh corn cut from the cob

I got this loaf of cheddar jalapeno bread at the bakery and
couldn't resist eating some with my soup...yum

Cook's note: You could use boneless, skinless chicken breasts but for this dish I really prefer the bone-in, skin-on breasts as it imparts so much more flavor.

Stuffed Bell Peppers with Chile Cream Sauce

Stuffed Bell Peppers with Chile Cream Sauce

When I was up in Santa Clara for work last week, I saw my friend Maricar Salud-Calantog and she brought me this beautiful bell pepper and some fresh-picked cherry tomatoes straight from her garden. I couldn't wait to get back home and cook something up with them. The obvious choice for me was stuffed bell peppers.

We talked about the way we make them (hers entirely different than mine) and that's when I decided, I'm changing up my recipe. I mean who says I have to use rice and tomato sauce every time. Why not use potatoes like Maricar does? Plus I have these fresh cherry tomatoes and homemade Sriracha sauce and wouldn't that be a nice change of pace from the tomato sauce? Thus these little gems were born.

Also, are you the type that lops off the top of the pepper and stuffs the cavity like me? Well Maricar splits them through the middle lengthwise instead. I kind of like them that way now.

split the pepper lengthwise then scoop out the seeds and membrane
left side is after it's cleaned, right side is before

ground beef, green onions, carrots, Yukon Gold potatoes,
cherry tomatoes, Sriracha sauce, salt, pepper,
and not in photo because I forgot to add until after I took the pic: garlic

stuffed and ready to be baked

Oven 350 degrees F

Serves 4
Serving Size: 1/2 bell pepper, stuffed

Stuffed Peppers:

2 extra large bell peppers, halved and seeds and membrane removed

1 pound extra lean ground beef

1/2 cup diced Yukon Gold potato (about 1 medium potato, no need to peel)

1/4 cup grated carrots

3/4 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

3 green onions, chopped

2-3 large cloves garlic, minced
3-4 Tablespoons Sriracha sauce (homemade or Huy Fong)

2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus a little for bell peppers

1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

Lightly salt the inside of the bell pepper halves and set aside. In large bowl mix all ingredients together (except bell peppers). Stuff beef mixture into each bell pepper half.

Place bell pepper halves on parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 50 minutes or until cooked through. Drain the extra liquid from the stuffed bell peppers before serving. (This is moisture from the bell peppers that normally the rice absorbs.)

Sauce:
1/4 cup creme fraiche (or sour cream or Greek yogurt)
2 Tablespoons chile paste (homemade or store-bought like Huy Fong, or you may substitute 1 Tablespoon of Sriracha sauce instead)

In small bowl mix together and serve with stuffed bell peppers.

Serving suggestion: To make this a meal, serve with a large mixed green salad.

Homemade Sriracha Sauce and Chile Paste

Homemade Sriracha Sauce

This stuff is great, easy to make, and it beats the heck out of the kind you buy in the store.

I've certainly used my fair share of the Huy Fong brand and linked to it in previous postings, but who needs that when you can easily make it yourself!

This version is fresh, healthy, and preservative-free. It's just all-natural spicy goodness.

So first things first, the creator of this recipe is Edamame and her blog is entitled The Year of Eating Consciously. She did a fantastic job of re-creating a completely healthy and flavorful version. Amazing, easy to follow and do yourself. In fact, I even got 2 condiments (Sriracha Sauce and Chile Paste) from this one recipe as I'll describe below. Obviously, there are infinite possibilities when mixing either of these 2 condiments with other things like mayonnaise (spicy mayo), creme fraiche (spicy cream), etc!


Note: I made some modifications to Edamame's recipe based on available ingredients and personal preference. 1) I love garlic so I added more garlic. 2) She doesn't like to add too much salt but I like the flavor it gives so I added more. 3) I couldn't get palm sugar so I used a substitute. Feel free to follow her recipe exactly or suit to your taste.

red fresno chiles, kosher salt, and garlic

Prep: You will need to allow time for the peppers to sit in the brine overnight. Once done it takes minutes to finish the sauce.

marinating in their vinegar bath

Makes about 1 1/2 cups sauce and about 1/4 cup paste

Ingredients:

1/2 pound red fresno chiles (you could also use red jalapenos)

6-8 large cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

1 Tablespoon kosher salt (or sea salt)

1 cup distilled white vinegar

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon molasses

You may wish to wear rubber gloves when chopping peppers to avoid burning from the hot peppers, however I did not. I was careful to avoid touching the seeds and didn't have any issues. Chop stems off of peppers and discard the stems. Cut peppers into thirds or small chunks and place in a glass bowl or jar.

Add garlic, salt, and vinegar, then cover and let sit overnight.

peppers, garlic, salt, and vinegar

Carefully pour contents of jar or bowl into a saucepan over high heat and mix in brown sugar and molasses. Bring to a boil. Reduce and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to come to room temperature.

Transfer mixture to a food processor or blender and blend for 5 minutes. Your end result will be a smooth, orangey-red sauce.

Place a strainer over a bowl and pour the mixture through. You will need to use a spoon or spatula to push through until all the liquid is through.

strain into a bowl

finished straining, notice what's in the strainer..
looks like chile paste!

beautiful fresh Sriracha Sauce!
pour into a bottle or jar with a lid, store in refrigerator

Pour the sauce from the bowl into a bottle or a jar with a lid and store in your refrigerator. It will keep at least a month (if it lasts that long!). Sauce will mellow in a day or two of sitting in the fridge, but I used mine immediately.

Chile Paste

The part you strained out can be used as a chile paste (similar to the kind you see on the tables at Thai restaurants). I simply put it in a jar and added some extra-virgin olive oil to keep it from drying out and placed in the refrigerator, covered. You can cook with it or just spoon it over any dish you want to add a little spice. I tried it and it is delicious!

2/16/11 Update:  I enjoyed my original batch of Sriracha Sauce for about 5 months and every last drop was delicious. Remember to keep it stored in a sealed bottle in your refrigerator.

8/20/12 Update:  I still love this recipe! Just made a fresh batch (Sriracha sauce and chile paste) and it's as amazing as ever. Pretty fool proof, too. I left the peppers/garlic mixture brining for a few days instead of overnight (because I didn't have time), and then I accidentally added way more molasses than my original recipe - and it still came out great!

Cedar Plank Salmon with Mustard Soy Glaze

Cedar Plank Salmon with Mustard Soy Glaze

Believe it or not, I found this recipe on an advertisement for Norwegian salmon. It sounded good and I was in the mood to use the Fire and Flavor Cedar Planks that I had gotten at Whole Foods, so it was perfect timing.

This glaze is a combination of whole grain and Dijon mustards plus just the right amount of sweetness to acidity. Fresh rosemary adds another layer of deliciousness to this incredible marinade and sauce.


I really, really like this glaze and future renditions will likely include additions such as fresh ginger and minced serrano peppers for a little kick!

Serves 4

Grill Medium, about 400 degrees F

Ingredients:

4 (5 ounce) salmon filets, skin removed (I used Atlantic)

2 small cedar grilling planks (I used Fire and Flavor), soaked in water for 1 hour


Marinade/Sauce:
1/4 cup whole grain mustard
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1/2 Tablespoon fresh rosemary

In medium bowl whisk all ingredients together. If desired, reserve a small amount of sauce for dipping later.

Place salmon in shallow baking dish and pour rest of sauce over. Allow to marinade about 30 minutes in refrigerator.

on the grill...I left the plank on its first side a little
too long, accidentally charring it

Place cedar planks on grill for approximately 3 minutes, then flip the planks over and place salmon on them. Close lid and cook for approximately 15-20 minutes or until salmon is cooked through.

so yummy!

Much ado about the peppadew, plus another kitchen sink meal I like to call "Much Ado Peppadew Pasta"

peppadews from the olive bar at the market in their briny water

What's with all the excitement over these little guys - the peppadew? From the first time I discovered them in the olive bar at my local market, I've been infatuated. They stuck out like a sore thumb nestled amongst the shades of green and I was instantly drawn to them. Curious, I wondered what they might taste like given their vibrant red and luscious-looking skin.


Thus began my love affair with peppadews. They are little red peppers originally from South Africa. They're mildly sweet, mildly hot, and bathed in a briny liquid they're also just the perfect amount of salty. Perhaps this is why they add so much depth of flavor to every dish they're in. Of course they're good "as is", or stuffed with your favorite cheese. Heck, I've even stuffed an olive in it and eaten as a snack.

This quick and easy dish was inspired by ingredients I had laying around and needed to use up. As is often the case, I take a look in my fridge and on the counter and start throwing everything into a one dish meal, so as not to "waste" anything. Enter the ingredients left over from the Savory Spinach, Feta, and Peppadew Muffins I made this past weekend, plus some plump cherry tomatoes and whole wheat capellini pasta, and I was sure I had a decent meal. (Can I just say, it was way more than decent? It was completely and utterly yummy!)

Now for the "recipe"...this is an easy one and one that doesn't require exact measurements (or any particular ingredients for that matter..except peppadews, of course).

"Much Ado Peppadew Pasta"

Ingredients:

whole wheat capellini pasta (or any pasta)

olive oil

garlic cloves, freshly minced

peppadews (the hot ones), chopped (reserve some of the briny liquid)

fresh whole cherry tomatoes

fresh spinach leaves, chopped or torn

feta cheese, crumbled

kosher salt

freshly cracked black pepper

Prepare pasta according to package directions being sure to cook in heavily-salted water.

Meanwhile heat a skillet to medium and add a drizzle of olive oil. Then add garlic, peppadews, and cherry tomatoes and saute for a minute or two.

Drain pasta. Add pasta directly to skillet with peppadew mixture, along with the spinach and reserved briny juice from the peppadews (approximately 1-2 Tablespoons per serving for 4) . Toss together and allow spinach to slightly wilt or soften (about 1-2 minutes). Add salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat. Serve immediately with crumbled feta cheese on top. How easy is that?