Crispy Garlic Kale Chips

San Diego has the perfect climate for winter green vegetables. This year I was a little late to the show, but came home from 10 days away to a lovely patch of kale, chard, mustard and collar greens. While I love the traditional Southern method of braising greens in a stock of bacon and butter, something in my arteries tells me that I should really save that recipe for New Year's day and a few other special occasions.

Greens are great cooked in a number of very simple fashions, but my favorite is probably a little dish I call Crispy Garlic Kale Chips. In this case I wasn't using kale, but it doesn't really matter, all the braising greens taste about the same, particularly when they are covered in garlic! The recipe is the eptiome of simplicity.

First, rinse the greens. Then, tear them into bite size pieces, removing the stems and drop them in a mixing bowl. Add 2 or 3 cloves of finely chopped garlic, two tablespoons of olive oil and a teaspoon each of salt and pepper and stir around so the greens are well covered. Place them in a baking dish without crowding and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, uncovered. The result is a crispy and flavorful snack that makes a good, health conscious substitute for french fries or chips. Enjoy!

(Pictured below with Linguini Ana)

Sopes Rancheros Verdes

Ok, I'm procrastinating studying for final exams this weekend, so what better time to talk about the delicious breakfast we made this weekend?

I've been wanting to make Sopes ever since going to Red O (a Rick Bayless creation) in Los Angeles earlier this year. We had this tapa there of sopes covered in the most delicious short ribs I've ever had and I've been intriqued with the idea of Sopes as a base for other dishes.

Fast forward to last week. I was trying to think of a good breakfast to make on Saturday when I got a craving for Huevos Rancheros. All of a sudden it hit me - why not substitute the tortillas for some homemade sopes?

And that's exactly what I did.

Sopes are simple to make, although I need a lot of practice in terms of shape and frying method. But basically they are just masa harina (a sort of corn flour you can find in most grocery stores), water, butter, and a little flour, baking powder and salt. You pan fry them in vegetable oil so they are crispy on the outside but a moist, delicious corn cake on the inside. Then we topped them with refried black beans (homemade), fried eggs with a nice runny yoke and a salsa verde mixed with sour cream. The result was amazing. The thickness of the sope was the perfect compliment to gooeyness of the runny egg. I can't believe I've never seen the combination in a restaurant before. I think it's the mexican answer to eggs benedict.

Drunken Noodles with Shrimp

Drunken Noodles with Shrimp

A classic Thai favorite--ok, I really have no idea if this dish is even served in Thailand, i've never been there, but it's a popular menu item in Southern California and I love it. Spicy drunken noodles normally consists of stir fried chiles, onions and bell pepper with chicken, shrimp or tofu. Mix in some wide rice noodles and you have a warm and tasty treat that only takes a few minutes to put together. I like a nice cold beer with drunken noodles, Tiger beer is an especially good compliment.

Ingredients
4 garlic cloves
3 thai chiles
1 cup chopped onion
1 bell pepper
1 Tablespoon chili garlic sauce
1/2 pound Shrimp
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup fish sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Juice of one lime
Wide, flat rice noodles
Bean sprouts
Basil

Cook the noodles per their instructions.
Heat a tablespoon of sesame oil in a wok over medium-high heat until oil begins to smoke. Saute garlic, chilis, onion and pepper until they begin to soften, about five minutes. Add the chili garlic sauce and the shrimp and continue until shrimp are mostly cooked. Combine soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar and lime. You can begin adding the sauce to the wok as the shrimp cooks, but be sure to save some for the noodles. When the shrimp is cooked, add the rice noodles and the bean sprouts. Turn the heat down to low, add the remaining sauce adn  continue to cook for a few more minutes, mixing all the ingredients together and allow the noodles to absorb the flavors. Garnish with basil. Serve with a cold lager beer or pinot grigio.

Pizza

Welcome to my Blog!

I thought I'd start things off with something you are likely to see a lot around here - homemade pizza. One of my favorites: pepperoni, mushroom and green pepper. If you don't have a pizza stone you are really missing out. It makes homemade pizza simple and delicious. A 500 degree pizza stone helps to mimic the intense heat you get from a pizza oven in a conventional home oven. Yum!