Veggie tostadas with home made tortillas and salsa fresca

First step: buy some real masa harina (corn tortilla flour from a latin american grocery store, its very different from cornmeal)

Second step: Make the tortillas as per package directions. The dough you make will not be elastic like wheat dough, so the easiest way to make tortillas is to make a ball of dough, drop it on a parchment paper, then flatten it with another piece of paper. Drop the flattened piece of dough on a hot lightly oiled pan and fry it until browned on both sides. Keep the tortillas warm in the oven covered with foil. Doesn't matter if they're not super thin.

Filling
One package of veggie ground round
2 tsp of freshly ground cumin
2 tsp of freshly ground coriander
About 1 1/2 tbsp of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
some adobo sauce (be careful, its SPICY)
some cayenne
5 cloves garlic
one onion, diced
some water to moisten, or tomato paste
chopped fresh coriander

Salsa fresca
Add fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, avocadoes, garlic, coriander, lime juice and whatever else you think would taste delicious in it.

Fry the onions until soft, add the garlic and fry for another 5 min, then add the ground spices, fry for another five being careful not to burn the spices. Then add the ground round, chipotles and sauce, and water. Turn down the heat and let the ground round absorb all the juices.

Put the tortilla on a plate, top with the ground round mixture, and then if you want cover the little tostadas with cheese and broil them. Serve it with salsa fresca on the side.

The masa harina tortillas fried really give a good flavor. Like corn tortilla chips, only better.

mmm, stomach growling just thinking of it.

Asparagus beet salad with feta

The title is really self explanatory. The results-more divine than words can say.

About ten asparagusses
some roasted beets chopped or canned
red onion
feta cheese
baby spinach (as you can see I am a fan)

dressing:

2 parts olive oil to one part red wine vinegar
one tablespoon dijon
one tablespoon honey
basil or oregano or both
s&p

Good way to roast those asparagusses. Put them under the broiler with a touch of salt for ten minutes. They get all shriveled toasty and delicious.

Lorne and I ate the leftovers of this salad after a spring night at the bar. So cool juicy and refreshing. Beets are the sh%t man.

Cobb-ish salad

A meal in itself.

I package of baby spinach
One and a half apples, chopped into small chunks
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar
about 1/2 cup of fried bacon (in bits)
one avocado, in small chunks

dressing:

couple spoons of mayo
couple spoons of sour cream
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 clove garlic

And I guess it could be good to put a few chopped boiled eggs in here too. I just didn't do that. Also, dressing could be kept simple with just olive oil and red wine vinegar. Pretty decent salad though.

Lucious and ecstatic mango lime salad

This goes really nicely with the enchiladas. Eating it feels like there's an ecstasy party in your mouth and everyone's invited.

Couple leaves of romaine lettuce or baby spinach
!/4 thinly sliced red onion
one avocado cut into small chunks
one or two small luscious yellow mangoes (or one big red one)
1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

Dressing
Juice of one and a half limes
two cloves of garlic
1/4 olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

MMMMMMMM. Mangoes and lime go together like jon and yoko.

squash and black bean enchilada casserole

This one was a real hit.

Sauce:
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 yellow onion
6 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tbsp masa harina, flour or cornstarch
2 tbsp ancho chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 ground coriander
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tbsp minced oregano
4 cups veggie stock
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1/2 green pepper or jalapeno

Enchiladas:
1 large butternut squash, baked
1 large can of black beans
few spoons of adobo sauce
salt and pepper
4 cups of cheese (mild cheddar, marble, monterey jack or a combo)
1 1/2 packages of tortillas (preferably corn)

Preheat oven to 350. First make the sauce. Fry onions, green pepper or chili, and garlic until slightly golden, add spices and masa. fry until fragrant. Add all the other ingredients and let simmer for about 20 minutes while you're preparing the other stuff.

Mix the baked squash with the beans and seasoning, you might want to squeeze excess water out of the squash. Brown the tortillas in a toaster oven until slightly toasted. Grate the cheese. Cut the tortillas in half.

In a large lasagna pan, put a little sauce on the bottom. Put one good layer of tortillas on top. Layer with squash and bean layer, 1/4 cheese, then more sauce. Repeat this one more time, then add one last layer of tortillas, with the rest of the cheese and the rest of the sauce. Bake for about 30 minutes. I would try adding olives or fresh coriander too.