A quick snack/appetizer using the left-over chili con carne, pico de gallo, and guacamole. It was a super-bowl dinner request from my husband. I like a dash or two of some hot sauce (such as tabasco) to spice up a notch.
Chili Nachos
2 cups prepared chili con carne
1/2 bag of tortilla chips
1-2 cups shredded cheese (such as Monterey Jack, Queso Quesadilla, or cheddar
Healthy snack, great as a party appetizer. I make the two dippings together, since they use similar ingredients.
Pico de Gallo
2 packs of grape tomatoes, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1-2 lime, juiced
1 jalapeño pepper, chopped
a cup of cilantro
salt and pepper
white vinegar
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makes 4-5 servings
Finely chop all vegetables. Keep them in separate containers. Strain chopped tomatoes and remove excess liquid. You can reserve the tomato liquid to make a healthy cocktail-drink later.
In a bowl, combine all vegetables, season with lime juice, white vinegar, salt and pepper.
Adjust flavor to your taste by adding onion, jalapeño and cilantro, little by little. Same with the seasonings.
Guacamole
2 Avocados
pico de gallo (chopped tomatoes, onion, jalapeño, and cilantro)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lime, juiced
salt
a pinch of ground cayenne pepper and cumin
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makes 4-6 servings
In a bowl, mash halved avocados, add lime juice, pico de gallo, and garlic, mix together.
Season with salt, cayenne pepper and cumin.
Adjust flavor by adding remained vegetables from pico de gallo recipe.
Refrigerate 1 hour for best flavor, or serve chilled.
Note: The amount of ingredients are just a guide. Just chop a bunch, keep them in a separate container, add each ingredient gradually, taste, then reach to your best flavor.
An easy solution to a sudden craving for old fashioned donuts. Mini Donut Balls with Pancake mix
200g Pancake mix
2 tbsp milk
1-2 tbsp butter, melted
1 egg
Vanilla extract
Sugar to sprinkle at the end,
Cinnamon, with your preference
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makes 10-12 small balls
Mix all ingredients together (except sugar and cinnamon), keep them in a fridge for a while, to make the dough easy to work with later. Meanwhile heat oil enough to cover small donut balls. Take the dough out of fridge when it's harden a bit, scoop a drop of dough with a spoon, fry them till golden crispy in medium heat. Sprinkle sugar all over at the end.
Note: When heat oil, make sure not to heat too high, it will burn the outside too quickly.
Utilizing saved peeled potato skins that come out of your typical potato dishes such as mashed potatoes, stews, etc. A great way to add an extra dish to your supper, or use them as a healthy snack.
Cripsy Potato Skin Chips
Potato skins (picture above is from 4 potatoes)
Flour
Salt & Pepper
Vegetable oil
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Save potato skins when you cook other potato dishes such as mashed potatoes.
Put them on a paper towel, sprinkle salt and let the paper towel soak moistures, let them dry.
Heat oil, sprinkle pepper and flour all over the skin to separate them each other.
When the oil is hot, throw in the skins, make sure to separate them. Cook a portion at a time.
Quiche is a classic French tart originated in Germany. It consists of savory custard with cheese, meat, and vegetables. Quiche Lorraine is a popular kind that uses spinach, onion and bacon. I usually make one in a 11-Inch Round Quiche Pan, then keep it in a fridge as a breakfast supply for a few days. In the morning, cut up a piece, heat up in a toaster oven till crispy outside, serve with a salad. I find it remains tasty until finish the last piece.
Quiche Lorrain
6 large eggs, beaten
3/4 cups heavy cream
2 or 3 tbsp of shredded Cheese (such as Swiss, mozzarella, etc.)
1 box of frozen chopped spinach, thawed in room temperature
1 small/medium onion, finely chopped
3 slices of bacon, chopped (this time, I used 6 slices of soppressata instead)
1 sheet of puff pastry (I used Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry)
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makes about 5-6 servings
First, thaw the puff pastry overnight in a fridge, or 2-3 hours in room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
On a lightly floured surface, spread out the dough big enough to cover 11-inch round quiche pan.
Coat a surface of the quiche pan with 1/2 tbsp of melted butter, fit the dough into the pan.
Heat a pan on a stove, and brown bacon till crispy, take them out and drain on a paper towel/ newspaper. Take the excessive oil out of pan, as well. Discard the fat or reserve for another use.
Using the same pan, sauté onion till clear, add spinach, season with salt and pepper, cook till liquids are evaporated, then add the crispy bacon.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs, add heavy cream and cheese, whisk together.
Layer the spinach in the bottom of the pie crust, then pour the egg mixture on top.
Bake until the custard is golden, puffed, and set yet still slightly wiggly in the center, 30 to 35 minutes.
Key: Cook the bacon till crispy and sautéing vegetable separately. This will make the flavor stronger. Caution: Make sure to hold the edge of the quiche pan, since the center part is removable.
Daigaku-imo （大学いも）literally means University potatoes. The snack itself probably originated as a cheap high-calorie, affordable snack sold to students on budget. It is characterized by crispy outer shell with creamy interior, glazed and coated with crunchy black sesame. I am introducing a quicker/ healthier modification of the original recipe.
Cut Japanese yam potato (Satsuma sweet potato) into sticks. Microwave them for 2 mins. Toast black sesames on frying pan till you smell the sesame. Empty the sesame out of pan, melt butter in a pan, saute potatoes till crispy outside. Blend black sesames into potatoes, drizzle maple syrup, sprinkle dash of lemon juice at the end.
