A Tostado Bowl

They say necessity is the mother of invention.

 

Maybe. When I found myself without any "baked" corn tortillas or toast to make a tostado, a light bulb went off, make a tortilla-less tostado, make it in a bowl. I have avoided Bowl recipes for some reason but this Tortilla-less Tostado recipe works great as a Bowl recipe.

 

While in my Tostado phase, you will see various Tostado recipes and the ingredients will vary slightly.

A Tostado Bowl

 

Pre-preparation:

DIY Sour Cream

In a refrigerator container with a lid,

Add 3 TBspns of cream.

Add 1 TBspn of apple cider vinegar.

Stir cream and vinegar together.

Cover and store in frig for 10-30 minutes. 

 

Tostado Table of layers / Ingredients:
 

"Baked" corn tortilla / tostado (Optional)
1-2 TBspns Frijoles mashed or Canned black beans
1-2 Shakes Garlic powder
1 1/2 TBspns Canned or cooked chicken, diced or 1 Slice of Turkey Lunchmeat, sliced
2 Shakes Onion flakes
1 TBspn Canned Salsa
Black pepper (Optional)
1-3 TBspns Lettuce slivers, Salad, or coleslaw mix, or cabbage slivers

1-3 Avocado slices or guacamole (Optional)
1-2 TBspns Cheese, shredded or grated
1 -2 TBspns DIY Sour cream

 

 

Process:

 

If you don't have a "baked" tortilla, use a bowl.

Add ingredients in the order of the table above.

 

 

Coming Soon! My Interview with Antoinette G. Lane, Author of Guy Williams: Man Behind the Mask

I am excited. I am going to interview Antoinette G. Lane, author of Guy Williams: Man Behind the Mask. Guy Williams was the actor who played Zorro in Walt Disney’s 19050s TV show.

 

When I watched Zorro in 1958, I was too young to understand much about TV production or the profession of acting. I just loved adventure stories. The show, Zorro, was exotic with its late 18th century Spanish-Mexican political setting, horses, sword-fights, and a handsome, masked hero saving the day. 

 

Later in 1965, I recall, I was happy to see Guy Williams on the show, “Lost in Space.” I know I watched the show just because he was in it. 

 

But, as life went on, I forgot about Guy Williams. 

 

Then, I found Zorro reruns on YouTube. Watching those shows brought back wonderful memories, and I wondered, “What happened to Guy Williams?” A few internet searches later I found Ms. Lane’s biography. 

 

What a treasure trove of information and she spent 19 years doing research for the book. 

 

In our interview, Ms. Lane will talk about the art and skills needed to write a biography, and about some of the wonderful experiences she had, as an author, during her years of research and more. 

 

The interview and other materials will be available around April 30, 2014. 

 

For more information on Ms. Lane's book go to: Antoinette G. Lane -- Facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/pages/GUY-Williams-The-Man-Behind-the-Mask/122605604480183

Note: Due to Blogger.com coding changes, this post had to be redone and reposted.

Microwave: Mug O'Frittata

Over time, I shifted from making a Mug dish and eating it straight from the mug to using the recipe as a Toast Topping. Now, I am using various recipes as a Quesadilla filling.

 

Also, over time, I have moved away from frying foods. Plus, I hardly every use salt in my recipes because often many of the ingredients already contain salt.

 

I do attempt to make my recipes GERD-friendly. This can not be labelled GERD-friendly primarily because it contains cheeses.

 

 

Mug O’Frittata 

(Adapted from: Recipe Tin Eats https://www.recipetineats.com/baked-vegetable-frittata/ and WikiCookBook https://en.m.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cookbook:Frittata)

Ingredients:

1 Slice Multigrain toast or “fried” Tortilla*

1 Dab of Olive oil

1 Egg

1 Dollop of Milk (lactose-free)

1-2 Drops Hot sauce

1 Tspn Parsley, dry

S/P to taste

1-2 TBspns Hard or mixed cheeses, grated

1 Slice of Turkey lunchmeat, torn into pieces

2 Heaping TBspns Canned mixed vegetable, drained & rinsed, or frozen mixed vegetables

Mayo (Optional)

Topping: 1 TBspn Canned Mushroom slices / bits, rinsed (Optional)

Garnish: parmesan cheese (Optional)

 

Process:

Add oil to mug, swirl to cover bottom and sides.

Add egg, milk, spices and S/P.

Stir and whip thoroughly.

Add cheese, vegetables and turkey pieces.

Stir and mix well.

Top with mushrooms.

Microwave on high 2 minutes.

Check to make sure all liquids have been cooked off, if not microwave 60secs or more.

Remove and garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Spread some mayo over toast or "fried" quesadilla.

Mash and spread the mixture over toast, or a tortilla and fold (It will be stuffed).

 

 

I did not use the mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, or put mayo on the "fried" quesadilla and it was fabulous and filling.

*Note: I microwaved the tortilla for about 60sec on high to "fry" it. A microwaved tortilla is not as good as a fried tortilla but I am just not frying much these days.

 

To fry a tortilla, put a bit of oil in a skillet and brown the tortilla on both sides and then while still in the skillet fill one side of the tortilla, fold over and cook a bit more. Then remove from skillet to plate.

 

Stovetop: Canned Mushrooms and Mixed Vegetable Soup

I love the Star Trek Cookbook by Ethan Phillips (Neelix from Star Trek Voyager) and William J. Birnes. I have bookmarked several recipes, this is one, Jeri Ryan's Wild Mushroom Soup. But, as you will see, my recipe does not resemble the original recipe.

 

Where I live, many powdered spices absorb moisture and harden. I decided to try and use up my hardened onion and garlic powders in this recipe. I used a bit too much. But, the end result was tasty, not a knock your socks off flavor, but tasty.

 

Most of the time, I never have all the ingredients recipes call for, so, I am usually in “Use What You Have” mode.

 

In this recipe, I did not have fresh mushrooms or potatoes, so I used canned mushrooms and canned mixed vegetables.

I did not add specific measurements, I just eye-balled it.

 

 

Canned Mushrooms and Mixed Vegetable Soup
(Inspired by: Star Trek Cookbook, Jeri Ryan’s Wild Mushroom Soup p30)

 

 

Ingredients:

 

Olive oil

Garlic powder

Onion powder

1-2 Drops Hot sauce

1 14oz Can of Sliced Mushrooms, drained & rinsed

Water

1 vegetable or chicken bouillon cube

1 14oz Can of mixed diced vegetables, drained & rinsed

Process:

 

Note: my skillet is small, a larger skillet would have been better or I could have cooked the mushrooms in the pot, first.

In a skillet, add olive oil, garlic and onion powders, and hot sauce.

Cook at medium heat, stir and cook until ingredients are thoroughly mixed and heated.

Add mushrooms.

Add oil as needed.

Stir and cook ingredients until thoroughly mixed and heated.

In a pot, add 2-6 cups of water.

Add bouillon cube.

Add vegetables.

Add mushroom mixture.

Stir well.

Bring to a boil.

Simmer 20 minutes.

Serve with crackers.

 

 

Microwave: Mug O'Mixed Fruit Bread Pudding (Non-Dairy)

I started out thinking I'd try making different Mug Recipe, then, I switched to thinking about my recipe Mug O'Diana's Bread Pudding which used raisins.

 

I thought, I have raisins. Hmmm, I have apples. I have blueberries. Let's see how this goes.

 

Then, I realized I didn't have any milk, at the moment. Then, I thought, hey, use the crema de coco (Cream of Coconut) which is cream-like. Then, I thought, try using the condensed Horchata. So, here is the result.

Microwave: Mug O'Mixed Fruit Bread Pudding

(Non-Dairy)

 

 

Ingredients:

 

A Dollop of Olive oil

A palmful of Raisins

A palmful of Dried blueberries

1/4 Apple, diced

A Tspn Crema de Coco

A Tspn Horchata

A Dollop Water

A Capful Vanilla flavoring

A Drop of hot sauce

A Grind of Black pepper

1 Slice of Multi-grain bread, torn into small bits

1 Egg

 

 

Process:

 

Add oil to bottom of mug.

Swirl oil around to coat bottom and sides of mug.

Add fruits.

Add Crema de Coco and Horchata.

Add a dollop of water.

Add Vanilla and spices.

Add bread.

Stir and mix ingredients thoroughly until bread has been mixed well with the liquids.

Add egg.

Stir and mix well.

Cover Mug with a saucer.

Microwave 2 minutes on high. Check, if mixture is still too liquidity, microwave another 30-60 seconds.

Note: saucer may pop off as mixture heats and rises.

 

I ate it straight from the mug. It was delightful and surprisingly substantial.

 

Guest Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup

As part of the Guest Recipe Posts, S sent this one.

 

 

Butternut Squash Soup

 

Ingredients:

20 oz Butternut squash, cut up

1 Medium - large onion, chopped 

3 cups Carrots, cut up

3 Tbspns butter (or olive oil)

1 Container of Vegetable broth

Vegetable base

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Topping (Optional): Roasted Pumpkin seeds

 

 

Process:

 

Sauté onion 5 minutes or until soft not brown.

Add carrots, cook another 5-7 minutes.

Add butternut squash.

1 container vegetable broth.

Salt & pepper to taste.

Cook on high until boils then to medium high for about 30 minutes.

Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable base.

After a short cooling (while still hot), mix in blender until smooth.

Add some roasted pumpkin seeds to top before serving. 

 

Note: Vegan if you use olive oil.

 

Guest Recipe: Vegetarian Mushroom Gravy

This is one of the Guest Recipes from my family and friends. 

The following is from D, a friend, who sent pics and notes for this recipe.

 

I made a vegetarian mushroom gravy yesterday and I think it would be good as a "cream" of mushroom soup, too! Here is the recipe I used and below are the adjustments I made!

Vegetarian Mushroom Gravy

Adjustments:

• Used a little butter with the olive oil
• Whole onion (instead of half)
• White Mushrooms instead of portobello
• Instead of straining it, I blended it up with an immersion blender (regular blender or food processor are probably fine too)

 

Guest Recipe - One Pan Dish - Salmon with potatoes and spinach

During this Pandemic Holiday Season, keeping in touch with family and friends is important whether by phone, video, text, email, or blog.

Exchanging recipes is one of the ways to share the holidays with family and friends.

All my family and friends are good cooks, I am the odd one out.

 

Here is the first of the Guest Recipes from my family and friends.

 

G, a friend, sent me pics and notes for the following recipe.

 

I'll guess from the pictures she sent how it was prepared.

 

One Pan Dish - Salmon with Potatoes and Spinach

Ingredients:

Leftover Bacon grease

1 Salmon piece, fresh

6 more or less, small potatoes, washed and halved

Some fresh spinach, washed and drained

2 or more Jalapeno peppers, washed, deseeded and sliced

A bit of oregano

S/P to taste

Several lemon slices

 

 

Process:

 

Add a dollop of bacon grease, or butter or oil to skillet.

Add salmon.

Top with lemon slices.

Add potatoes, spinach and peppers.

Sprinkle all with spices.

Squeeze lemon all over the ingredients.

Stir vegetables carefully to mix together.

Cover and cook on medium heat.

Stir vegetables after a few minutes.

Cover, continue cooking until vegetables are tender.

When done, you can separate the vegetables from salmon if you desire.

 

 

 

Microwave and Stovetop: Peanut Butter Popcorn

I am always amazed when I crave a snack or dessert or other food information, Spruce Eats has what I want. Plus, I like their website, it is attractive, well-organized and user friendly.

It wasn't until I searched for popcorn recipes did I realize all the ways you can "flavor" or use popcorn as a snack or dessert.

 

 

Microwave and Stovetop: Peanut Butter Popcorn

(Adapted from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/peanut-butter-popcorn-4780011)

 

1-2 Servings

 

Pre-preparation: 

Make 2-4 cups of popped popcorn.*

Ingredients:

2 Cups Popcorn, popped

2 Dollops Olive oil

2 TBspns Sugar

3 Dollops Honey

2 Dollops Vanilla flavoring

3 Heaping TBspns Creamy Peanut Butter

 

Process:

Place 2 cups of popped popcorn in a container with a lid.

Reserve any remaining popcorn for later use.

In a pan, add olive oil, sugar, honey, vanilla flavoring.

Cook on high.

Stir continually as mixture begins to boil.

Add peanut butter.

Stir thoroughly.

Reduce heat if necessary to avoid burning.

Remove from stovetop.

Spoon the amount of mixture you desire over popcorn.

Stir to coat the popcorn. It may be an uneven coating.

Reserve any remaining mixture in frig for later use.

Serve popcorn as a snack or treat.

Store any leftovers in frig.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*I made my popcorn in the microwave.

Totally Mexican Tequila Highball

It's interesting, in our lives, we are introduced to many flavors, tastes, experiences, and sights, yet sometimes, at first, we reject some of these because we think we don't like them, or they do not fit into our lifestyle. Then, at some point, we are reintroduced to these experiences and more and we have a different reaction, we like them.

I say this regarding Tamarind. When I first tasted Tamarindo juice, I thought it was a bit sour. But, in one of my grocery trips, I bought some Tamarindo juice concentrate to keep in stock for others.

I have had that Tamarindo juice for a long time. I gave away half of it and kept the rest. So, as I was cleaning the kitchen, I found the container of remaining Tamarindo juice sitting on top of a cabinet. I thought, let's get rid of this. But, before I made the decision, I decided to taste it again. Hmmm, unique flavor, a bit sweet. Commercial Tamarindo juice is pre-sweetened.

Anyway, I fly to the internet and search for Tamarindo juice recipes. Along the way, I learned a lot about Tamarind, the plant and the seeds. The tree is lovely. The seed pods fascinating and beautiful in their own way. Plus, Tamarind seeds are used in a variety of ways and often as a medicinal.

 

In Mexico, one of the things I love is that, if possible, almost every home has a garden with various fruit trees, and some have chickens. For me, that is heaven. As you walk through various colonias, besides all the trees and flowers, you can tell by some of the fallen fruit or seeds what type of fruit trees people have in their garden. Some have Tamarind trees.

As I continued my search, I found this cocktail using Tequilla and Tamarindo juice. Of course, I did not have all the ingredients listed, so I adapted the recipe and made a totally Mexican Tequilla Cocktail.

 

Totally Mexican Tequila Highball

(Adapted from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/tamarind-and-tequila-recipe-760787)

 

 

Ingredients:

 

Highball glass

Ice cubes

1 1/2 - 2 oz of Tequila reposando

1 oz Tamarindo juice concentrate

1 oz Water (optional)

A Dollop of Yucatán honey or sugar

2-3 oz Carbonated water or Ginger Ale

 

 

Process:

 

Add ice cubes to cocktail glass.

Add Tequilla.

Add Tamarindo juice concentrate.

Add water if desired.

Add honey or sugar.

Add Carbonated water or Ginger Ale

Stir to mix well.

Note: honey does not mix well but does give the cocktail a sweet flavor.

References:

Tequilla

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tequila

Tamarind

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamarind

 

 

Tamarindo (Drink)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamarindo_(drink)

 

Cathy's Kitchen Restaurant & Diner

Cathy's Kitchen Restaurant & Diner

 

 

From the ashes of the Ferguson, MO protests, Cathy Jenkins has found multiple ways to keep Cathy's Kitchen open and growing. In the midst of protests and a pandemic, Cathy has adapted. She also provides free meals during the pandemic, offers carryout and food delivery services.

"Her eclectic menu has now been served through protests, riots and a global pandemic." --Sauce Magazine

According to @CathysKitchens, Cathy Jenkins was inspired to open a restaurant after she took a two-month road trip around 2012.

 

Her menu is influenced by African-American recipe ideas.

 

 

Resources:

http://www.cathyskitchen.net  @CathysKitchens

https://www.saucemagazine.com/a/58855/cathys-kitchen-owner-cathy-jenkins-on-feeding-ferguson-throu

 

https://www.yellowpages.com/saint-louis-mo/mip/cathys-kitchen-475548665

 

  https://www.facebook.com/CathysKitchenrestaurant

 

Simple Turkey RollUp

After Thanksgiving, I had plenty of store bought, sliced turkey lunchmeat in the freezer. I like turkey.

 

It took a day or two to figure out that making a Turkey RollUp would be a great way to use the slices of turkey lunchmeat. I had some basic ingredients: Italian lettuce, cream cheese, shredded mixed cheese and some salsa.

 

When I like something I eat a lot of it. So, for about 3 days, I ate several Turkey RollUps and I was happy. Plus, I had to use that lettuce, quickly.

As I started to write this post, I wondered what is the difference between a RollUp and a Wrap? A quick internet search did not answer the question. But, in my mind, the ingredients in a RollUp are less than a Wrap, a Wrap is bulkier than a RollUp. Plus, with some Rollups, once you've made a RollUp, you can slice it vertically and make Pinwheel appetizers.

 

 

Simple Turkey RollUp

 

Ingredients:

 

1 Flour Tortilla

1 TBspn Cream Cheese

Add Ground black pepper, to taste

1 TBspn Mixed cheese, grated

1 Slice of Lunchmeat

1 Palmful of Italian lettuce or other greenery, shredded

1 Tspn of Canned salsa

 

 

Process:

 

Place tortilla on a plate.

Spread the cream cheese over the whole tortilla.

Sprinkle with ground black pepper.

Sprinkle on grated cheese.

Add lunchmeat.

Add lettuce.

Sprinkle salsa over the lettuce.

Pick an edge of the tortilla and roll it tightly towards the other edge.

Resource:

In my internet search regarding RollUps and Wraps, I found this recipe on one of my favorite recipe websites, SpruceEats:

Low Calorie Ham and Turkey Wrap

https://www.thespruceeats.com/low-calorie-ham-and-turkey-wrap-2246291

Faux Cottage Cheese

The cottage cheese here is a bit different from what I am used to. It’s a bit watery and the cheese seems like bits of cheese rather than curds.

So, I thought, I could probably make a similar DIY cottage cheese.

 

I concocted a recipe and it worked.

Faux Cottage Cheese
(Inspired by: https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Cottage-Cheese)

 

Ingredients:

Queso panela or a soft, light cheese, diced
Milk, lactose-free

1/4 - 1/2 Tsp Salt

White Vinegar

 

 

Process: 

 

In a small covered frig container, add diced / sliced bits of the cheese.

Add a dollop of milk, enough so the cheese bits are swimming in the milk.

Next, add salt and and a dollop of white vinegar.
Stir mixture thoroughly and refrigerate,

 

Faux Martini Mocktail

In my internet search on uses for leftover olive juice, I found this recipe for a Faux Martini and couldn't resist!

Faux Martini Mocktail

(Adapted from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/paleo-martini-4040395)

Pre-Prepration:

Put cocktail glass in freezer for a few minutes.

 

 

Ingredients:

 

Cold Carbonated water (or sparkling mineral water)

3 Tbspns Olive juice (manzanilla)

3 Olives (manzanilla)

 

 

Process:

 

Fill chilled cocktail glass with carbonated water. Save room for olive Juice and olives.

Add Olive juice.

Add Olives.

Enjoy.

 

An Invitation to a Virtual Book Tour Hosted by Between the Lines Bookstore

An Invitation to a Virtual Book Tour
Hosted by Between The Lines Bookstore

Yucatán Writers Association
is holding a Virtual Book Tour,
as part of their 30-Day Blog Tour.

On Tuesday, December 1, 2020
Starting at:
11:00am CT
On Zoom

Here’s the Zoom meeting link:
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/5181271083?pwd=b0lJZU95d2I4WDJ1Z1R5dS9ENmU4Zz09

Meeting ID: 518 127 1083
Passcode: 9qMXxA

 

Between The Lines Bookstore
Calle 62 x 53 y 51
Open: Wed. - Sun. 10am - 4pm.
999 242 3528