Cranberry Relish

November 2012 update: The picture I originally had of this Cranberry Relish was so embarrassing that I wanted a redo the second I published this post. Luckily, a year later, I have my chance. (Although, to be honest, I've made this relish a few times throughout the year, so I could've updated it sooner!) I still love the post, though, so I'm keeping it the same.

Definitely pick up the ingredients to make this, especially if you need a ridiculously quick side dish to take somewhere. You won't be sorry! 

(Originally published on November 18, 2011) 
I'm going to be honest, the picture above is horrible and doesn't actually show you how lip-smacking flavorful this is. I took it from my iPhone at my husband's squadron's Thanksgiving lunch today. Calling it a lunch, however, is an understatement. There were roughly 400 airmen (and women) and their families chowing down and enjoying a wonderful meal inside a giant Air Force vehicle maintenance bay—despite the lingering scent of oil and the half-assembled five-ton truck, it was perfect.

All of the families pitched in to bring food, so a few days ago I got a phone call from my husband saying, "I signed us up to take brownies, 10 pounds of mashed potatoes, and four cans of cranberry sauce, but you should make that cranberry stuff you've made before."

"That cranberry stuff" is a recipe from my lovely Grandma, and on the index card she gave me it says, "This is excellent. Add marshmallows and serve at Thanksgiving." Two years ago I took her advice and served this with our turkey and I haven't looked back since. (Although I actually prefer it sans marshmallows—I didn't get my grandma's sweet tooth.)

This relish is fruity, a tad bit tangy, and compliments turkey and ham perfectly. Fair warning: the recipe below makes a lot of relish—about six cups worth—but if you have leftovers, no worries. We've been known to eat this as a late night snack all by its lonesome, over ice cream, spread over a bagel with cream cheese in the morning, or (my favorite) on a leftover turkey sandwich!

Cranberry Relish 
by The Tale of Two Kitchens

Ingredients:
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 (16 ounce) package frozen whole strawberries, thawed and drained
2 (16 ounce) cans whole berry cranberry sauce, not drained
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
marshmallows (optional, but Grandma says it's better with them)

Directions:
Mix all ingredients in a bowl, chill, serve over turkey or ham, and enjoy!

Calabacitas

I don't know how it happened, but I'm finally getting to a point where I can make things from scratch without needing a recipe. This is a loooooooong time coming and it only holds true for a few dishes, but it's very exciting for me.

My mom used to make calabacitas (call-ah-bah-see-tas) all the time as a side dish and now I know why: it's unbelievably easy, we tend to always have the ingredients on hand, it's an excellent way to eat your veggies, and it tastes delicious! WIN!

My husband and I enjoy this at least twice a week, if not more. It works well with so many dishes—enchiladas, tacos, fish, chicken, steak, etc., and I love throwing leftovers (if we have any) into an omelet the next morning.  We've discovered it tastes best when the onions and zucchini get nice and caramelized—cooked almost to the point where you think they've been cooking a few minutes too long—that's when the flavors really mingle together, but play around with it to find a consistency that works for you.

Calabacitas 

by The Tale of Two Kitchens

Ingredients
1 tsp oil
1 onion, chopped
1 zucchini chopped into quarters
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
pinch (1/8 tsp) red pepper flakes (optional)
1 can of corn, drained
*green chile about 4 ounces, diced, pealed, drained
1/4 cup shredded cheese (cheddar, Colby/Jack, Swiss, etc.)

Directions
Heat oil in a medium skillet on medium heat. Add onions; saute until fragrant. Add zucchini; mix with onions. When zucchini starts to get soft, add salt, pepper, garlic powder (and red pepper flakes if you want some additional heat). Cook until veggies are nice and brown or to your desired caramelization (about 3-5 minutes). Stir in green chile. Once chile is heated through, mix in corn. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes. Add half the shredded cheese over veggies; stir to combine. Turn off heat; move to serving dish and sprinkle remaining cheese over the top. Serve and enjoy!

*While this tastes better with fresh chile, we've been using the canned variety for the past four months without a problem!

Spanish Rice

My mom has been making this rice for years and I love it so much that I've been known to eat it as a meal in and of itself. Actually, I eat most of it straight from the pot when I think nobody is looking. I'm sneaky like that.

Making this is simple, and I'd be willing to bet that you have everything on hand to make it at the drop of a hat. My mom and I love the onions, but if you're not a fan, leave them out. Same goes for the heat—we clearly like things spicy in our house, so we add a lot more salsa than the average person. If you want things a bit more mild, start with less and add more later.

This is definitely more of a tomatoey rice, but it's what we like and what I grew up eating. The flavors from the salsa really enhance the entire dish, so pick out a good salsa. Serve this with as a side dish to tacos, tostadas, or enchiladas, or incorporate it into a meal of its own by combining some ground beef and stuffing it into a bell pepper!

Spanish Rice

by The Tale of Two Kitchens

Ingredients:
splash of oil
1/2 small onion, diced
1 8oz tomato sauce
8 oz instant brown or white rice (use the tomato sauce can to measure)
1/2 cup salsa
salt, pepper, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes to taste

Directions:
Heat oil in a small pot. Once hot, saute onions until soft and fragrant. Set onions aside in serving bowl.

Add tomato sauce to pot and rinse can out with about half a can's worth of water; add water to pot. Boil sauce; keep an eye on it, because it won't boil like water.

Once sauce boils, add one can of rice, onions, and salsa (you can add more salsa later if you're afraid of adding too much). Cover and simmer for five minutes.

After five minutes, turn off heat, stir, and recover for an additional five minutes. Recheck rice and add additional seasonings (if needed) and continue to leave covered until rice is fully cooked, at a consistency you like, or ready to serve.

(Optional: sprinkle in some shredded cheese after cooking.)

Come join the fun at the My Baking Addiction and GoodLife Eats Holiday Recipe Swap sponsored by Le Creuset.

Chips and Salsa

Growing up in New Mexico means learning to love spicy food, and what better way to train your palate than with tasty salsa? You know how Italian restaurants usually start out with olive oil and bread on the table? Well, New Mexican restaurants are notorious for providing little bowls of chips and salsa for customers to enjoy before their meal. Salsa is, by far, my favorite condement. There's nothing like walking into any New Mexican grocery store and seeing an entire aisle filled—from top to bottom—with jars of salsa.

My Tia Anna makes the most unbelievable homemade salsa. It's so good that I used to show up at our family functions early just to pour some of her salsa in my own to-go container (okay, it was usually a plastic cup) so I could be sure to have some when I went home. She quickly caught on to my scheme and started bringing me my very own container of salsa.

But that wasn't enough. One day I finally asked her how she made it so I could make it at home. Then she said the one phrase every person who fears the kitchen is afraid of hearing: "Oh, I don't measure anything; I just put a little of this and a little of that in there." Drats. Luckily, she wrote everything down the next time she made it.

This is my version of her salsa, and it's so simple to make. I should note that everything here can be modified. My husband doesn't like cilantro, so I usually put in a little less. And if you don't have green chile, just use jalapenos. The same goes for the texture: if you like chunky salsa, don't puree it as much. Do you have fresh tomatoes on hand? Go for it! A couple other things to keep in mind: taste as you go, but keep in mind that the flavors will mingle together more in the fridge; and try not to oversalt, because most ot the time you'll be scooping this salsa up with a salty chip (recipe below)!

Salsa

from The Tale of Two Kitchens

Ingredients:
2 (14.5 oz) cans of diced tomatoes (drained)
1/2 medium white or yellow onion, diced
3 tablespoons green chile (or jalapenos, to taste)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 cup cilantro, chopped

Stir all ingredients together. Mix to preferred texture in a food processor, blender, or with an immersion blender. Refrigerate and enjoy!

Tortilla Chips

from The Tale of Two Kitchens

Ingredients:
6-inch corn or flour tortillas, cut into triangles
olive oil
salt

Preheat oven to 400° F. Line baking sheets with foil. Spray or brush both sides of tortilla triangles with oil. Place triangles on baking sheet not touching. Sprinkle with salt. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden.

Potato Casserole

I'm always looking for a new way to whip up a potato. While I do love the traditional baked potato, it gets a little boring sometimes. My husband has an adoration for anything in casserole form. When he see's me pull out his favorite red casserole dish he practically dances with excitement. Not to down talk my husband, it is all because of him I come up with some fabulous meals! I was making steak the other night and didn't want a normal baked potato or even mashed potatoes. I had an abundance of bell peppers and little red potatoes. Anytime I have ingredients but am not sure what I'm going to do with them out comes the red casserole dish. Cue dancing. Now I realize the picture isn't "pretty" in the normal sense of the word but in casserole world, it's crispy, it's cheesy, it's gooey... it's beautiful.

Potato Casserole

Ingredients:
1 lb red potatoes (small)
1 of each red, green, yellow and orange bell pepper- julienned
1 small yellow onion- diced
2 cloves of garlic
Olive oil- to coat pan
1/3 cup light sour cream
1/4 cup mozzarella
1/4 cup cheddar cheese
1 tsp rosemary
Salt and Pepper- to taste
Johnny's Garlic Spread-(optional) if you don't own this, order it NOW! Thanks to my fabulous Mother in Law for introducing me to this. It now goes on everything I make, YUM.

Directions:
Wash and boil the potatoes till cooked. In the meantime saute onion and bell peppers in olive oil over medium heat. Once the peppers are soft add the garlic, continue to cook until caramelized but not burnt and lifeless. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drain potatoes and slightly mash them, leaving them smashed but still chunky. Place the potatoes in a greased dish and top with the peppers, onion, and the pan juices. Drop spoonfuls of sour cream on potatoes. Sprinkle with mozzarella and cheddar. Season with Johnny's Garlic Spread, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and cover with foil. Bake at 325 degrees until bubbly and gooey, about 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for about 5 minutes more to give it a crispy top.

Collard Greens

I tried Collard Greens for the very first time at Paula Deen's restaurant, Lady and Sons. And let me tell you, if you're ever going to try a food for the very first time, Paula Deen's version is the best way to try it. I was hooked from that first bite and vowed to recreate it at home.

Since then, I've made this multiple times and love it more every time. With so much flavor packed into these greens, they're so good that I've eaten them as a meal and a side dish, but my favorite way to eat them is straight out of the pot right around the time that they're finished cooking.

If thinking about collard greens makes you squeamish, you're not alone. The first time I told my husband I wanted to make these, he looked at me like I was crazy and then said he'd try "one" bite. Emphasis on the "one." Then he tried it and had not one, but two heaping servings. These are not only quite delicious; they're very nutritious. Collard greens are packed with antioxidants, vitamins, fiber, and are just straight up good for you! And even though this recipe calls for four slices of bacon, you can chalk the bacon up to a great flavor enhancer.

Spicy Collard Greens

adapted by Sunny Anderson

Ingredients:

• four slices of bacon, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (less if you don't want it too spicy)
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 pound collard greens, chopped
• 3 cups chicken or veggie stock
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste; the bacon ads enough salt for us, so I don't add any extra)

Directions:
In a large pot over medium heat, cook bacon until crisp. Remove cooked bacon; drain on paper towel. Add onions and saute until slightly softened, about 2 minutes. Add red pepper flakes, garlic, and bacon; cook another minute. Add collard greens; stir and cook another minute. Add chicken or vegetable stock, cover and bring to a simmer. Cook until greens are tender and dark green, about 40 minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Pesto Couscous

I've been meaning to post this for a few weeks and my procrastinating side got the best of me. I almost forgot about it until I saw Jessica's pesto recipe the other day I figured this would be perfect timing. You can certainly use whatever pesto you'd like but I would highly suggest using Jessica's recipe. This is a super quick brainless dish. It can be made a main dish with some veggies and meat thrown in or a side dish to practically anything else. I've found it's really good with pork chops.

Pesto Couscous

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups couscous dry
4-5 Tbsp pesto
Olive Oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp thyme
1/4 cup Parmesan- optional

Directions:
Prepare couscous according to package directions. Add garlic powder and thyme while cooking. Take off heat when cooked and toss with pesto. If it's too dry feel free to add more pesto. Drizzle with olive oil and top with grated Parmesan. Perfectly simple and good to your waistline!

Gnocchi with Onion Cream Sauce

I got a bottle of Vidalia Onion Vinaigrette as a gift yesterday. I didn't want it to just be used on salad, so I though it just might make a great pasta sauce. When I first typed Onion Cream Sauce I deleted it and tried to think of a better name because it sounds nasty. But that's what it is! And it's not nasty it's delicious. So I'm going to leave it at that and not worry about how it sounds. The gnocchi could easily stand alone as an entree but I served it as a side dish to a pan fried steak and roasted parmesan broccoli. So good! Enjoy!

Onion Cream Sauce
Ingredients:
1/2 cup low fat ricotta cheese
1/3 cup low fat sour cream
Juice of 1 small lemon
1 1/2 tsp of minced garlic
4 Tbsp Onion Vinaigrette (or other thick dressing)

Mix ingredients to combine and refrigerate unless using immediately. Boil gnocchi and serve with heated sauce. I heated the sauce in the same pan used to cook the steaks. It gives the sauce a deeper, and in my case buttery flavor. Top the gnocchi with parmesan cheese. Eat it on it's own or make it a side dish, enjoy!