Potato, Lentil and Zucchini Pupusas with Green Chile and Black Bean Puree

Pupusas are a traditional Salvadorian dish that I discovered a few years ago.  They're basically thick corn tortillas stuffed with a seasoned filling.  I've made them with all sorts of fillings but this vegetarian option has been my favorite.  I love the smokiness of the cumin and the various textures of the corn, potatoes and zucchini.  Don't be intimidated by the ingredients or the prep.  I didn't grow up making tortillas with my grandmother but I didn't let that stop me.  And Masa flour is easier to find at your local grocery store these days.  As with any of the recipes I share here I encourage you to modify this to your own personal taste.  Experiment, take risks and enjoy the adventure.  I know I did.

Ingredient List:

Black Bean Puree:
1 c. dried black beans, rinsed and soaked overnight
2 c. water (enough to cover beans by 1 inch)
1 TBS granulated garlic
1 TBS kosher salt
1/2 TBS ground cumin
1/4 TSP cayenne pepper
8 oz. fire roasted green chilies

                                                      Filling:
1 c. diced zucchini, seeded (2 medium)
1 2/3 c. diced yukon gold potatoes, peeled (2 large)
1 c. red lentils
2 TBS minced shallots (1 medium)
1 TBS minced garlic (2 cloves)
2 TBS olive oil
2/3 c. white corn (canned or frozen), if using canned drain off liquid
1 TSP ground cumin
1 c. reserved black bean liquid
Pupusas:
2 c. Masa flour
1 1/2 c. warm water
1 TSP kosher salt

Garnish:
2 large avocados, sliced
1 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
2 c. finely shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream or plain greek yogurt for garnish

To prepare beans for bean puree cover soaked beans with the water and add the seasonings.  Bring to a boil and then simmer until beans are soft.  Add beans, reserving 1 cup of the liquid for the lentils, and the chiles to a blender and puree until smooth.

  To make filling heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add garlic, shallots and potatoes and cook until potatoes begin to brown.  Meanwhile, bring lentils and black bean liquid to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until liquid is absorbed and lentils are soft.

 Add zucchini and cumin and saute until zucchini begins to get color.  Add corn.  Continue to saute until zucchini is cooked, being careful not to overcook.  Add cooked lentils until well combined.


Meanwhile, prepare pupusa dough.  Roll into a 2 inch ball and flatten until 1/4 in thickness.  Spoon filling onto tortilla, leaving a 1/2 inch margin.  Make another tortilla and lay over filling.  Pinch together edges, making sure they are sealed.  Cover with a damp dowel while making the rest of your pupusas.  Heat vegetable oil in a large pot and fry until golden brown on both sides.



Once the pupusas are fried assemble the plates with as follows:

Ladle 1/2 cup of the bean puree onto a plate.

Add sliced avocado in a circle.

Lay 2 pupusas gently on top of the avocado slices.  Drizzle with Black Bean Puree.



 Top with cheese, cilantro and a dollop of either Sour Cream or Plain Greek Yogurt

 

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Sweet & SOUR Chicken - G Style

Growing up I wasn't the most adventurous eater.  I was typically pretty reluctant to try anything new, especially when it came to ethnic foods.  We would go out for Chinese food as a family pretty frequently and I would always get the same thing:  Sweet and Sour Chicken.  That neon pink sauce coating crispy, breaded golden brown chunks of chicken, peppers and pineapple.  I couldn't get enough.  Now that I'm older and more open to trying new things, I still get that craving for that classic favorite from my childhood.  But I also try and make things from scratch whenever possible and really can't imagine what they put in that sauce that makes it that color or flavor.  I decided that I would try and do my own take on Sweet and Sour and was pleased with the results.  As with any of my recipes there is plenty of room for personalization with this recipe.

Ingredient List:

2 large boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1 inch pieces
1/3 c plus 2 TBS flour
1 medium zucchini cut lengthwise and then into 1/2 inch slices
1 small red bell pepper cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 small yellow bell pepper cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 a medium white onion cut into 1/2 inch pieces

*make the pieces of vegetable as uniform as possible to ensure uniform cooking
1 TBS granulated garlic
1 1/4 c fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4 c reduced sodium soy sauce
3 TBS rice wine vinegar
1/2 c honey
2 TBS ground ginger, divided
1 TSP kosher salt
1/2 TSP black pepper
2 TBS toasted sesame oil
4 TBS peanut oil

In a shallow dish combine 1/3 c flour, 1 TBS ground ginger, salt, pepper and granulated garlic.  Coat chicken pieces lightly with flour mixture.  In a HOT wok add 1/2 TBS sesame oil and 1 TBS peanut oil.  Add half the chicken pieces, browning on both sides.  Remove chicken to a plate and repeat for remaining chicken.  Discard any remaining oil from wok and wipe out with a paper towel.


Add the remaining sesame and peanut oil to the HOT wok.  Add peppers and zucchini and saute until zucchini gets some color.  Add onions and chicken pieces.  Saute for 5 minutes or until zucchini is just tender.  Add sauce mixture stirring to coat all the ingredients.


Sprinkle with remaining 2 TBS of flour and stir until well combined.  For a thinner sauce use less flour, for a thicker sauce use more flour.  Sauce will continue to thicken as it cooks.  Cook uncovered for at least 5 more minutes.
Serve over rice.  *Using a 50/50 blend of chicken broth and water makes your rice more flavorful

Shepherd's Pie

So fall is finally here and I get to start making all my favorite types of dishes, soups, casseroles and all sorts of warm and homey delicacies.  A couple of weeks ago I had just gotten back from a trip and didn't really have much in my fridge when I got home.  I quickly through together some "bangers and mash" - and yes the potatoes were homemade.  The salty sausage paired with the creamy, slightly sweet mashed potatoes made me instantly want a Shepherd's Pie.  I had never made one before but figured that it was basic enough that I would be able to figure it out.  As always when taking on a dish I've never tried before I looked at several recipes online to get an idea of various preparations and ingredients before diving in.  I typically will go to either www.allrecipes.com or www.foodnetwork.com because they have a huge selection of recipes and they are available for free without any subscription.  After looking at several recipes I felt confident that I would be able to build my ideal Shepherd's Pie.  This recipe made quite a lot so if you're planning on giving it a go either invite a crowd or get your Tupperware ready to freeze some for later.  The twist came from adding fresh rosemary and nutmeg to the sauce and garlic herb goat cheese to the potatoes.  I encourage to adjust any of my recipes to your personal tastes.  If you want to use a different protein, add different vegetables or spices.  And I'd love to hear how you made any of Gloria's Food your own.

You will need:

Filling:
1/2 lb lean ground beef
1/2 lb ground pork
1 medium white onion diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 c frozen french green beans
1 1/2 c frozen peas
1/2 c sliced fresh white mushrooms
14.5 oz can of beef broth
1 c dry red wine (I used a Malbec but and Cabernet or Shiraz would also work nicely)
2 3/4 c water
1/2 c butter (1 stick)
2/3 c flour
1 TBS finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 TBS granulated garlic
2 TBS ketchup
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1/2 TBS ground nutmeg (if using fresh nutmeg use slightly less)
salt and pepper to taste
2 TBS olive oil

Potatoes:
1/2 lb white rose potatoes peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
1/2 lb yukon gold potatoes peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
8 oz garlic herb goat cheese
1 1/2 c chicken broth
1/2 c half and half
4 TBS butter
salt to taste

Equipment:
A 9X13 glass casserole dish, large pot, medium pot, and a ricer (I have a press ricer and it really helps make smooth potatoes without over working them which can cause a gummy texture)

In your medium pot add your potatoes and chicken broth.  Cover and bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer.  Potatoes are done when they are easily cut by a fork.  You want to get your potatoes going first so that they are done by the time your filling is prepared.
To start you want to brown your meat over a medium high heat in the large pot.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper as you start to brown the meat.  Once the meat is almost cooked through add the rosemary. Remove meat from pot and set aside.  Add olive oil to pot and saute onions, garlic and carrots until onions start to turn translucent.  Once the onions begin to turn, add peas and green beans. Remove vegetable mixture when carrots are still slightly firm but easily pierced with a fork.  You can add the vegetable to the meat at this time.  Reduce the heat to medium low and melt the butter.  When the butter just begins to brown.  Sprinkle in the flour and combine into a paste.  Add the beef broth and whisk together.  Add wine and water until smooth.  Once well combined add the nutmeg, granulated garlic and ketchup.  Add mushrooms and let simmer for 5 minutes.  Add in meat and vegetable mixture and let simmer while potatoes are prepared.
Once the potatoes are tender, drain off all but 1/4 cup of the chicken broth.  Rice all the potatoes, or smash until smooth.  Be careful not to over work the potatoes.  Add the goat cheese and half and half and combine over a low heat.  Once cheese is fully incorporated add butter and salt to taste.  Be careful not to over salt the potatoes as they will be combined with the savory filling.

Pour the filling into the glass casserole, leaving 1/2 of room.  Smooth out filling.  Scoop dollops of potatoes gently onto filling and spread evenly to edges of dish.  Take a fork and make decorative peaks.  If you want to get "fancy" you can pipe the potatoes on with a piping bag.

Place the casserole on a cookie sheet and bake at 375 until potatoes are golden brown.

Welcome To The World of Gloria's Food

So for a long time my friends and family have been encouraging me to start a food blog.  I've had a habit of posting my meals online as status messages or calling up my sister and, I'll say it, bragging about my most recent creation.  For me the joy of cooking is coming up with a way to take a classic dish and put a twist on it.  Or  to take flavors and ingredients that you wouldn't necessarily think of combining and putting them together to make a new classic.  I love taking risks, and they don't always work out.  There are a good amount of experiments that fail and end up in the trash.  The point is that I at least tried.  I grew up watching my mom take Monday's meal and stretch it, reinventing it day after day in order to get the most out of a limited budget and ensure that we were fed a healthy, and more importantly, home cooked meal almost every night.

I left my mother's kitchen with the skills and the courage to continue to just dive in and try to create amazing and delicious food.  With the basic techniques she taught me I was able to grow and build on the classics that we grew up eating.  Now I love being able to take classic comfort food and update it or refine it.  I also love being able to find a way to make my favorite restaurant dishes at home.  Along with comfort foods, I've loved exploring world cuisine and finding a way to incorporate international flavors into my standard dishes.

This blog will cover all my food adventures, whether they happen in my kitchen or out in the world.  I hope to share my point of view and encourage my readers to take risks in the kitchen.  Sure, not everything will get made again but without at least trying, you'll never get that masterpiece.