HAPPY 18th BIRTHDAY, My Favourite Twins On the Planet!

I can’t believe it’s been an entire year since I did a birthday post for my premium twins, Rebecca & Beth Hackfath! Time flies waaaaaaaayyy too fast…

But here we are! My girls are 18!!!!!!!! NO ONE I care about turns 18 without me making a fuss!  So I made a few treats to show off to them since I wasn’t able to be there in person for the occasion.

I asked Becca what she considers something special and yummy. She told me about this pasta bake her mom fixes — it’s creamy and chickeny and done with tagliatelle! I was unable to source that pasta so I used fettuccini for this recipe, which is very similar to tagliatelle.

THE CHICKEN BRICK

Har!!! I followed the principles of that pasta bake but kinda went backwards. I fixed the pasta in a homemade cream sauce (built up form chicken stock and roux, and a base of sauteed onions and pancetta). Tossed everything together then stuffed it in a personal sized mold. Once it cooled, I inverted it and un-molded it to make the lovely brick shape you see here. Topped it with freshly grated mozzarella cheese and homemade Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, placed under the broiler for a couple minutes and here it is!

Now for Birthday Cake!

Becca and Beth have a sweet tooth! :p So I wanted to do something sweet but not gaggingly sweet. I wanted to combine a few flavours I know work together.

Upside Down Champagne Apple & Cherry Chocolate Cake w/ Champagne Strawberry & Mint Salad

For starters, my apple slices, maraschino cherries and (diced) strawberries all marinaded in champagne! >:))) Birthday + Special People = Champagne!!!

I  made these personal sized. Start with the basic fundamentals for any upside down cake — butter & brown sugar on the bottom (you may use Vegan butter to cut calories!). Then, I layered a central slice of apple, surrounded by maraschino cherries. In goes the chocolate cake batter! I mixed diced apples into that and use some apple juice to amp the apple taste. Bake, let cool, use a knife to follow along the edge of the cake so it slips out easily, use a plate over the top of the ramekin to help flip, invert, there’s the cake!

After the inversion, I made two glazes for drizzling — both out of powdered sugar and whole milk. For once, I didn’t use soy or coconut or almond because those flavours would have conflicted with my recipe but you may use them if you please. I made one plain white and one pink! You can see the results.

My approach to the side of the plate with the strawberry & mint salad was to go at it in a bit of an abstract art style. I think it looks quite lovely! :p What do YOU think?!

And here is an Apple Tart w/ Honey on Puff Pastry

So simple to fix and so yummy! Just cut some rectangles out of thawed puff pastry sheet. Roll it out some or use your fingers to work it out to your desired length. Brush with some butter of your choice, arrange apple slices as pictured, drizzle with  some more melted butter of your choice or a good oil, like a fruity olive oil would be perfect! Bake till golden and puffy. Drizzle with honey and dust with powdered sugar! Garnish with a mint leaf and enjoy! I made a bunch of these. :p Oh, and you can drizzle the honey BEFORE baking if you want to get that baked honey thing going. So good either way.

Beth and Becca! I know this isn’t much but I’m far away and food is one way I show people I love them. 🙂 And I love you both very much! I feel we’ve really connected over the past few years and I feel lucky to count you among my very best friends, online or otherwise. Whoever said people can’t forge meaningful relationships over the internet is full of shit. :p

I’m SO thrilled to see you both turn 18! It’s a major milestone. I remember when I turned 18… kind of. ;p ~I wish I could do it all over again. You’ll probably feel like that one day so please cherish every second of your special day, relish every moment and take every pleasure in basking in all the love that surrounds you. I hope you’ve had the best celebration possible today! As I said on Facebook, I’m blowing out some birthday candles of my own here, in your honour! My wish: That you both are eternally happy!

Your Forever-Friend,

~Charlie ♥

Mexican Bonanza! ~ Zoe’s Birthday!

Last year, my friend Artist Zoe Grice and I were talking about food and we were on about how much she enjoys Mexican cuisine and — as far as proteins go — chicken!  So, considering we’re so far apart at the moment (she lives in North-East Scotland with her adorable little girl, Annie WHO IS HAVING HER 6th BIRTHDAY TODAY!), I decided to throw a serious spread here and photograph it for her! Pictured below are the results!

I had to take a picture of the black beans I prepared BEFORE they were soaked or cooked. Organic black beans here and so gorgeous! Kinda looks like gold! :p

Full spread of what I prepared for Zoe! Arroz con Pollo (Chicken with Rice), Calabacita con Pollo (a recipe of squash, onions, corn & tomatoes stewed with chicken but one can use any protein one desires, or none at all), frijoles negros, lemon wedges, fresh flour tortillas, guacamole, salsa rojo (red salsa). All prettied up with some festive decor! :p

This salsa was smooshed up in a Molcajete. It’s a fantastic little tool I grew up using like my great grandmother (from Guadalajara, Mexico) and grandmother before me.

Salsa Rojo Recipe

2-6 Serrano or Jalapeno Peppers (I personally use Serrano but you can use any pepper you enjoy, depending on the flavor and heat desired. Serrano is hotter than Jalapeno. I also enjoy using Chile Pequin, which is fabulous to grow quite wildly at home. You just have to watch the birds. The birds LOVE eating up all my peppers so I have to be quick to harvest! :p ).
1/2 white or yellow or red onion (I prefer red because it’s a bit sweeter)
1 Tomato (pick a good sized, plump Heirloom or use 2-3 Roma or half a pint of cherry tomatoes)
6 cloves garlic
1/2 cup water (or vegetable stock, or any stock you wish if you’d like to experiment with various salsa flavors to accompany certain dishes)
2-3 tbsp. rough chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp cumin (or to taste)
Kosher or Sea Salt & Fresh Ground Black Pepper (to taste)

Begin by preparing your tomato(es) for easy peeling in this fashion. Mind you, we’re not concerned with mushy tomatoes because they’re going to get pulverized in the Molcajete anyway.
In a sauce pan, bring water or stock, peppers, tomato(es), onion and garlic to a boil till quite soft, 15-20 minutes.

Remove from heat. Peel tomato by gingerly lifting up from the perforations you made in the beginning.
Transfer items to your Molcajete with a slotted spoon, bit by bit so that not TOO MUCH water comes with. There will be enough liquid souping around in the veggies/fruits as it is. You have to mash in batches because, as you mash, volume will increase and it all could overflow. Mash in small batches till desired texture. Personally, I enjoy a few good chunks but you can entirely devastate it all if you like. By the nature of this procedure, you will remain with some chunkage, regardless. Periodically add chopped cilantro and mash along with the rest till a good mix is made.

Deposit batches in a ceramic or plastic vessel till all done. Now, we can season! Amp it up with salt, pepper and cumin to taste. Return some to Molcajete for presentation’s sake and serve immediately. Reserve the rest in the refrigerator for up to seven days.

This is a general, base recipe. Now, it’s up to YOU to get creative and mash up any and all kinds of salsas your heart desires. I even make fruit vinaigrettes  in my Molcajete, like that Raspberry one I posted a bit back. 🙂

Calabacita Con Pollo

A traditional dish here usually prepared with pork but Zoe prefers chicken so that’s what I went with! You can also make this entirely vegan as the vegetables are more than substantial.

1lb Chicken Tenders (boneless/skinless duh)
1 Onion (your choice. Here, I used White), halved and sliced thinly.
1 Large Tomato, halved and sliced thinly
4-6 Mexican Baby Squash (can also use yellow and green zucchini for prettiness), cut into thin rounds, (quarter-inch or so).
2 cups Fresh corn, shaved off the cob (Frozen is fine as those products are flash frozen at the peak of their quality but if you use canned, it’s our secret! Promise! ^_~ )
1-2 Cups stock (Used Chicken stock for this particular round of cooking but you can use whatever you want. Vegetable stock would work in a vegan preparation. Also, no harm in using water).
2-4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro
1 tbsp Azafran
1 tsp cumin, or to taste
Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper to taste

First, combine stock and Azafran to constitute the herb and allow its color to permeate the liquid. If you want to get all haute cuisine, use saffron. :p

Add oil to stew pot. Heat on med-low. Season chicken tenders with your favorite spice. Nothing too full of sodium and careful not to over-season  or the stew will be too assertive. Personally, I make a House Seasoning of Sea Salt, Freshly Ground Black pepper, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder & dried Mexican oregano.
Gently brown chicken tenders in oil, minding not to cook fully and certainly not burn. We just want to get some color on each side and seal those seasonings on the outside.  About 3 minutes per side.
Remove and set aside under foil to keep warm.
Next, add onions and tomatoes, stir around a bit and cover. Allow to sweat out on med-low for about 4-6 minutes. Check it half way to assure no sticking. Give it a stir if need-be.
Add a splash of the stock and stir.
Uncover and add the squash rounds, pinwheeling them all around in a bit of a pattern. Cover. Allow to stew for 8 minutes or so.
Meanwhile chop chicken tenders in half-inch pieces.
Uncover pot. Add garlic and stir together with squash, onions and tomatoes. Careful not to destroy the squash! It’s getting delicate but it’s entirely fragile yet. Just be gentle.
Layer chicken over all that, then corn. Cover and allow to stew in own juices for 8-10 minutes over the same med-low heat. Check occasionally to assure no sticking but all that steam and condensation we’re creating is helping amp all those natural juices.
Uncover. Add Remaining stock if you like this dish more soupy. Add half if you prefer it more stewy. Cover and allow to simmer for an additional 20 minutes.
Uncover. Check for seasoning. Re-season if need-be. Add cilantro, stir. Allow cilantro to steep for a good 3-5 minutes or so and serve immediately. Use a slotted spoon for primary solids on a plate or a ladle or serving spoon for serving a more soupy dish in bowls. Goes excellent with warm tortillas! Or even tortilla chips. :p
Serves 4-6. Adjust ingredient quantities based on guests.

Guacamole!

6 Organic Haas Avocadoes (yes, I spell it in accordance with other words of the English language like “potatoes” and “tomatoes.” Apparently, both “avocados” and “avocadoes” are acceptable but considering this is where the “proper” spelling originates, I’d prefer to stick to English rules and go with the “~oes.” Additionally, I suppose I could just fall back on “Ahuacate”.)
1/2 Diced Red Onion (less if you really aren’t into raw onion.
1 Tomato, diced
1-2 tbsp. cilantro, roughly chopped
Salt, Pepper & cumin to taste
Juice of half a lemon, (less if you find the acid to assertive)

This needs to go quick! First, split, seed and scoop all your avocado into a huge bowl. Immediately add lemon juice and get to mashing it all up. The acid in the lemon juice will prevent oxidation! That means your guacamole won’t turn brown!
Add diced onion, tomato, cilantro, salt, pepper and cumin, stir to combine and serve or reserve for later use.

Chalupas!

I did these on the fly but here’s how I enjoy a crisp, refreshing chalupa. They’re even better with guacamole instead of beans but here I fried some corn tortillas in oil till crispy and smothered them with mashed pinto beans. Topped with ensalada (chopped romaine lettuce & diced tomatoes) and finished with grated Manchego cheese.

Dessert! Happy Birthday Zoe Lava Kake Kaplosion!

I wish these had come out more lava-y but ce la vie! They were yummy! :p I baked a of couple chocolate lava cakes from scratch, dressed them with drizzled powdered sugar, pipes of home made whipped cream, orange/lemon/lime zest & ribbons, blackberries and a huge carved mandarin orange with Zoe’s name carved into it!

Getting our drink on! Strawberry & Mexican Tuna Margarita (not the fish! The fruit of a cactus, the prickly pear)! :p

Margarita made w/ Gran Patron tequila & a splash of Moet White Star champagne. Strawberry & Lime garnish w/ lime zest. It was soooooo good! Just blend the strawberry, prickly pear, crushed ice and tequila together then add a splash of champagne on the top and stir GENTLY to incorporate. Garnish and have at it!

That last pic is the Prickly Pear, split. It really recalls a pomegranate. Here’s all about it. And how to peel them.

As you can see, there’s a price to pay for being my friend! I’m in the habit of spoiling people I care about so if we’re at all on good terms, chances are you will end up being stuffed to the point of forfeit! At least you’ll die happy. And full! :p